Tag Archives: company

X is for Xenodochial… or (e)Xcellent Customer Service!

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Obviously, we struggled a little bit with the letter X. There aren’t a lot of topics that lend themselves well to this particular letter, so unless we wanted to discuss the ins and outs of running a xylophone business, we had to expand beyond our normal vocabulary. Enter xenodochial, a long word that essentially means being nice to strangers – a quality that businesses must exhibit if they ever hope to attract new customers! But for simplicity’s sake, you can also think of X as standing for (e)Xcellent customer service.

Truly the most confusing letter.

There are a lot of theories on how to best serve your customers, but in reality there is no one answer on how to provide good customer service. Instead, there are multiple factors that have to built into how a business interacts with its customers.

First, though, it us up to the business owner to determine what their customers expect from them in terms of interaction. After all, what works in a restaurant may not necessarily work for a tire shop. Part of finding your niche is learning what your customers expect, and then working to meet those expectations. After you figure that out, you can begin training your employees on how best to interact with the customers. Do they want to be greeted at the door? Updated on new products? Treated like close friends? Part of running a business is organically zeroing in on answers to those types of questions. While a business book can give a laundry list of recommendations, customer service expectations and policies should be built on your experience with your customers.

Of course, good customer service goes beyond your interactions with your customers. You also need to make sure your employees are happy and treated well by the management – yes, they should always work in the interest of the company and people that pay them, but you can always tell when someone hates working somewhere. A disheartened, unmotivated employee may not treat customers poorly, but they certainly won’t work to make sure they have an excellent experience.

Finally, there are three parts of customer service that advisors and analysts constantly harp about – knowledge, body language, and anticipating needs. Though these three things border on cliché, they can be useful as long as they aren’t the only three parts of customer service focused on. Everyone who works for the business should be knowledgable about what the business sells, should be able to make eye contact and smile, and should be able to anticipate common customer needs so that customers feel that the business went “above and beyond” (if you will pardon another cliché) while helping them.

Xenodochial may be a complicated word, but customer service doesn’t have to be. Honestly, a lot of what creates a good customer experience is common sense. Treat your customers well and know what you are talking about. When you hire people to work for you, make sure they know and do the same. Small businesses have an advantage over giant corporations because they can still inject a bit of that personal touch into how they interact with their customers. And, as long as your employees feel as though they are an important part of your business’s success, they will be willing to work hard to maintain that level of customer service you worked so hard to build.

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MyCorporation Introduces Registered-Agent.com

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It’s a big day over here at MyCorp as we welcome a new addition to the online MyCorporation family!: Registered-Agent.com.

Registered-Agent.com offers small business owners registered agent services in all 50 states. It provides an easy-to-use and affordable registered agent service to help maintain the privacy and protection of your business.

Don’t have a registered agent for your small business? Here’s why you need our service:

A registered agent is a person or entity that receives legal paperwork on behalf of your small business. When you incorporate, your business turns into a separate entity from you. So since you no longer directly represents your business, your corporation or LLC is required to designate an agent for service of documents. The registered agent must meet multiple state-based requirements. This is where Registered-Agent.com comes in. This service helps your business meet the state requirements while maintaining your privacy.

A registered agent service  helps to maintain privacy by acting as a barrier between customers and the business. If your business gets served, the paperwork will be delivered to the registered agent service, not your business-front, allowing you to handle legal matters with discretion. Additionally, a registered agent receives reminders from the state and will notify you immediately of these reminders, helping you to stay compliant with state laws.

Lastly, for all businesses that maintain a foreign qualification, where business is formally conducted in a foreign state, Registered-Agent.com offers a convenient renewal service that ensures your business will remain in compliance by meeting all necessary registered agent requirements.

Have any questions? Contact us at http://www.mycorporation.com or give us a call at 1-877-692-6772.

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Business Basics: Business Licenses

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This week in business basics, we chose to look at a topic that has regularly confused some of our customers – business licenses. Business licensing can be a bit of a tricky topic because, quite honestly, there is no one answer for most of the questions asked about licensing. But we can try and help give a broad overview so that our readers understand what a business license actually is, and what it allows you to do.

Getting a business license is not like getting, say, a driver’s license, where all anyone has to do is pass a couple of tests and get a piece of plastic that qualifies them to drive any personal car. Business licenses are essentially permits to operate a business in your state, city, and industry – whether you actually need one depends on the legal regulations those three groups are bound by, and enforce.

If you, for example, run a computer repair business out of your garage in LA county, your business needs to apply to the Bureau of Electronics and Appliance Repair for an electronics repair license. This would, of course, be on top of the standard business license that most states and cities typically require.

But as we said, every business, industry, state, and even city has a different set of regulations in place. We recommend that, before you begin to try and dig through your state’s website for the necessary forms, you check out the US Small Business Administration website and use their tool to determine what licenses and permits you will need to apply for.

However, we can help point you in the right direction in terms of legal compliance. Nearly every locality requires businesses to have an Employer Identification Number, a Doing Business As name (if business is done using any other name but the owner’s), OSHA certification, and a Sales & Use Permit. All of these allow the state and city governments to keep track of your business, enforce relevant laws, and collect taxes.

It is VITALLY important that you comply with your local laws and regulations – operating without the necessary licenses or permits is a quick way to get fined and/or have your business shut down. Even if you think you couldn’t possibly be in an industry that requires any sort of license or permit, check with your state and local government and use every available tool that you can to ensure compliance with the law.

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U is for… U.S. Small Business Administration

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Welcome to the U.S. Small Business Administration edition of the ABCs of MyCorp; a very important component of the small business community.

What is the U.S. Small Business Administration and what exactly do they do?

According to SBA.gov, the USSBA was founded on July 30, 1953. Even from their early days, the USSBA has been dedicated to aiding small businesses in the three Cs: capital, contracts and counseling.

They make all sizes of loans available from helping a business with their debt to just raising capital in general. They focus on federal procurement; their Office of Government Contracting works with other federal departments and agencies to set goals and “reach the statutory goal of 23% in prime contract dollars for small businesses.”

Additionally, they assure that small businesses have a voice in reviewing Congressional legislation and testify on behalf of small business. The chief counsel of this office is decided on by the president of the United States.

As if all of this weren’t enough, the USSBA also offers counseling for entrepreneurs and small business owners. They walk them through how to be the best business owner they can be and they do this face-to-face or internet counseling all for free.

Since 1953, the U.S. Small Business Administration has proven itself to be a great asset for small businesses. Check out their website and see what they can do for you!

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M is for… MyCorp!

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Ok maybe you saw this coming, maybe you had ‘M’ all figured out way back at “E is for Entrepreneur,” but can you blame us? Having pride in your small business is a good thing. And wanting to share a little bit about your business in order to educate and entertain your customers is also a good thing.

So let me take you back to when (‘M’ is for) MyCorp started to become what it is today. Deborah came onto the team in 2004 not by hopping on board as the CEO, but as vice president of legal and business affairs. Not until 2009 did Deb purchase the devision, becoming the CEO of MyCorporation.

Today, MyCorporation is known as a leading provider of online document filing services for clients who wish to form a corporation or limited liability company.

But that’s not all we file! MyCorp helps small businesses to: file Corporations, LLCs, DBAs (Doing Business As), Amendments, Corporate Compliance, Dissolutions, Foreign Qualifications, Reinstatements. We also obtain Certificates of Good Standings and Certified Copies of Articles for your company. We offer corporate supplies such as Leather Binders, embossers/seals, stock and member certificates, and customized Operating Agreements / Minutes and Bylaws.

For over ten years, we have happily helped small business clients and real estate investors incorporate their businesses in a reliable and affordable manner, and have loved every second of it. We’re in the business of small businesses and we wouldn’t want to be anywhere else.

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3 Inspirational Business Startups That Took Off Running

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The process of starting or operating a small business can be difficult and discouraging at times. Where we can gain the biggest amount of inspiration is by visiting and learning more about successful online businesses and the innovative founders behind them. Their stories, particularly for the founders of Dropbox, Instagram, and Tumblr, reveal that it’s still possible for anyone with enough skill and determination to build a savvy and successful company.

Dropbox

Dropbox is an online file sharing and storage service that allows users to store videos, images, documents and other files on its servers. People can share files by creating download links or giving access to other Dropbox members. The basic account is free; users pay to obtain extra storage space. To limit marketing costs, Dropbox gives members more space when they refer new users.

The concept emerged in 2007, when Drew Houston accidentally left his USB drive at home. The idea for an online file storage service occurred to him as he waited for a bus. To create the system, Houston joined forces with MIT student Arash Ferdowsi. Investors quickly supplied over $7 million dollars in funding, according to Inc.com. Dropbox now has over 25 million members and employs 50 people.

So how did he do it? By taking a risk as well as advice from a mentor, Paul Graham. Nobody can build a multi-million dollar company on their own, which is why Houston asked for help. He also took a giant risk by posting the idea to Hacker News in the hopes of it being well received in the tech world. As much as he was worried about copycats stealing his idea, he needed to prove to Y Combinator (a startup funding company for digital entrepreneurs) that the concept could succeed. His idea drew the attention of all the right people and Houston was granted the funds after one nerve-racking PowerPoint presentation to Y Combinator.

Instagram

Instagram is a photo sharing service that makes it easy for people and businesses with camera phones to distribute their pictures. To access the service, phone users download a free application. It allows them to modify, enhance and upload photos.

Kevin Systrom enjoyed creating computer games, taking pictures and experimenting with Photoshop. He saw photography as a powerful method of self-expression. After Systrom graduated from Stanford University, he worked at Google and NextStop. He was 28 years old when he started Instagram and during the first 90 days of its release, the app gained one million users. Systrom eventually sold Instagram to Facebook for $1 billion dollars, according to the Los Angeles Times.

Systrom didn’t make $400 million dollars in his 40% stake in Instagram simply by creating a product specifically for profit. He thought of his users first and what they would want. He took an idea and tailored it to give people the ability to share their creativity through photographs, which was always a passion of his. Originally, Systrom was offered a job at ‘The Facebook’ in 2006 but turned it down to finish his last year of school. By following his own priorities, this would lead him to his own version of success.

Tumblr

Tumblr is a major microblogging service that millions of people use, including celebrities like Beyonce and Lady Gaga. While traditional blogs often provide daily or weekly lengthy text-based content, microblogs entries are brief, in a paragraph or less, and typically based heavily on visuals. Tumblr users like to post interesting quotes, images, songs and videos and to generate revenue, the site sells blog themes, apps and featured directory listings.

Tumblr began in 2007 when founder David Karp was 19-years-old. Karp had tried other blogging systems, but he didn’t like the emphasis on text. He decided to create a multimedia blogging service. With the help of his excellent programming skills, Karp was able to build the system and rapidly expand it. Tumblr received $85 million from investors in a single month, according to Wired Magazine. The service now has about 36 million members and more traffic than Twitter.

By employing a well-worn technique in product manufacturing, Karp merely took something that he didn’t like and made it better. Blogging platforms aren’t a new thing by any means, but Karp discovered what modern bloggers were craving; more ways to express themselves. Once again, Karp – like Systom – focused on his users, concentrating their apps on each individual’s personal creativity.

These inspiring stories have many similarities. The founders believed in their ability to succeed. These individuals could have secured well-paying jobs at other companies, but they risked time and money to start their own businesses. Rather than relying on paid advertising, they created services that millions of people wanted to recommend. Although it isn’t feasible for everyone to immediately establish insanely popular websites right off the bat, business owners can benefit from these strategies and apply them to their startups. Combined with dedication and original ideas, such techniques are sure to yield success.

About the author

Carly Lance loves to blog about saving money and small business finances in hopes of helping others achieve financial bliss in their lives, as she has in her own. She is also the blog manager for Personal Bankruptcy Canada, a company of bankruptcy trustees dedicated to helping “good people with bad debt.

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5 Questions Small Businesses Should Ask Before Spending

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One of the keys to startup success is the ability to efficiently manage scarce resources. Among the scarcest resource for any small business is money. Startups have to adhere to a budget and know what and where the money they are spending is going to.

Asking the right questions can lead small businesses down the right path. When it comes to money, here are five questions that small business owners should be asking in order to get the most bang for their business’ buck.

1. How will this expense help repay itself?

One thing I learned in the early days of running a business is that expenses must bring a return back. It might seem obvious, but we’re conditioned to think we need certain things that, in reality, we do not. Eyeing each purchase you make with an eye towards return brings much needed focus back to the company.

Some expenses might not have clear returns. For example, while office supplies won’t make you money they are still necessary to buy for an office to function properly with. Others expenses might be a bit more clear.  Seminars and training that boost skills within various departments can lead to measurable results back to the business.

2. Do we have a plan for follow through?

A few years ago my small online publishing company was having issues with our web host. We knew we needed to switch to a new provider, and wanted to get it done ASAP. With a little research I found a highly rated host with reasonably priced dedicated hosting. All good things, right?

As we found out, we had not considered many aspects of the follow through. Most notably, we didn’t know how we’d go about migrating our data to the new servers. That turned out to be a prohibitively expensive endeavor. Because we couldn’t afford the move, we had to eat the money spent on the servers. That pushed back our move considerably. Always be sure to research the follow through details as thoroughly as possible before making any sudden decisions – it’s time well spent.

3. Is this the best price possible?

Many, if not most, of business-to-business transactions involve a flexible price. It might not seem that way initially, but there is often room for negotiation. Savvy small business owners should never buy products or services without feeling out the flexibility.

In the book, Never Lose Again, authors Steven Babitsky and James Mangraviti pose 50 questions that can help anyone get a better deal on almost anything. Small businesses can use the tactics from this book in order to negotiate better prices in exchange for concessions that they can more easily afford.

4. Are we getting the most for our money?

If a small business wants to stretch its dollar, it can look to variable expenses. For instance, a small business can reduce its electricity bill by reducing consumption. According to power giant ABB, many companies can save by using less energy, since buildings account for such a disproportionate amount of energy usage.

Finding inefficiencies in recurring expenses can lead to recurring savings. If a small business can take some of these energy saving tips and turn them into $20 monthly savings, that’s $240 per year. Find three or four such areas for your business in order to maximize the savings made.

5. What will happen if we don’t spend this money?

One of my publishing partners asks this question every time we’re about to write a check. While we still write the check most of the time, we’ve saved a great sum by carefully considering the consequences of not taking this action. In so many instances they just weren’t significant.

By avoiding what amount to unnecessary expenses, we’re able to better focus our limited funds. That has allowed us to save money for items that are much more critical for our mission.

Joe Pawlikowski has owned and worked for small businesses for more than five years. His companies primarily produce content, using new media tools and agility to stay ahead of the mainstream pack. He chronicles his experiences at his blog, A New Level.

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Guest Post: 5 Hot Business Ethics Issues of 2012

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Business ethics within corporations deal with the code of values a company adopts. They determine how the company operates and what it will potentially achieve in the long term. This year, businesses are faced with many difficult ethical questions and must understand the trends in industry as well as how to handle tough situations. In moral grey areas, businesses must take a stand on issues of all types, some of which include:

1) Honesty, Integrity, and Fairness

Don’t be afraid to turn away business when your products or services won’t benefit your clients. During the financial crisis, some banks – like BB&T – refused to offer the popular “pick-a-pay” mortgages (i.e. subprime loans) to customers. BB&T did not view these products as being in its customers’ best interest, despite their popularity. Other banks, like Citi, ignored this view and paid the price. BB&T came out of the crisis clean and on the side of honesty, while many of its competitors depended on a government bailout for survival.

2) Risk Management:

Overnight success is great for companies but sudden fast growth can cause a lack of focus on value and sacrifice quality. To solve the problem of faltering quality control, slow down growth. Don’t be a commodity product. Don’t cater to the masses. Create something for a niche market and refine your offering slowly over time. You don’t need to out-compete other companies. You only need to do better than you did last year.

3) Corporate Responsibility

There’s no necessary dichotomy between doing what is profitable and doing what’s right, but just make sure you’re doing it to the benefit of your shareholders and balancing the line between social and corporate responsibility. Don’t get lost in a moral fog. Stay honest and true to your business values. Your customers expect you to provide quality products and services and your shareholders expect you to make a certain amount of money – you have a responsibility to them. Make every move a profitable one for the long-term as much as you can.

4) Worker Exploitation

Even if you employees enjoy working overtime and staying on for longer hours each day, don’t take advantage of their willingness to work hard for you. Do, however, make your workplace inviting and comfortable to be in should they decide to stay late a few times a week.

5) Social Media

Or the ethics of buying “likes” and tweets. Some marketing departments within various companies have suggested that the company buy “likes” on Facebook and pay for “tweets” on Twitter to make the company look more popular. Instead of buying social signals on networking sites, double down on the marketing strategies that have worked in the past. Add social buttons for “likes” and “tweets.” If you get them, great. If not, don’t fret. What matters most is that you’re honest and profitable.

Author Bio:

Guest post contributed by Trace Anderson, for aimcrm.com, CRM software for lead and customer relationship management.

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Guest Post: How to Improve Your Cold Calling Results

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Your company may be one where routine cold calls contribute to your business and keep new customers coming in. But when it comes to cold calls, your staff probably hears more “no” responses than “yes” when you’d like it to be the reverse. Whether you have an outbound call center or a single employee who focuses on cold calls, these tips can help improve your results.

Before You Start

If your company is one that turns to cold calls, chances are you have at least one person focused on doing just that. The process can easily become tedious for the employee calling out and this can hinder their interactions with other potential customers. Before you even make a call, here are some things to keep in mind.

  • Throw out your script, or at least create one that is easily customizable. Every new person you call is different than the last, so why should the script stay the same? You want to create a relationship and a script can make doing so more difficult.
  • If you can, do a little digging into the business and person you plan to speak with. Saying something different from what you’re pitching is a great way to establish rapport before you transition to the reason for your call. It also provides insight into how you should pitch.
  • Be prepared to leave a voicemail. Be brief, pitch-free, and leave a contact number to be reached at (and repeat it back a second time) and your chances of a return call increase.

Continue reading →

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Why Interdepartmental Communication is More Important Than You Think

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Do you struggle with communicating with other departments at your job or keeping the flow of conversation active? Today our guest poster Felicia Baratz discusses how businesses can enhance and build up their company relationships, no matter how different the dynamics may be.

Of the many struggles workers have with their jobs, Interdepartmental communication remains one of the major complaints expressed. For example, your billing department needs to talk with other departments to verify invoice information and pricing options on a regular basis. Without strong and consistent communication, you won’t know about special arrangements made by the advertising department or fee waivers offered by the sales team. You cannot accurately do your job without active communication between departments.

While interdepartmental contact remains an essential component of any company, it gets difficult to manage between different business dynamics but there are ways to enhance and build up company relationships that lead to the success of the business.

Schedule All-Hands Meetings

Sending emails, talking on the phone or chatting over lunch provide bits and pieces of information between departments, but subsisting off of this alone is not enough. You have to be able to gather everyone together for regular meetings to ensure everyone operates on the same page.

While meetings don’t seem exciting, keep in mind that everyone communicates on a different level from one another. One team member might respond well to a broad memo while you prefer to read in-depth instructions. Both ways still provide viable sources of information and you’ll need a variety of communication tools are needed to ensure everyone gets the message. Never take for granted that one style of communication meets everyone’s needs. Instead, be sure to cover all of the bases in order to improve interdepartmental communications.

Spice up these meetings by turning them into socials too! Send employees off-campus for training, team building or meals. A change in scenery promotes unity and helps workers think outside the box. Additionally, these types of gatherings show employees their value to the company. When you feel valued, you want to contribute and be proactive in making the company communication a success.

Create Assembly Lines

When one department handles a project from start to finish, other departments may feel left out. Taking on solo projects can also lead to resentment, as everyone doesn’t carry an equal share of the workload. Utilize assembly lines and have someone from each department carry the responsibility of a portion of every project. When departments work and communicate well together, interdepartmental relationships stay strong.

Use File Sharing

As part of the assembly line technique, file sharing enables everyone to stay on the same page. As each department accesses files associated with the current project, communication improves. You can make changes or discuss issues before mistakes cost the company money. Additionally, file sharing prevents wasting time; since the document is updated the instant one team member makes a change. This layer of protection prevents mistakes and saves time and money.

Lead by Example

If you’re lucky enough to work for a boss who handles employee issues like suggestions, disputes and complaints personally, then he or she probably handles interdepartmental communication well. By taking charge, the boss indicates his or her approachability and value for team members. If your boss does not lead by example, be the leader in your department. As an example of good communication and camaraderie, you open the doors to changes in the overall company morale. No department is an island, and enhancing interdepartmental communication can only improve employee satisfaction and a company’s bottom line.

Internal communication is important enough that someone should be designated to handle its facilitation, especially in medium or larger businesses. Smaller companies should still have systems and protocols in place, but may not need someone dedicated to watching over it. Increasing communication will cut down on errors, make your company look more professional and foster employee happiness.

Felicia Baratz is a freelance writer, graphic designer and social media addict living in Indianapolis, IN. As a contributor to ProfessionalIntern.com, Felicia discusses new, innovative technology and it’s relation to the business world and social media marketing.

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