Small Business

Recession: A Good Time to Start a Business?

Susan Payton — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 16:00:00 GMT

While it might seem contrary, starting a business in a recession can actually be a good idea. With so many people getting laid off, people are struggling to find sources of income. Many with that entrepreneurial drive are starting new businesses.

Is it time for you to start a new business? Here are some questions to ask yourself:

Can this type of business thrive in this economy? You know people aren’t spending on luxury items, so that pet spa idea might not be ready to bear fruit. But think about what people are spending money on, or how you could save them money with a business idea, and then you have a winner.
Do I know how to start a business? It’s not necessary you know all the ins and outs of running a business, but starting one in a recession means you need to be better prepared than at any other time. Read some books on business, or take a class or two at your local community college. It’s important that you see beyond the idea to the accounting, hiring, marketing and labor that will go into your business. If you’ll have a retail or office location, overhead may be more than you originally guesstimated. Do your homework first.
Do I have resources to help me? Resources might mean money or an organization that helps small businesses, like SCORE. Or maybe it’s staff. Is your husband willing to help you get started until you can afford to hire help?
Do I truly want to start a business? If you’re just looking for a way to make some quick money, starting a business probably isn’t your best option. You might not even make money (most don’t for a few years; factor in the economy, and, well, you get the picture). But if you genuinely have passion for something, and are willing to put in the time and tears, by all means, get a plan and get going.

If you’re still reading, I’ll assume you found that you really do want to start that business. Start with a plan before anything. Figure out what kind of investment you need, how you’ll market it, who your customers are. Talk to others about the idea to see what they think of it. And most of all: good luck!

Developing Relationships: A French Press Can Go a Long Way

Susan Payton — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 19:15:00 GMT

Recently on my blog on Sparkplugging.com, I wrote about customer appreciation. You know, making sure your customers know you think they’re all that and a bag of wasabi potato chips. But what about your contacts? Isn’t it just as important to let them know you care?

I’ve been blogging here on Dell’s Small Business Blog for a few months. I do it out of love of Dell and entrepreneurship. I don’t get paid. So imagine my surprise when Kara Krautter, who runs this blog, sent me a special thank you gift. Check out the video:

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I was so excited. And it’s nice to be appreciated. So think about ways you can show your contacts you’re thinking of them. It doesn’t have to be a grand effort. Here are some ideas:

· If you’re on Facebook or Twitter, take the time to look over a contact’s page. See what they’re up to and comment on their page. Show that you’re paying attention.

· Send a Starbuck’s card. Even $5 will get a smile.

· Take someone to lunch. Who doesn’t love free lunch and good conversation?

· If you find a blog post or article that you think a contact will like, send it to them.

· Send a quick email just checking in. No motive.

· Send a handwritten letter or thank you card.

· Refer business to the contact.

As you can see, it doesn’t take much. Think about the things others have done to make you feel special. Care to share?

Straight from the Source: Data Guard Systems Saves Big with Virtualization

DELL-Kara K — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 15:00:00 GMT

This morning, Dell announced a new portfolio of products and solutions designed to help companies of all sizes run IT more efficiently. One of these core technology solutions, and some might say the heart of an efficient infrastructure, is virtualization.

Its simplest definition is that virtualization increases server utilization so companies can use less hardware, in less space, and drawing less power – less everything – while scaling business up. And while virtualization is one of many possible “tools” in the “IT toolbox”, it is a cost-efficient, scalable solution for fast-growing midsized companies. And for small and medium businesses who want to deploy virtualization quickly, Dell now offers SMB Business-Ready Virtualization Configuration as a cost effective virtualization solution that cuts months off the planning and deployment timeline.

Data Guard Systems, a software application service company for the cell phone retail industry, is one example of a Dell customer using virtualization to save energy, time and money.

Data Guard Systems CEO Tim Maliyil approached Dell with a challenge: how can we streamline our IT to handle business growth while also solving space, electrical and cooling issues? With Dell’s virtualization solutions – hardware, deployment services and software - Data Guard Systems was able to save more than $20,000 each month and now has a flexible IT environment that can scale with their customers’ seasonal demand.

“It’s made our lives very easy for the Christmas season, when we see our load increase 50-80%. When the Christmas season is behind us, we simply turn off those extra resources. Implementing virtualization, the immediate savings came by turning off additional, unused servers and saving electricity, but there were also efficiencies in human resources, a hidden benefit of the virtual infrastructure. Hard to quantify, but priceless to have our people use their time focusing on the future rather than maintaining the status quo.” -- Tim Maliyil, president and CEO, Data Guard Systems.

To hear the full Data Guard Systems story, check out the case study video below.

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Simplify the purchase of business printing and save

DELL-David J — Mon, 15 Jun 2009 14:35:00 GMT

We’ve received some great feedback from our sales reps who told us their customers are looking for special financing for printers. Because we’ve never had special financing offers on printers, we took the opportunity to create an offer that we think our customers will find valuable.

“Maximize Your Pages, Minimize Your Payment” is an offer designed for our customers to receive a printer, upgraded warranty and one extra toner cartridge for one low monthly payment. Depending on the bundle purchased, this offer may save our customers anywhere from $73 to $819 off MSRP. This bundle provides small and medium businesses the latest printing technology, extra supplies and is backed by two added years of service. This should help put your mind more at ease when making this purchase for your business.

Special Printer Bundle includes:

• 0% 36 Month $1 Buyout Lease

• Dell Laser Printer (see bundles below)

• 36 Month Limited Warranty**

• (1) Extra Black toner cartridge

• $1,000 minimum order amount (before tax and shipping)

• Only printer bundles listed below are eligible for special offer

• Offer valid until July 31, 2009

If you’re wondering what printer solution might work best for your business, the Dell 2330 Laser Printer Series was recently awarded the Outstanding Small Workgroup Monochrome Printer from BLI. (Read more about the award on BLI’s site).

Dell continues to create smart financing solutions that allow our customers to get more for less. We look forward to getting your feedback here and on IdeaStorm, and we will keep you posted on any new developments.

Who Do You Talk to About Your Business?

Susan Payton — Wed, 10 Jun 2009 21:00:00 GMT

While you may know your business inside and out, while it may be your baby, it can pay off to talk to someone else about what you’re doing.

For me, that person is my husband.

Whenever I am trying to figure out how to grow Egg or help a client with a new strategy, I talk to him. He has a different point of view and different skill set that helps me see beyond my nose. Inevitably I come out of our talks with great ideas I just didn’t see before.

So who do you talk to? It might be a co-worker, client, friend or family member. Make it informal, and even possibly away from work (over lunch, on a walk, etc) to get the juices flowing. Start by just talking about what’s going on, and see where it takes you.

When I talk to my friends about their businesses, I often have suggestions they’ve never thought of. The first is always: are you on social media? I find this to be a great way to build a brand, so it’s my biggest contribution to the conversation.

Don’t have anyone? Start a networking group to let local professionals (or you could do this online) ask questions about how they can improve their businesses. Many groups like this are called mastermind groups. Pick a topic each week, or a member, so that the group can focus on one area to help with.

Twitter’s a great place to get advice too. Just put a question out there and wait for the replies. I’ve gotten free technical advice as well as just people’s opinions about everything from blog posts to my website.

Where do you get your advice? Please share with us!

Financial Times Digital Times Podcast: Please Make a Plan

DELL-Kara K — Wed, 10 Jun 2009 16:45:00 GMT

Peter Whitehead, an editor with Financial Times Digital Business talks with Aongus Hegarty, Dell Vice President & General Manager SMB EMEA about IT planning for medium businesses. In this podcast, Aongus talks about how Dell works with small and medium businesses to plan long-term for technology, better manage their technology during times of growth, and protect valuable business data and information.

To access the podcast, click here and select the June 10, 2009 show.

Dell Helps SMBs Green Their Business and Reduce Energy Costs

DELL-Kara K — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 14:03:00 GMT

This morning Dell shared with customers how energy-saving technology is more than environmental awareness but good business practice that can help run small and medium businesses more efficiently. Two Dell customers, Earth Rangers and Robertson Homes, are great examples of the benefits of green technology. Read more about their stories below.

Earth Rangers:

Earth Rangers came to Dell with a unique challenge: they needed a technology solution that would accommodate organizational growth and support new Web projects -- all while creating a green data center to match their vision for an environmentally sustainable building.

Earth Rangers, an environmental education nonprofit based in Canada, is focused on building a green future by transforming today’s children into a powerful and determined part of a healthier planet.

With Dell, Earth Rangers reduced operation costs without sacrificing productivity. By creating a virtualized server infrastructure using Dell PowerEdge M600blade servers, Earth Rangers was able to accommodate 100 percent growth while saving 90 percent on data center space and 85 percent on energy costs.

“We’re proud that our productive data center is small on space and big on energy savings. With assistance from Dell, we have created a sustainable IT infrastructure that reflects our environmental vision and will ultimately help our organization inspire and teach even more children in the years to come.” Gordon Jekubik, chief operating officer at Earth Rangers.

6-8-09 Update: Check out the Earth Rangers and Dell case study for even more information.

Robertson Homes:

Robertson Homes, a green home builder in St. Cloud, Florida, worked with a green consultant to identify desktops and other systems at their business worth replacing due to the power savings and other business benefits.

Several 4-year-old Optiplex 170Ls were replaced with eight new Energy Smart OptiPlex 960 desktops and one PowerEdge blade server, which reduced their energy bill by 51 percent. To find out more about the other green workplace strategies Robertson Homes has implemented, check out Leigh Stringer's Blog on the makeover.

“Since implementing Dell’s energy-efficient systems with power-management enabled, we’ve seen our energy costs reduced significantly with no impact to our productivity. Given our commitment to being a green home builder, we are grateful to work with a technology vendor that is helping us reduce our carbon footprint without disturbing our growth.” Clint Robertson, IT manager for Robertson Homes.

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Entrepreneurs and the Art of Negotiation

Susan Payton — Wed, 03 Jun 2009 19:10:00 GMT

Unless your customer buys directly from your website or your store, you likely have had to negotiate a time or two. For some, negotiating comes easily. For most, it doesn’t.

Like it or not, if you’re an entrepreneur, negotiation is a necessity. Knowing how to get what you’re worth without pushing is a careful balance, and will take practice.

I recently attended the Florida Conference for Women, and Tory Johnson of Women for Hire shared a story with the audience about how when a group of people were shortchanged in being paid for a focus group, the men automatically negotiated for more, while the majority of the women took the lesser amount without complaint. It says a lot about our different styles, doesn’t it? No matter if you’re a man or a woman, you need strong negotiating skills to survive in this environment.

Here are a few tips and resources to help you.

· Know what you’re worth. If you think you’re only worth $25 per hour, then you probably are. But if you shift your mindset and believe you are now worth $50 per hour, then you are better able to negotiate.

· Don’t take low paying jobs. They only perpetuate more. Strive for the jobs/clients that you would love to duplicate.

· Aim high. If you know your tendency is to bid low, add 20% to what you would normally charge. You never know! You might actually get it. And if not you have room to negotiate without cutting profit too much.

· Build value. Rather than letting your client cut your price, add bonuses to the price you’ve already laid on the table. Throw in a free product or service to sweeten the deal.

· Don’t be desperate. People can sense that. Be prepared to walk away if the deal isn’t getting you what you want and deserve.

Here are some sites that can help you further with negotiation:

How to Negotiate

Negotiation Skills for Any Situation

Dr. Phil: How to Negotiate

What are the benefits of social networks for small businesses?

DELL-Robert P — Mon, 01 Jun 2009 17:30:00 GMT

Before taking advantage of the many social network services available to your business, you should answer some basic questions:

• Do your customers or prospects participate in social media?
• Do you have time or staffing to seriously take care of this new communication channel?
• Are you prepared to communicate at the same level with people from different backgrounds?

To help identify your social media strategy, check out Rusty Weston’s web tips on Forbes.com about the risks and benefits social media brings to your company.

After you’ve determined a strategy, evaluate the worth of social media for your business. Justin Perkins has published an ROI Calculator for Social Network Campaigns, which is easy to use and provides a dollar amount to estimate the relative costs and benefits.

Once you have decided to utilize social networking, start a personal profile to learn what services you want to use and how to work with their tools. To help you out, search for tutorials related to the particular service in question. It’s also a good idea to make sure that the tool is the best for your plans. For example, Twitter has a lot of add-ons available to compliment the basic service. After playing the field for awhile, then it is time to actually open the profile for your company.

Social networking can certainly amplify your presence in the market place and generate some business, but is the value real or not? For example, Seth Godin in his YouTube vlog: Social networking – good for small business? discusses how making businesses contacts through social networking sites are valuable if they are real but can be a nuisance if they are not. So the best advice is to keep it real. After all, fake relationships are worthless.

Is Your Business Consistently Backing Up Data?

DELL-Terry M — Thu, 28 May 2009 19:00:00 GMT

When was the last time you backed up your computer data? If you are like half the people out there, it has been a long time. For small businesses, the statistics are just as scary. Almost half of all small business users don’t have a policy in place for ongoing backup of their data. They do it when they think about it, or not at all.

A more daunting statistic comes from a recent Webroot study* which stated: “While data loss is devastating for individuals, the effects can be disastrous for small business owners; one study found that 60 percent of companies that lose their data will shut down within six months.”

Now that is something to think about. If you have a small business and you are not backing up your data, you are risking more than your data. In reality, you are risking the life of your company, and the livelihood for you and everybody who works for you -- all for the cost of a simple backup solution.

With the cost of external backup devices dropping like a rock, and the variety of backup solutions on the market today, can you afford to not have a backup plan in place? It is not as hard as you might think.

Dell is working to help with all of this. This month, Dell released the new Dell Backup and Recovery Manager, or DBRM for all Vostro, Latitude, Dell Precision, and OptiPlex systems. DBRM delivers a new simplified user experience that allows user to perform some very interesting backup and recovery tasks, and even more.

Yes, it does backups, images, data restore… All of the tasks you would expect from a backup utility. But, it also allows you to create recovery media like the Dell recovery CD, Diagnostics, and even OS Media. Also, you can create these images on a variety of bootable devices like flash drives, external storage, or the trusty DVD.

No more excuses -- all it takes is a little discipline to setup your backup schedules, create your recovery media, plug in and map to an external backup device. From that point on your backups will happen on an automatic schedule. And, with your newly created backup images you are never more than a few clicks from a complete system restore, or access to that single critical file if you happen to experience a system failure or data loss.

*Webroot, September 2008