tv Your Business MSNBC September 10, 2011 2:30am-3:00am PDT
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small businesses are revitalizing the economy. and american express open is here to help. that's why we are proud to present "your business" on msnbc. hi there everyone. i'm j.j. ramberg and welcome to "your business", where we give you tips and advice to help your business grow. when ef len of a just for fun playgrounds wrote to us a few months back, she had no idea her email would spark our next bays email. her question to us was simple what do you do when you sell a once in a lifetime product that doesn't generate repeat
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customers? we found a business in need of some serious help. we decided to assemble a rescue team to give them a push in the right direction. when ef len anderson and her husband bought just for fun playgrounds in ashville, north carolina, five years ago, business was booming. >> the first three years that we were in business we worked summer and winter just straight through the year. we had four guys in the shop. we had two sales people. and then we had a winter where we went four months without a phone call. >> the company was known for their high end custom designed playgrounds, but by 2009 the recession has erode 2/3 of their business forcing them to let all of their employees go. after two difficult years of scraping by, evelyn wrote to us for help.
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>> i wondered how you get business when you don't have repeat customers. when you're selling something that is a once in a lifetime purchase, how do you continue to find new customers. >> to answer those questions and help get their business back in full swing -- we assembled a rescue team led by mike to surprise the owners with a small business makeover. >> i'm the author of "the toilet paper entrepreneur." i'm here to get your business back on track. i'll help you carry that roof in. we'll finish up and let's stop working on play sets and let's start working on your business today. >> here's our showroom. >> first thing's first, change that to open. >> sure. >> why don't you take me for a quick tour. >> this is the showroom. and the train is here for parents to let their kids play on it while we talk to them about their playground.
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>> mike's tour got stopped in its tracks when he realized that jerry and evelyn were living behind the showroom in a motor home. >> we're hope we have a roof over our heads. >> and it's paid for. >> what can be done to resuscitate this once healthy business? mike and his team honed in on a few things jerry and evelyn should fix. including improving first impression online and off with a name and branded change. finding an industry insider to serve as a sounding board and mentor and to get more exposure with customer reviews and local media. first up, denise who was given the task of clearly defining the business. her first suggestion is eliminate confusion with another local playground company was to rebrand their business with a name change. >> we've been through a lot of brainstorming came up with two names that we anted to present to you and see how you felt about them. the first one is ashville
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playgrounds. what we like about this is ashville is really well known for their quality craftsmanship. with this logo it's almost a little bit churchy looking too. we know that's a growing portion of your business. there's a lot of fun we can do with that logo. you can have kids climbing all over it. >> i think i feel reserved it seems a little too sophisticated from a little bit perhaps golfy just for fun playgrounds and the goofy train and the bubbly smoke and all of that stuff. >> it's a good point. that was something we kept in mind. we saw what you had going on. these are not low end and they're not low price and it's not kids that are looking on the website. it's adults that are on the website making the decision. we want to make sure we're reaching out to the right audience. this one, i don't know if you're aware but the state mammal of north carolina is the gray squirrel.
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we thought calling it gray squirrel and having a tag line from playgrounds to park grounds would really allow you to say what and see everyone smiles when they see gray squirrel. you think outdoors. we thought having the car that looks like wood and a ruler. >> the gray squirrel makes me chuckle. i like that it doesn't have playgrounds in it and i don't like that it doesn't have playgrounds in it. >> with a vast knowledge of the business, matt miller third generation and other than of play world systems offered to mentor jerry and evelyn who are still relative newcomers to this complicated business. >> did you have a chance to check out their website and see what they're doing? >> i did. i looked through it and they're making some really interesting pieces of equipment. >> thank you. >> thank you. >> that's completely your strength. but when i pulled up your website, i wouldn't have known that right away. >> oh, interesting.
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>> you've got to lead with that. that's somebody that can latch on to and say i can make it look like my church. >> matt emphasized the importance of selling fun. >> so try to capture, the imagination and excitement of when you were a child and you first got to go to that playground. >> our next member is a marketing and p.r. expert who was tasked with getting them exposure. >> so i have another surprise for you tomorrow. a reporter from the "ashville times" will be here to interview you. >> that's fabulous. >> i want to refine your messages with social media and traditional media.
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>> after a very long day, mike gave jerry an evelyn a homework assignment for the next day. >> first of all, we identify your top ten clients. the people who bring in money but who you love. the second thing is mentor schedule. it's our responsibility to manage the schedule. he'll give us knowledge, we give him commitment. the third thing is we've got to pick the logo we love. i think it's changing or pushing the limit of what we normally are. all right? >> okay. we'll give it our best shot. >> team break. >> we'll find out whether that ashville couple can overcome their business problems later many the show. if anyone knows about persevering in the shape of hardship it's the people of new orleans. being in the middle of hurricane seasons reminds us of the challenges that community faced after katrina's devastation six years. that city's small business community has rebounded and is
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booming. six years after the devastation from hurricane katrina, new orleans is experiencing a renaissance and small business owners are leading the way. >> new orleans is becoming this national laboratory of the next generation of entrepreneur leaders. >> it's created an interesting synergy if not an alchemy of committed natives as well as very enterprising, islistic newcomers -- >> it made us feel we were pioneers. >> when everyone else was fleeing the city and businesses were closing left and right. the news was piling on about who's leaving town next. i said, i'm going to do something right. >> and today while other cities
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are struggling to stay afloat during this tough economy, new orleans has been growing thanks to a low cost of living, generous tax credits and a rich culture. >> you can start a business here for 30%, 40% less than new york on san francisco. why offshore to bangalore when you can offshore to new orleans. you can come here and do it better and do it cheaper and do it with more enthusiastic people than anywhere else many the country. >> louisiana is now number three in the united states in terms of film production behind california and new york. >> at the ep center of all of this entrepreneurial activity is the i.p. building. sbreep neuros row and the ice house. inspired by silicon alley in new york, the three hubs house some of the most innovative companies in new orleans. >> we're in the i.p. building in new orleans. we have a community of entrepreneurs that have moved into this building in the past year to the fastest moving
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companies to feel goods. what this board r-e-s-p-e-c-esp represents is the community. >> kyle and craig met at the i.p. building and founder that they could collaborate on the packing of kyle's flip-flops in the large warehouse space. >> we were shipping out margaritas any was. why not add flip-flops. a joint venture was formed and we're shipping out the flip-flops. >> this woman's desire to help rebuild new orleans was so strong she left her job in new york as a sweater designer to follow her dream of starting her own clothing company. >> the enthusiasm for a new business here is just incredible. they rolled the red carpet for us. and was like whatever we can do to have you succeed we want you to succeed. >> new orleans is on the rise. a recession proof haven eager to support new businesses are
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entrepreneurs working together to succeed. >> new orleans is my huge business partner. it's on the label. it will stay on the label. business partners invest in your business. and new orleans invests in my business. both people on the street in the community, my friends, the businesses here. they want me to succeed. and in ways that are beyond just capital investments. >> stick around, when we come back, we tell you what you need to know to export your products overseas. and what name did cha chose for the playground business? we go back to north carolina as we complete our small business makeover.
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earlier we introduced you to evelyn and jerry the owners of a custom playground company who needed our help. when we visited their showroom and workshop we saw firsthand easy fixes to spruce up their business. in part two of our small business makeover, you'll see the outpouring of support from the entrepreneurial community to
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give this business a boost. >> yesterday was sorting out what's going on here. there's a lot going on. today where the rubber hits the road we're going to do some heavy lifting and get things cleaned up. >> first up, checking to see if jerry and evelyn did their work. >> what about the top ten clients? >> we've got a list of 15. >> any common trend that you identified of any type? >> yes. i think that they're all really creative, interesting projects that we've done. >> comma commonality is a seed for finding other clients. tell me about the mentor? >> i'm inclined to the beginning to like to meet every two weeks. >> now, the big reveal, what is the name of the new business? the new name of the current business? >> asheville playgrounds. we decided to go with that it's a little less playful and a little more to the point of what we do. we're going to play with the graphics in we like what gray squirrel looks like. if we take the background from
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gray squirrel and put it with the asheville playgrounds logo, i think it's a nice blend. >> it's not what i expected, but i love the decision. >> with their homework done and a new company name chosen, they got to share the news about the changes with the local paper, "the asheville citizen times." >> has this been overwhelming for you? >> of course. >> the resulting story was front page news in asheville which was exactly the kind of local exposure dana was looking for. building on that momentum, dana also approached the customers on jerry and evelyn's top ten client list and asked them to do an online review. mike took the business owners aside to talk a little more about their original question. how do boost sales when they sell a product that doesn't have a repeat customers? >> you've got to increase sales. here's how you do it. tip number one, i want you to start asking for vendor
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referrals. it's unlikely customers will do it. ask them for other vendors that they trust and like. if they can build you to them, you're going into common customers as a team. number two is trade shows. it costs a lot of money and there's not a lot of results. start walking the trade shows. it costs nothing. you have an opportunity to meet other vendors and start bidding relationships. third tip is growing by saying no. you grow by saying no. what you have to do is start saying no to the projects that are not within your wheel house. not your specialty. we have to stay in our sweet spot. if we stay within our sweet spot we can start hitting a con sen trak circle. people in the same type of community say in the same circles. if you have a presence in those three or four spots they will perceive you as being everywhere. the fifth and final tip i wanted to share with you, a huge opportunity for additive sales.
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when you do a project install a whole new play set there's an opportunity to offer maintenance. right there in that moment when they buy a $10,000, $20,000 play set. for $100 a month we'll come out and do a check make sure the safety standards with met, it's clean and give you a report on it. knowing your work that's really going to happen. >> the next order of business was improving first impressions at the showroom and workshop. perched at the intersection of two busy streets it was time to spruce up the newly renamed business with help from some friends. >> everyone here has volunteered to help clean this place up. so thank you everyone. [ applause ] >> are you ready? come on in. ♪
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>> with the sbreep neural community taking an interest in helping boost asheville playgrounds, several local businesses contributed not only their time, but also some much needed items, like new signage. >> that is so cool. >> they provided flowers and a new phone system. >> we wanted to give you a lifetime virtual phone system and make sure when people call you your first image is professional. when they try to reach you and call you, the call is going to forward wherever you are. >> i really didn't know this existed. this is really cool. >> after some tweaks to the logo and branding, karen of studio 88 built jerry and evelyn an entirely new website. >> i want to show you your website. >> oh, wow. >> packed with lots of pictures and information, the old site was busy and strahling. the new design the organized and easy to navigate with the custom designed playground images taking center stage in galleries
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separated by category. residential, commercial and churches. >> it's online now. you can click on some of the pages if you'd like. >> in just a few short weeks, the extraordinary transformation of just for fun playgrounds was almost complete. >> i have a special delivery for you. we've prepared for business cards for your new business. >> how beautiful. look at these. >> we found our two business owners more confident and ready to turn the page in a new chapter of their playground business. >> i have absolute confidence. i see it in you. maybe you don't hear it, but it's in your heart. you've got it. it's going to work. you're going to do it. >> no. it was an honor. take care. >> we appreciate all that y'all have done for us. >> thank you. >> thankfully we were able to get mike to come in from the playground to talk to us today. as we mentioned he's the author
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of the best-selling book "the toilet paper entrepreneur" and the finder of on siddian launch a company that provides online behavorial services. and jason goldberg is the c.e.o. of fab.com a website that offers sales from leading designers and manufacturers. you are a serial entrepreneur. you've already sold two companies this is your third and fourth. >> number four right now. >> great to see you. mike, amazing piece. >> it was wonderful to be out there. they're true american entrepreneurs. their heart's into this. >> now they had so much given to them under your guidance and our producer and they were so open to it. now what? >> i think it is going to work. to me the amazing moment was when the moment came in, matt miller from a major playground manufacturer. i went on there and they saw on their faces they changed their thinking at that moment. they decided to break the pattern that's been getting them in trouble and take a new path. i think it's going to take a
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year or two or maybe five to play out. i'm confident they're on the right pattern now. >> jason you've been extraordinarily successful. how do you get yourself out of tough spots? >> you focus on your one thing. as you said draw a circle around your one thing. outside the bounds of that circle don't do it. you talked about some of the things they shouldn't be doing maybe taking on business that's not profitable. honing in on how to emphasize what might be working in the business right now. that's really key. >> and taking on business. you said this and we say it a lot on this show, you say no. especially now in this economy to say no to a customer. >> it sounds counterintuitive. you do grow by saying no. a business starts grasping at straws. this business they're a playground manufacturer they're making bridges, gazebos, signs. we saw all those projects were making no rev new in some cases a lot of cases losing money.
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>> a lot of what you guys did was fix up the look of things. they got an amazing new website. you've started all these websites. for a company like theirs it makes sense to go there and check out the playground how important is making the website as nice as it became? >> a couple things really struck me. one was the imagery of how beautiful the playgrounds are. that is their center piece. get rid of the words on the page. the whole story is the objects that they ever building. focus on those objects. another thing that struck me is it's great there's a new website. i think one thing that maybe needed the next step with them is that in a bad economy there's not many people who are doing web searches for building a new playground. the traffic might not be coming naturally to their website. i would look for ways and businesses like that to that i can that imagery and put it places that people are going to see. >> that was to mike's point of find other vendors. >> take the pictures of those
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playgrounds and put them on your facebook page. a different one every single day and get the people who are taking advantage of and using the playgrounds to share with their friends. >> that's a great idea. >> i'm excited. mike, we're going to have you back in a year from now so we can go back there and see how these guys are doing. i have faith in them. >> again, mike, thanks so much for all that great work. >> thank you. making mistakes while running a small business is inevitable. but some of those errors are avoidable. here are the five biggest financial mistakes businesses make courtesy of ink.com. hiring in advance of revenue. decide how many people to hire based on what money you actually have in the bank. borrowing money when it's not needed. just buzz a bank is willing to lend you money, doesn't mean you should accept it. borrowed money adds a huge burden to your business. pricing too low. it's almost always better to sell fewer units at higher
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prices than to sell more units at a lower price. offering credit terms. unless there's good reason, you should not offer credit to customers. businesses often fail because they can't collect receivables and manage cash. finally, counting on one major source of revenue. depending on one source can be dangerous for your small business. instead you should build multiple sources of revenue so that when one stream dice off as it often does, you're still building injure overall business. doing business abroad is helping a lot of entrepreneurs get through some tough times here at home. this year the obama administration launched an effort to get more small businesses to pursue exporting their goods. our guest says that getting small business export financing is on the rise and he's going to share some tips for expanding your foreign sales outside the united states. fred is the chairman of the export inport bank of the united states. great to see you.
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>> thanks for having me on the show. >> we do get a lot of questions about this. particularly recently people that are making something and want to sell their stuff overseas. one of the things you say you have to pay attention to is reduce your risk of not being paid. that makes perfect sense, but how do you do that? >> when you're a company and you're located in chicago and you're selling products to new york or arizona if for some reason you don't get paid you know how to collect. it's not that difficult to collect on those sales. it's not a risk to your business. the difficulty is when you have a company and you're selling products to india or saudi arabia or brazil or colombia and they don't pay, what do you do? you can't afford to hire a bunch of lawyers. >> what do you do from the start, fred, so you make sure that doesn't happen? >> one, the most important thing is you've got to know your customer. you should know your customer and have some nj of what their business is and reliability. two, we can help you step in by
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providing insurance. we'll enslur that receivable. if there's a company we work with in miami. they sell surgical supplies. where do they sell them to? libya, egypt, iraq, sri lanka. we ensure that receivable. >> got it. you suggest that you offer foreign buyers financing that's because a lot of people don't have the cash to pay up front and this is an incentive for them? >> right. in a case like that usually it's for capital goods. they sold some solar technology to india. in that case we provided the buyer for financing and they can pay for that over 18 years to amortize the cost. >> when you say we, you mean the import, export. >> yes. thank you. >> we're an independent government agency. we do this at no cost to the taxpayer. we collect a fee for our work
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from our customers, the foreign buyer or the u.s. exporter that pays all of our costs. we will guarantee the receivable or in this case guarantee the loan. >> you also suggest that you secure working capital loan from your bank without tying up your collateral. some people are going to laugh because everyone's having trouble getting loans. >> what we provide, the export import bank we will look at your receivables, look at your inventory, we can work with your local bank and we'll provide that bank with a 90% guarantee that they'll making the working capital loan. the bank has very little risk and therefore to induce them to make that loan. >> and competing against foreign companies you might not be cheaper but maybe you'll have better call than something they find in their own country. >> what the united states excels at is we make some of the most innovative products, i would say on many products lower lifetime
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cost. maybe the actual cost of buying it initially might be more expensive, if you look at the total life toim cost, locomotives, airplanes, solar technology, lifetime costs are far less. we are selling high quality products. >> just one last question, if somebody is interested in this, where do they go? you make it sound easy. we find people for you. it can't possibly be that easy. where do you go to take the first step. >> it's not that easy, but it's not noerl as hard as people make it out to be. if you want to figure out where the buyers are the department of commerce is the first place to go. they'll help you identify buyers. once you've got a customer and you need financing, working capital or insurance go to the export import bank. exim.gov. >> we've been seeing some many questions about this particularly right now. i really appreciate it. it's very helpful.
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>> thank you. happy to be here. a strong business plan is very helpful to launching any successful small business. want some help writing yours? check out our website of the week. enloop writes a customized business plan for you. the site will rate the strength of our business plan and generate financial forecasts. it provides limited services for free. premium services are available for $40 a month. to learn more about today's show just click on our website. you'll find all of today's segments plus web exclusive content with more information to help your business grow. don't forget to become a fan of the show on facebook. we love getting your feed back. you can also follow us on twitter. until then i'm j.j. ramberg and remember we make your business, our business.
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