Creating Business

	Creating Business
	Entrepreneurship….Can YOU do it?
	by Jim Powell
	Copyright Jim Powell 2005, 2009
	All rights reserved

	Hit the Ground Running! Immediately after reading this article and if your situation necessitates or allows, get out of your office and see prospects. It's great to have the below information to set up your business and keep it running, BUT.... there is a business axiom that long stands correct in every situation: Nothing happens until someone sells something!



	For more than twenty years, I have successfully negotiated the twists and turns of being a "Sole Proprietor." You know, what you might call, "being on my own." However, that is a misconception. I am not "on my own." There are many people who have given me opportunities, and I thank them. For those of you considering going on your own, or if you are already on your own, here are some tips, hints and realities about the Real World of Sole Proprietorship.


	Fallacies of Sole Proprietorship: "I am my own boss." "I can take off anytime I want." "I can control my own life." Not quite. Remember: You are in business for your self... for others. You are not your own boss. Hopefully, you have hundreds of bosses. They are known as Customers. You are on-call when your customers need you. And you call on your customers when they are not calling you.


	To Succeed Over The Long Term, You Must Have:

	A Business Plan: Clearly define your product or service. How is it produced? Who produces it? Will you have employees or contractors working with you? Will you rent space or will you operate your business from your house? Do you need to comply with zoning regulations? Will you need any city, county or state licenses? How will you track your expenses, receipts and billables?

	A Marketing Plan: Who is going to buy your product or service? Where is your customer base? Is it Local? Regional? National or International? How are you going to market your product or service? Will you produce the marketing materials yourself or will you outsource this activity?

	A Financial Plan: How will you secure operating capital, including your personal expenses for the six months and beyond, even four years? Why four years? According to the Small Business Administration, "about only half (of new businesses) survive at least four years." That’s a 50% rate. Not very encouraging odds. Further, SBA states that in 2003, 572,900 businesses were started and 554,800 closed. The primary reason cited for closure was insufficient operating capital. For a good financial plan, your first step is to consult with a good CPA. That person can save you hundreds if not thousands of dollars over their fees, especially at tax time. He or she can also guide you in preparing for financial success and the stability of your business. Equipment Payoff: Not many years ago, you could rely on paying off your equipment investment within 5 years. Then, because of the exponential advancement in technology and the highly competitive marketplace, the payoff period became 2 years...then 15 months...now it can be as quickly as one or two projects. Your "new" competitors, who are buying the latest advancements at cheaper prices, can do more with less for their customers. Therefore, your "old" technology can not compete. While your skills may be more finely tuned than a recent graduate or new player in the production marketplace, you may also have to offer the latest technology to accommodate your prospects’ needs and stay competitive. TIP: Make acquaintance with a good production equipment vendor and use them often. If they know you're going to be a good customer, they'll go the extra distance to help you solve problems and much of the time without added cost. I met mine in 1982 when I was a disc-jockey on a remote broadcast and he was a part-time engineer with the station. We're both geek techies and hit it off well. He started his business in '84 about the same time I started mine. BIG NOTE: Make sure your equipment expenditures are for actual jobs. A verbal promise of business does not pay your bills. Speculative work rarely works and can often cost you. Cyclic Nature of Business: The highs of income and the deep valleys of financial emptiness are all too real. Leveling this "roller coaster" is important. How? Diligently monitor your income and expenses. Make sure you put money into a separate rainy day account. Some say 10% of your gross sales is a good starting point. Put more into the account when you receive windfalls, that is, major unexpected income. You will need the extra money during the slow times when no one is knocking on your door with business. Another important business option to overcome the Cyclic Nature of Business is to diversify your "profit" centers. Profit Centers: Think of all the opportunities that you have to make money with your entire skill base. What skills do you have that can make money? What skills will require equipment? Do you now own that equipment? Don’t limit yourself to your main skill. I know some videographers who are also excellent wood craftsmen. Possessing a broad range of marketable skills helps fill in the financial valleys. (See "Cyclical Nature of Business" above) Of course, you might also have some lateral skills related to your focused service. For example, if videography is your primary skill, can you also write, edit or design sets? Are your clients aware of all your skills and services? In slow times, I have worked as a Grip and have also recorded audio for depositions. Many times, I've dusted off my Electronics Technology Diploma and pursued work to help with the bills. Position yourself to take advantage of every business opportunity that comes your way.

	Build Relationships: You have the skill and the savvy to produce a quality product or service. But, to succeed, you must also have the marketing knowledge and ability to build relationships to: Get the job! Developing and maintaining a deep network can help you to convert every opportunity that comes your way into a billable project. Building relationships requires placing yourself before as many prospects as you can in a non-sales environment. GO SEE PEOPLE! An example would be simply meeting peers at professional meetings. On prospecting for turnkey projects, become involved with other community social and business organizations to make new contacts.

	A warning: These meetings are just to get acquainted, and not to close a sale. Over a non-sales conversation, there will be ample opportunity for your prospect to learn what you do and for you to give them your card. At that moment, you might want to ask if you can come by their office to visit sometime. During that visit, you’ll have time to go into your sales pitch. Remember, after what you know, it’s who you know that leads to success in business.

	Now, "who" in a company is most important to contact? There's no answer to that. Here's why. All people you meet are important.
	For instance, a long time good friend of mine whom I've worked on the talent side for years, suggested to his boss that he consider me as a contractor to work on their Webcasting team. My friend knew that I had experience with the production side of our business as well as being a long time performing talent. After several meetings, his boss hired me to work on location for several weeks as a technical and production contractor. Nice gig. Made my year. It continues.
	But the chain doesn't stop there. The boss's boss, a super lady, also was very much in the communication chain and had knowledge and approval of all on the team. Then there's her supervisor, a vice-president. He also now oversees audio book publishing of which I've previously provided voice-over and production work for the company.
	The point is everyone is important no matter their position. All have an interest in making sure that "I" do my job to the satisfaction of a successful performance and achieve the production's goals. They also are potential sources of other work.

	There's one more point about social gatherings. There's the very good potential that the person to whom you're talking may not be in a hiring position at that time but later advances to a hiring position. If you've treated he or she right and stayed in contact, you're the first name on the list.
	So, you just never know when the person your talking to can give you a life time of work.

	One Customer Does Not Make You A Business: The IRS states this very clearly. You cannot take advantage of the business tax deductions a "sole proprietorship" affords if you have only one customer. And, from another perspective, consider this: how will you continue to operate if that one customer dissolves its business relationship with you? References: For business training and motivation, I suggest sessions with Dale Carnegie, and recorded materials from Nightengale-Conant. Also check with the Small Business Administration, the Better Business Bureau and the Library of Congress. Don't forget the Internet. My boss with the Webcasting team above loves "About.com." Of course, I always recommend that you join MCA-I (the Media Communications Association-International). This organization has provided much of my economic base as well as a training ground and information for state-of-the art technology before it's known to the mass. Join'em. You'll not regret it. Mistakes Are Not Failures: Despite your best efforts, you are bound to make some business mistakes. Some call these growing pains. Over time, you will learn how to cope. Rarely is a mistake life threatening to your business. It may hurt, but you can continue. Whatever the mistake, whether a financial mis-step on a proposal, a schedule debacle or heaven forbid, a misunderstanding with your customer, learn from them and continue forward with your goals. Don’t Let Your Schedule Manage You. Manage Your Schedule: Make time for your faith. Make time for your family. Make time for your business. Finally, make time for yourself. You have to get away from the demands of your business from time to time in order to maintain creative balance. Those of us that have our office in the home continually combat this problem to not work 7 days a week. You need the time away. Operating as a sole proprietor requires discipline, planning and courage. Review your goals daily and be steadfast in your tenacity to succeed. Much of the time, perseverance and "Just showing up," as one of my mentors told me when I began, will lead you to success. Success is when knowledge meets opportunity: Are your skills refined, your knowledge up-to-date, and your business in tact when opportunity presents itself? You CAN do it! w REMEMBER! Hit the Ground Running! Immediately after reading this article and if your situation necessitates or allows, get out of your office and see prospects. The above information is important, BUT.... Nothing happens until someone sells something!
	To listen to three interviews of George Cauttero, Scott Munroe or Gary Stone, go to:
	Creating Business Interviews


	PRESENTED BY: Jim Powell, Talent Shoot South Productions
	Producer, CERTIFIED VIDEO ENGINEER (SBE) and Talent

	Contact: Jim Powell (800) 283-7686 Email
	JimPowell.com

"Creating Business"
Narrator, Videographer and Producer - Life Member of MCA-I

	Below is an article (handout) from my session of the same name presented at MCA-I's ProTracks. It's written from a series of interviews, personal experience from over 20 years of operating a business and from many of my customer's experiences and thoughts, and it is dedicated to helping those of us who have gone from the corporate world to being "on our own" whether by our own decision or by others. Three interviews from longtime, experienced industry professionals are available online: Go: Interviews.


PRESENTED BY: Jim Powell, Talent Shoot South Productions