Insurance for Small Biz

Another great suggestion to come out of last night's small business start up presentation was the type of insurance that may be necessary for a small business.

Depending on the legal business structure, you may be personally liable for any claims of damage, defective product, breakage, loss of client revenue, etc.  Examples include computer consultants that should probably carry errors and omissions (E&O)  insurance.  This is an insurance form that protects the insured against liability for committing an error or omission in performance of professional duties. Generally, such policies are designed to cover financial losses rather than liability for bodily injury and property damage.*

A second general common business insurance policy is broad form comprehensive general liability (BFCGL) endorsement.  This insurance is a comprehensive endorsement to be attached to pre-1986 editions of the standard general liability policy that provided coverage enhancements including blanket contractual liability; personal injury and advertising liability; premises medical payments; host liquor liability; fire legal liability on real property; broad form property damage liability, including completed operations; incidental medical malpractice; nonowned watercraft liability; limited worldwide coverage; additional persons insured (employees); extended bodily injury coverage; and automatic coverage for newly acquired organizations.*

Insurance policies are vital if:

A) You have personal assets you might lose in a legal judgment

B) The legal structure is a Sole Proprietorship or S-Corp where no corporate protection exists

Consider carefully your risks and whether you can sleep at night without adequate coverage.



Disclaimer:

The author of this article, thesmallbizpro, and affiliated entities are not certified insurance agents and claim no expertise or authority in the insurance industry.  Readers of this article are strongly encouraged to contact an appropriate insurance broker, agent, or appropriate entity to review individual circumstances.  This article is solely an opinion of the author who holds no liability for insurance options chosen by an individual, individuals, or organizations.

* Insurance definitions copied from the glossary at http://www.irmi.com/online/default.aspx 

Increase Traffic to your Web Site or Blog

Last night, I was fortunate enough to attend Jeff Williams' seminar on "Starting a Business After 50."  As a small business owner and coach for 25 years or so, he is considered a guru in marketing, sales, and general business knowledge.  Those interested in his program can find more information at http://www.bizstarters.com. 

Jeff had many words of advice for the audience, including suggestions on how to increase visitors to a web site or blog.  Allowing for paraphrasing, here are some of his suggestions:

1) Maintain fresh content.  Write an article, blog, post or something as often as possible.  Search engines rank sites partially based on new content and visitors will return for the latest information.  Site traffic is also measured by the number of page views you have received on your articles. 

2) Register and write articles for a site like www.ehow.com and populate your profile with links to your site.

3) Cross link with area companies that are not competitors.  An example might involve a craft business specializing in silver jewelry linking from a crochet or knitting craft site.  You link to them, they link to you, both sides win by gaining exposure and traffic.

4) Publicity.  As mentioned in a previous post, a press release can be a great way to increase traffic.  Using an Internet press release agency, such as www.prweb.com, can expose your site to millions of potential customers around the world.

Thanks to Jeff for these great ideas and get writing!


- AJ

Free blog hosts for starters

It is increasingly easy to post a blog online for free.  Several sites provide this service and bloggers can often earn money via advertising and referrals just by posting an opinion or idea.

Here are a few common and popular web links to FREE blog sites:

www.wordpress.com

www.blogger.com

www.blog.com

www.mashable.com

Some of these sites have restrictions on content - no porn or defamation - but open to any other blogs.

These services are a wonderful way to get noticed in cyber space and state a personal opinion.  If one has expertise in a certain area, blogging is a way of passing along that knowledge.  If one wishes to drive viewership, post often and with relevant content.

Words of caution though: Any thoughts you place on the Internet can be searched by employers or authorities and potentially be used against you.  Anonymity is at risk so be smart and careful when blogging.  Also, blogs are not the best way to sell a product if that is a goal.  A better and more controlled way is via a web site and virtual storefront.

Happy blogging!

- AJ

News Releases

A big issue facing all small businesses, especially new ones, is marketing or 'getting the word on the street'.  How can others learn about my product and/or service?  Tweets, Facebook posts, emails and posting notices may help, but generally will not provide adequate exposure.  This is a major problem if my business is a locally based dry cleaner or pet grooming service. Not many people willingly send laundry or Rover across the state.

How about this idea - a press release?  The media is still the most significant and powerful form of marketing yet invented and provides instant credibility and exposure.  How often have we heard "I read it in..." or "I heard it on..." so it must be true?  This concept, known as 'social proof', prods people to browse or purchase. A story in a local newspaper or trade publication is often a golden ticket. 

Press releases are used on the Internet too, potentially creating traffic from search engines such as Google or Yahoo and exposing a business to a larger audience.  This is a major advantage when a target market is geographically large or the business sells via the web.


Tips for writing a winning press release:


- Consider the 'newsworthy' nature of the release.  Why would a journalist write your story?  A journalist writes to sell copy - the article - not your product or service.  Give them something unique and they'll gladly write about it. FOR FREE!  Both sides win; the writer sells more copy and you gain clients.

- What is unique or distinctive about your product or service?  Have you recently opened a theme restaurant or patented the Chia Chinchilla?  Do you have a new product or service for your target area?  This product or service may have succeeded elsewhere but is fresh and original where you are.

- Write in an inverted pyramid style.  This is different than fictional writing in which a story builds.  In a press release, put the important points first - who, what, where, when, how, why - and leave the details for the second half.  Readers like to skim and the first lines must catch their attention.

- Be short and to the point.  300 to 500 words, no more.  Be concise, simple, and relevant.

- The title of your release less than 10 words.  More is an article and boring.  Make it catchy.

- Include contact information.  Address, phone number, web site (URL), or email.  Ensure the person that responds to inquiries knows the product or service.  Don't turn off new clients with incorrect information. 

Any other suggestions?  Please add them to the comment area.  Thanks!


- AJ

Jeff Williams - Presentation on Starting a Business 10-28

I just received notice that Jeff Williams, a veteran and well-respected business start up guru, is giving a free workshop/presentation in the Chicago suburbs on Wednesday, October 28th.  Details below.

Jeff is an outstanding speaker and has been coaching would-be entrepreneurs for 25 years.  He is well worth the time invested.

Starting Your Own Business    
Wednesday October 28, 2009
7:00 pm - 9:00 pm
Location: St. James     School Basement
Street: 820 N. Arlington Heights Road
City State Zip: Arlington Heights, IL 60004                                  
Phone: pcasey@arlingtonresources.com

Notes:
Speaker:  Jeff Williams, BizStarters  
Old School Basement:  Enter Door A5 of the building located on the east side of Arlington Heights Road 

Why the advertising and blog feeds?

Maintaining a web site, blog, Twitter, and Facebook accounts costs time and money. Since we are a free informational site, we'd like to make up some of the costs by using web site advertising. Google adsense is fairly easy to implement and seemed a logical path to recover at least a portion of the costs.

And about the blog feeds? Aren't you providing information from competitors?

In our view, information, opinion, and expertise is key. As we mention on our web site, the-small-biz-pro.com - we are not experts in any area. And, since we are not a business, per se, we can't have competition! Yes, we have experience and a level of training in certain areas, however this does not qualify us to provide a cookie-cutter approach to all. We firmly believe in our mantra: Shared Vision - Shared Resources - Shared Success.

Everyone benefits by contributions from those experienced in various areas such as accounting, marketing, legal, etc. We feel we'd be doing the small business community and especially our guests a disservice by not openly inviting others to contribute.

This is a blog conceived to benefit all who visit. If another blogger has a differing or better idea, great. Feel free to slice and dice our take on life, the universe, and everything.

Best wishes and good karma to all!

- A.J.

We made the switch

We've been debating whether to stay with GoDaddy's free blogcast (comes with the web hosting package) or move to another. The fact that you are now looking at Google's blogger ought to clue you in on the final decision.

Our reasons were simple: ease of administration, available features, opportunity for increased visitation, and subsequent revenue. All these taken into consideration, the move was a no-brainer.

GoDaddy is a fine product and certainly the paid version is likely better than the free, but for our purposes - and also as a consideration for our guests - the move to this provider is a major improvement. It's also free and can host advertising, etc. A future post will address that issue.

When choosing your hosting provider - web, blog or otherwise - you may need to try several before you settle on a winner. We may move again in the future as we grow, to be determined. In any case, keep this in mind:

- Don't commit to a long-term contract when starting
- How easy is the site to administer?
- Does it have desired features including links to Twitter, Facebook, and other social sites?
- How much does it cost?
- Can or will it host advertising, a potential source of revenue?
- What about pictures, videos, blogcasts, etc?

If your blog and/or web site is key to your business, be sure that the host has the features you NEED at the right PRICE.

- A.J.