July - August, 2019 Volume 16 -- Issue 90 If your small business can't seem to find, recruit and retain a constant stream of customers and clients, is it your own fault? It might just be. What steps have you taken to become more visible and [...]
May - June, 2019 Volume 16 - Issue 89 It’s definitely a no-brainer to understand that customers are the most important thing your small business has going for it. Without them, there will be no sales, no revenues coming in, no cash flow and no profit. Furthermore, there will be no satisfied customers to act as brand ambassadors for your company. How can we take better care of our customers? [...]
Focus on Increasing the Value of Your Small Business Every entrepreneur would love to boost the value of his or her small business. Opinions differ as to which strategies are best to add meaningful value in weeks or months as opposed to years or decades. Fret not, you can significantly increase the value of your small business in a short period of time if you implement proper strategies. Even if you do not end up with an offer that knocks your socks off, increasing the value of your small business just might inspire a lofty bid at some point [...]
Why on earth would anyone want to sell their small business? With all of those favorable reasons to go out on your own, who would want to give it all up? Pride, recognition and job security are a few of the positive features of owning your own business. Long hours, major learning curves and staying afloat during a lagging economy are three less positive features of your own business. Selling your small business may be one way to avoid those less favorable business elements. Beside those pros and cons, there are a number of very logical reasons a business owner [...]
What are business support pillars? Never heard of them? Sounds like it’s time for some education into the most important and basic of business elements. I’m referring to Pillars – Critical Business Support Pillars. Pillars provide not only support for the company, but allow a strong, stable small business to be built using these support elements. Just like when a home or public building is planned, a strong support structure needs to come first. Pillars provide support and strength to hold the building up. Pull one out and your structure is in danger of collapsing. The same can happen if [...]
Sometimes marketing can be a major mystery for small business owners. It's often just one more part of the business you have to fit into your schedule. To be effective, it is important to stay informed about current marketing tools and processes. And, yes, all of this takes time. Often it is time you really don't have to spare while you are running your business and dealing with each day's challenges. Understanding the best marketing messages and which channels will put you in front of prospects who will buy from you is critical. But, maintaining control of marketing is [...]
If owning and operating a small business successfully was easy, everyone would be doing it. So many entrepreneurs dive into the small business pool with little or no research or preparation under their belt. That approach causes some entrepreneurs to sink to the bottom right away, or just tread water. Either way will leave them in one place with no movement in a positive direction. Somehow, they think they can do it – often alone - then find themselves struggling to survive. Small business pain points can take you down if not addressed. Without pre-planning and setting up business processes, [...]
March - April 2019 Volume 16 -- Issue 88 Remember when you were just a kid growing up? Like everyone else, we all went through what our mothers fondly referred to as growth spurts. Those were times when we seemed to grow faster and change more quickly than normal. Social media seems to have been going through those types of growth spurts as long as they have been in existence. There is nothing sporadic about it for them. It is always going on. Change seems to be a constant for those [...]
Big news, no, make that awesome news came for Maurer Consulting Group. We received notice from Anuj Agarwal, founder of FeedSpot, that our 'Designing Strategies' blog made their list of 100 Top Small Business Blogs, Websites and Newsletters for 2019. Actually, 130 sites are mentioned. But it was such an honor to find our blog among some of the best that have made big names for themselves. Maurer Consulting Group as been in helping small businesses grow and succeed since 2002. Our 'Designing Strategies' eNewsletter has been around since the Fall of 2004. The Blog version began with the launch of [...]
I must admit to a well-intentioned, but bad habit. I've been dealing with it for a very long time and haven't really found a solution. I am a bit paranoid about breaking the habit and losing exceptional ideas and information. Notes and little scraps of paper with gems of wisdom only come around every once in a while. I can't control the growth and success of my company - or my clients' either, for that matter - if I don't put those ideas to work. I am in the midst of efforts to declutter my life. The older we get, [...]
