1.    Know the basic terms of telecom and internet providers.
2.    Build a relationship with trusted professionals, vendors, or advisers.
3.    Understand the difference between the cost, and the price (the lowest bidder for your telecom business could cost you the most if it doesn’t work)
4.    Read your bill! Make sure you reconcile your contract and monthly invoice.
5.    Adjust as needed. As your business grows, review your data and telecom needs.
6.    Understand the SLA (Service Level Agreements) and require one from your providers if they don’t offer it to you initially.
7.    Stay on budget, it is easy to be intoxicated by new technology.
8.    Call your business. Act like a client. Does your company give the initial impression you are looking for?
9.    Demand Excellence. Technology will fail, and at times there will be outages, but if it happens twice, begin looking for a new provider. Your technology is vital.
10.    Expand your presence. Understand MEL (Market Expansion Lines) and remote call forwarding options. Use technology to better serve your clients!

Contact Technology Advocacy Group

1.    Buy the right software for your company.  The pricing model and delivery method won’t matter if it isn’t the best software for you and your company.

2.    Become educated or pay the price.  Even for those businesses who outsource the purchasing of SaaS, there is no substitute for a little research and education.

3.    Read the Contract.  It sounds basic, but the majority of SaaS contracts have clever terms and conditions that you are responsible for, even if you decline to read them.

4.    The Hidden URL.  To avoid a contract with terms and conditions that is twenty pages long and full of legal terms many companies insert a URL Link into the contract and suggest you follow the link for all of the details.  Find the link, print it and read it.

5.    Evergreen can be Mean.  Know the terms of the contract especially the “renewal” terms if any, and the number of days required for sufficient notice to opt out of the renewal.

6.    Negotiate Everything.  Demand a discount and then ask for more.  A large majority of providers begin the pricing negotiations with plenty of room to negotiate.  If you don’t feel comfortable, find someone who does.  You will be amazed at the pricing delta between similar clients of similar providers with the same product.

7.    Don’t Tease me.  Beware of the teaser rate.  Know what price you will pay one month after the end of the initial term.  Is there a limit to the amount of increase you could be charged?  Make sure you know the long term cost.  Don’t be afraid to ask the tough questions.

8.    End of the Month.  Know when your SaaS provider is at their corporate end of year.  Also end of month and end of quarter can be optimal times to purchase.

9.    Is it really free?  Don’t let price be your only guide.  If you are given SaaS for free for 1 year to try it, would you?  What if it cost you a large client by using the wrong technology…then is it really free?  Know the difference between the price and the ultimate cost.

10.   The SLA is Vital.  Because the service is hosted there can and will be times of outages.  What is your recourse if the service goes down?  The SLA (Service Level Agreement) is often added only if you request one.  Understand the remedy options, and penalties your provider will pay if they fail to provide the service you are paying for.

Contact Technology Advocacy Group

Communications are Vital

The goal of this paper is to provide a quick guide to assist any business with the basic choices regarding phone and internet services. Today’s business owner has the benefit of many providers and a wide selection of technology options to choose from. Communications will be an ongoing expense, but doesn’t have to be expensive. Please do not simply call “the phone company” and place an order. Know your options, and have a long term plan in place for your telecommunications and internet solution.

Starting a business forces many entrepreneurs to quickly become educated in telecommunications and internet technology. Retail businesses from beauty salons to restaurants need phone lines, fax lines, data connections for credit card processing and internet access. You may have the best BBQ Sauce on the market but your clients have to be able to reach you, and a good communications package is a vital key to your success. How will your company be listed in the phone directory? How many phone lines will you need, and how much internet bandwidth is needed, are just two of the questions you may face.

If you are not sure how important the communications and technology issues are to your new, or growing business, just ask yourself one question. “How long could I be in business without phone and internet service?” Price is important, but if you phone service goes down for a week and your loose all your clients, the low cost provider might not have been that inexpensive.

Who’s my phone company?

From the late 1880’s through 1982 you phone company was almost certainly AT&T or “Ma Bell” per its common nickname. After the 1982 antitrust issues forced the breakup of AT&T into 7 regional companies called ROBC (Regional Bell Companies) or commonly known as the “Baby Bells”. On February 8, 1996 the Telecommunications Act of 1996 was signed into law. The result is today’s competitive marketplace for your phone and internet services. The simple answer is your phone company today is almost anyone you choose, the choice is yours.

Where do I start?

Each state has a governing body that regulates the utilities companies. These state agencies can provide you with a list of carriers for local phone service. The internet can also be a valuable tool listing your choices for phone and data providers. Many business consultants can point you in the right direction as well as the chamber of commerce, or BBB online. Ask other local businesses who they use, and how the service has been. It is always best when you have a relationship with a technology expert you trust who can guide you through your options.

Business or Residential Line?

If you are starting a “Home Based Business” you may be able to save money by using a “Residential” phone line. The key with most carriers will be how you want the phone to be listed. If you need it listed as a Business Name, you will most likely have to pay the higher business rates. If the listing with your local directory isn’t important you may be able to save a considerable amount on the installation and monthly fee. If you new phone service will be located in a business location, you will almost always have to pay the Business Rate. Know how many lines you will need and where you want them to be installed. Multiple visits to install one line at a time can be more expensive than multiple lines all installed on the initial visit.

What is the Cost?

To understand the budge for your new business phone and internet first look at the one time or initial expenses then forecast your monthly cost. Your initial cost will include set up fees, activation fees, implementation fees, and any other fee your carrier can think of. These one time fees are called NRC (Non-Reoccurring Charges). You monthly service plan is often referred to as your MRC (Monthly Reoccurring Charges). You are responsible for the inside wiring of your business from the “demark” (see terms) unless you pay for inside wire maintenance insurance from your phone carrier. When you hire your Uncle Earl to wire your phone jacks, don’t expect the phone carrier to repair them for you without charging you for it. If your business is going to have more than 5 phone lines you should consider a relationship with a local technician, or telecom installer. Your hard cost will be the installation, monthly fee, and monthly usage plan if any. Your provider will probably offer a package with voice mail, caller ID, and more. Review the cost of a local provider’s phone package with the “virtual” office voice mail options.

Can I negotiate price?

In the past the prices were fixed for everyone and without competition the prices were regulated by the state and local utilizes commissions. Today many of the same core rates are fixed by state regulators, but “incentives” or special offers can make the difference. If you simply call the phone company they may or may not advise you about discounts and promotions that you’re qualify for. Most of these agents are commissioned sales reps and are paid more when you buy more. You can not negotiate some items like your local 911 taxes or many FCC mandated charges, but many of the fees can be waived, or at minimum spread over several months.

How much Bandwidth do I need?

For most businesses the answer to how much bandwidth is needed is “as much as you can get”. This does not mandate every small business to install a T1 or DS3 (see terms) but trying to save money on the backbone to many small businesses is unwise. If you are starting a car wash, you may not need a massive amount of bandwidth. But if you have an office at the car wash, an alarm system, any online computers, you will soon see the need for more bandwidth. Review your DSL, and Cable options, and look to see if packaging your internet with phone is the best overall solution or not. The price of a typical T1 has dropped dramatically in the past 5 years, and most businesses are paying less for internet today, than they did just 3 years ago. If you will be hosting a server or growing an e-commerce business, you should consult and expert to ensure scalability and prepare to understand the exact current and future equipment cost.

Equipment Cost

The decision to buy, or lease equipment may be a decision that needs counsel with your tax consultant. You can spend a small fortune on the phone system with or without the latest software embedded. Equipment sales reps will often show you a chart of the eventual savings by eliminating many of the MRC from your phone provider. Rarely are these savings obtained, and the high end phone systems are loosing market share to the more sturdy less feature rich commodity type phone system. Small start ups on a budge can even obtain refurbished or used equipment that can suffice until revenues are generated. Internet hardware prices have been in a free fall since 2006. Cisco Systems supplies about ¾ of the hardware that runs the internet world wide, but they a much smaller market share of the small business space.

Voip or not to Voip

Voice over IP (Internet Protocol) is the future of telecommunications. But for every one satisfied client I meet today, I see twenty who urgently want off the VOIP bandwagon. Over the next 12 to 36 months the market and the technology should mature, but as of the date of this writing I would not recommend this option for most new businesses. Oversees calls can be worth the delay, and the instability due to the huge cost savings, but for local or national calling, the trade of is simply not worth it at this time.

Contact Technology Advocacy Group

Start your business plan with a quick assessment. Even for an ongoing business, take the time to step away from the business and look at the basics. Do your business numbers make sense? One of my business school professors used to refer to this process as finding out “is there a there there?”

For a first look, consider your objectives, mission statement, market analysis and keys to success.

Objectives
Objectives are business goals. Set your market share objectives, sales objectives, and profit objectives. Companies need to set objectives and plan to achieve them.

Make sure your objectives are concrete and measurable. Be specific, such as achieving a given level of sales or profits, a percentage of gross margin, a growth rate, or a market share. Don’t use generalities like “being the best” or “growing rapidly” as your objectives.

For example, “being the best” or “maximize customer satisfaction” cannot really be measured. Much better objectives would set measurable goals, such as holding gross margin to 25 percent as a minimum, or selling more than $3 million, or achieving six percent profit on sales and 10 percent return on equity.

If less tangible goals are critical to a plan, find a way to measure them. For example, if image and awareness are vital, then plan for statistically valid surveys to measure the improvements in image and awareness. You can also set goals for market share, and purchase research to measure the actual share. Or, if you want to focus on customer satisfaction, plan for a survey to quantify satisfaction or specify numerical objectives regarding returns or complaints.

Mission Statement
Use the mission statement to define your business concept. A company mission statement should define underlying goals (such as making a profit) and objectives in broad strategic terms, including what market is served and what benefits are offered.

What Business Are You In
Ask yourself what business you are in, and don’t narrow yourself down. One of the classic business examples is the railroads, which lost a chance to expand in the twentieth century because they misdefined themselves. They thought they were in the business of running trains on tracks. They didn’t understand they were in the business of transporting goods and people. When trucks and buses and highways grew, the railroads were left behind.

My company, Palo Alto Software, is not in the business of software development. It is in the business of helping people do their own business plans, by providing business know-how through software and documentation. The broader definition helps us understand what we’re up to.

Customer Satisfaction
Leading experts in developing customer satisfaction look to a mission statement to define customer satisfaction goals. Developing customer care programs depends on spreading the idea and importance within a company. That should normally start with a statement included in your mission statement.

Workplace Philosophy
Some mission statements also define internal goals such as maintaining a creative work environment and building respect for diversity. Experts in employee relations look immediately to a mission statement for a definition of a company’s stand on some of these fundamental issues.

Value-Based Marketing
Experts developed the value-based marketing framework to help companies understand their business better. This framework starts with a business value proposition, which states what benefits a business offers, to whom, and at what relative price level. For example:

• This automobile manufacturer offers reliable, safe automobiles for families at a relative price premium.
• This fast food restaurant offers quick and consistent lunches at a low price.

Keys to Success
Focusing on what I call “keys to success” is a good idea for getting a better view of the priorities in your business. Just about any business imaginable is going to depend a lot on three or four most important factors. For example, in a retail business, the classic joke is that “location, location, and location” are the keys to success. In truth, that might be, for example, location, convenient parking, and low prices. A computer store’s keys to success might be knowledgeable salespeople, major brands, and newspaper advertising.

Focus is very important, and the keys to success framework helps you develop focus. There is what I call a law of inverse focus. I can’t prove it with detailed research but I’ve seen many times that, beyond three or four key items, the more items on a priority list, the less chance of implementation. Thinking about keys to success is a great way to focus on the main elements that make your business work.

Break-even Analysis
Next comes a simple Break-even Analysis table as shown in Illustration 1.

Illustration 1: Break-even Analysis

The Break-even Analysis table calculates a break-even point based on fixed costs, variable costs per unit of sales, and revenue per unit of sales.

Make the following three simple assumptions:

• Average per-unit sales price (per-unit revenue):
  The price that you charge per unit. Take into account sales discounts and special offers. For non-unit based businesses, make the per-unit revenue $1 and enter your costs as a percent of a dollar.
• Average per-unit cost:
  The incremental cost of each unit of sale. If you are using a Units-Based Sales Forecast table (for manufacturing and mixed business types), you can project unit costs from the Sales Forecast table. If you are using the basic Sales Forecast table for retail, service and distribution businesses, use a percentage estimate. For example, a retail store running a 50% margin would have a per-unit cost of .5, and a per-unit revenue of 1.
• Monthly fixed costs:
  Technically, a break-even analysis defines fixed costs as costs that would continue even if you went broke. Instead, you may want to use your regular running fixed costs, including payroll and normal expenses. This will give you a better insight on financial realities.

Illustration 2 shows a Break-even chart. As sales increase, the profit line passes through the zero or break-even line at the break-even point.

Illustration 2: Break-even Chart

Illustration 2 shows that the company needs to sell approximately 1,200 units in order to cross the break-even line. This is a classic business chart that helps you consider your bottom-line financial realities. Can you sell enough to make your break-even volume?

Of course the break-even analysis depends on assumptions made for average per-unit revenue, average per-unit cost, and fixed costs. These are rarely exact assumptions.

Market Analysis
You don’t need to do major market research for this initial market analysis. You may want to, and even need to, do real research later on (nowadays that is almost all Internet research). For now, however, you want to get a good educated guess about how many potential customers you might have.

What you want at this point is a reality check. You’ve already developed a quick break-even analysis that ties your initial business numbers to your required sales. So now you’re going to look at how many customers you might have, so you can think about the importance of breaking even.

Develop a basic Market Analysis table. This table gives you a simple list of market segments. Illustration 3 shows a Market Analysis table.

Illustration 3: Market Analysis Table

This analysis table lets you show the estimated total customer base and your projected growth rate for each group.

Each segment is a group of customers. Define the groups according to what needs you supply, demographic characteristics, buying habits, preferences, or whatever other classification system works for your plan. Fill in the total potential customers estimated and the annual growth rate expected for each segment.

You can also use a Market Analysis chart as a visual guide to your market segments.

Illustration 4: Market Analysis Pie Chart

This simple pie chart shows the potential market as the plan starts. The different segments of the pie show the relative sizes of different target market groups.

Pause for Reflection
At this point, you’ve defined your business, your financial break-even point, and your total potential market. How does your business look from this viewpoint? Does it make sense? Can you make the sales you need to break even? Is the market big enough? Are your projections realistic? Can you bring together the keys to success?

Especially for potential start-up companies, a moment of reflection is critical. Many people dream of starting a business, but that dream turns into a nightmare if the new business isn’t successful.

Summary
If you think you can make your break-even numbers work, and you believe you have enough customers to make it, then go on to develop the plan. If not, either do more research and revise the idea, or give up and try something else.

Terry Levine took a European commonplace – the lingerie boutique – and made it a novelty in Kansas City. She opened “clair de lune” on October 1, 2004, and has so far heard nothing but accolades. “Oh, I’m so glad you’re here.” “I haven’t had so much fun buying a bra before.” “Thanks for taking so much time with me.”

The 1,000-square-foot shop boasts, “style, selection, and service.” Terry modeled clair de lune after lingerie boutiques in Italy and France. It carries mostly European lines known for their design, fit, and craftsmanship (”the lace,” exclaimed Terry, “and the foundations”). The store offers professional fittings that can run up to three-quarters of an hour, unheard of in department stores and chains. It caters to women between 30 and 65, who may not find what they like at such youth-oriented venues as Victoria’s Secret, nor the right size. Clair de lune carries sizes that run the gamut from tiny to ample, another area where many stores play shy.

It all started about five years ago, when burnout set in for this 25-year veteran of advertising. On a trip to Europe around this time, Terry noticed, “these wonderful lingerie boutiques, where the lingerie was so beautiful; of a higher quality and better design than the things you see in Kansas City.” A fancy for lingerie boutiques turned into a serious career move. It was not as if she had ever pined to run a boutique before, she said. Just that she wanted to bring the European lingerie boutique to Kansas City. Once she’d made the decision, she started to plan.

Terry augmented her marketing experience with Business Plan Pro®. She knew the lingo, she said, of business cycles and buy backs, but the numbers mystified her. A financial consultant advised her to find a business plan, and when searching the Web, Palo Alto Software’s Business Plan Pro popped up as “having everything” she wanted. She found it easy to use and not at all intimidating. For Terry, “it was the numbers part that was wonderful, helping me make educated guesses about what might happen. And then the tables were already there,” in fair copies for the loan officers. Palo Alto Software put her in a position to create and finance her dream business. She wrote a prize-winning proposal that got her a $150,000 Small Business Administration (SBA) loan.

Last summer, Terry found a great location in an outdoor lifestyle mall for the sophisticated shopper, filled largely with locally-owned businesses. While keeping her day job in business marketing until August 1st, Terry went to work on the space. Today, clair de lune has a “warm and charming” atmosphere, with Oriental rugs on the floor and fabric on the walls. It’s not at all fussy Victorian, she noted, but the emphasis on color, natural wood, and fabric creates a sense of comfort and luxury. When shopping for intimate apparel, it’s the experience as much as the item that matters. And if women find clair de lune unique, surely their partners will follow, particularly around the holidays when the store hosts Gentlemen’s Nights with drinks, hors d’oeuvres, and plenty of beautiful things to choose from.

Without a business background, Terry moved with surprising alacrity from her job in advertising and marketing to running a store. She admits her habit of reaching out to experts has worked so well it amazed her. She got “good guidance from good people,” found mentors when she needed them (when foggy about how much to order in each size, for example). She learned that if you ask, people are often willing. The vendors themselves proved helpful. “They don’t want you to have things that don’t move, so they’ll be honest with you about what to buy.”

The slow days are Terry’s biggest challenge, but because she works six, often seven days a week, she can turn the lulls to good effect by doing what she likes – interacting with customers, learning what they want. Her presence encourages people to identify her with clair de lune, too – yet another way to personalize the place.

All in all, Terry’s career shift has brought her out from behind the scenes and into the open. She loves offering a unique sense of style, variety (forty lingerie lines) and service to women in Kansas City. Her goal: to make the store a regional attraction for lingerie shoppers. Toward that end, clair de lune not only looks like a destination, it acts like one, offering opportunities like the “Great Bra Exchange” which gives shoppers a chance to recycle slightly worn bras and earn $10 toward their next purchase. As she says on the website: “It’s not just the size of your bra that matters; it’s the size of your heart.”

After only five months, it’s hard for Terry to tell how things are going. She has an optimistic outlook based on observation, facts, and good advice. She has advertised in newspapers and on the radio, but has found direct mail to be the most effective method. The store’s reputation is spreading, and customers rave. “I’m feeling very good about it. I am not meeting my sales projections, but because of the extremely positive reaction to the store, and because the average transaction is higher than I projected, I am going to keep things lean, watch the dollars, and cut where I need to, to keep the cash flow positive.”

Meanwhile, Business Plan Pro continues to serve as a benchmark to track Terry’s original goals and remind her of initiatives she intended to establish. By October 2005, Terry anticipates a healthy client base of about 1,500, with the majority repeat customers. After that, she hopes her reputation and client base will do nothing but “grow exponentially,” earning clair de lune a strong reputation with customers from around the Midwest. She would like to develop an e-commerce component, and offer enhanced services for niche markets such as maternity and mastectomy clients.

With its unique European inventory and service orientation, its looks, atmosphere, sense of style, and events, there is every reason to believe clair de lune has already found its niche in Kansas City.

To learn more about clair de lune, check out the website, http://www.clairdelunekc.com, or stop by Hawthorne Plaza, 5014 West 119 Street, Overland Park, Kansas, Monday through Saturday, 10 am to 6 pm.

The list below is meant to remind you of the tasks you may have to perform to start your business.

Not every business will have to complete each step. For instance, you may decide not to register your trademark with state or federal officials. Or, you may not be required to publish a notice of intent to do business.

Since laws vary by state and by type of business, be sure to check with local authorities to determine if there are any additional legal steps you need to take.

[ ] Choose a business based on your skills and interests.

[ ] Research the business idea:

• What will you sell?
• Is it legal?
• Who will buy it and how often?
• Are you willing to do what it takes to sell the product?
• What will it cost to produce, advertise, sell & deliver?
• With what laws will you have to comply?
• Can you make a profit?
• How long will it take to make a profit?

[ ] Write a business plan and marketing plan.

[ ] Choose a business name.

[ ] Verify right to use the name.

[ ] Reserve corporate name if you will be incorporating.

[ ] Register or reserve state or federal trademark.

[ ] Register copyrights.

[ ] Apply for patent if you will be marketing an invention.

[ ] Check zoning laws.

[ ] Choose a location for the business or make space in the house for it.

[ ] File partnership or corporate papers.

[ ] Register business name and get a business certificate.

[ ] Get any required business licenses or permits.

[ ] Order any required notices (advertisements you have to place) of your intent to do business in the community.

[ ] Have business phone or extra residential phone lines installed.

[ ] Check into business insurance needs.

[ ] Find out about health insurance if you will not have coverage under a spouse.

[ ] Apply for sales tax number.

[ ] Get tax information such as record keeping requirements, information on withholding taxes if you will have employees, information on hiring independent contractors, facts about estimating taxes, forms of organization, etc.

[ ] Call Department of Labor to determine labor laws if you have employees.

[ ] Apply for employee identification number if you will have employees.

[ ] Find out about workers’ compensation if you will have employees.

[ ] Open business bank account(s).

[ ] Have business cards and stationery printed.

[ ] Purchase equipment or supplies.

[ ] Order inventory.

[ ] Order signage.

[ ] Order fixtures.

[ ] Have sales literature prepared.

[ ] Get adequate business insurance or a business rider to a homeowner’s policy.

[ ] Send out publicity releases.

[ ] Place advertising if yours is the type of business that will benefit from paid advertising.

[ ] Call everyone you know and let them know you are in business.

[ ] Other.

Copyright © Attard Communications

Starting your own business can be a daunting task. Here are seven steps that can start you in the right direction.

Step 1: Personal evaluation.
Begin by taking stock of yourself and your situation. Why do you want to start a business? Is it money, freedom, creativity, or some other reason? What skills do you have? What industries do you know about? Would you want to provide a service or a product? What do you like to do? How much capital do you have to risk? Will it be a full-time or a part-time venture? Your answers to these types of questions will help you narrow your focus and pick a business.

Maybe you don’t know what kind of business fits your goals. If that’s the case, there are many places to get business ideas. Look through the Yellow Pages. Go to trade shows. Buy industry magazines. Check in with the Small Business Association. Read the business section of the newspaper.

Step 2: Analyze the industry.
Once you decide on a business that fits your goals and lifestyle, you need to evaluate your idea. Who will buy your product or service? Who would be your competitors? You also need to figure out at this stage how much money you will need to get started.

Step 3: Make it legal.
There are several ways to form your business—it could be a sole proprietorship, a partnership, or a corporation. Although incorporating can be expensive, it is well worth the money. A corporation becomes a separate entity that is legally responsible for the business. If something goes wrong, you cannot be held personally liable.

You also need to get the proper business licenses and permits. Depending upon the business, there may be city, county, or state regulations as well as permits and licenses to deal with. This is also the time to check into any insurance you may need for the business and to find a good accountant.

Step 4: Draft a business plan.
If you will be seeking outside financing, a business plan is a necessity. But even if you are going to finance the venture yourself, a business plan will help you figure out how much money you will need to get started, what needs to get done when, and where you are headed.

Step 5: Get financed.
Depending on the size of your venture, you may need to seek financing from an “angel” or from a venture capital firm. Most small businesses begin with private financing from credit cards, personal loans, help from the family, etc. As a rule of thumb, besides your start-up costs, you should also have at least three months’ worth of your family’s budget in the bank.

Step 6: Set up shop.
Find a location. Negotiate leases. Buy inventory. Get the phones installed. Have stationery printed. Hire staff. Set your prices. Throw a “Grand Opening” party.

Step 7: Trial and error.
It will take awhile to figure out what works and what does not. Follow your business plan, but be open and creative. Advertise! Don’t be afraid to make a mistake. And above all, have a ball—running your own business is one of the great joys in life!

Clemen Chiang was the youngest member of his MBA class at the University of Louisville, Kentucky when he began writing his business plan for Colemen International Pte Ltd, but he didn’t let his comparative youth and inexperience stop him from achieving his dreams. Colemen was launched on April 19, 2001. The company provides business and Internet solutions such as global managed services, mobile, international calls, data and Internet, hosting solutions, printing solutions, and promotions.

Clemen and his team used Business Plan Pro to write their business plan and, armed with this professional document and an impressive presentation, Colemen.com took its proposal to telecom giant StarHub. The #2 telecommunications company in Singapore, StarHub is a communications company providing a full range of information, communications and entertainment services over fixed, mobile, and Internet platforms. It operates its own nationwide broadband network that delivers multi-channel cable TV services, data services, voice services, and Internet access services. StarHub executives were so impressed with the team’s business plan that, despite Colemen.com’s start-up standing, it was awarded preferred partner status.

The most valuable benefit of Business Plan Pro Premier according to Clemen is the plan vs. actual feature. “We review our performance against our plan each quarter.” Explains Clemen, “After the first quarter there was so much variance in some areas, it was clear that some unexpectedly profitable avenues were going untapped. The plan helped us to see opportunities that we had not expected.”

The company achieved profitability within a year, and is currently mapping out forecasts for next year. “The three-year plan that we created was more than long enough.” said Clemen. “The economic climate in Asia is so fast moving that attempting to plan over five years is just not realistic. The business and technological climate is so dynamic that it is impossible to predict that far in advance.”

Clemen and his team soon proved that their company was worth the risk. In October 2002 the company was awarded with the top performance award for the highest level of revenue achieved of all other StarHub partners. The company beat out other resellers that have been working with StarHub as system integrators and product pushers for many years.

Colemen has had its share of challenges over the past year or so. As the business grows, Clemen and his colleagues have come to realize the importance of managing customer expectations. A change in senior management at StarHub almost impacted Colemen’s whole relationship with the larger telecom company. Their new contact could not see the long-term value of Colemen to StarHub’s business, and the company had to adapt their business and strategy to meet the new expectations of the StarHub manager in order to retain their position.

Currently, Clemen tells us that the company does a good job in reaching the corporate customer. They are focusing on ensuring that this foundation is solid and that customers who join them receive more value. However, the next step is to expand the relationship with these corporate customers to reach them on a consumer level, too.

“You have got to be…”
Her friends and family thought Kris Price had lost her mind when she sold her house and left a successful 23-year career with Nike, Inc. to launch her own business. But after four years of hard work and research, Business Plan Pro customer Price achieved her dream in June 2002, by opening Noah’s Arf. The business is a full-service pet care facility based in Portland, Oregon. It provides a safe, clean, and fun environment for pets, whether you leave them at the Arf, or hire the company to visit your pet at your home.

As an exhibit manager for Nike, Price spent a lot of time traveling for business, and finding a good facility at which to leave her dog was challenging. This gave her the idea. She visited dog day cares and dog washes all over the country, but she never found one that had all the services as she imagined her business would. Her first step was to create a business plan.

Getting started right
“I hadn’t written a business plan before and I am not good at writing, so I struggled with it. But I just kept at it and kept at it, and then went back and forth with the SBA and took about a year getting my numbers right. The exercise of writing my business plan totally opened my eyes – I didn’t know what was involved. Business Plan Pro asked questions that made me think about what was involved and made me do my research. There is no way I would have known all that without Business Plan Pro.”

Armed with her business plan, Price approached the SBA for a $200,000 loan. “I had to come up with $70,000 of my own contribution, so I sold my house, and gave my car to the business. I lease this place – I wish I owned it. I have put a lot of money into the building considering it’s not mine, but I had a vision of what I wanted it to look and I don’t think it would have worked if I had not put the money in. A lot of people said, ‘Don’t you think you are getting in over your head. Why don’t you try to launch one thing at a time?’ And I said, ‘That’s not the concept’. A lot of people have day cares, and kitty condos and dog washes but they don’t have all in one. There is nothing else in Oregon like this.”

Open for business
Price’s vision turned out to be one that her customer’s shared. In July 2002 the company broke even and six months after the launch has built up a regular clientele of 20 dogs whose owners drop them off at the Arf every day. The facility has a capacity of 40 day-care dogs and 26 overnight stays, as well as 9 kitty condos. The company currently has two full-time and four part-time employees, and needs one more of each. “We are growing so fast I can’t keep up with it. It’s scaring me, it really is!” says Kris.

The holidays are the Arf’s busiest time. All kitty condos and dog kennels were full for both Labor Day and Christmas, and Kris began promoting the home-care service when they realized that they had reached capacity. In-home care involves visiting the house twice per day to check on animals, and this service becomes more popular around the holidays as Noah’s and other local facilities get full.

The Arf has had to do very little advertising. Business is coming its way through word of mouth as well as some free publicity. There is a dog park close to the facility, and Price is told that her business is “the talk of the dog park”. In addition, Noah’s Arf received the Multnomah Animal Control Facility Award for 2002 and received a front page write-up in The Oregonian newspaper.

What’s next
When asked whether she will expand the current facility, Price says definitely not. “I don’t want it bigger because right now I know every dogs’ name and after I walk them at night, kiss each of them, rub them down, give them a hug, I can still be very personal with them and that’s the way I like it. If you get bigger, you lose track of all that.”

“The next stage is to hire people and get them trained so that I can get out of the kennel and think more about the business side of things. I took my first day off in over a year last week, for my 50th birthday. I went to a spa and I was a nervous wreck.” Looking ahead, Price plans to grow the business by opening similar facilities in other cities, and she has already scouted a couple of potential locations.

“I look back now and I can’t even imagine I did it. Every day is like a Saturday now. I work probably 18 hours a day. I was up at 5 this morning. I work till 10 – 11 at night, and I love it. I am working on adrenalin now, that’s all it is.” she laughs.

Noah’s Arf is open 7 days a week and charges $23 per day and $32 overnight for dog care, $12 per day and $18 overnight for cat care. You can read more about Noah’s Arf services and prices at http://www.noahsarf.com/.