Women's Business Blog

What Do Women in Business Really Want?

Listen up America! Women in business want to be heard. Women in business want to be taken seriously. Women in business want their time respected and their questions answered. Women in business are responsible for most of the changes that have occurred in the business world in the past two or three decades. Yet, too many businesses and/or business people still haven't gotten the message. Women in business not only have money to spend with vendors, they are the decision makers for the spending in most of the companies they don't own.

Let's look at the power and influence of women in business in America today. First, women own close to 47% of all the small businesses in this country. When you add in the businesses they own with a spouse that number jumps to 50%. Owning half of the small businesses is important as it translates into the responsibility of hiring the majority of the workforce. Yes, women's businesses aren't Fortune 500 companies, but they employ more people than the Fortune 500 combined. And, in this economic condition, women's businesses are more likely to hire people than the Fortune 500. Small businesses are also more responsible for the buying patterns needed for business needs. They tend to buy from each other and become loyal to those who buy from them. Women understand how difficult it is to win an account and grow and they will work to spread the word on companies that support their growth. Yes, women in business are responsible for as much as 85% of all consumer purchasing. And, that includes B2B as well as B2C. If you win her business and respect her loyalty you will be the beneficiary of her spreading the word to friends and associates.

Finally, women in business are known for asking a lot of questions. It is part of our nature to want to know as much as we can about a product or service before we buy. If you want to sell to a woman in business be prepared to explain carefully the what, when, how and why of your product or service. It matters.

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Women's Business Coach: TIP OF THE WEEK: Having It All!

Women's businesses make up more than 40% of all small businesses in the United States. For more than 25 years, women have been starting new businesses at twice the rate of men in this country. The surveys demonstrate that the number one reason women start their own business is because they not only want but need to find greater flexibility in their work/life balance. During the research for my book HER TURN: Why It's Time For Women To Lead in America I learned from thousands of women why they left corporate jobs with six figure incomes to start their own business and make do with less income but greater access to home and family. Truth is men have as much difficulty as women today with work/life balance but our society has less sympathy for their plight. As a women entrepreneur myself, I know that starting and running your own business doesn't mean less hours of work. In fact, it requires more time yet with more control.

But back to having it all. Do women business owners have it all? What both men and women business owners have is more choice. Choice in how much work to take on but not always in when to do the work. Customers are even more demanding of owners than they are of employees. Owners' responsibility generally requires more hands-on involvement. It is one of the major reasons customers choose to work with small businesses. So if having it all means more responsibility you better be prepared for this part of the bargain of business ownership.

It is often said that it is possible to have it all but just not all at the same time. Businesses have a cycle of launching, growing, stabilizing and eventually (hopefully) selling. Families, and particularly children, also have a cycle. At birth and during the early years, children have the basic needs that can be somewhat easily adapted into work/life balance. It's in the middle years and particuarly teen years, when children require more time, guidance and monitoring. Balance at this stage can be extremely difficult to orchestrate as crises happen more often without advance notice and require parental intervention. When both parents, or in many cases a single parent, has business ownership responsibilities getting a replacement for home or work duties is not always possible. Whereas in a corporate setting very few people are completely indispensable.

So clearly, having it all can vary depending on the stage of the business and the family complexion.

My definition of having it all is being in control of my destiny. Knowing that it is within my power to choose the path I take at any given moment be it work or family, and being able to combine the two as often as I decide. Appreciating the fact that as a business owner, mother and wife, I am a role model to others who question the decision to strike out on their own and realize that this too is a powerful piece of having it all.

Yes, having it all may mean taking bits and pieces of what you need along the road and making sacrifices when necessary. But in the end you will have done it your way!

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Women's Business Coach: TIP OF THE WEEK: Pricing

How do you put value on what you do? This is one of the top questions I am asked as a business coach. I believe strongly in developing a business plan. I don't care how sophisticated you think you are or your business is, a business plan demonstrates, in black and white, your expenses and therefore what you MUST charge for your work. The majority of women I work with under value their work for their clients. Although you have spent years perfecting your craft or expertise, you still believe you don't deserve the BIG BUCKS! Get over it! You deserve to be paid a fair price for what you contribute to your clients and their business. Most women entrepreneurs dive in many years after they have finished school and applied their talents at other corporations. They have put in the time to charge at the highest level for their expertise -- yet, for whatever reason, they feel uncomfortable telling those that want to hire them that they are worthy. Let me share my own story, as it changed my life early in my career. In 1990, I was 39 years old. A very good client of mine was impressed by my work and wanted to hire me to do work for him on the side. He asked me to come and meet with him. I had a full time job making a pretty good living at about $65,000 per year. He wanted me to work part time to advise him on marketing. I went to the meeting wondering how this could possibly work. He told me how impressed he was with my talents and how much he would appreciate my ability as an advisor to his marketing team. Then he asked me, "What would you charge to work with our company monthly to advise us on our marketing/pr program?" There it was an opportunity to really take on the world and show myself to be the true entrepreneur I knew I could be. I quickly assessed the situation and thought, "would he think $500 per month would be asking too much, or maybe $100 per month since I was already in a 40+ hour a week job?" All this was going in my head when he looked at me with those intense eyes and said, "What do you think, could you help us out at $5000 per month?" I couldn't believe my ears. He wanted to pay me almost more than I was making now full time just to have me available to his team to provide my opinion on their marketing materials. I swallowed hard and said, "Yes, I think that would be fair." To this day I wonder what color my face was and how I managed to keep a straight face and accept his offer. I learned a very important lesson that day. NEVER under value your talents. NEVER under estinmate how others see you. You have worked hard and you deserve to be paid fairly for your work. So, this week's tip is to do your best to look outside yourself and ask yourself if you are truly being paid for your experience, talents and all you do for your clients. I promise you, no one will ever walk up to you and demand to pay you more..you need to make that demand of yourself. You are worth it. Now go out and price the contribution you make in the business world at a number that makes you feel a chill. That's the only way you'll know you've priced yourself right.

Women's Business Coach: TIP FOR THE WEEKEND

The business world is all a buzz about social media. You are meant to spend your time blogging, commenting on pertinent articles in your industry, and joining online groups such as LinkedIn, Facebook and others. And, of course, if you have a moment of peace at work you should take time to Twitter your thoughts to your followers and soon-to-be followers about what's on your mind and what you are planning to do next in your frantic business and professional life. So perhaps you believe the weekend is a time to just chill. Unfortuntately, I say "No way Sister"! You have permission to leave the keyboard for weekdays but on weekends you must get out into the world and shout to the masses how you are the best little small business doing blah blah blah and no one has ever done it better. Yes, Ms. Entrepreneur you better be your own number one fan. You better spend all your time outside the office telling people about your business and why they need to hire you, refer you and better yet tell all their friends about you and your business. Tooting your horn is part of your role as an entrepreneur. And as a woman entrepreneur it often doesn't come natural. Perhaps you were raised to look nice and keep quiet because that's what nice young ladies do. Well, let me tell you you are not that little girl anymore. You are a grown woman with a business and you need to promote promote promote. Everyone you meet over the weekend is a potential client or a referral to one. So make sure you let everyone you meet know what you do and how to reach you. Think of social media as your best marketing and PR effort when you don't have your hair and makeup done. All the rest of the time tell the world why you are the person for the job.

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Do You Have What It Takes To Start Your Own Business? Part II

Now that you have had an opportunity to access the first five qualities needed to start a business, you are now ready to review the next five. Sixth, creative thinker. In order to start your own business you need to think, as they say, 'out of the box'. You need to see (envision) what others don't. Now, this doesn't mean you need to be able to draw a straight line -- this has never been one of my talents. What it means is that you have the ability to view the world in 'rose-colored glasses' and see something others haven't seen. A niche that you can fill with your business. Seventh, thick-skinned. Can you make decisions? Can you make decisions under pressure? Are you able to put your emotions aside, dig deep, and make a decision based on what is right to move your business forward? That's what it takes to start your own business. The business is not YOU. It requires decisions that are not made out of emotion but from a position of strength for what is in the best interest of the business. Eighth, public speaking. Yes, starting your own business means you need to do some public speaking. You will be the PR firm, the promoter, the marketer and the one-and-only one singing the praises of this company before most have ever heard of it. Can you do it? Can you put yourself on the line and be visible? It means promoting day and night this business idea that will change the world. If you can't do it - don't start a business. Ninth, motivator. You need to be able to motivate your followers. Whether they are employees, vendors or customers, as CEO you must be able to motivate people to follow you. Leaders need followers and as a business owner/CEO you need to be a leader. Tenth, delegator. This may be the hardest quality for most entrepreneurs. Starting a business is easy compared to getting people to follow you and then delegating work to those in your employ. You must be able to ask others to work for you and the business. The business is not YOU and YOU are not the business. You need others to care about the business as you do and be willing to do whatever it takes to make it successful - even though they are on salary and won't necessarily benefit completely by its earth-shattering success. Yes, these are the 10 qualities necessary for starting your own business and you better be able to bring them to the table if you want to succeed.  But honestly, none of them matter if you aren't willing to risk feeling isolated and exhausted because it is lonely at the top and for the next five years you'll be working around the clock if you want to be successful at starting your own business. Good luck. You can do it if you've got what it takes.

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March is Women's History Month

I ask every woman reading this blog to spend this month (March) reading biographies or autobiographies of women in history. History provides perspective for the journey we take each day in our own life. It allows us to view how other women have improved our condition and led us to where we are today as leaders in a free country. My own research for my book HER TURN Why It's Time For Women To Lead in America demonstrated the parallel between women's increased life expectancy and decreased reproductive labor to women's need to seek opportunities outside the home. In other words, in 1800 women had a life expectancy of 40 and bore an average of 7 children. 5% of the women in 1800 were employed. By the year 2000, women's life expectancy was 80 and they bore an average of 2 children. More than 60% of women were employed outside the home in 2000. Ten years later in 2010, for the first time in history, women are the majority of the workforce. The lives of Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Lucretia Mott, founders of the first women's rights convention in 1848 in Seneca Falls, NY, tell the story of women speaking out across America for equality. It would take another 72 years (1920) before women would win the right to vote. Two World Wars, the Great Depression, more war and the Civil Rights Movement held women back after that and before the second women's rights movement began in the 1960s. Read about Eleanor Roosevelt's life and her role as the first chair of the President's Commission on the Status of Women created by President JFK. Mrs. Roosevelt saw women as equal partners with men not just as a benefit to the U.S. but to the conditions around the world. Because of her leadership, admission requirements at colleges became more flexible to admit more women; there was funding for child care centers so more women could work; and the Equal Pay Act (1963) was legislated outlawing different pay scales for men and women doing the same work. Feminism in America took hold in the late 60s led primarily by Betty Freidan and Gloria Steinem. Read how these women changed women's lives in America then and how their leadership makes a difference in how women are viewed today. My list of women in history could go on and on and must include women in business such as Mary Kay, Meg Whitman, Anne Mulcahy, Carly Fiorina; women in philanthropy such as Teresa Heinz Kerry, Melinda Gates; women in politics such as Pat Schroeder, Hillary Rodham Clinton, Madeleine Albright; women in health and science such as Dr. Elizabeth Blackwell and Madame Curie and so many more. Women are making history in America every day so, yes, the glass ceiling is being cracked a chip at a time. But, it is only with the persistence of this generation of women that the glass ceiling will be shattered once and for all for the women of future generations.

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Women In Business MUST Celebrate International Women's Day

Today, March 8th, is International Women's Day! Women, and especially women in business, should be celebrating. As they say..."we've come a long way baby..." and although we have 'miles and miles to go before we sleep' women must respect the struggles and obstacles the women before us have conquered. The U.S. Small Business Administration's Office of Advocacy reports that exporting businesses owned by women and minorities export more intensively than those owned by non-minority men: 50% Hispanic-owned; 42.9% Asian/Pacific Islander/Aleutian Eskimo-owned; 28.6% African American-owned; 30% women-owned; 21.9% men-owned and 18.1% Caucasian owned. National Foundation of Women Business Owners (NFWBO) reports that acrosss the world women-owned firms comprise as much as one-third of all businesses and that the number of women-owned companies is growing faster than the economy in many countries (and not just industrialized countries). Yes, women all over the world understand the power in running their own business and are learning to take charge of their lives and earning potential. The picture of what a village of 100 people would look like if we shrunk the Earth's population is: 57 Asians, 21 Europeans, 14 North and South Americans and 8 Africans. 70 people would be non-white and 30 white; 70 would be non-Christian and 30 Christian. 50% of the world population would be in the control of just 6 people...all of whom would be citizens of the U.S. These numbers provide the basis for opportunities for international trade. If you are a woman in business you can celebrate International Women's Day by exploring the feasibility of taking your company international. Regardless of the globally instability there is a market waiting for you and your product and/or service. Check into one or more of the many organizations supporting international trade and see if your business has an opportunity to capture an international market. The world is waiting for you.

Women's Business Coach Tells Women To "Pay It Forward"

I’m excited that my advice was selected for The 2010 Woman’s Advantage Calendar  www.WomansAdvantage.biz/calendar . Check out the top of the right corner of the page at Entrepreneur Magazine’s www.WomenEntrepreneur.com  and now let me explain why this is so important to do. Women entrepreneurs  identify isolation as their number one problem in running their businesses. The knawing feeling that they are somehow in it alone can reek havoc on what can and should be a focused attention to grow a thriving business. Of course, entrepreneurs of both genders have days when their confidence level is not at its highest, but women tend to point to these moments more often than men as major road blocks to their success. Some of the reasons for this are simple. First, women have been brought up to be the nurturers in our culture and that doesn't stop just because they enter into business. As natural caretakers, women tend to take the emotional interests of their employees, vendors, customers and competitors more to heart and although this can more often be a strength than a weakness it also can leave them feeling spent. Second, the very people who the woman entrepreneur selects to support her in her business decisions - lawyer, accountant, banker, investment advisor, business partner or VC - are the same people who view their role as a supporter of the business and not the women entrepreneur. This reality can often allow the woman entrepreneur to feel all alone. Therefore, the small act of paying it forward gives women in business an opportunity to reach out to others who find themselves in the same predicament. Just think how it would feel to start off your day getting an email from a fellow woman in business expressing her gratefulness for your product/service/friendship/support. This is one small effort women in business can do to support each other. Changing one woman entrepreneur's feeling of isolation into a feeling of advocacy can be the beginning of alteringthe confidence of all women in business. So, take time today to pay it forward.

4 Lessons for Women Positioning Their Businesses For Sale

Raise your hand if you know of someone who owned a business and closed it down for one reason or another. This happens much too often. Research suggests 4 out of every 10 businesses ends up closing down rather than selling.

As a business broker, and more importantly, as a former small business owner who grew several small businesses and sold them this is how you are going to do it!

Lesson #1 - develop  a business plan – a roadmap telling you where you are going – perhaps I should say GPS system to be current – but in any case a layed out plan for where you are going – that system needs to be given a destination - an exit – letting you know where and when to get off.

There can be great variables in each step. So, it is key that you start as early as possible if you want to exit successfully.

Companies with a plan learn that there is a timeline for the business and a timeline for the sale.  Thinking about your exit strategy from the very beginning will maximize your value regardless of the business conditions at the time of sale

Lesson #2 - plan for the process to take time. You will need 3 years of P&Ls and tax returns for potential buyers. Some business owners treat their companies like an ATM machine. Taking out cash anytime, any place for anything. If your books don’t look like they support your business a buyer sees a red flag. The financials can be recast to show the true income and expenses, but this doesn’t help you make the case for your price. So keep clean books.

Even when a buyer is found it takes time for the terms to be negotiated.

Some times this can go quickly if the seller wants to change careers/retire and/or move on and the buyer wants to completely takeover. But if employee contracts, seller finance, non-competes and many other variables are in question this can take more time.You need time for due diligence to be completed.

Lesson #3 - pricing your company. Your broker will analyze your business and compare it with other sales of similar companies and perhaps evene get a third party appraisal. Remember that it is not what you ask for your business that matters it is what a buyer will pay for it.

With the appropriate valuation you will be able to get the right price for your company, but remember the terms and conditions of the sale are just as important. 

Lesson # 4 -confidentiality is the hallmark of the business brokerage business.

As they say:

“What happens in the business broker’s office stays in the business broker’s office”

But unlike Vegas, selling your business should not be a gamble. Selling your business should be a well thought out plan designed for you to win. Don't worry about word getting out that your business is for sale. In the business world - everything is for sale at the right price. You've put your blood sweat and tears into your business, so when the plan, time, price and conditions are right you are ready to cash out and then you can shout it to the rooftops.

 

Women Entrepreneurs Must Celebrate National Entrepreneurship Week

Yes, it is National Entrepreneurship Week - February 20 through February 27, 2010. In 2006, the U.S. Congress passed a resolution to celebrate American entrepreneurs and the lifelong educational programs in elementary, secondary and higher educational institutions that prepare the business leaders of the future. As an entrepreneur, like many of you reading this blog, I appreciate the government's interest in entrepreneurship and remind them it not only needs to be celebrated, but encouraged so that the next generation sees starting their own business not as just an option but as the answer to what still is the America dream. Women entrepreneurs must particularly take note that choosing entrepreneurship means having greater flexibility over what other careers still provide. First, taking your ideas and putting them to work in a way that works for you and your family. Choosing entrepreneurship means working smarter not harder. Throughout our history, entrepreneurs have been responsible for improving our environment, our communities and our economy through innovation and creativity. America needs entrepreneurs more than ever now to create jobs and expand economic growth. Second, today's women entrepreneurs are important role models for the next generation of women thinking about making their mark in the world of business. Women will continue to be more than 50% of the American workforce and women entrepreneurs will continue to move ahead into the ranks of businesses with more than $1M in revenues. Entrepreneurship education programs have proven to have better attendance records and lower drop out rates than other educational programs. Perhaps it is because entrepreneurs have never been defined by race, creed, color, religion or gender...only by the desire to create, innovate, succeed and make the world a better place.Home