This being a Presidential Election year in the United States has taken a toll on the productivity in American businesses. I haven’t done a scientific study, but I can remember back 4 years ago to what was going on in my small business. We had every political ideology represented – from Libertarians to all-out liberals (and everything in between!). We were so diverse – and emotionally charged – that at one point I had to all but ban political discussions in the office because once they started, no work was getting done. Tell me I’m not the only one!
I have also seen an increase in business owners using their business or platform as a way to express their political views, sometimes in obnoxious ways. In fact, I recently stoped following someone on Twitter because I found their continual bashing of the other party’s candidate to be frustrating and just plain annoying. I don’t mind people pulling for their candidate but I choose to get my political insight and news from other sources and keep it separate from my business.
This past weekend, there was an interesting article in the Washington Post (note: free content, but you may have to register) about the challenges of expressing your political views within your business. One hotel in a very Obama-centric area of town posted a sign in support of McCain/Palin. That very morning, there was a campaign mounting to boycott that facility. Alternatively, one hair dresser in Washington, DC, posted a “Palin-Free” sign in his window and has been met with no grief whatsoever from his clientele.
I’ve heard numerous other business owners talk about the rift that occurs when talking politics at work, mostly when one or both parties are intolerant of alternative beliefs and viewpoints. Wearing a button of your favorite candidate is one thing, getting into debates about the shortcomings of your colleague’s choice, especially when done in an obnoxious way, is quite another, especially when it can really bring the progress of business to a halt.
What is a business to do?
Clearly, as a business owner and an American, you have a right to display or state whatever political views you want. It’s our right. You need to be prepared, however, for potential backlash. If you choose to integrate politics with your business, don’t be surprised if you are met with resistance from colleagues, clients or employees who hold a different viewpoint. It is possible to even lose a few along the way, or see a community mounting a boycott.
Religion and politics, at least in the U.S., seem to evoke extreme emotional responses. I guess there’s a reason that most businesses keep their religious and political views quiet. For those who don’t, however, expect that not everyone will appreciate it or agree with it. If you’re OK with risking the backlash, go for it! Otherwise, you might want to consider sticking with the sign in the front lawn of your house and volunteering outside the office to support your candidate of choice.
Has anyone personally experienced extremes in the workplace? Can your office talk politics without interrupting productivity and business progress? If so, how?!
You would have to be living under a rock lately to not know about the current economic crisis in the US. The ripple effects have been felt in global markets, reminding us all of how connected we really are. But what does this mean for small businesses? And what can we do about it? I polled some of my clients and friends and here’s what I found.
First, most of the business advice out there is common sense: get lean, lay off employees. But what if you are already lean and have no one to fire but yourself? A lot of small business owners are solopreneurs, meaning they work alone. If you’re work out of your house, how much leaner can you get? Unfortunately, as some business owners have discovered, you may need to make some tough decisions.
One business owner I know has decided to shut down her e-commerce website and focus on wholesale. She sells sassy beach-fashions under the Salty Chix brand and is finding that the $85 per month it costs her to maintain her online store is just one more expense she can’t afford. Instead, she’s packing up her products and calling on local retail outlets in hopes of placing some of her products and moving her inventory, even though it is at lower wholesale prices. The idea, however, is to establish a relationship with the retailers so that when the market turns around, as she’s confident it will, she can grow her presence through them. Short term tactics with a long-term vision. Perfect!
Another business owner who is seeing slow-downs is a local auto body shop. They’ve been in business a long time. They believe where in good financial times people would never drive around with dents or scratches on their car, tightening the belt includes leaving your call in less-than-pristine shape. Perhaps working through insurance companies, even though the margins may be lower, could provide another channel for customers.
Clearly, credit from banks may be tough to get. If that’s what you need right now for your business, it may be time to look at creative financing including loans from friends and family. Equity financing, in the form of angel investors and VC’s don’t appear to be in danger, but only time will tell. BusinessWeek recently published an interesting article on this.
Unfortunately, when everybody hunkers down, it adds to the problem. It is a ripple effect. I believe the press doesn’t help this, as their gloom-and-doom reports only serves to create a self-fulfilling prophecy. When you stop purchasing goods and services from others it impacts their business. And so on, and so on, and so on.
So what can you do about it? Certainly, you need to choose wisely where you spend your money but by all means, don’t stuff it under your mattress. The only way the economy is going to recover is if we continue to stimulate it through spending.
Be flexible. Continue to look for new angles, new problems that you’re solving, and ways you can relate to what your potential customers are going through. Have an “economy sucks” sale where you temporarily lower your prices until things rebound.
So go out and buy those holiday gifts while you look at how you can market your business in a new and different way. Whatever you do, DON’T lose heart. Retreating from the market is probably the worst thing you can do. If you need to get a part-time job to get through this cycle, do it. Do whatever it takes to weather the storm because there will be brighter days ahead!
Got any other ideas on creative steps you can take when the economic news is so grim? Share them!
I am excited to announce that I’ve been asked to speak at The Dynamic Women Entrepreneurs event, Aug 7-9, 2009 at The Boardwalk Resort in Walt Disney World®.
Women today continue to start and grow entrepreneurial businesses at an unprecedented rate. The Dynamic Women Entrepreneur event announces an expert panel (including me!) and an engaging agenda slated to provide invaluableadvice and resources for women entrepreneurs.
In addition to the speakers, they will also have sessions that will cover legal issues in running a small business, and topics that will include marketing, taxation, and many more. There will also be plenty of time to network with other women entrepreneurs. You will walk away more informed and energized and empowered to get your business to the next level.
Women in any stage of business - please join me and take advantage of the Dynamic Women Entrepreneur event and gain insight, advice and support for nurturing and growing any type of business.
Early registration is encouraged as space is limited.
This weekend was one of those rare occasions when I actually sat down on a Sunday morning to read the newspaper. Ok, so I was sitting at my daughter’s lacrosse practice waiting for her and not at home in my PJ’s snuggled on the couch, but that didn’t detract from the joy and solace of it (well…not REALLY). I was captivated by an article in the Washington Post called 4 Captivating Companies and What They Share. In it, they profiled 4 companies they claim we ‘care’ about: Starbucks, Apple, Google, and Amazon. Though I’m not sure those are the four I would have picked, they had some interesting observations about what these companies do that are special that can be applied to almost any business.
Innovation. Interestingly enough, none of the companies the article talked about have done anything new. They didn’t create or invent anything, they just found a better way to do it. Their innovations came through their business model, marketing, delivery, branding…anything BUT product. It goes back to one of my soapbox items: it isn’t about the product it’s about execution. As the article states, Starbucks didn’t invent coffee or even the coffee house – they just did it better. Goggle certainly wasn’t the first to invent a search engine nor, to my surprise, paid advertising in a search engine. They just did it better. See a theme?
The Customer. The one that struck me the most, with almost the exact words I have used time and again, talks about the companies’ focus on their customers:
“there is strong business sense in focusing maniacally on what customers want and then finding the most effective ways to deliver it.”
Maniacal – that’s what it takes. Whether you own the business or you work for someone else, would you call your focus on the customer maniacal? What does that really look like?
The Connection. The companies profiled all seem to “inspire a sense of community and an ability to create a personal brand.” People are crazy about their local Starbucks. IPods are a personal brand statement. I actually heard a newscaster talk about searching the internet using “google” as a verb. When you’re company or product becomes THE way to describe anyone’s product, you know you’ve really made it. How do you connect with your market / community / customers? How strong is your company brand and is it consistent?
None of these companies were overnight successes and have certainly had their ups and downs, but regardless of where they end up, they’ve made a significant impact on the world. Would that be such a bad BHAG (Big Hairy Audacious Goal) for your company?
My daughter is not the only one who is struggling with homework. I made a classic newbie entrepreneur mistake. I reached out to a potential client without looking at the news and made a fool of myself. What a bonehead.
In my own defense, I had just received my certification as a Woman Owned Business through WBENC and I was anxious to reconnect with some of the corporations I had previously talked with. Unfortunately one of those companies had something HUGE happen to them over the weekend and, well, almost everything within the company was ON HOLD. Ok – there is really no excuse - I know better.
For those entrepreneurs who sell to other businesses, it is critical that you do your homework before contacting them. This also goes for anyone who is approaching another company even for a partnership or other type of alliance. And I’m not just talking about the first time you talk to them.
If possible, visit your favorite news outlet like Google News, Bloomberg, or MSNBC before every conversation. Most news services provide opportunities for you to customize your news by region or even company. There are also news feeds that you can subscribe to that send the information to your inbox or Crackberry. If you have one or two specific companies that you’re working with, it may also be worth setting up a Google Alert on them to get the latest news about them.
In addition to not being caught off guard, the more you know about your customers the better you can tailor your pitches to them. They always like it, too, when you’re up on what’s going on with them. It shows your level of interest. The bottom line is that today’s technology makes being educated about your customers easier than ever and it is a smart way to set yourself apart from your competition.
Do you have any good stories about how your preparedness (or lack thereof) won or lost you the business? Please share them!
Part of the plan for our two-week trip to South Africa was to get out into the community to see the real country. The premise was that it is hard to advise women entrepreneurs when you don’t have an understanding of the environment in which they operate. I completely agree. When I found out that one of our field trips was to a high school, I wasn’t sure I got the connection. After being there, I get it now.
The school we visited was Matthew Goniwe Memorial High School in Khayelitsha, a large township in Cape Town. If you want to see it for yourself, go to YouTube as there are many touching videos there.
The first thing I learned is that the word “township” refers to an informal settlement comprising houses made out of cardboard scraps and whatever building materials can be found. Being there made coming home to my 5 bedroom, 2-story house feel…well…gluttonous.
Starting out our discussion, none of the kids knew where Washington, D.C. was though most had heard of the United States. It was clear, however, that they all knew what H.I.V. was and how to prevent it judging by the posters on the school walls. One gentleman was even sporting a rubber bracelet a la the “Livestrong” model that touted “safe sex = abstinence.” He told me that he had many girlfriends, but then showed me his bracelet. He wants to do accounting (which I think is their generic term for math) and I just bet he will.
The students are part of a South African program called Youth Enterprise Society (Y.E.S.). The goal of this program is to give the children skills they need to “become masters of their own destinies” by launching into entrepreneurship, furthering their education, or finding a corporate job (which isn’t so easy in a country that bears an unofficial 35% unemployment rate!). The day we visited they were working on their Life Skills module and exploring how to make good choices. They worked diligently on their projects with us looking on (and sometimes asking questions) and then, at the end, presented their work to the group.
I am not sure what I expected from these kids – raised in extreme poverty in a country where the other extreme - wealth - is right around the corner. Regardless of my expectations, they blew me away with their smiles and positive attitudes. They all wanted to get their photo taken with the kids in our party (see my daughter and fellow traveler Ciana Robinson in the picture) and showered us with hugs as we left. We have plans to find ways to work with them in the future and at some point, I’ll have to go back and pick up the piece of my heart that I left behind. Truly life changing.
Walking through the craft market in Cape Town, South Africa, some beautiful and unusual products caught my attention. There were coasters, note cards, crosses, and wood trays, all sporting hand-decorated USED TEA BAGS. I was even more intrigued when I read the sticker on the back of the products. The company was created to provide way for the people of the Mandela Park township outside of Cape Town in Hout Bay to get themselves out of the extreme poverty they currently live in. Talk about empowerment.
We were so moved by the quality of the products and what the company, T-Bag Designs, was doing that we wanted to visit their facility and see for ourselves.
Once there, we spoke at length with the woman who started it all: Jill Heyes. She moved to Hout Bay from the UK in 1996. A teacher, she was devastated to see the extreme poverty and worked with the local women to teach them crafts they could sell. The first couple of attempts failed, but they kept on looking for unique ideas that would be purchased for their beauty, not as a charity. In 2000, the tea bag concept was created and T-Bag Designs took off.
Building the company into a sustainable economic enterprise has been a challenge for Jill. With a huge heart but no business background, she has struggled to maintain the company’s profits due to the enormous overhead required to operate in her present location. She isn’t slowing down, though. Her vision is to eventually make or raise enough money to open a community center where the people of the township can go to learn new skills or just have a safe place for the kids to hang out.
She is also encouraging the women in the township to start their own businesses, grooming future women entpreneurs. She brings in an expert seamstress once a week to teach them how to sew high-quality goods they can sell alongside the T-Bag products. Everything she does is focused on teaching these people how to fish for themselves rather than providing hand outs - a philosophy we share.
When I asked her what she needed most, her answer was “increased sales.” So here is my request: check out their retail locations and do your holiday gift shopping there. Better yet, buy some for yourself and help me spread the word about these incredible products.
No doubt if you’ve read any news medium in the past few days, the story of Michael Phelps‘ incredible gold medal run at the Olympics in Beijing. In the U.S. especially, his 8 gold medals is already becoming a legend. In reading about his extreme focus and physical determination I’ve come to the conclusion that I do not have what it takes to reach that level of athleticism. It is just not in me. So what, then, can we mere mortals learn from his - and every other Olympic athlete’s - experiences and successes?
Linda Robertson in an article for the Miami Herald provides great insight:
“Five years ago, when Phelps first plotted his record, it seemed like a presumptuous, wacky fantasy. He was like a baseball player declaring he would break Joe DiMaggio’s 56-game hitting streak. He was like an astronaut declaring he would step foot on Mars.
Once in a while we need someone who doesn’t ask why, but why not?”
Why not? I used to have a sign posted on the walls of my office that said “How can we?” Tired of negative, “we can’t” attitudes, I was trying to change the conversations.
At a recent meeting with one of my FABULOUS South African mentees, she mentioned something they wanted to do by then brushed it off as absurd. We can’t. I of course asked the question: why not? She thought about it for a minute. Yes, why not? We proceeded to work through the question and found at the end that it was, indeed something they could consider doing. We even mapped out a plan of how to do it.
So my challenge to you this week, this month, this year is to listen to yourself. If and when you find yourself saying “We can’t” change the dialog. Think in terms of “How can we?” and see what opportunities emerge.
Damascus, MD - A group of Maryland-based women entrepreneurs recently returned from South Africa after completing three workshops in different regions of the country for women entrepreneurs there. Part of a program that began in April 2008 when 12 carefully-selected and diverse women were sent to the U.S. for a three week program, these workshops are designed to provide assistance and business development to both aspiring and current Information and Communications Technology (ICT) or ICT-enabled women owned businesses.
As a part of their two-week trip, the US-based women met with the original South African program participants, who now call themselves Femtrepreneurs, to hear how their experiences in the States have impacted their businesses and to receive additional mentoring from their U.S. counterparts. All of the women, without exception, have seen positive and dramatic changes in their businesses and expansion of their vision.
“It was phenomenal,” said Julie Lenzer Kirk, President and CEO of Path Forward International and the lead instructor for the group. “In just the few short months following the US portion of our program, these smart ladies have transformed themselves, their businesses, and are beginning to impact their communities as well.”
The program, which is coordinated by Meridian International Center, was created by a think tank of U.S. and S.A. women entrepreneurs and developers from a team of organizations represented in South Africa by Pretoria’s Maxum Business Incubator at the Innovation Hub and in the U.S. by Multi-national Development of Women in Technology (MDWIT) in Baltimore.
“This program is amazing” said Jill Sawers, Entrepreneurship manager of the Innovation Hub. “We hoped the women would do well, but we now see that a small investment in the entrepreneurship skills of the best and brightest women can impact hundreds, perhaps thousands, of people in South Africa at an exponential rate.”
With funding from the U.S. State Department’s Educational and Cultural Affairs Bureau and South Africa’s Small Enterprise Development Agency, the program builds on the success of the training by helping the women reach out to others as they launch a supportive international network of women technology entrepreneurs.
Renee Lewis, CEO and Founder of Pensare Group and a member of the U.S.-based leadership team, said that “based on our own real-world experience, we are helping women entrepreneurs to understand their power to leverage their own community networks for growth. This model catapults women into entrepreneurship faster and more successfully than more traditional models.”
The Femtrepreneurs are also independently providing internships, business, and mentoring to those younger and/or less fortunate women in their communities. Claudia Morrell, Executive Director of MDWIT, stated, “I have always believed that the best way to impact girls and rural women in developing countries is to empower the educated women there to individually reach back and pull their sisters up. It is universal that women want to help others - they just need the resources and knowledge to do it.”
Plans are underway to continue the expansion of the program, both within South Africa and to other regions of the world. “Meridian International Center is proud to be involved in this critically important and relevant program. We look forward to using our dedication to global engagement and our international network of contacts to further expand the impacts of this extraordinary initiative,” said Program Officer Rhianon DeLeeuw.
I am in Pretoria, South Africa on the beginning of my three-week tour across the country working with women entrepreneurs. In my first presentation on market positioning and elevator pitches, as I said a ‘thank you’ to the INCREDIBLE Femtrepreneurs, they gave me a big WooHoo! 12 success-driven high-tech women entrepreneurs waving their arms in the air in unison. It was awesome. Interestingly enough, there were around 60 other women in the audience who had never seen a WooHoo before. You could tell by the looks on their faces that they didn’t get it but were intrigued.
As the day progressed, the WooHoo’s started to spread. Women who had not been a part of the original WooHoo movement were now putting their hands in the air in celebrations big and small. By the end of the day, the CEO of The Innovation Hub, a male, incorporated a WooHoo into his closing address. Amazing as that seems, it didn’t stop there.
ADDENDUM: The fun did not stop there! In visiting Matthew Goniwe Memorial High School in Khayelitsha, a large township in Cape Town, we had the kids of the Youth Enterprise Society giving us THEIR WooHoo! Check out the video on YouTube.
Seems we’ve started something I pray will continue to spread for the good of all those who DON’T celebrate their lives…
This being a Presidential Election year in the United States has taken a toll on the productivity in American businesses. I haven’t done a scientific study, but I can remember back 4 years ago to what was going on in my small business. We had every political ideology represented – from Libertarians to all-out liberals (and everything in between!). We were so diverse – and emotionally charged – that at one point I had to all but ban political discussions in the office because once they started, no work was getting done. Tell me I’m not the only one!
have been felt in global markets, reminding us all of how connected we really are. But what does this mean for small businesses? And what can we do about it? I polled some of my clients and friends and here’s what I found.
I am excited to announce that I’ve been asked to speak at 
My daughter is not the only one who is struggling with homework. I made a classic newbie entrepreneur mistake. I reached out to a potential client without looking at the news and made a fool of myself. What a bonehead.
The students are part of a South African program called 
No doubt if you’ve read any news medium in the past few days, the story of 
