Part 3: Addressing the Top 10 Concerns of Small Business Owners

boutique business owner

Congratulations! You made it to the final blog post in the the series "Addressing the Top 10 Concerns of Small Business Owners."

In this article we will address, "competing with other businesses," "surviving as a business," and "hiring new employees."

And, at the end, a bonus section... "Why I Love Being a Small Business Owner."

Competing with other businesses

Competing with other businesses that provide the same or similar products or services can be a dangerous "game of chicken" where there are no winners. The key element of this game is almost always price. And, while it's a fact that your pricing needs to be "within the realm of reality", and aligned similarly with the industry marketplace, keep in mind that no two businesses share the same overhead or business model. Here's a few things to keep in mind.

1. Sell the sizzle, not the steak. Meaning focus more on your business uniqueness and customer service rather than product and price.

2. If you have to mail coupons or give discounts to bring in customers...are those the kind of customers that you want? Are these customers going to sustain your small business over the long haul or during times of economic downturns? No.

3. Grow your vision. You started a small business out of a love and commitment for what you do. You wanted to take something you're good at and share it with the world. So...rather than trying to be the same as other businesses in terms of price, work towards being different and you'll have more customers than you can handle.

Surviving as a business

When you start a small business it can be exciting and then shortly after very scary. And on any given day it can be both. Exciting for a new adventure and new start. Exciting with that first customer and you realize that your intuition was spot on. Scary when things get slow and you realize that not only your family is depending on you but also your employees and their families. I've been there many times and here is what I've learned.

1. Be willing to work harder than everyone else. You can't control everything, but you will have a better chance of making a go of your small business by working harder than you've ever worked before (at least for the first couple of years...)

2. Take advice from others that you trust, but whatever business decisions you make need to be your own. Your gut instinct is usually right.

3. Be present. You can NEVER hire someone to do your job as the business owner. No matter how much you like and trust your employees, they are not the owner. They can never fully grasp what it takes to do your job (until they own their own successful business.)

Hiring new employees

Help is nice. Help in the form of hiring new employees means your business is busy. That's a good thing. However, having employees can be a source of additional stress and frustration. So make sure you truly are in need of new employees, because good ones are hard to come by and harder to keep. Here's a few tips to keep in mind when hiring new employees.

1. Do the background check and call references BEFORE you offer a job position- no matter how badly you need the help.

2. Try to avoid hiring friends, friends of friends, or relatives. I said "try...not never." I say this because when it's a good fit, it's great... but when things go badly, it's really terrible. And, usually not worth the risk of potential strife or bad feelings.

3. When a new employee starts on day one, YOU should be the person to train and monitor the on-boarding process. You may have to fire this person one day (hopefully not), and you don't want to hear them say "I was never told or taught that."

While this concludes the blog series Addressing the Top 10 Small Business Owners Concerns it may leave you wondering why anyone would put themselves through this.

However, I can tell you from experience that small business ownership is extremely rewarding work and gives a real feeling of empowerment and purpose. So, as promised, here are just a few reasons why I love being a small business owner.

• Being in control of your own business and decisions is rewarding

• Having customers who value you and your small business is a privilege

• Mentoring employees and helping them succeed is an honor

• I get enjoyment from meeting and learning about the lives of my customers

• Lastly, small business ownership fosters community

Thank you for reading along. Feel free to comment or follow me on instagram @jwade1972