Article by Michele DeKinder-Smith
Are you prepared for explosive growth? What will you do when it happens?
Does every entrepreneur seek growth opportunities? Growth can mean more customers, more income, or more opportunities to explore new ideas. Although exciting, growth also brings its challenges, and can spiral out of control if it’s not handled properly, causing a setback as big as the potential expansion. Our research shows that the five types of female entrepreneurs have very different attitudes toward business growth (some want it, some don’t!) and each will respond to growth opportunities differently. This article will examine the attitudes and reactions of Jane Dough, Merry Jane, and Go Jane Go.
Jane Dough
She is an entrepreneur who enjoys running her business and makes good money. She is comfortable and determined in buying and selling, which may be why she’s five times more likely than the average female business owner to hit the million dollar mark. Jane Dough is clear in her priorities and may be intentionally and actively growing an asset-based or legacy business. It is estimated that 18% of women fall in the category of Jane Dough.
Because Jane Dough is business-minded and pragmatic, she probably has a plan in place for handling growth. In fact, business growth is something she’s striving for, with most Jane Doughs saying they want to grow significantly within the next couple of years. As a result, she has no doubt delegated individual tasks to specific team members, putting her team and her business in an ideal position to take advantage of the appropriate opportunities that come her way. She has a system – and it’s in place and ready to roll.
Although Jane Dough’s systematic approach is one of her many strengths, there is a flip side to high levels of delegation. Sometimes Jane Dough relies too much on the system. She moves quickly to fuel her business growth, so she may not always be in touch with what’s happening within every functional area. When large opportunities come knocking while Jane Dough is distracted, weaker parts of the system can break down.
The solution: When massive growth arrives – and it will – a Jane Dough entrepreneur should gather her team for a quick check-in, making sure everyone and every system is aligned and ready to do its part in creating success. In doing so, she’ll make sure resources are allocated appropriately and can create plans to strengthen any weak spots.
Merry Jane
She tends to be “building a business on the side”—in addition to a day-job, or a focus on family or other pursuits. She doesn’t have a high personal income from her business, but she also tends to be working less than 40 hours a week, and she loves the freedom her business affords her.
Because Merry Jane’s focus is more on time freedom than on “big money,” major growth opportunities can be a daunting proposition. While many women in this group dream of a day when they land the mega-customer, Merry Jane does not. Although many know they are capable of building a much larger business, now is not the time. During interviews, when asked what they would do if faced with the chance to take on a big new account, most quickly came to the conclusion that unless they could manage the account in their own way and time, they would let the opportunity pass them buy rather than disrupt their lives.
However, many Merry Janes admit they would like their business to be more profitable, wanting more money without much additional work. Therefore, when faced with a growth opportunity, Merry Jane can consider several options:
* She can hire someone to take over some of the more mundane, day-to-day business chores, like bookkeeping and responding to customer e-mails, freeing more of her time to pursue the new business without taking up more time?
* She can pursue the new opportunity at higher rates, therefore increasing her profit. This may mean letting go of less profitable customers or delegating their care to someone else.
* Or, she can stand firm, turning the immediate opportunity down, knowing that at some point in the future, she may have more time available for new customers.
Whatever she decides, Merry Jane should stay true to the reasons she loves her business now so that she doesn’t add undue stress and time-pressure to her already busy life.
Go Jane Go
She is passionate about her work, and has no problem marketing and selling herself, so she has plenty of clients—but she’s struggling to keep up with demand. She may be a classic overachiever, taking on volunteer opportunities as well, because she’s eager to make an impact on the world and may really struggle saying “no”. Because she wants to “say yes” to so many people, she may even be in denial about how many hours she actually works during the course of a week. As a result, she may be running herself ragged and feeling guilty about neglecting herself and possibly others who are important to her.
Overall, most Go Jane Go women don’t seek out growth opportunities because they are already fairly busy. However, when an opportunity crosses their path, they will feel compelled to “make it work somehow.” Go Jane Go truly wants to help those who need her products or services, so it is difficult for her to turn them away. And because she’s excellent at multi-tasking, this Jane may underestimate the time that will be required or may justify sacrificing personal time in order to help someone else.
This is why Go Jane Go must be careful not to overwork herself. When faced with a growth opportunity, Go Jane Go will want to think critically about the amount of work she already has scheduled and either “say no,” attempt to postpone the project, or delegate some or all of the work. If she is not willing to do so, she will eventually face serious burn out – so it’s very important that this Jane be realistic about her available time and energy for new opportunities.
While every female entrepreneur dreams of growth, when it really comes, it can seem like a huge challenge – and though it may be, handling it the right way can create a huge payoff.
About the Author
Michele DeKinder-Smith is the founder of Jane out of the Box, an online resource dedicated to the women entrepreneur community. Discover more incredibly useful information for running a small business by taking the FREE Jane Types Assessment at Jane out of the Box. Offering networking and marketing opportunities, key resources and mentorship from successful women in business, Jane Out of the Box is online at www.janeoutofthebox.com
Author: Pamela Swift
Article Contributed by Joe McVoy
As with any other venture, you would also need to improve upon your Restaurant Delivery Service business in order to ensure a continuing success. Simply resting on your laurels would get you nowhere, and competitors might come and lessen the profits that you gain. By improving your delivery business, you would be able to ensure that your service would not fall by the wayside as the months go by.
1. Increase your service hours.
One way to improve your restaurant delivery service business would be to try and increase your service hours. If you had been previously content with serving lunch or afternoon meals, then perhaps you can now also try and deliver breakfast items to your clients. By doing this, not only would you be able to give your business a chance to earn more profits through the previously untapped morning sales, but also raise awareness in your clients that you are now catering to more of their needs.
2. Expand your menu.
Another improvement that you can make is by expanding the menu that you have. Perhaps you can try contacting other restaurants in order to add more products to your menu. Doing this helps your business by adding variety to the food that you offer. This would help avoid your clients getting tired of the “same old food” that they get from your delivery service.
3. Check your service.
Also, improvements to your restaurant delivery service business do not have to mean adding services. It could also mean that you would just raise the quality of the service that you already provide. Maybe you can find ways to improve delivery time, or find methods to ensure that the food that you deliver would come as “fresh off the kitchen” as possible.
4. Deliver your own food products
Another way to expand and improve your business is to maybe include your very own food products on the menu. This can be a very good way, if you have your own restaurant, to promote your products and get two stream of profits at the same time.
5. Create a system that can work even when you are not there.
There is a saying that if you can leave your work on its own, it is a business; and if you can not leave it, you have a job. In improving your restaurant delivery service business, you need to set up a system that can be repeated over and over again, even when you are not there. Good thing about this business is that you do not have to manage it closely. All you need to do is a comprehensive business plan or strategy to make sure that your food delivery service business will operate even when you are on a holiday or vacation.
These are merely suggestions. Remember that improving on your restaurant delivery service business can come in many forms. You would just have to find the best one that matches the ideals of your service business.
For more information on how to ensure the success of your restaurant delivery service business, get your free report at http://www.dine-in-delivery.com/dine-in-delivery-free-report/.
Dine-in Delivery provides you with a proven system and solid years of experience to help you set up your own restaurant delivery service business.
About the Author:
Joe McVoy is the VP for Marketing of Dine-In Delivery Inc. For more information about starting your own food delivery service business, visit www.Dine-In-Delivery.com.
Article Contributed by Michele DeKinder-Smith
Over the past 20 years, the number of businesses owned by women has grown by more than 42%. In fact, in 2008, women-owned firms accounted for more than 1.9 trillion dollars in sales.
But while more and more women are eager to become small business owners, they’re also still facing more challenges than men. Businesses owned by women are nearly 50% less likely to reach the million dollar mark—and often produce less return on investment for hours worked.
A new study by Michele DeKinder-Smith, market research professional and founder of the website www.janeoutofthebox.com, has recently released a study that reveals five different types of female entrepreneurs. Each personality type has a different approach to business, along with different strengths and challenges.
Success can be defined in many ways and it’s clear that each of the five types have their own definition of success. Taken overall, if we consider business revenue and personal satisfaction with work/life balance, one might say that the type that is most conventionally successful is the type known as “Jane Dough”.
Why should we pay attention to Jane Dough? Comprising 18% of all female entrepreneurs, she’s five times as likely to hit the million dollar mark as the average female entrepreneur. She’s also one of the groups most satisfied with her work/life balance. So, if growing a large business while working reasonable hours is important to a business owner, she can learn from Jane Dough’s characteristics, behaviors and decisions.
Here are some of the traits that tend to make Jane Dough so successful.
1) Focus on growth
Running a business is filled with a ton of minor details, every day of every year. But Jane Dough has learned how to personally stay focused on the big picture: growing her business. This means getting past the details, the billable hours and the overdue invoices—and paying attention to the process of getting (and handling!) more business, in less time.
2) Building teams and systems
Jane Dough knows there’s only so much a woman can do by herself. Because business growth is an important goal, she’s learned how to build a team and delegate responsibility. This means using systems that create leverage and prevent her from falling victim to the ‘dollars for hours’ trap.
3) Prioritization
Along with a focus on growth and systems, Jane Dough tends to prioritize those activities that will make her the most amount of money with the least amount of personal time expended.
4) Looking ahead
How does Jane Dough stay so focused on exactly what she needs to do to grow a successful business? Well, many of these women started their companies with a big vision and/or they are intentionally building a business they can later sell or pass on to their children. These big, longer-term priorities help her stay consistently focused on the big picture.
5) Putting in the hours—but leaving work at work
Jane Dough is the type of entrepreneur who’s willing to put in the hours it takes to make her business successful. However, unlike some other types of female entrepreneurs, for whom business can be intensely personal, Jane Dough understands that work is work and that tomorrow is another day. Because she’s supported herself with systems that give her the flexibility to problem-solve when she needs to, she feels confident that she can and will be able to manage things during the hours she has designated for work. Yes, she might check her email in the evening after she’s home, but she’s not going to consistently find herself spending her personal time as a slave to demanding customers. Her ability to mentally keep work and personal life reasonably separated and her perspective and confidence that she can solve any problems tomorrow contributes to her higher-than-average work/life balance.
6) Confidence in marketing and selling
While many women in business express concerns about their ability to successfully market their business for profitability, Jane Dough is highly confident in selling both herself and her business. This confidence (which can be learned!) is a major factor in her financial success.
7) Perspective
When the going gets tough, Jane Dough stays focused, and doesn’t let doubt creep in. She tends to view challenges and setbacks objectively rather than personally, and keeps focused on her big picture goals. Jane Dough loves her business and she keeps it in perspective, as well.
About the Author:
Michele DeKinder-Smith is the founder of Jane out of the Box, an online resource dedicated to the women entrepreneur community. Discover more incredibly useful information for running a small business by taking the FREE Jane Types Assessment at Jane out of the Box. Offering networking and marketing opportunities, key resources and mentorship from successful women in business, Jane Out of the Box is online at www.janeoutofthebox.com.
This article is by our guest writer Sandra Hajda, a freelance journalist, publisher and avid investor. Sandra resides in Melbourne and can be contacted at hajdasandra@hotmail.com.
History shows that a bad sales run is not the end of the world. One clever marketing move can pull a company out of a slump and back into business.
1. Bauer Hockey
The Challenge:
Bauer should have had it made – in 1927 they were the first company to begin producing hockey skates in which the blade was attached to the boot!
Like any company that produces a jaw-dropping innovation, Bauer enjoyed a brief, initial dream run. It lasted until the 1930s, when the legendary George Tackaberry boot arrived on the scene. The Tackaberry boot (with its own, admittedly less dramatic innovation: the CCM Pro-Lite blade) was worn by all NHL scoring champions between 1939 and 1969.
The Move:
Bauer rose to the top through innovation, and innovation would get them back there. The company returned to prominence after paying superstar Bobby Hull to promote their products.
These days we’d call it ‘good old-fashioned celebrity endorsement’. Back then it was a revelation – this was one of the first companies to pay a superstar to endorse their product. It paid off enormously, ushering in a new era for Bauer.
The rest, as they say, is history.
Today:
Bauer are still innovating – they’ve just released the Vapor X:60, a revolutionary new stick that’s ‘great news for goal scorers’.
2. Guess Jeans
The Challenge:
During the 80s Guess was one of the most popular brands of jeans. When the nineties arrived, so did some stiff competition (Calvin Klein, Diesel, Tommy Hilfiger, and Gap started rising in popularity) and Guess’ stock dropped dramatically.
Guess was also taking a beating in the press. Awareness of sweatshop expolitation was rising in America, and they were recognised as a major offender in this area. Guess contractors were facing litigation for failing to pay their employees minimum wage or provide adequate overtime – a nasty kind of company.
The Move:
By the 00s the sweatshop controversy of the 1990s was largely forgotten. Guess seized the opportunity to execute its own revival, the only way a fashion house knows how: a dramatic new look and style.
Marketing ads grew increasingly sexier – the Guess girl as we know her today (pouty lipped, shiny-skinned, luxuriously attired) emerged. Sales skyrocketed, a new market was tapped, and provocative billboards became a Guess mainstay. Many a male driver probably came close to his end ogling an 8-foot tall Guess girl.
Today:
Guess are making moves into the menswear market. In 2006 they introduced the Marciano men’s line, available exclusively on the website Guess.com. A line of men’s shoes (from sandals to dress shoes) is also beginning to enjoy success after a slow 2006 start.
3. The Body Shop
The Challenge:
In the early years Body Shop founder Anita Roddick had it made – she had a talented cosmetologist (Mark Constantine) who helped her create ‘natural’ (by the standards of the time) products with fashionable colours and fragrances.
When Constantine left in the 80s (the cosmetologist had entrepreneurial dreams of his own – he went on to found Lush Cosmetics) he left Roddick directionless. What would she do? How could the fledgling company make its mark?
The Move:
In 1986 the Body Shop began to do something very curious with its promotions. The marketing started to sound less like ‘marketing’ and more like activism. Educational posters about social causes appeared in shop wondows. Local charity and community events were sponsored. The company’s ‘No Animal Testing’ policy was emphasised at every turn. A ‘Body Shop Foundation’ emerged, and an alliance with Greenpeace was secured.
Every new product promotion was tied to a social cause. Jojoba Oil, for example, would help ‘save the whale’ (it was a substitute for whale spermaceti).
Roddick built a reputation for innovation, integrity and social responsibility, and the alignment with social causes generated massive free publicity.
When the Body Shop’s stock was floated on the London Exchange its price increased by 500%. Body Shop shares earned a nickname: ‘the shares that defy gravity’.
Today:
The Body Shop is now owned by the L’Oreal corporate group. This has attracted criticism (L’Oreal has a history of animal testing) but L’Oreal claims it has not tested on animals since 1989 – around the time it joined forces with Roddick. Roddick has told reporters she sees herself as ‘a kind of “trojan horse” who by selling her business to a huge firm will be able to influence the decisions it makes’.
Article Contributed by Kendall SummerHawk
While a rosier global economic forecast may still be a few months away, smart entrepreneurs are taking control of their cash flow now, and wisely implementing simple strategies to increase how much they make and how much they keep.
Good news is, it’s surprisingly simple to take control of your cash flow right now. And, what’s really cool is that once you put these strategies into place, your business will thrive even during times like these, which positions your income to soar once the rest of the economy emerges from this cycle.
The trick is to take an active role in how you create the income you want, as opposed to sitting back and passively waiting for “your luck” or “things” to change. Creating more money flowing into your business has nothing to do with luck, and everything to do with knowing the right actions to take.
Which is why I’m sharing five simple tips to help you get a handle on your cash flow now, so you’re sitting pretty in the “money driver’s seat.” (These tips are excerpted from my Certified Money, Marketing and Soul™ Coach training program.
1. Where’s The Money Coming From?
Now is the time to take a look at how many income streams you have and discover where you have untapped opportunities to offer a wider selection of services. For example, if you offer 1-on-1 services and maybe the occasional teleclass, then now is the time to plan the launch of a new teleseminar series, a 6-month high-end program or begin to offer 1-day intensives. This will dramatically increase your cash flow with very little additional effort on your part.
2. Raise The Value — And Your Pricing — Of What You Already Offer
If you haven’t changed your services in a while then chances are you’re not only significantly undercharging, but you’re probably also giving away too much for too little. The first thing I do with my clients is help them redesign their current service offers so they’re offering greater value to their clients, at a much higher price. Everyone wins because your clients get a better package and you’re leveraging your time so you make more money in less time.
3. Start Tracking Your Income…Daily!
Every day I write down the total amount of money I’ve brought in. At first you may think you don’t have enough coming in to bother with this type of tracking. Trust me, by paying attention to money in this way, more of it will flow towards you, faster and faster. Every client I’ve coached to take this action has reported making more, faster!
4. Know What Your Money Bug-a-Boos Are
Money is a highly emotionally charged topic so you may have unfounded beliefs, old values or unsupportive behavior regarding money that no longer serve you. This is normal so don’t sweat it; just do something about it. For example, if you assume people won’t pay more for your services or you frequently offer discounts, this tells me your money bug-a-boo is being too quick to judge what your clients value.
I recommend checking out one of my programs or home study courses. These resources will help you make dramatic mindset, and behavior shifts, regarding money so you’re no longer held prisoner by the past.
5. Consider This Popular Way To Even-Out Your Monthly Cash Flow
My monthly income used to spike and dip like a roller coaster, until I added membership (continuity) programs to my business model. Once I did, I had steady, reliable money flowing in. Since then, I’ve redesigned my entire business to be 75% membership based. Every business has the opportunity to create a membership program of some sort.
There’s even a company that offers horse vitamins on a monthly, auto-ship basis (to the tune of several hundred million dollars per year!). So get creative or get coaching on how you too, can add continuity to your business.
Solving Cash Flow Issues Simply Means Being Creative
Keep your approach to solving your cash flow issues simple. Most of all, be willing to look at what is working, and what is not working so you can let go of old habits that are costing you too much in terms of your time and potential revenue. This may mean refocusing how you spend your time but the results will be well worth it!
About the Author
Kendall SummerHawk, the Million Dollar Marketing Coach, is an expert at helping women entrepreneurs at all levels design a business they love and charge what they’re worth and get it. Kendall delivers simple ways entrepreneurs can design and price their services to quickly move away from ‘dollars-for-hours work’ and create more money, time, and freedom in their business. For free articles, free resources and to sign up for a free subscription to Kendall’s Money, Marketing and Soul weekly articles visit www.kendallsummerhawk.com.