BSC Small Business Growth

  In my last blog post, I talked about generating an idea and determining if it is marketable, technologically feasible, and economically viable.   Now it is time to understand the state of the industry. First and foremost, you need to define what industry you are competing in.   On the surface, that may seem pretty obvious, however, in many instances, you can choose the industry you want to be a part of.   For example, in my company, I could choose to be in the B2B consulting industry (NAICS code 541611) or I could choose Professional and Management Development Training (NAICS code 611430).   In either case, I can help businesses to start up and navigate growth, however, the size and strength of my competition would vary greatly. Once you decide on the industry, or probably part of the process of deciding, you need to learn everything you can about it. ·          Size: How large is the industry (revenue overall) ...

Starting or expanding a business is often fraught with challenges.  The biggest problem is that you don’t know what you do not know!  I started my business back in 1995 thinking that I knew everything.  After all, I am a smart guy, I have a Master’s degree, and, at the time, I had (almost) 20 years of experience in business.  Sadly, I knew NOTHING!  Sure, I was technologically competent and I understood how businesses work, however, there were big gaps in my background that I hadn’t even noticed.   I struggled with finance and accounting, never understood how to raise money, never even wrote a business plan, hate marketing (especially on-line), and I am a terrible salesman.   Because money was always short, I was forced to hire inexperienced people thinking I would train them.   In reality, much of my staff sat at their desks doing very little and I was doing all the work!   WHAT’S WRONG WITH THAT PICTURE? In this blog, in the weeks to c...