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Top 9 Hiring Tips for Small Business Owners

Posted: 02 Nov 2019 01:13 PM PDT

By Logan Allec

Hiring a new employee can result in a variety of overlooked costs, so it's important to make each new hire count. Attracting and retaining top talent is a major advantage for your business, while keeping subpar employees puts you behind the competition.

Improving your hiring practices is one of the best changes you can make for your business, leading to lower turnover and more productivity. This article will cover the most important things small business owners should keep in mind throughout the hiring process.

1. Only hire based on your needs

Many business owners want growth—and fast. And in many entrepreneurs' minds, the quickest way to achieve growth is to hire as many worker bees as possible to take their business to the moon.

Unfortunately, overhiring can cause major headaches later on. What if you're waiting to collect on overdue receivables and you don't have the cash to make payroll? You may be forced to take out a short-term business loan to cover your costs, and this can put a major dent in your bottom line. This is why, especially in the early stages, you need to hire based on what your business actually needs today. You shouldn't be hiring for hiring's sake in the name of growth.

You need to define the role and specific tasks your next employee will be performing and then find an employee who fits the role perfectly. For example, a job description should include a thorough explanation of the position's purpose and role in the company along with the most important skills.

Once you have an idea of what your new hire's duties will look like, it will become easier to identify the right candidates for the job. You might even realize that you can get what you need from an outsourced freelancer or independent contractor rather than having to take on a new employee.

Tip: Ask for help
If you're hiring to fill a recently vacated position, consider asking the outgoing or former employee for advice on finding a replacement. They will know exactly what it takes to succeed in that role.

2. Turnover is expensive

You might think of turnover as nothing more than finding a suitable replacement, but the reality is it's a major expense for businesses of all sizes. Even a small decrease in your turnover rate will substantially reduce your costs and improve continuity at all levels.

With that in mind, it's critical to be confident in each new hire's long-term future with your business. Increasing employee retention also has an impact on your company culture and makes your business a more attractive destination for new hires.

Tip: Focus on employee engagement
Similarly, you should do everything possible to maximize engagement with your current employees. Gather feedback from your employees to learn more about what they need and how you can incentivize them to stay in their current position.

3. Don't expect every candidate to accept

Some small business owners assume their work is done once they've identified a suitable candidate, but it's important to remember that potential employees can turn you down just as much as the other way around.

Employees care more about company culture than ever, so you can turn candidates off if you don't appear to offer a positive work environment. Just like employee retention, this comes down to strong leadership and open communication throughout your business.

Tip: Keep strong applications on file
You should also continue to review applications even if you've already filled the position, and keep in touch with any top candidates you don't hire for the current opening. Having someone in mind for the next vacant position could make the hiring process a lot less complicated.

4. Talent is a significant competitive advantage

Skilled and knowledgeable employees are obviously an asset, but it's important to understand just how much top-level talent can do for your business. The best workers in your field will put you ahead of the competition and give you a significant advantage over competing businesses.

Tip: Wait for the right candidate
It can be tempting to settle on a candidate early rather than continuing the search—and there's no question that you lose money every day you wait to hire. On the other hand, it's worth spending a little more time in the hiring process if it helps you find the perfect person for the job. This is especially important for smaller businesses where each employee has more of an impact on the company's overall success. Be patient and keep looking for the right candidate. Once you find them, you'll know it was worth the wait.

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5. Referrals are a great recruiting channel

If you're not already taking advantage of employee referrals, you're missing out on one of the top channels for strong talent in your industry. Some of your employees will have contacts in the field with the experience and knowledge you're looking for.

Tip: Create a referral program
You can capitalize on the potential of referrals by offering incentives to any employee who recommends someone you end up hiring. They'll know to keep their contacts in mind whenever there's an opening, and you'll have a steady stream of qualified candidates. And while you'll spend a small amount of money on the referral, this is a relatively minor cost compared to what you'd spend advertising the position and going through the interview process. Remember to ask your employees for recommendations whenever you're looking for a new hire.

6. Intangibles can be just as important

Most interviews focus on the candidate's main qualifications, but there are also a number of less obvious skills that hiring managers tend to overlook. It's important to go beyond their experience and knowledge when looking for a new employee.

This is especially true for small businesses—you need employees who are ready to buy in to your brand. If you don't feel like you have any shared goals or values, they might not be the best candidate.

Tip: Go in-depth during interviews
With that in mind, it's critical to structure interviews around your most relevant concerns. Rather than asking the standard set of interview questions, try to get to know each candidate and get a feel for how they would fit in your company. It's critical for smaller businesses to avoid hiring employees who are just there to earn a paycheck and go home. Instead, look for candidates who are passionate about what you're doing and ready to contribute wherever they can.

7. Candidates can come from anywhere

Many small businesses advertise job openings on just one channel and wait for the right candidates to apply. While there's nothing wrong with using this strategy if you know there are qualified candidates on a specific platform, advertising on a single channel limits the pool of available applicants.

Tip: Post on multiple job boards
The more candidates you reach with your job postings, the better odds you'll have of finding the perfect hire. Start advertising openings on at least three channels for the greatest possible outreach. If you're not sure which platforms to start with, consider downloading a digital solution to help you manage the hiring process. Most hiring solutions enable you to post ads on several platforms simultaneously, increasing visibility without forcing you to create the same ad for each channel.

8. It's tough to learn everything in a single interview

Interviews are the best way to get to know each candidate, but there's no way to learn all the relevant information from a single conversation. Looking into a candidate's personal history can help you gather more information about them before making a decision, and you can tailor your interview questions to get more relevant answers.

Tip: Vet candidates thoroughly
It's tough to be 100% confident in a candidate before they start with your business, but you'll get a lot closer once you start looking into each candidate more seriously. This includes asking targeted questions for any issues on applicant résumés along with other efforts to gather as much information as possible. You may also want to look into a candidate's social media history as part of the hiring process; anything offensive or otherwise negative should be considered a major red flag. Whomever you hire will be responsible for representing the brand's values to your customers.

9. Training can be costly and time-consuming

As mentioned earlier, losing an existing employee and hiring a new one is an expensive process. Training incoming employees is one of the most time-consuming aspects of hiring, so it's important to look for ways to streamline your training practices.

Much of the training process is the same from one new hire to the next, so there's no reason to go through each step for every new hire. Fortunately, businesses looking to train employees more efficiently now have a number of effective options.

Tip: Make training easier for your business
The simplest way to train new employees more quickly is simply to save the relevant documentation in a training folder. You'll have immediate access to things like company history, tax documentation, job descriptions, and more the next time you bring in a new hire. There are also a variety of training solutions that allow you to digitally manage the training process. Either way, make sure to ask employees for feedback on the training process once they've spent a month or two with your company—this will help you make adjustments to your training practices and onboard future employees even more quickly.

Don't rush!

As a small business owner, I know it can be tempting to fill a role as quickly as possible when a new need arises or when a core team member leaves unexpectedly. That said, there are many things to consider before hiring a new employee for your business. Taking the time to hire a good employee will save you from the time, money, and headaches in the long run that you would have had if you rushed into a hiring decision.

RELATED: Why Entrepreneurs Should Never Hire a Yes-Man (or Woman)

About the Author

Post by: Logan Allec

Logan Allec is a CPA, personal finance expert, and founder of the finance blog “Money Done Right,” which he launched in July 2017. After spending nearly a decade in the corporate world helping big businesses save money, he launched his blog with the goal of helping everyday Americans earn, save, and invest more money.

Company: Money Done Right
Website: www.moneydoneright.com
Connect with me on Facebook and Twitter.

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5 Ways Emotional Intelligence Improves the Workplace

Posted: 02 Nov 2019 12:59 PM PDT

By Steven Hymovitch

Emotional intelligence. Researchers Peter Salovey and John Mayer coined the term, and Dan Goleman brought it into the mainstream using it in the titles of his many books on the subject.

And while Salovey, Mayer, and Goleman could give forth long explanations about what exactly emotional intelligence (EI) is, it's really nothing more than being aware of how our emotions drive our behaviors and how that behavior impacts the people around us. And realizing we can manage those emotions by our (go ahead, say it with me) intelligence, we can also learn how to influence the emotions of the people around us.

This is not some “new agey,” feel-the-vibes concept; it’s human nature at its best. The most effective CEOs learn to cultivate their emotional intelligence. It’s simple to understand (it's basically growing a better self-awareness and turning on your empathy), although it can take some consideration to execute and apply. But apply it if you want a more harmonious, more  productive shop or office, and an overall better work atmosphere. For those in the know, EI wins over IQ every time.

How is an emotionally intelligent work experience better than one without one? And how exactly does one inject this superpower into their workplace?

1. Emotional intelligence closes the gap between data and interpretation

Let’s start with an example. Your boss rushes by you one morning, and although you manage a quick “Good morning,” he doesn’t even manage a passing nod. So now you’re thinking: “Well, I guess it’s true what I thought these past few months. He doesn’t like me, and I’ll be the next to be fired.”

What actually happened was that the bagel-and-cream cheese the big man had for breakfast wasn’t sitting so well, and he was off to an appointment he couldn’t be late for . . . and he never even noticed you!

Psychologist Albert Ellis coined the term “awfulizing,” and we all do this from time to time, assuming the worst in something we are anticipating or when we don’t have enough information (data) to support a substantive conclusion of the facts (interpretation). Across the 10 dental practices I owned, any number of misinterpretations could have been leveled during any number of circumstances, and I was as guilty as anyone else interpreting something incorrectly a time of two.

But by cultivating a more emotionally intelligent point of view we lessen the tendency for thinking negatively, and actually ease the steam off the idea that we are always at the center of things. In realizing there are a multitude of reasons of why we do what we do, we come to recognize that others might just have as many reasons.

2. Emotional intelligence helps you skirt by the “Victim,” “Villain,” and the “Hero”

You may have seen one, two, or all of three of these types ply their manipulations in your daily office interplay. (Although they can exist on their own, the Villain, Victim, and the Hero exist strongest when they are all playing in the same sandbox at the same time.)

But when you are more in tune with your drama, you are quicker to recognize when people around you are slipping into theirs. You'll be better equipped to thwart this kind of role playing by heading the person off at their own pass: aggressiveness. By confronting the Victim, Villain, or Hero—a coworker or a boss who loves to stir the pot—you stop an emotional bully dead in their tracks.

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3. Emotional intelligence makes you consider more than react

You’ve no doubt heard the old rule of counting to 10? As you grow self-awareness, you’ll find yourself asking ever more frequently, “Why am I feeling this way?” “What’s triggering me right now, and how do I alleviate this negativity?”

Cultivating EI, you will be able to shut down those moments where you begin to spin your wheels in maudlin meandering (and really, who needs a case of the double M’s). You'll become less reactionary to the many monkey wrenches that can be thrown at you daily . . . beyond your boss running to the bathroom and not acknowledging your hello.

4. You can take both compliments and criticism as intended

The more self-aware you are, the more you will recognize and admit to your weaknesses and strengths and be ready to admit to them when a boss or manager points them out to you. You’ll be more apt to learn from criticism as well as not gloat over praise, which will make you a more agreeable coworker. In almost every situation we can take away a salient point or a lesson. EI helps us recognize this in even the most seemingly negative of moments, like a dressing down from the boss.

5. Growing a healthy emotional intelligence helps take the “you” out of the equation

The more aware you are of your “stuff,” the more you start to realize other people have their “stuff,” and that their “stuff,” is as important to them as yours is to you. This breeds the other building block of EI: empathy. And without empathy, we are not the best we can be: worker, friend, sibling, spouse, you name it.

Like Kevin Costner building his Iowa baseball field, we all have emotional intelligence in us. “If you cultivate it, it will come.” How to do this? Slow down, explore your feelings, meet the day with a more positive outlook, think of others, and when it comes to your work specifically, be happy to be there (and if you are not happy being there, light out for someplace where you can be happy).

Surely, EI won't solve all your ills, but getting along with people is not rocket science. By maintaining and using emotional intelligence around the office, you will see constant benefits—and it can be very infectious indeed.

RELATED: Is This Simple 3-Letter Word Sabotaging Your Success?

About the Author

Post by: Steven Hymovitch

Dr. Steven Hymovitch, also known as "Dr. H," is the proud co-founder of The Scottsdale Leadership and Coaching Center. He is a Certified Executive Coach from Royal Roads University, and a Level 1 and Level 2 TalentSmart Emotional Intelligence certified trainer. He currently coaches executives, upper management, and doctors within the health-care industry as well as faculty groups within dental colleges. In his words, "I coach as it really gives me the satisfaction of knowing that I can unleash the inner potential of driven and motivated professionals and entrepreneurs." The focus of Dr. H's coaching and speaking topics is leadership in the health-care world.
Additionally, as a professionally trained endodontist, Dr. H is the founder and CEO of Valley Endodontics and Oral Surgery. He has been running 10 successful endodontic and oral surgery practices throughout Arizona since 1996, and his practice is the largest endodontic/oral surgery practice in the Southwestern United States.

Company: Scottsdale Leadership and Coaching Center
Website: www.scottsdalecenterofleadership.com
Connect with me on LinkedIn.

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How to Hire a Part-Time CFO to Take Your Business to the Next Level

Posted: 02 Nov 2019 12:00 PM PDT

Revised and updated Nov. 2019

When you’re starting a new business, a part-time chief financial officer can help you manage the company's finances and financial planning. However, finding the right seasoned professional with the experience you need for your company could be a challenge.

To help steer you in the right direction, we asked the members of Young Entrepreneur Council the following question:

Q. What is an important trait you should look for when hiring a part-time CFO?

1. Credibility

CFOs play a significant business role, regardless of your industry. You should always keep credibility in mind when looking for a part-time CFO. The “part-time” aspect of the deal might encourage less-than-qualified candidates to apply for the position, which can have potential repercussions on your business. Always consider credibility before, during, and after hiring a CFO. —Blair Williams, MemberPress

2. Cultural fit

When looking for a part-time CFO, consider whether the candidate will be able to fit in with your company culture. A part-time CFO will not be in the office a lot and won’t be putting in full days, so they’ll have fewer opportunities to connect with your team. Consider looking for a CFO who’s familiar with collaborative tools like Slack so they can still connect and interact with the team. —Stephanie Wells, Formidable Forms

3. Able to meet your specific needs

The requirements of a part-time CFO differ from one who’s full-time, so it’s essential to know exactly what you need them for. Make a list of the tasks and responsibilities you need a CFO to do so they will be successful at your company. This makes it easier to ask them the right questions and get the answers you need to make informed decisions. —Jared Atchison, WPForms

4. Qualifications

There are people out there who will try to manipulate business owners to get to an elevated position, such as CFO. When you’re looking to fill this role, make sure you check their qualifications so you can better understand their work history, references, and education. Once you’ve compiled all of their qualifying data, dig deeper and make sure that everything is legitimate. —Syed Balkhi, WPBeginner

5. Longevity

Even if you only intend on hiring a CFO part time, you should always approach the recruitment process as if it were for a long-term, full-time position. Even though this person isn’t going to be devoting all of their time to your company, it doesn’t mean they shouldn’t be highly professional, trustworthy, and a positive representation of your brand. —Bryce Welker, The Big 4 Accounting Firms

6. Encourages data-driven growth

Make sure your part-time CFO isn’t only great at tracking and recording data, but that they are also great at identifying ways for the company to improve and grow based on the data collected. Can your CFO offer insight and tips in addition to keeping an eye on the books? Of course, the CEO is wanting to grow, but the CFO can see what is realistic and make data-driven suggestions for growth that is long-term. —Diego Orjuela, Cables and Sensors

7. Their available bandwidth

Part-time CFOs are a fantastic solution for many smaller companies. That being said, if you are looking for a part-time CFO, make sure that their part-time hours are used looking out for your company’s best interests. A CFO’s time isn’t cheap, nor are their responsibilities light. It’s OK to ask, “How many companies are you serving right now, and what do you think your capacity is?” —Yaniv Masjedi, Nextiva

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8. How much help you truly need

You’re not going to get much more than advice on core financial business matters and don’t expect help with any complex financial areas. That said, they can be an asset if the help you need is rather basic and you don’t need a full-time CFO. Just make sure that you are unable to handle the job yourself or can hand it off to a trusted team member if you think that’s viable. —Andrew Schrage, Money Crashers Personal Finance

9. An understanding of your business

Hiring a part-time CFO can help the company focus on key financial elements. When deciding to hire a part-time CFO, look at their experience and the industries and companies they've worked with. It's really important to find someone who understands your business, can easily identify the main issues, and can bring solutions to the table that will positively impact the company’s strategic plan. —Chelsea Rivera, Honest Paws

10. Honesty and integrity

When looking for a part-time CFO, I look at the person’s work history, track record and reputation. I believe that the best way to know if someone will do good work is to see what they have done in the past. Additionally, I look for people who have a reputation for quality work and good character. —David Chen, Sharebert

11. Aligned vision

A part-time CFO can be a very valuable addition to propel your company to the next level. I think that aligned vision is a key component. You want to make sure they are on board with your growth goals and feel that they can deliver. Having a very reactive CFO when your vision is aggressive and bold can cause strife. Ensure that they are as proactive as needed to match your vision. —Joel Mathew, Fortress Consulting

12. Detail-oriented

Hiring a part-time CFO provides a business with access to a professional with years of experience, without taking on a high annual salary. One of the important characteristics to look for before hiring is how detail-oriented the individual is. Your CFO will be responsible for seeing the big picture of your business's financial past, present, and future. —Blair Thomas, eMerchantBroker

13. The ability to assess and predict

Much like Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs, a business has a hierarchy of needs. Different businesses have different needs at different times. My advice is to hire a CFO when your business has several successfully operating parts, but you’re not sure where to take it next. At this point, you need someone who can assess the dynamics of your overall financials and make predictions about the future. —Shu Saito, Godai

14. Specific industry experience

A short-term CFO is more than a temp to work in the accounting department. It is vital that the CFO position, even in the short term, be occupied by an individual who has in-depth experience within the particular industry. Otherwise, the learning curve regarding how a particular industry works will eliminate the efficiency of a short-term CFO. —Ryan Bradley, Koester & Bradley, LLP 

15. True value

I have watched friends who operate very early-stage businesses spend heavily on part-time CFOs and come to regret it. In hindsight, they didn’t really need a part-time CFO and would have been far better off spending their limited resources elsewhere. Carefully evaluate just how valuable a CFO-level resource is to your company at its current stage relative to alternative avenues you could pursue. —Adam Mendler, The Veloz Group

16. Industry knowledge

Hiring anyone part time means that they won't know the ins and outs of your business. That brings extra risk when you’re considering finance and accounting. If you’re going to have someone be part time, make sure they’re well-versed in your industry. You need a finance partner who understands the nuances of your space and will protect you from any unforeseen risks. —Aaron Schwartz, Passport

17. Flexibility in methods

Every industry is different and each business in an industry is at least slightly different. As a result, the methods and practices used to track and report the fiscal and operational health of a business are different. Part-time CFOs that attempt to force preferred methods into businesses will harm them; part-time CFOs that change their methods to fit the business perform better. —Eric Mathews, Start Co.

18. Efficiency

Some might rank trust and loyalty as crucial, but those traits should be standard requirements and also easily covered by legal documents. Their ability to work fast and effectively will make a huge difference to your bottom line, which is the reason you’ve hired part time. Either there isn’t enough work or there isn’t enough budget. Either way, you can focus on value/time. —Nicole Munoz, Nicole Munoz Consulting, Inc.

19. Hyper-qualifications

When hiring a part-time CFO, you’ll probably have the opportunity to hire someone who is more qualified than the person you could hire as a full-time salaried employee. We hired a part-time CFO through our bookkeeping service on a project basis when we found our bookkeepers needed more assistance. Luckily, we were able to hire someone who’s much more qualified than we could have afforded full time. —Matt Wilson, Under30Experiences

20. Similar experience in your space

Unless you are doing complex financials, most small companies do not need a full-time CFO. Instead, find someone (or a boutique firm) who knows your industry really well. They’ll help you build the appropriate models/categorization, know which financial metrics are key to your survival (so that you don’t go bankrupt from growth), and help you plan and build a successful venture. —Charlie Graham, Shop It To Me, Inc.

21. Role clarity

The need for a part-time CFO may arise if there are some financial leadership needs. To ensure you're getting what you need from this role, you must identify why you're hiring a part-time CFO and make the job requirements and outcomes clear. What meetings must they attend and what is their role in the meeting? What reports do they need to see? Should they be creating those reports? —Baruch Labunski, Rank Secure

21. External representation

Make sure that whomever you hire has the time for you, and can also represent your brand externally, equally, or better than their other clients. Anything that falls short of this really can be accomplished by a consultant, rather than a CFO. Additionally, pay attention to how they represent their past work and clients’ success rates. Deep vetting, especially where finance is concerned, is critical. —Matthew Capala, Alphametic

RELATED: How an Accountant Can Save Your Business Money at Tax Time—And All Year Long

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7 Productivity Tips for Extremely Busy Small Business Owners

Posted: 02 Nov 2019 11:56 AM PDT

Productivity is the secret to success, satisfaction in our work, and more free time. Yet most of us find that being productive incredibly difficult to achieve. This applies even more to business owners who have several people working underneath them and new projects happening all the time.

With this in mind, it's amazing to think about all that has been accomplished by early businesses and brands with hundreds of employees before the internet and co-scheduling/meeting tools were in place.

At the same time, there are other business owners and project managers who are incredibly "productive" but who suffer from productive procrastination, in which they avoid doing the difficult tasks that matter by spending hours planning what they need to do or clearing out their inboxes. Are these tasks productive? Well, sort of. Yes, they are getting something done, but those tasks aren't moving their companies forward.

If we want to be successful, healthy, and happy business owners with productive teams, we need to master the art of time management and productivity. Get started by following these seven productivity tips:

1. Eliminate mindless and tedious tasks from your daily routine

There are plenty of tasks we complete every day or week that we should not be doing. Some of these we do to procrastinate from work that's hard; some of them we do because we genuinely enjoy them. Regardless of the reason we do them, it's time to let them go.

Make a list of all the tasks you complete each week—from talking to clients to clearing out your email inbox—and ask yourself if a task can be eliminated or delegated, or if it truly furthers your business. If a task is important to your company, then it is still a task you should be doing (at least for now). If it is a task you shouldn't be doing or can delegate, then it's time to give it up. An assistant (virtual or otherwise) can be surprisingly affordable if you start with just a few hours a week and hire someone who is self-employed.

If you have employees, make sure you are scheduling them effectively. Are you doing admin work they could be doing for you? Are you spending hours trying to figure out whether you have enough staff and where you need more support? All of these tasks are time suckers, and can be easily managed with scheduling software and mobile applications focused on time tracking. 

For small- and medium-sized businesses that have staff working different shifts throughout the week, this type of software can be a lifesaver so you can have more time to focus on what actually moves the needle for your business or pass off the responsibility to another member of staff.

RELATED: 8 Proven Time Management Tips From Top Business Execs

2. Plan your ideal day

Now that you know which activities you need to let go of or eliminate, you can reassess how your time is best spent. Depending on your schedule, plan your ideal day or week and schedule how you will spend your time.

For example, if you travel a lot, then plan your ideal day in the office. You aren't planning your ideal day because you expect every day to be the same. Of course, you will need to be flexible within your plan, but if you establish a productive routine for your average day, you won't be wasting time wondering what to do next or what to prioritize.

Also take the time to delegate and outsource tasks and projects to other team members or staff. Your job should be running the business and ensuring everything is being done correctly—not dealing with tedious tasks.

3. Find your perfect personal time management tool

There are many project and task management tools out there, so try out a few and then see which one suits you best and that you will actually use. It's all too easy to spend an hour or two setting up a tool only to never use it again. So make sure you understand your own habits before you set up a new one, and don't be afraid to try out a few.

However, don't confuse the latest top time management tools and solutions with solutions of the past. Today many solutions take advantage of the latest advancements in technology which allow for built-in artificial intelligence, team access to schedules, and the ability to track and manage schedules from your mobile device. They also offer online access and connectivity with their own mobile applications. These features are something you will want to keep an eye out for when choosing a solution that’s best for you and your business.

Also, from a personal standpoint, don't forget the benefit of writing down tasks on a to-do list. If you don't like using digital tools, use a paper planner. You can then transfer your list over to your time management and scheduling solution to work on later.

4. Prioritize and value your time

As we touched upon earlier, look back at your ideal day or week and look at the time blocks you've created. You've likely blocked out an hour in the morning for admin tasks, an hour at the end of the day to get back to vital emails, and other blocks in between. However, just as important as scheduling your personal time is scheduling the time of your employees and team members. This is something every business owner needs to consider when trying to improve productivity across the board.

There are a variety of tasks that need to be completed each day, and each one has its own level of importance or priority. When you plan out your task list for the day or week, block out periods of time for getting your most vital tasks done. These are times that cannot be interrupted. Your staff and team members should be blocking out important time periods as well. The better we understand the importance of task management, the more we will get done.

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5. Focus on three primary tasks daily

Every day choose just three primary tasks to accomplish. These three tasks should be doable within the day and will help you progress toward achieving your goals. Why just three? How many times have you sat down and listed absolutely everything you need to do, and then ended up becoming overwhelmed and abandoning the list entirely? This is very common and is why it's important to simply choose three core tasks each day to complete.

These are the tasks you should do first. If you complete these tasks, you can complete other tasks on your to-do list if you have time. But if you reach the end of the workday with your three important tasks completed, you can go home knowing you have been productive. The same holds true for your employees and team members. If they can complete at least three tasks per day, productivity will likely increase across the board.

A quick and simple application that will allow you to take notes and document your daily activities is Google Keep. It’s free to use, and since most of us are already using Google and Gmail, it’s a quick and easy way to take notes without needing to join or log into another platform. It’s also great because it offers a variety of tools for taking notes, including text, lists, images, and audio.

At the company level, you can also apply the "choose just three" rule to set goals for each quarter or even each year—just scale up the goal. If you make your goals and tasks specific (and don't allow the list to get too long), you will achieve much more than you ever have before.

6. To be productive, be healthy and happy

If you want to be productive each and every day, you need to understand that you are a human being and not a robot. Highly successful entrepreneurs prioritize their mental and physical health by getting enough sleep, eating good food throughout the day, working out, managing their stress, and valuing their time with friends and family.

Schedule time for yourself, as well as your business. Many people try to be more productive so they can fit in more work into the same amount of time. But if you don't give yourself time to relax and recoup, you'll burn out, feel stressed all the time, and your relationships with your loved ones will be strained. You have to value your time outside the office, as well as in it, so use any boosts in productivity to leave your work at the office at the end of the day.

7. Be accountable and reward yourself for success

Finally, as the founder or owner of a company, it can be tough to find someone who will be tough on you about completing your own goals or tasks. However, most business owners often have a good work ethic, which is why they are where they are in the first place.

On the flip side, to increase productivity within the workplace, it's recommended to have fellow employees and team members find a colleague who will be accountable for how they are spending their time. Not only will this help them with the process, but it also can lead to them feeling good when their three tasks are completed.

Lastly, one should also be aware of how to celebrate successes—no matter how big or small. When you complete your day's tasks, do you find something else to fill your time or let yourself relax? When you achieve a big goal, do you celebrate it? If you never pause to appreciate your successes, you won't feel like you are making progress or a sense of achievement, and it is this that keeps us motivated and productive day after day.

Business success—one step at a time

When it comes to running a successful business and brand, there is a whole lot that needs to happen behind the scenes outside of just income revenue and profits—many of which have been outlined in this article.

No matter how big or small your business might be, it's important to make sure your time management and productivity is always on point. With such guidelines and best practices in place, there will be nothing you and your business team won't be prepared for.

Take the time to run through each of these seven tips and be sure to implement them into your business and project management efforts today.

RELATED: The 6 Biggest Time Sucks for Entrepreneurs—And How to Avoid Them

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5 Digital Marketing Strategies Small Businesses Can Learn from Political Campaigns

Posted: 02 Nov 2019 11:26 AM PDT

By Ata Khan

Election season is in full swing and with that comes a barrage of marketing methods that inundate the average American. While the top runners in the race have larger budgets, their marketing strategies actually are something that small businesses can learn from.

If candidates can use these techniques to win entire presidential elections, just imagine what they can do for your business. With that thought in mind, here are five ways small businesses can use the tactics of effective election campaigns to their advantage:

1. Website design

Typically, the first step to launching a successful business is a well-designed website. Much of the same is true for presidential candidates. They use their websites to get their message out to the masses (both national and local), give the American voter a way to communicate with them, and a platform to accept campaign donations.

These days there are thousands of user-friendly website development platforms and templates available (with many that cater specifically to small businesses and startups). There really is no reason that any business, even with a nominal marketing budget, can't create a website that is optimized to sell their products or services.

Take this opportunity to set your brand apart from the competition and design a site that meets your business goals. Be sure to have a clean and recognizable logo, a consistent and defined color palette, concise messaging about your services/products, mobile-friendly design, search engine optimized design, and a clear call-to-action and conversion funnel.

2. Events

Every single candidate gets started by knocking on doors and shaking every hand in order to introduce themselves to the community. Scaled up, knocking on doors evolves into town halls and eventually national debates, caucuses, news spots, opinion pieces in national publications, and more. Face-to-face interaction builds credibility for a presidential candidate and the same is true for small businesses.

Small businesses should absolutely attend trade shows, local events, and anything that puts a face to the company name. Typically, these events offer many opportunities to network and generate leads. They provide paid sponsorship opportunities, booths, speaker spots, and even attendee lists (which you can then market to). Not only will these efforts help you generate leads directly, but it will also help generate brand awareness and funnel customers to your website or brick and mortar store.

3. Email marketing

Presidential candidates rely on free merchandise, meet and greets, and more to attract new voters and potential donors. But they know that this isn't enough, so they send out mass emails to their lists. These emails help candidates stay in front of their voter base, present their position on current events, and provide a secondary pathway for voter communication/feedback. It is an excellent tool for presidential candidates, and it is an excellent tool for small business as well.

Email marketing campaigns that run on platforms like Mailchimp cost very little to run if you already have a list of contacts. Everyone likes a good deal, and if your email marketing campaign can entice users to keep coming back to your products or services, you should make a concerted effort to nurture those relationships. This doesn’t mean that you must give out your products for free, but rather be creative with what you are offering and how you are offering it.

Can you offer free consultations? Can you release an e-book? Can you do a giveaway? Can you create a newsletter that is valuable to your customers? The main takeaway is to be true to your brand so that customers will trust you with their money.

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4. Surveys

Presidential candidates understand that it's essential for them to reach out to their voter base in new ways. They send out surveys via email and social media to understand what matters to their potential voters, how they can better serve their needs, and how they can present themselves in a better light.

Businesses can benefit immensely by mimicking this strategy. By hearing the thoughts of their target demographic directly through surveys, brands will understand their customers’ needs better, make product/service improvements, develop better strategies to upsell and market in general, and be more relevant by touching pain points.

Platforms like Survey Monkey are very cost-effective and allow for businesses to send out surveys to their contact databases. These surveys can range from simple to complex, and display results in nicely aggregated reports (complete with breakdowns). Social websites like Facebook have native capability to send out surveys to their users via their ad platform; all you have to do is set up the campaign.

5. Analytics and paid advertising

Within every candidate’s reach is a treasure trove of data pulled from the most sophisticated analytics tools (e.g., Quantcast Measure, Google Analytics, etc.). They use this data to understand who the American voter is, what their interests are, and which platforms they will be most receptive on. Once they have compiled the details, they then run low-cost impression-based ads on these platforms, targeting voters who are on the fence or who may be inclined to be promoters. These ads are run on a variety of platforms (including Google Ads, Facebook, Twitter, and more). The ad platforms have very powerful targeting capabilities and give candidates the ability to target the right voters with the right message.

What some businesses don't realize is that they can do exactly the same thing. You don't need big budgets to collect robust data, and you don't need big budgets to advertise on the big ad platforms. For starters, small business owners can install Google Tag Manager (or GTM) on their websites. GTM is lightweight script that is used to install and execute JavaScript code without the need of a developer (or any further code changes for that matter). This is great when you need to install many tracking codes for platforms like Google Analytics, Google Ads, Facebook, Quantcast Measure, etc.

Once you have the tracking systems up you can track all the same metrics that the candidates do. Start pulling insights by using that data to identify your converting traffic by their demographic, technographic, geographic, and behavioral traits. Use that information to target users in a completely new way by sending them relevant, targeted messages. Best of all, you can choose to run impression-based ads and pay per thousand impressions (i.e., CPM) which ends up becoming very cost efficient.

For just a few dollars you can get your brand in front of thousands of prospects. This strategy adds to a small business's marketing arsenal and has the potential to reach entirely new audiences and drive new revenue.

Summing it up

The presidential candidates use a plethora of marketing strategies to win elections. What small businesses don't realize is hey have within their means the same tools and technology to execute the same marketing strategies.

Small businesses can allocate resources to building high-converting websites, networking at events, sending out surveys to their customers, and taking advantage of big data to run advertising campaigns.

If a candidate can become President of the United States using these strategies, then your business can certainly thrive on them, too.

RELATED: 5 Essential Digital Marketing Podcasts That All Marketers and Business Owners Should Be Listening To

About the Author

Post by: Ata Khan

Ata Khan is co-founder of Xoobo, a digital marketing agency that is on the bleeding edge of the industry. After leading in-house marketing teams at various organizations, Ata calls on more than 10 years of marketing experience to guide Xoobo on its journey across the industry. Most recently, he led marketing operations at billion-dollar tech titan, Ellucian, where he built their entire marketing analytics infrastructure from the ground up, and secured over $30 million in pipeline revenue via marketing campaigns and various efforts.

Company: Xoobo
Website: www.xoobo.com
Connect with me on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.

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Want to Start a Business? Maybe You Should Buy a Franchise

Posted: 02 Nov 2019 11:04 AM PDT

If you're dreaming of starting a business but you aren't sure what kind of business to start—or where to start—the ideal solution may be to buy a franchise. In fact, Guidant Financial has gone so far as to dub 2019 the "Year of the Franchise" based on trends in its latest  Small Business Trends survey. Here's a closer look at what they found about today's franchise owners (also called franchisees).

Who are today's franchisees?

Some 62% of franchisees in Guidant's survey are baby boomers, while 30% belong to Generation X. Just 8% are millennials. One reason for the low level of millennial involvement: Most millennials can't yet afford the high average cost of opening a franchise. Since franchisors expect franchisees to put a significant chunk of their own money into startup, the average franchisee needs to have about $50,000 liquid capital to invest.

Reflecting the financial means needed to buy a franchise, franchise owners generally have a higher level of education than the average small business owner. Some 85% of franchisees have advanced degrees: 47% have a bachelor's degree, 25% have a master's degree, and 11% have an associate's degree. Of course, 15% are doing fine with a high school or GED degree.

Getting financing to buy a franchise gets easier

You'll need to put a chunk of your own money into buying a franchise, but you may be able to get a loan for the rest. Getting a small business loan is typically very difficult for a startup business; however, franchises are different. Since franchisees are buying into a proven system, lenders are more likely to feel confident that their startups will survive and be able to repay the loan. In fact, franchisees are 28% less likely than independent business owners to say cash flow is a major operational challenge, Guidant's survey reports.

With loan interest rates dropping, Guidant notes that small business lending solutions such as SBA 7(a) loans are becoming more affordable. The SBA recently adjusted its size standards, categorizing about 90,000 more businesses as "small businesses" and making them eligible to obtain small business loans. Last year, 26% more franchise owners used SBA loans to launch their business compared to the prior survey.

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The most popular franchise industries

What kinds of businesses are most popular among franchisees? Overall, franchise trends mirror trends in business in general. Here are the five most popular franchise industries:

  1. Health/beauty/fitness franchises
  2. Food and restaurant franchises
  3. Business services franchises (such as tax preparation or marketing)
  4. General retail franchises
  5. Home services (such as lawn care or maid services)

Franchisees' biggest challenges

While owning a franchise does eliminate many of the challenges of startup, it's not always easy. Asked what has become more difficult in the past year, 21% of franchise business owners say they're struggling to recruit and retain qualified staff (a 14% increase from last year). The majority of franchisees in the survey have two to five employees, but the survey notes an increase in the number of sole proprietor franchises—possibly because these owners can't find good employees.

In addition, 16% of franchise owners say they struggle with marketing and advertising, while 12% say time management and administrative tasks are their biggest challenges.

Another challenge: Buying a franchise is becoming more expensive. Almost seven in 10 (68%) franchisees say their locations cost $100,000 or more to open, a 15% increase from 2018. The number of franchises that were opened for under $100,000 dropped by 22%. Fifty-two percent of franchises in the survey were existing locations the new owner purchased; 48% were new locations opened by the owner.

Franchisees' future goals

The majority of franchisees surveyed (66%) are profitable. While 57% of franchisees are focusing on growing their current location, 23% say they'd like to open an additional location.

Some 24% of franchisees say lack of capital or cash flow is an issue for them. When asked what they would do with additional capital, most franchisees said they'd use it for expansion. Franchise owners also said they'd use extra capital to invest in marketing and advertising, staff and equipment.

They'd do it again

Despite their challenges, Guidant found that overall, franchisees are happy with their choice to go into business "for themselves, but not by themselves." On average, they rate their happiness eight on a scale of 1 to 10 (10 being happiest).

RELATED: Buying a Franchise vs. an Independent Business: What Are the Pros and Cons?

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AllBusiness.com Launches New Business Directory for Small Businesses

Posted: 02 Nov 2019 10:50 AM PDT

In today’s world, the first place most consumers go to find products and services is the internet. If you own a small and growing business, it's important to ensure your company profile is listed on major business directories across the web.

Having a prominent company profile allows you to:

  • Market and advertise your products and services to a wide audience
  • Gain credibility for your business
  • Enhance your visibility on the web and in search results
  • Reach potential partners and employees

What should you ideally have in your company profile? Make sure it contains the following key information:

  • Name of your company
  • Website link
  • Links to your company's social media accounts (Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, LinkedIn, YouTube, Twitter, etc.)
  • List of products and services you offer (keywords are essential here for Google search results)
  • Address and contact information
  • Category your business falls under (e-commerce, retail, travel, etc.)

There are many business directories out there where your company can be listed, including LinkedIn, Yelp, Hoover's, and others. It's important to get listed on reputable sites.

AllBusiness.com has recently implemented a new program that allows companies to post a comprehensive business profile on the site—for free. It allows companies to post relevant information about their business, with valuable backlinks to the company website and social media accounts. And it allows the company to be included in the site's Business Directory.

Here is where you can get information on this new AllBusiness.com program:

Submit your profile today!

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