Know your enemy, know your self . . .

Modern warfare writings (Sun- Tzu, The Art of Warfare) and traditional philosophy (Socratic teachings) identify the two key tenants of any business strategy: Know your enemy and know your self . . .

Understanding your competition (the Enemy) allows you to understand the market, the opportunity and to proactively react to his strategies to gain market share. Whenever someone tells me "there is no competition," I know immediately that entrepreneur doesn't know his market.

Knowing yourself helps you address your own short comings. if you can't be the low cost provider due to lack of economies of scale or distribution channels, then your marketing strategy has to be about something other than price. Maybe it's service, maybe it's responsiveness. But knowing your weaknesses allows you to compensate for them in the market.

Get Out and Vote . . .

Image by ML Designs, SF

All by myself

All by myself . . . Don't wanna be, all by myself anymore . . .
All by myself . . . Don't wanna live, all by myself anymore . . .

Jamie O’Neal’s lyrics sound like a description of self-employment. What start up entrepreneur hasn’t spent days in his boxers and fuzzy slippers? Are you a little too chatty with the barista at Starbucks? Honestly, starting a business can be a lonely place. We are innately social creatures. So, get out of the house!

Here are some relatively inexpensive means of growing your business and saving what’s left of your sanity:

• Network with your local Chamber of Commerce . . .
• Brush up your speaking skills with Toastmasters . . .
• Maintain business relationships at an industry conference
• Take a business class at the SBA . . .
• Find inner strength, take a yoga class . . .
• Check out the Small Business Development Center at your local community college . . .

Volunteering is an excellent way to alert people to your business while offering your help to others. When you volunteer your company to help local charities, for example, it helps get you recognized in the community as well as find potential customers.

It is very important that we recognize our own needs. There are a lot of reasons for going into business for yourself. Be alone isn’t usually one of them. Get out there!

Do you need to BLOG?

As a small business owner, you just don't have enough to do right? And I am here to tell you to do one more thing. Honest, it's for your own good. Start a BLOG. Why? Because Search Engines love 'em.

If you are reading this, and I assume you are - duh! Then, you are experiencing a blog first hand. Simply put, a BLOG is a web log or an online journal. Simple, concise and often expressing the opinions of the site owner, they are a amazing marketing tool because get you higher rankings on search engines.

BLOGS were sleepy littlle tools until the current election season. All of a sudden wannabe politcal pundants had a tool to express their opinion to the world. It was easy, it was quick and it was effective. I only mention this becuase if it worked for them, it can work for your business.

You've spent untold time and money on your site because someone like me told you had to have one. You launched the sight and sat back waiting for the dollars to roll in. Funny thing, no one visited your site. The only hits you were getting to your site were you checking to see if you got any hits. That’s because no one knew you existed.

Enter Search Engine Optimization (“SEO”), the time intensive world of html, meta tags, keywords, adwords and headers. Have I lost you, yet?* I'll cut to the chase: SEO means higher rankings which mean higher visibility on Google and Yahoo!

Remember search engines:

• Love text
• Dislike pop-ups, JavaScript and extraneous code
• Love fresh content

All these elements are easily satisfied with a blog. Oh, yea and they are freeand easy!!

*If you need a SEO refresher visit -www.dohertyassoc.com/articles/search_engine_optimization.pdf

A little bit of class or Executive Etiquette 101

Every so often, business requires us to dust off the ole black tie and make ourselves presentable. Recently, on such an occasion, I was asked to give a toast to the guest of honor. It's been awhile, so I did a little homework . . .

Nothing sets the mood or makes a guest feel like part of the group than a well-delivered toast. The first toast is traditionally the job of the host (guests may follow with their own). If you keep a few simple rules in mind, you'll be quite the Toastmaster. . .

• Always stand to make a toast, sit to receive one.
• Face the person you are toasting and raise your glass.
• Be clever if you can (if that is not your strength, consider a well know adage that is appropriate to the situation).
• When in doubt, toast to their health and wish them good fortune.
• Remember, it's a toast, not a speech. Keep it short.
• Finish the toast by raising your glass and making eye contact when the glasses clink together.
  

And remember NEVER

• Solicit business in a toast (Oh, you'd be surprised!)
• Betray a trust.
• Make your guest uncomfortable by relaying an embarrassing story.
• Thank a guest for his business. Instead, thank them for their friendship, support or guidance.

Finally, it is polite to return the favor and briefly toast the person who toasted you. A simple thank you and acknowledgement of their hospitality is quite acceptable.