small business owners sound off on how they think washington should be helping them. a century's old family farm changes with the time and cashes on the locally grown trend. and what you need to do to get angel investors to give you money. that's all coming up next on "your business."

hi there, everyone. i'm j.j. ramberg. welcome to "your business" where we give you tips and advice to help your business grow. after months of political maneuvering on both sides of the aisle, small business got a boost from washington. president obama has signed the $30 billion small business lending bill into law. it sets up a fund to give community banks money to lend to small businesses. in addition there are also $12 million in new tax breaks. the president said the bill will open up credit to thousands of small business owners. >> government can't guarantee success, but it cannot bound barriers to success like the lack of an affordable printer. >> meanwhile, republicans made

their own business proposal in their pledge to america. they suggested that small business owners be able to make a tax deduction equal to 20% of their income. the needs of small business owners have clearly been a much debated topic in the nation's capitol, but are the administration and congress listening to entrepreneurs concerns? we gave owners the chance to tell washington what kind of help they could use right now. >> president obama, please get the banks to cooperate. it is not just about telling people that you areworking for it, get them to cooperate and really help the small business owners because we are the engine of this country for sure. >> if i went to washington i would say, look, you want to help small business? create affirmitive action for

small business. make government buy the product that is small business is creating or the services that a small business is creating. affirmative action for small business. it worked elsewhere. it will work for small business. >> why doesn't the u.s. government start like an incubation program with top experts who have retired, who would help you form your own business. this would help you navigate the red tape and help these people who have the experience to determine where the money is going to be granted based upon performance and based upon potential of return. >> my advice to washington is this. instead of taxes us further, please make money available to small businesses such as ours, medium-sized businesses that will employ people, that will allow us to buy new equipment, be more aggressive in the marketplace, be able to compete with china, but more

importantly, make it attractive enough so that we can put the money back in the business with the additional moneys that we would have. >> so i think the new proposal to writeoff the first 20% would be a great initiative for people to take the chance to go into small business because that 20% might take you oaf over the top. it might be the boost you need to make a difference between survival and not surviving. >> i think they should stop changing the rules every month. what small businesses need is certainty. we need to understand what the rules are, we'll play by any rules you set, but they will keep changing them because we build our business around the rules the way they are. >> well, i think what i would say to the folks in washington is how about this idea, why don't you create a voucher system for small business where you would distribute vouchers to every american for a given amount of money, and those

vouchers could be used as cash in any business with annual revenue of say, under a million dollars. >> i think what president obama has to do, he has to -- you see, if you tell me that he will give you a tax writeoff if i hire somebody, tax wry-off from the central government is just a small portion of it. what about worker compensation? what about liability insurance? what about the other insurances? what about the state and local taxes? so it is a whole package. they all have to write it off, and then maybe you are talking. i know it is not going anywhere certain. >> well, the state of small business is still a hot button issue in washington. local businesses are plowing ahead. that's especially true for farmers who are rapping the benefits of farmer's markets and the popularity of locally grown

produce. this by local movement has meant big business, but it is not without its challenges. meet ron binagi jr. he's the owner of northern new jersey-based stokes farm. >> we have been in business since 1873. >> so you grew up here? >> i did. i'm fifth generation to owning this land. >> today ron and his son, ron iii, are hard at work to sell produce at their farm stand, and more importantly at farmer's markets 30 miles away in new york city. years ago this was as simple as picking tomatoes, but times have changed on this 137-year-old farm. >> we are up to about 74 items. >> how many did you grow 50 years ago? >> 50 years ago we grew about five items. tomatoes, peppers, eggplant, strawberries and asparagus. >> the variety is all to meet

the needs of increasingly savvy shoppers. three days a week they are out at farmer's market selling herbs, vegetables and fresh cut flowers. ron was one of the original farmers at the union square market 34 years ago. in recent years he's noticed a drastic change in his customers. >> there's a light bulb that went off and the consumers had -- all of a sudden they are like, wait a minute, where does my food come from? >> and it is not just new yorkers looking beyond their local supermarket. in fact the number of farmer's markets around the country has tripled to 5,000 in the last 15 years. this buy local movement has been a blessing for small farmers, but there are challenges that come with having a more knowledgeable customer base. >> this is my favorite customer i had two years ago. are you organic, honey? because i only eat organic. i said, oh, really, that's interesting. does philip morris grow organic tobacco? she goes, what?

>> for them this is the million-dollar question. some farms are organic using only natural products to grow their products, stokes farm is not and that can turn people away. >> i said, i have no answer for you because she doesn't get it. now i ask people, they say, are you organic? i say, in what way. i say, in what way? that serves a conversation, which is what i wanted. >> every third person in the market comes by and that's the first thing they ask. even if they don't understand what organic is, they think you have airplanes going over your farm and fumigating and spraying things. >> we have chosen that route not to be organic only because there are certain things we do, like we use fertilizer, and fertilizer is not manure, it is granule and made by man. it is hard for us to be organic while we use fertilizer. >> they tackle this issue head-on by trying to teach shoppers about the differences in the way food is grown. and ultimately encouraging people that buying local is the

way to go, even if that means buying from a competitor. >> there are organic things that come from chile. there are organic things coming from california, all around the country and the world, actually. it is labeled organic? do you know it is organ snick i don't know, the label says it is. what does that mean? i don't know. >> when you come here you are not just buying a tomato, you are buying into the farmer experience. >> i want the consumer to be the smartest people they can be. if they don't want to shop here, fine, at least they have all the information. >> they are not just teaching people, they are also listening to them. stokes farm is constantly el evolving. >> we are about retail. our whole marketing is consumer-driven market. it is not a product-driven market like years ago. we make a tv, you have to buy it. now there are a thousand tvs, you get your choice. now the consumer tells us indirectly what we should grow and what we shouldn't grow. >> what's something you are growing right now that you

probably wouldn't of, except you heard from one of your customers you need to have this? >> we grow vietnamese silantro. i had a customer from thailand who said, do you have any cilantro? she brought me seeds, we planted it, and it is a niche item for us. >> their produce makes changes from year to year based on how well items are selling. looking forward, they are confident that as long as they stay in tune with what people are looking for and keeps preaching the buy local gospel, his business will continue to grow. >> when i pick a tomato, it could be on your plate, it could be in your stomach within 24 hours, maybe sooner. if we picked them late yesterday, here they are. they could be -- you could be -- within 12 hours you eat a tomato.

>> farmers aren't the only ones who can grow profits by capitalizing on the buy local movement. we'll turn to the board of directors to talk about this. carol roth is a business strategist. you can find her online at carolroth.com. and mike is a founder of city launch, they make the niche industry of leaders. he's author of the book "the toilet paper entrepreneur." great to see you both. >> great to be here. >> one thing i thought was great was how much education had to go on between the company and the customers about this buy local thing. and that's not just for farmers, it is also for a small bookstore versus a big bookstore. how do you get people to be interested in the education part of it? >> people jump on trends, and the trend right snow the buzz word organic. they only know what it is. they kind of started doing this, pointing out how they buy organic by being local. organic means low environmental

impact. buying local there are no pollutants there, so we are breathing more healthy because they are local. we have to define or understand what they mean by organic, environmental impact, and show how to address it in a different way. >> in general, how do you get your customers to listen? you have three seconds to get a customer who sees your sign and walks by. >> good old what's in it for me? that's what everyone cares about it, j.j. what do i get out of it? buying local means more money into your community, which means better schools and better property prices, so bring it back to what's the benefit for the consumer in terms of buying local, whether you are a bookstore or farm stand. >> i have one thought to that. three seconds, if you write the words "better than organic" it will build the conversation on. >> have people taste it. if they can taste the difference, that will sell more than anything. >> if you keel over from any chemicals that you put in -- >> exactly.

>> i think that's a good idea, though. some, i hate to say the word, but almost some gimmick. that's the better than organic. it starts a conversation going. this draws people in because they are doing something fun. really it comes down to marketing. >> yes, it always does. >> it always boils down to customer involvement. you have their interest, get them involved, talking. >> and as they were saying, so much of it is listening to their customers. i almost was thinking when i was out there talking to them, are you listening to your customers too much? one guy says you should have one product and suddenly they have dedicated part of their farm to this product? >> we call that the vocal minority. there are some people really, really loud about things but it doesn't mean they reflect what everybody is thinking. and i think if you do some kind of a taste test you get a lot of feedback in and can decide, okay, a lot of people are liking this, not so many people are liking this and you get a wider range of feedback. >> great, thanks, guys. selling your product or

service in a down economy can absolutely be difficult. but there are ways to make the best of a tricky situation. here now are five common sales mistakes to avoid courtesy of david mattson, ceo of the sales and management training company sadler training. number one, abandoning sales procedures. even in slower periods you should not compromise your selling process. two, stop prospecting. while you don't want to ignore current customers, make sure your sales staff is keeping an eye on long-term accounts. three, cutting marketing and advertising. leads generating through marketing efforts are important to sustaining business. four, trying to do it all yourself. empower your sales staff to close deals and be accountable for their business. and number five, not accounting for seasonality. make sure your projections are realistic based on the time of year so you have an accurate idea of your cash flow. when we come back, we'll answer your small business

questions, including one about how to decide where to base your start-up. and the four essential things you need to know before asking an angel investor to give you money. [trumpet playing "reveille" throughout]

reviving the economy means reinventing the way we do business. here's to the owners showing us the way. [trumpet playing "reveille" fades to silence] for many entrepreneurs the greatest challenge in starting and growing a business is money. one source for initial funding is an angel investor, but how do you attract one and what do they look for? we'll find out from entrepreneur susan preston, author of the book "angel financing for entrepreneurs." ♪

>> when you go out as an entrepreneur, everyone is excited about their new gadget and their new technology. the problem is is that entrepreneurs don't necessarily realize that the angel investors is a sophisticate investor, they are just early on in the process, and they want to know what the market is. they want to know there's a sizable market for your product. they want to know that you are meeting a market need or market paying out there. so that you have an understanding of who is going to buy, how they are going to buy, how you are going to distribute, all of those factors. you need to understand the competition from your consumer or your customer's standpoint, not from your own as the entrepreneur. i as an entrepreneur would be always excited about what i have and what i do, but what people see and how they perceive your product is not necessarily how you see it. so you really need to understand it from who is buying it.

this is very evolved and very complex. and the whole area of law around here can be really hard for people to understand, but there are some basics. first of all, if you are licensing the technology from another source, make sure that you really actually have exclusivity to it and there are not restrictions on geographics, the amount you have to sell within a certain time period, that can be a real awakening for individuals when they get into starting to sell and find out they can lose the license because of that. but some entrepreneurs take the approach they don't want to actually transfer the ownership to their economy, they want to hold it and license it. that's not just what angels are going to be interested in. even when you're just a one or two-person company, you have the ability to build intelligence around you. and one person doesn't have all the answers. and so when angel investors actually go out to look and analyze companies, they are looking for the other people you

surround yourself, that intelligence. and it is like a third-party validation for what you are doing. if you have this terrific person who is a success in their industry working with you and advising you, that tells the angel, you might be a good investment for me. it is time to answer some of your business questions. carol and mike are with us once again. the first one comes from julius who writes -- >> he doesn't have very nice friends. someone should have thrown him a bone and gotten something. but he's doing something wrong, i mean, his friends, someone should have bought something. >> it is interesting. people think social media, and all of a sudden i'm going to put a big announcement and there's going to be a big parade and everyone is lining up to buy things. but there's a trust gap. particularly, if you are selling

something like food, we were taught at a young age, don't take candy from strangers. now you are a stranger trying to sell organic candy or organic something else and you have to start building relationship with people or they won't trust you. go out and do things that benefit your customer. maybe it is coming up with a report that says, top ten ways to stay healthy. or top five reasons you should buy organic. and then they start seeing you as a valued trusted source of information and build the relationship and then you ask for the sale. >> what about sending out a free sample in his case? it is a product and won't cost that much compared to other marketing? >> that could work. my fear here is, misunderstanding what facebook and twitter is about, you say, hey, who wants to buy this wonderful desk right now? it is a kris-cross of wonderful traffic in the moment. you have to build the dialogue. free samples may get started, but show did tidbits of interest about your product and invite

them to share your e-mail address. then introduce your product. >> then you get your attention a little bit more assuming they opened your e-mail, which is a big assumption, versus a tweet that goes and flies by. >> this is a shot in the dark trying to sell on twitter or facebook. >> and your point about the friends, that's a focus group. ask your friends, why didn't you buy? did you not get my e-mail? ask them the question. >> we'll move on to the next one. this is about picking a location for your business. >> one of the things i always ask myself is, where do you locate your company? so my question is, what is a young company consider as far as the community or region when they are trying to decide where to locate their new company? >> what kind of research would you do? >> you have to find what you are looking for and where they are. you have to know the tax consequences for sure, but think about your own lifestyle. small businesses are here to support the lifestyle we want. a lot of people move into the hot bed is where the town is but

they compromise themselves. consider all three. >> and where are your customers? you have end customers to service, make it easy to get to your business. if you are in a b2b, let them drop in to see you. >> for a retail store, go to an area, count how many people are walking into the neighboring stores, see what type -- know what time people are going and look at the parking. there's so much to consider. >> absolutely. >> we'll move on to the next one. this is a question from avi who writes -- >> this is a good question, in general, not specific to food, but where do you food good at visors and somebody willing to help you? >> so the most underused resource for entrepreneurs is your own network. get a trued recommendation.

ask your friends, ask your family, ask your alumni association, ask your professional network and social network and make it easy for them. what kind of adviser are you looking for, are you looking for advice specific to food or perhaps you are looking for somebody on the retail side to help negotiate. be specific about it and put it to your own network and get a good recommendation from that. >> you should look for a moich. they are sharing advice. the only problem is they are not with you all the way. a coach will bill you and be with you all the way. a moich is a mentor that has a piece of the action, they have a piece of equity in your business, so they see the value for participating actively. >> so you suspect giving someone a piece of equity. >> if you want them to be there

long term, pay them with cash or equity. look for a mentor, they will help you, but they have other things to do, too. >> as soon as we are done here, are you going to go trademark that? >> i'm going to go moich you first. >> this is an e-mail from karen. she's the owner of the hand blown glass gallery. she and her husband are struggling to keep the door open. karen writes -- >> you both are kind of looking at each other. she's in a tough position. >> yeah, i feel -- i can feel the desperation in this question and so many entrepreneurs are going through this. you know when to hold them and fold them. and it is coming through loud and clear she needs to get out of the business. first, her and her husband need to ride the ship. they have two months love of

living expenses. somebody needs a source of income. in terms of selling, the business itself doesn't have a lot of value. it is going south, but there's a lot of value in the inventory. she can approach auction houses, approach other galleries and make chunk it out in pieces, even try her own auction, but at the end of the day, you need to get the value out of the inventory. >> yeah, i'm hearing fire sale. that's the worst time to sell. i recognize the situation, too. maybe one option, this is a little bit of risk, go to competitors, but not direct competitors and say, we are trying to grow our business, we are struggling right now, would you be interested in putting a small equity stake in our business, and if it pans out we'll give you a great deal on the business? this way you get a bigger player involved in the business and supporting you actively, but they don't take a huge risk amount putting it all on the table. >> if you can, someone still goes and gets a job so that your whole family is not on the line. >> yeah, the key thing here is i think that's a great idea, but

if the business is not working out, at some point as part of your good investment portfolio, that equity could help you along for a little bit, but it won't solve the overall issue. >> all right. thank you so much. mike and carol, great advice. if you have a question for our experts, just go to our website. the address is openforum.com/yourbusiness. there just hit the ask the show link to submit a question for our panel. the website is openforum.com/yourbusiness. our e-mail your questions and comments to yourbusiness@msnbc.com. now that we have heard from mike and cayle, we'll get more surry vifl tips from entrepreneurs just like you. >> make sure you have a plan and to follow through and to update it frequently. to state credit worthy and not to motivate your employees but to find the correct employee and the controls to take care of

themselves. >> people who don't like having their pay cut or vacations cut without knowing why. the two-way communication is important from the beginning and involving people as much as possible. they look to leadership to tell them what's going to happen even if we don't know, especially because we don't know. >> this is the third company i've started. this is the most challenging time because the capital markets are very difficult, but i guess the most important thing is to achieve small measurable milestones which create value and which can build a concrete story for investors. no matter how much experience you have, it always helps to be able to bounce ideas off of someone. if you are looking for some help, you may want to check out our website of the week.

micromentor.org hooks you up with experienced business openers. you can describe the type of help you are looking for and potential investors can view your information and contact you if they are interested in communicating. you can also sign up to be a mentor. to learn more about today's show, click on our website. it is openforum.com/yourbusiness. you'll find web exclusive content with more information to help your business grow. don't forget to become a fan of the show on facebook. we look forward to getting some of your feedback. and you can follow us on twitter@msnbcyourbis. next week, an owner gives his bookstore a chance to focus on their strengths. >> sometimes we have to buckle down and do something we don't like, but as much as possible, you want people doing what they like to do. >> how job crafting can make for a happier and more productive employees. until then, i'm j.j. ramberg. remember, we make your business our business.

[trumpet playing "reveille" throughout] reviving the economy means reinventing the way we do business. here's to the owners showing us the way.