Jim Blasingame's Blog, page 17

RESULTS: Where would you go for a business loan?

The Question:

If you needed a business loan for for equipment or working capital, which of these sources would you go to first?

16% - One of the major national banks
69% - A local community bank
12% - A credit union
3% - Crowdsourcing loan

Jim’s Comments:




As you can see, almost 7 of 10 of our small business audience use community banks for business loans. This is interesting because according to the Independent Community Bankers of America (ICBA), nationally almost 6 of 10 small business loa...

Don’t slay your business alligators, starve them

Small business owners know all about that metaphorical business reptile — the ubiquitous alligator. They seem to pop up everywhere, continuously eating away at business performance and impeding work-life balance.

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Best-selling author and friend,Marc Allen, introduced me to a way to minimize the impact of alligators. When he has a difficult challenge, he has “a word with himself” as follows:

“I will deal with this problem in an easy and relaxed manner, in a healthy and positive way.”

Clear your mi...

Why the NLRB is assaulting the franchise industry

In the U.S. there are two primary ways to capitalize rapid businessexpansion beyond internal financial resources: 1) outside investors, including going public; 2) franchising. This article is about the latter being in jeopardy.

Here are the basic steps of the franchise model:

1.An entrepreneur-turned-franchisor turns the best practices proven at the mothership operation into licensedintellectual property (IP).

2. Independent franchisees purchase this IP and agree to follow rules prescribed in th...

RESULTS: Who should own the Internet?

[image error]The Question:

The Net Neutrality debate is about who controls the Internet: businesses through competition and contracts, or government by turning it into autility. What do you think?

2% - The government should be in control of the Internet.
74% - The government should leave the Internet alone.
19% - There should be a way to balance control between these two.
5% - Undecided.

Jim’s Comments:




See Until Next Time.

Should the Internet become a utility?

As you may remember, I’ve been reporting on the Net Neutrality issue for over a decade, including all the significant players in the debate.

Most reasonable people agree that one of the reasons the Internet has been such a phenomenal success is because it has been so lightly regulated. However, as I reported recently, President Obama has taken executive steps to make the Internet a public utility, subject to all sorts of government oversight.

When we asked our small business audience what the...

President Lincoln’s leadership continues to impress

This month marks the 206th birthday of America’s 16th president, Abraham Lincoln’s life and hard times continue to inspire generation after generation of leaders and followers so much that 150 years after his death Honest Abe is still one of the most important individuals in the history of the United States.

Lincoln’s story is especially important for small business owners. Every day along the business ownership continuum, from startup to locking up for the last time,Main Street merchants can...

RESULTS: What are your hiring plans for the year?

The Question:

Employment in the U.S. is still down. What are your hiring plans for this year?

16% - We will definitely be hiring this year.
5% - We’re probably going to be hiring this year.
61% - We only hire as business opportunity dictates.
18% - We will not be hiring this year.

Jim’s Comments:




There was a time when businesses hired in anticipation of opportunity, to make sure there was no delay in serving customers. But as you can see from our response this week, of the almost 80% who h...

Tuesday Challenge: Take a leap of faith

One of the most powerful words in the English language is courage; it’s also a characteristic unique to humans.



The reason courage is a uniquely human trait is because it is typically demonstrated for something other than self - a cause, a country, another human - which is abstract thinking, also unique to humans. And courage usually manifests itself after the courageous has had time to think about it. Someone once said, “Courage is fear that has said its prayers.” If you’ve had time to pray,...

Five Things to Do for a Successful Referral Strategy

For as long as businesses have tried to get customers to buy their stuff, a referral has been the holy grail of prospecting. Like the mythical chalice, a referral is golden.

To emphasize the power of referrals, allow me to introduce “Blasingame’s Prospect Entrée Spectrum” (BPES), which is a way of valuing the method used to get in front of a prospect.

The BPES is on a scale of 1-10, with a cold call being a 1, and the unqualified referral a 10. The difference between scoring a referral and maki...

RESULTS: How much of your revenue comes from online sales?

The Question:

Small businesses are increasingly using e-business to grow. How much of your annual revenue do you estimate comes from online sales?

0% - 100%
6% - More than 50%
39% - Less than 50%
55% - None

Jim’s Comments:

As you can see, our respondents this week aren’t using the Internet much to drive sales. Over the years our responses have been consistent with several scientific surveys I report on my radio program, but I hope this isn’t the case this time. Consider the research below:





Acc...