I got my first price complaint today and I am weirdly happy. small business |
- I got my first price complaint today and I am weirdly happy.
- My Small Business Finally Out Earned My Past Jobs
- Hey r/smallbusiness! Remember that report about Franchise problems and SBA Loans from last year that Nevada Senator Cortez Masto released? Well, I'm the guy that posted that thread, and I need a huuuuge favor.
- How much time a company usually gets to pay an invoice?
- Some Tips For You As A Ecommerce Website Owner
- Looking for some advice please
- Let’s hear your best responses to “you’re too expensive / the price is too high”
- What Business "Basics" are Actually Worth It? - Seeking Advice
- Should I put my freelance income through my business account?
- What are the best platforms for advertising?
- Converting visitors to customers
- Looking for a program to help tracking/invoicing
- How to get your services HSA FSA eligible
- Thinking of creating a blog about opening an IT business in the US. Need help!
- Best program/app for home based bakery
- How many have you done?
- Security System for Bar
- I want to start a consulting firm dedicated to small businesses
- Christmas lights installation business
- IRS not taking calls?
- How to position myself well in a growing company?
- How to deal with Critical Feedback
- Blue acorn dash card (PPP)
- Complications of resale certificate? Really confusing to me.
- What is the best small business credit card?
| I got my first price complaint today and I am weirdly happy. Posted: 16 Feb 2022 06:35 PM PST I have started two small businesses recently. The first is mobile piano lessons. I've been teaching on and off twenty years now. Many teachers don't like to travel. Today I received my first complaint about my prices for piano lessons! I am definitely on the higher side, to compensate for my experience and travel expenses. This lady stated: "Your rate is $45 per half hour, is this correct? To be honest your prices are quite steep. My daughter's last instructed charged $20 for 40 minutes before she retired". My reply to her: "Thank you for your concern. Yes, my rates document is currently accurate. I used to teach at similar rates years ago but had trouble with students that were not very serious and excessive cancellations. I teach only 10-15 students at a time. To be transparent with you, I am currently responding to over 100 separate inquiries for about 5 remaining spots. Thank you for your consideration however! I hope you have a great afternoon!" I did months of market research and felt it was a pretty big demand before I put out my first ads/posts. What I told the lady wasn't incorrect either! Over 100 people in just the last week asking about lessons. Many if not most, definitely not serious. But some are, and I'm about half full already with students. I am glad I am not selling myself short or anything less than I'm worth. Honestly, when I got my first complaint I was a little shocked it took that long, and it weirdly validated my desired demographics and price points. [link] [comments] |
| My Small Business Finally Out Earned My Past Jobs Posted: 16 Feb 2022 11:14 PM PST Now I know in reality this may not be a huge achievement as most of my jobs were your typical college or high school kid jobs which normally meant things like dealing with children or working on campus for minimal pay. But having been told by many that SEO doesn't work or that starting a successful business is almost impossible, it feels great that after officially being paid by all my SEO clients for the month I can officially say that my small business has outearned my past form of incomes. It honestly means a lot and hopefully, there is so much more ahead for my business, but I can honestly say I never saw myself in this position where I'd be able to actually create an income for myself while being able to help small businesses owners through the use of SEO. Once again I'm not saying I'm wildly successful but I thought it was a great milestone I'd share with you guys [link] [comments] |
| Posted: 17 Feb 2022 11:17 AM PST So, I don't know if you guys remember this thread from last year I started about a massive report that Nevada Senator Catherine Cortez Masto's office released about Franchises and SBA Loans, which is right here: Well, I couldn't speak that openly about why I knew so much about this, but that's changed a bit since a State Regulator took action against the franchisor I was involved with, and found them liable for franchise fraud: https://dfi.wa.gov/documents/securities-orders/S-19-2776-20-CO01.pdf I've been working with a group of franchisees to get out from under this scam, and we are soooooo close to getting the SBA to going after the franchisor for the loans, and giving relief to us. I can't tell you how many stars have aligned for this to even occur. Multiple regulatory orders, political appetite, and timing. We can make this happen! Basically, this guy ran a hustle for a few years using SBA Loans, and has one of the worst charge off rates in the industry because of it. Tax Payer's have lost over $3M at this point due to this guy. I put together a video explaining exactly what's going on here, with deposition video from the hustler: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TrQ_NtdRx2s Bonus r/smallbusiness AMA from the Broker that wrote the bulk of these loans: https://www.reddit.com/r/smallbusiness/comments/46ge5t/ama_about_sba_loan_startup_financing_and_working/ She deleted it because, amongst other things, she told people their houses wouldn't be taken if they defaulted on the SBA loans, which is a flat out lie. Can everyone help me out and give the SBA some guidance on how to handle the situation? Trust me, they're listening! Also, AMA about this dumpster fire. [link] [comments] |
| How much time a company usually gets to pay an invoice? Posted: 17 Feb 2022 05:43 AM PST Hello everybody! I recently started to work for one start-up. So, I'm writing here because we had a small argument with the business owners. I just wanna hear someone's point of view about the invoices and how much time any organization has to cover all the costs. For me, it's vital because it seems that I'm dealing with complete idiots. So, maybe I shouldn't waste my time on them? I would like to inform you in advance that accounting and finance are not my strongest skills. Still, I have some experience working with numbers and issuing invoices to clients. I've got that experience at my previous job. So, as far as I know, when someone issues an invoice, the debtor has about 28 days to pay it unless the opposite is stated in the written agreement. While my boss thinks the opposite, another doesn't bother himself with invoices and systematization of everything. I know that the financial part of the business is not really my business. Still, I wanna work for an organization that has a future. Now, I'm working with suppliers. I contact them, look through their stock and make some orders. Obviously, they also issue an invoice for us. Some of them do not have an invoice due date. But I suppose they are protected by law or something. Since we are a start-up and only a few people are involved, everyone does a bit of everything. I recently found invoice data extraction app, which helped me systemize all my files and create my own system and database of all suppliers I'm currently working with. It also helps me see who we owe money to and when to pay. So, I told my boss that we need to pay some of our suppliers because we ordered from them more than 2 months ago. But, my boss said that the invoice has no expiration date, and in the agreement, it is not clearly stated when we have to pay. I mentioned something about 28 days, but they started to yell at me that I'm not a lawyer. Since the invoice is issued incorrectly, they can pay even after a year. I tried to explain to our supplier that we would postpone the payment, and the supplier tried to threaten me that he would sue me. To be honest, I dunno what I should do. Should I just quit not to be in the middle between suppliers and insane entrepreneurs? [link] [comments] |
| Some Tips For You As A Ecommerce Website Owner Posted: 17 Feb 2022 09:17 AM PST Here's some advice for you: Focus on building a brand, have a brand image, a brand why/mission and try to connect with your potential customer on an emotional level because 90% of the selling is done emotionally. When I say build a branded store, I don't mean private labelling but what I mean is to build a store that looks like a real brand and that people will perceive as a real brand because once that happens, people will start trusting you and that will sky rocket your conversion rate. PEOPLE BUY WITH EMOTION AND JUSTIFY WITH LOGIC That is how sales work. The market is very Saturated and now you can't get away and make money with just any online store, you need to be focused on creating and building an actual brand that people will trust, and only then can you actually become successful doing dropshipping. Unlike a year or two ago now you can't just get some Products, put together a store and run some fb ads and get loads of sales. You need to: - Create a professional and trustworthy brand store - Work and highly concentrate on your copywriting, this includes all your product descriptions, all your pages on your store ( importantly the about us page ), the general written paragraphs/phrases on your store. - Building a strong backend system to keep the brand growing Also, here are 4 things you have to focus on if you want to increase your conversion rate: - Understand your target audience: Knowing your audience is very important and crucial, understand your audience and design your store accordingly. For e.g, if you are targeting entrepreneurs, having a store that looks minimalist and or aesthetic will get their attention and increase their interest in your store. Understand your audience and design the look and feel of your store around them - Offer Customer's some kind of assurance: If you offer assurance or some kind of guarantee they will instantly feel safe and more confident in spending their money. It is the same as when someone says they have a 30 DAY RETURN POLICY you instantly feel more relieved to make the purchase. Make them feel confident in buying from you and this will also make it look like you stand behind your product which is always very important. - Add Reviews and Testimonials: This is very important, it is the same as referrals, when another person refers us to something we are more likely to go with and believe what they are saying. When someone sees other people have bought this product and are happy with it instantly all their worries go away - Provide Options: People love options but be careful with this one, do not provide too many options to confuse your potential customer. This can be very effective if you provide various payment options to pay with as it will make the customer feel more secure. I'd love to have a conversation with you and go more in-depth about the store structuring and each section and give you actionable steps to act upon because other than branding there is still a lot to work on and improve. Feel free to reach out if you'd be interested in that. Wish you the best! [link] [comments] |
| Looking for some advice please Posted: 17 Feb 2022 09:55 AM PST Hi guys. I have started an online business around 3 months ago. It's been a Slow process because I am working no full time 12 hour shifts too to help make ends meet. The company I work for always threaten us workers that they will be getting rid of us. I wanted to make the move full time to my business and I wasn't sure if taking a business loan would be a good move or not? So far I haven't made money but I have been getting recognition on social media and stuff. I currently earn £2k a month in my job and i private rent a flat with my girlfriend who is pregnant. What to do, thanks [link] [comments] |
| Let’s hear your best responses to “you’re too expensive / the price is too high” Posted: 17 Feb 2022 12:01 PM PST Inspired by another post on here where OP posted his response - was very well handled and curious to see what others replied would be Include your business / market! [link] [comments] |
| What Business "Basics" are Actually Worth It? - Seeking Advice Posted: 17 Feb 2022 11:51 AM PST I mean for things like:
Are the above 3 worth doing, and are there any others that I have missed? [link] [comments] |
| Should I put my freelance income through my business account? Posted: 17 Feb 2022 08:49 AM PST I'm a floral designer who owns a single member LLC floral design business. I'll be doing lots of freelance this year for other florists and was advised it makes sense to put the income through the business account instead of personal. This is correct right? And then I'll just take owners draws to pay myself the income? So I should have my clients make the checks out to my business name? [link] [comments] |
| What are the best platforms for advertising? Posted: 17 Feb 2022 06:09 AM PST I started an interior painting business. So far it's been mainly word of mouth, but I'm actively seeking new clients. What do you guys think is the best way to advertise? Are there Facebook groups where I could advertise my services? [link] [comments] |
| Converting visitors to customers Posted: 17 Feb 2022 02:40 AM PST I've seen posts over the last few days related to converting visitors to customers. This got me thinking about my own efforts and below is my capture of the key points to converting that I'm going to work on (as a bit of fun, I've massaged in using "CONVERTED" as the acronym. My question; I don't claim to be an expert, so can I ask if people agree with my capture or think that I've missed a key item? Clear – Your product or service must be clearly defined. Complex offers lose conversions. Objections – Pre-empt the objections people may have. E.g. shipping, size, tech specs, FAQs. Now – Give a reason to buy now rather than later. E.g. limited-time discounts. Value – Highlight your value. Is your offer unique, cheaper, or better than your competitors? Evidence –Show evidence to support your claims. Testimonials, testimonials, testimonials! Risk – Reduce the risk for new customers who are wary of your offer. E.g. Guarantees, Warranties, Returns. Tenacious – Be tenacious in your approach. E.g. reach out to users with abandoned carts, follow up with leads. Easy – The process to convert has to be easy. The more complex, the fewer conversions. Duplicate – See what works, refine your process, and then duplicate for ever-improving conversions. [link] [comments] |
| Looking for a program to help tracking/invoicing Posted: 17 Feb 2022 11:04 AM PST Hello all, My girlfriend is a personal trainer and we're looking for a program to help track clients and invoicing for the most part but any help is welcome. Looking specifically for something that can show that Client X has used 5/10 sessions and has been invoiced for 3/10 sessions etc. Does anyone have any recommendations for a good program to help tracking this kinda stuff? Thanks [link] [comments] |
| How to get your services HSA FSA eligible Posted: 17 Feb 2022 10:36 AM PST A friend of mine owns a spa. They offer facials and massages which some national franchises have been able to get approved for HSA/ FSA. How does one get your services HSA reimbursible? Thank you in anticipation. [link] [comments] |
| Thinking of creating a blog about opening an IT business in the US. Need help! Posted: 16 Feb 2022 09:27 PM PST Hey! I am the founder of an IT Outsourcing company in the field of Machine Learning, I am now based in Russia but hope to move to the US soon. Recently I partnered up with some investors and we have already opened a C-Corp in the USA. We now are working on bringing the first customers on board and I was wondering if running the blog about opening the business could help with that. My initial hypotheses about the blog are:
And here I have some questions for you:
Any suggestions are highly appreciated, thank you! [link] [comments] |
| Best program/app for home based bakery Posted: 17 Feb 2022 09:56 AM PST I am in the position to take over a small home based bakery business. While I am considering my options, I would like to find an app/program to help me sort out costing etc. I have very limited business experience, but have been an employee at this bakery for a few years. As a mom of 2 kids, it will be important for me to scale down the operation so it is manageable on my own, and I need to figure out which items to continue, drop or what to introduce. The business is heavily supported by the summer markets in my tourist town, as well as a handful of local cafes/stores that carry our products. Any advice on an app or program that can help, or any other business advice would be greatly appreciated. Thank you! [link] [comments] |
| Posted: 17 Feb 2022 09:42 AM PST How many of these 6 have you done as a SMB owner? [link] [comments] |
| Posted: 17 Feb 2022 09:42 AM PST We are looking at security systems for our new bar. We are thinking of getting a Reolink NVR system to record when the bar is open, and detect motion when it is closed. We were also thinking of getting Simplisafe to monitor the space, since it has motion detectors for glass breaking and the doors. Does anyone have a particular NVR system they would recommend? Is it over doing it by also having Simplisafe? [link] [comments] |
| I want to start a consulting firm dedicated to small businesses Posted: 17 Feb 2022 09:41 AM PST Hi everyone My name is Marc and I have been running a small business for 10 years now. I have had a couple businesses, all related to home services, the largest and longest standing being a painting business. So, we basically paint houses and businesses, inside and out. Grew it to 50 painters, 60 total employees. Started alone, wearing all the hats. Mastered local marketing, then sales, then painting itself, then trained others to do the same. Now got full crews, with foremen going around jobsites, reporting to me only once a day, got salespeople who get their leads directly from the marketing team. It all works on its own, I simply assure that every part keeps moving. Now, I left home a year ago to travel, to take advantage of nicer weather in Latin America, to escape covid madness in Canada. I have been running the business at a distance since, and figured it can be fully automated, which means someone who starts a business today, could be basically retired in a couple years. I am thousands of miles away and have sometimes limited communication means and still run it, it still works, customers are still happy. Which brings me to the reason of this post: as I have more free time, I want to start another business. Always liked helping others, spend much time counseling close friends on their small business and generally see things better from the outside (I often find better solutions for other people's businesses than mine) as I am detached from the outcome and see it more clearly. My biggest strength has always been simplifying stuff. Friends and family are amazed at how little hours I work to make such a business work, and profit. To me, running a business is about making it run itself. Would I rather make 1000$ working, or 500$ not working? Of course, the latter. Cause I can do it twice and now I have done that 1000$ WITHOUT working. This brings me to my business 'idea': I want to consult for other small businesses. Help people grow their business, raise their profit, but above all reduce their hours. Tons of consulting agencies exist, yes. But they rarely focus on small businesses, have fancy solutions fit for large corporations, often directed at tech more than anything else. On top of that, they are mad expensive. Small business owners also struggle with many small tasks that I have mastered. Like hiring an attorney or accountant, finding workers, small time/local marketing strategies, producing training or marketing materials and many more. With my automation and all the docs/procedures/solutions I have made for my business, I can share those with them. I call my whole way of running this 'bringing Fortune 500 efficiency to a local painting business'. I have already written an e-book on it. A complete how-to, with every task detailed, nothing left to figure out. Sooo. Targeted solutions to small businesses, affordable prices, direct experience in their field, more profits and more time for you, the local business owner. Now, my main problem is marketing that business (and that e-book). I can market local services like no other, I can network with homeowners, but marketing this, at larger scale online, with no geographic limit, I honestly got no clue. I am not really the 'out-there' type so have no social media presence. Of course I got Reddit, FB, IG, Twitter accounts, but 'followers' are all friends and family, not much more. Becoming an 'influencer' is a big no-no for me. What would you guys suggest? I would like your take on promoting it, finding clients, as well as your thoughts on the business itself. Would you pay for that kind of service? Finally, to get this off the ground and validate my methods, I will offer a free consultation to anyone reading this. I will go over your procedures and give you a full evaluation of your business, with advice on immediate changes you can bring to your business. [link] [comments] |
| Christmas lights installation business Posted: 17 Feb 2022 09:33 AM PST Have made posts in the past about this idea. Going to try and get a Christmas light installation going for next year Christmas. Going to get my business name registered and a website up and running. Want to get some opinions on names for business and website. Right now I think I will go with: Name: Winnipeg Christmas Lights Website: www.winnipegchristmaslights.ca Any thoughts or opinions on the name/website. If anyone ha any insight on trying to get clients, would also be open to that. Looked for other companies in the area and no one has this name or website. Domain is available. Thanks [link] [comments] |
| Posted: 17 Feb 2022 09:31 AM PST I have a few things I need to contact the IRS regarding. But every option on the call tree just says they are too busy and try again later. It's been several days now, trying at different times of the day. Is the IRS just not taking calls? [link] [comments] |
| How to position myself well in a growing company? Posted: 17 Feb 2022 09:21 AM PST I've been working with a small company for a few years, and we've recently started growing quite quickly. In two months, we went from three staff to six and I just want to make sure that, as the company grows, I'm in a good position to keep climbing. I'm the Head of Content at the moment and I'd like to move up to a director at some point when we get big enough. I'm worried I'm not putting myself forward for enough tasks on a bigger business level but on a content level, I've taken ownership of a ton of new projects. I'm chatting with my boss tomorrow, and I'd like to suggest some ways I can support the growth of the company. I already manage a team of freelancers so I've been showing off my management skills but I also want to support the two founders of the company a bit more. I thought I could suggest being more of a liaison between them and the new staff since we don't have an office manager yet or HR. I thought I'd ask what other types of things I can do to make sure I stay growing with the company? Has anyone else here started with a small business and made their way up the ladder; how'd you do it?! Thanks! [link] [comments] |
| How to deal with Critical Feedback Posted: 17 Feb 2022 09:07 AM PST Yesterday I was asked by a manager in my organization to help him deal with an email from a client that contained critical feedback in addition to praise regarding our service. Below are the steps in which I approached helping him. Not only to formulate a response, but more importantly to understand and accept the feedback in order to improve. UNDERSTAND the feedback - read, re-read, find examples, chat with the team, run it back. If you still aren't clear, ask questions. ACKNOWLEDGE the client's thoughts and experience - their opinion is valid. Let them know that you understand their point of view, and appreciate the time that they took to provide feedback. If it's a known issue you're working on, tell them. If it's the first time something is being brought to your attention, tell them that you're going to look into it… and mean it. EDUCATE - bridge the gap between what the client knows, and what they don't know. Demonstrate that there is a rhyme and reason as to how things get done, and why that is. For ex: Why did we do something a certain way? 'In our experience…' *Note that education should not be a deflection of their feedback, nor an excuse. ACCEPT the praise - this client has taken time out of their day to provide you with critical feedback to help you improve. This should be viewed as them doing you a favor, as they have no obligation to help you. It can also be assumed that their praise is genuine. Thank them. SOLUTION - What are you going to do about their feedback? Is there anything you can do to enhance or remedy their experience? Leave them with a positive note, this is what they will remember. IMPLEMENT - take the feedback seriously, and solve the problem. How would you help in a similar situation, or what would you do differently? [link] [comments] |
| Posted: 17 Feb 2022 08:55 AM PST I just received my dash card from blue acorn after months (updated address) now they're saying I'm in a manual review after dash has stated the funds are on the card and the SBA has stated the loan is disbursed …Any advice anyone else went through this? [link] [comments] |
| Complications of resale certificate? Really confusing to me. Posted: 17 Feb 2022 08:48 AM PST What's the biggest complication of obtaining a resale certificate aka registering for sales tax? I primarily sell on Amazon, no retail front. I've reached out to distributors and they've rejected me because I don't have a resale certificate. I haven't obtained one because it seems so confusing on things I need to do once I have it. Amazon remits and files the sales tax for their 3rd party sellers so I never see it or touch it. This might be a stupid question. Thank you guys Edit: Georgia [link] [comments] |
| What is the best small business credit card? Posted: 17 Feb 2022 08:42 AM PST I'm looking into them currently and the rewards seem to be portrayed slightly differently than personal credit cards (e.g., cash back vs points). [link] [comments] |
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