You are likely your own venture capitalist.  Do you view your business as a sound investment?  If you were someone else, would you invest in your business?

Last night I saw The Dragon's Den on BBC America.  It is a show about pitching your business or idea to a group of investors with the hopes of landing some funding.  It can be really brutal at times, but also incredibly fascinating.  I mean, who gets to see a venture capitalist in action unless you are the one in the hot seat? 

There were a couple of great takeaways for me:

• You have to know your competition and the market as well as your own business.
• Testing your product or service on friends and family doesn't count as market testing.
• If you don't know your financial numbers, you might as well stay home.

Even if you aren't planning to pitch your company to an investor in the near future, thinking of your business from that perspective will help you make some sound decisions about growth. 

You've already invested in yourself, so make sure it is a good one.

Recently a friend of mine asked me a question you probably all have had at one time or another:  "How do you get a past-due client to pay up?"

As we've discussed before, if you are in any type of service industry your inventory is in your head.  You won't be able to "repossess" the product you sold if payment is not made.  Your customer may even forget the value of the service over time because it is not sitting in the driveway or the kitchen counter of their home and being consciously used every day. 

So, what does a service provider do when a client neglects to pay a bill for several months, even a small one? 

• Do you send it to a collection agency and pay the fees associated with it?
  
• Do you just drop it after several months and vow to never work with them again?
• Do you keep politely asking for your money with no response?
• Have you told the person who referred them to you that they are not paying?
• And the biggie, do you keep working for them?
  

I've been encouraging my clients to adopt a pre-pay strategy for their work, or at least a downpayment/final payment plan.  Billing should be reserved for only your best clients, those who pay on time every time.  This strategy only works on clients going forward, though, and does not address the 90+day clients already on your books.

What experiences have you had in the past?  How have you resolved this problem for your business (or are you still struggling with it)?

This should be a lively discussion!

"You can take a chance with any man who pays his bills on time."

A system is nothing more than a recipe.  You decide what you want to prepare and follow instructions to get a predictable (and delicious!) result.  Too many times I've talked to clients about setting up systems in their business - everything from answering email to providing a service - and they resist it. 

• "I'm the only one who can do that."  Do you have a business or do you have a job?  If you have a business, you must be able to teach others or you will always have a job.  A very expensive, time-consuming job.
• "My business is too small for systems."  How will you grow if you always plan to do everything yourself?
• "It takes too long to document what I do."  How much longer will it take you to train an employee without documentation?  Or try different methods to improve service or save money?  If you can't track it, you simply won't know.

Since hearing Michael Gerber speak about systems a few days ago, I've been trying to figure out a better way to introduce the idea of systems to my clients. 

World's Best MomI'm visiting my parents this week in New Mexico, and that always involves a batch of Mom's famous chocolate-chip cookies.  As she started making them, I had a brainstorm.  Her cookie recipe is a system, perfected over time, that always turns out delicious, perfectly baked cookies. 

1. 
   The basic recipeShe starts with a proven recipe for a successful cookie, the basic Nestle Tollhouse recipe.
2. Through trial and error, she has determined that butter-flavored Crisco is a better option than butter because it leaves the cookie with a better consistency.  So she altered the original recipe based on her results.
3. My dad loves pecans, and my parents are quite famous locally for their abundant pecan trees.  Mom doesn't have to worry about the price of pecans at the grocery store since she
   Modifying the recipe to improve itgets hundreds of pounds every year, so she generously adds pecans to the recipe.  Another change to the recipe to satisfy her "customers."
4. To keep her cookies from sticking to the pan and to make reloading the pan easier between batches, she uses parchment paper.  This is also a change from the original recipe that makes cleanup much easier.
5. Time has shown that in her oven and at her altitude, the cookies bake perfectly at 11 minutes per batch.  She knows how long it should take.  When the timer goes off, they are perfect.
   Production to Storage
6. She cools the cookies on an elevated cooling rack so the bottom of the cookies are firm.  This keeps them from sticking to each other and getting mushy.  She is just as concerned with storage as she is with production.
7. If she can keep Dad away long enough, they cool and are then placed on a plate to enjoy with a glass of milk.  She knows how to deliver her product for maximum impact.

That's it.  Perfect success every single time.  A system is really no more complicated than a chocolate-chip cookie recipe. 

You can cook up your own recipes for almost every task in your business:

• Marketing
• Lead conversion
• Customer fulfillment
• Lead generation
• Production
• Accounts receivable/payable

If a system is no more than a recipe, than an operations manual is no more than a cookbook.  You can literally start with a recipe box.  Jot your notes down on a recipe card as you perform the necessary tasks to your business.  Evaluate what you are doing, what should stay in the system and what should change, and then make it so. 

As you write your business "cookbook" you will be amazed at what you know and how much more focused your business will become.

Now get that apron on and start cooking!

"This recipe is certainly silly.  It says to separate the eggs, but it doesn't say how far to separate them."

~ Gracie Allen

Are you getting my twice-monthly audio newsletter/e-zine?  If not, you are missing out on some timely tips to streamline and promote your business.

The last e-zine talked about a free subscription service of queries from journalists.  Just this morning I heard from a listener that she signed up, responded to a query she knew something about, and the reporter has scheduled an interview with her tomorrow.  She will get some great PR for her business for less than 30 minutes of work and zero outlay of dollars.  She is thrilled and I am, too!

The previous e-zine described the new audio technology I'm using for the newsletters and my website.  It inspired one listener to do the same thing after putting off starting her newsletter for so long.  For a small monthly fee and a minor effort on her part, she can now stay in touch with her growing list of subscribers.  Another listener will be using it for testimonials on her site - powerful!

Are you taking advantage of all the great info I give out for *free* every month?  Check out the latest one underneath the signup box in the sidebar of my website.  Better yet, just sign up and it will show up in your inbox every couple of weeks.  You'll even get a download of my free report on Blogging from Start to Finish.

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In honor of Earth Day on April 22, we will talk about ways you can make your office more green and by doing so save yourself a little bit of money or time. 

We'll take it for granted that you are already recycling and most likely decreasing your travel time when possible due to the high cost of gas these days.  And that you are incredibly good-looking and talented, because all readers of this blog are naturally.  :)

10 Ways to Go Green and Save Some Green at Work: 

• Get a tote bag or two for shopping instead of using plastic.  I can fit all my office supplies in one cavas bag each trip.  Not only that, it keeps me from overybuying.  Who needs 2 years' worth of staples, anyway?  Free up your space and your cash flow. (and here is a fun tutorial on what to do with all your leftover plastic bags)
  
• Stop sending paper newsletters to your customers.  You have no idea whether they are reading them or not, and it is difficult for them to easily send the information to a friend.  Switch to email marketing so you can better track your marketing efforts and make it easy for your customers to share your excellent information.  Free 60-day trial of email marketing at Constant Contact, and only $15/month after that.  Much cheaper than the Post Office.
• BONUS:  You get to call your customers to let them know you are switching to email newsletters to help the environment.  While you are getting their email address and permission to send, you can rekindle your customer relationship!
• If you do need to use paper, set your printer up to print on both sides if the copy is only for your use.  You will be surprised how much paper this saves.  My setting is called "Duplex" printing.
  
• If it takes less than 5 minutes, go ahead and complete the task right away.  Don't print the email or add it to your to-do list, just do it.
• If you never take paper out of your office you will be drowning in it in a few years.  Make it a practice to regularly recycle paper in your office. You know the stuff I'm talking about:
• Directions to an appointment you had 3 weeks ago
• Your leftover grocery list (with items crossed off!)
  
• Flyers from meetings or seminars you have no intention of pursuing
• Do you get a lot of packages?  Bring your extra styrofoam peanuts to your local UPS store to be re-used. They will gladly take it.
• Are you overloaded with catalogs?  Stop the ones you no longer want with Catalog Choice.
• Save energy by using Energy-star rated bulbs or turning off the lights when you don't need them.  Even in cloudy Seattle I normally don't use electric lights due to my office skylight.
• Provide your brochures, product/service information, and manuals in electronic format instead of printing them.  Better yet, make them easily accessible on your website so your customers can get them whenever they want.
  
• Turn off your computer every night.  For many of you this is the hardest thing to do, but it will save power and (even more important) will save you from constantly checking email when you should be relaxing.  Your family and pets will thank you.

Be intentional about the products you use and ask others to use on your behalf.  By taking a minute to think about it, you can save a little bit of money and a little bit of earth every day, and over the long run make yourself richer all around.

"There are no passengers on Spaceship Earth.  We are all crew."

~ Marshall McLuhan