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Do You Really Need Help?

Every successful business owner seeks professional help at some juncture in their career. Most will seek legal advice and incorporation counsel in the early stages. Some will seek advice from financial advisors, bankers, and other lenders before their business even opens its doors.

There is much wisdom to be found in those who focus on the thing that they do best, and leave the rest for those who do what they do best. Presumably, you know your business, its heart, its direction, and its potential, better than any other individual. That alone however does not make you an expert in law, in finance, in marketing, in advertising, in IT services, or in accounting.

Even if your business is part-time or you have nothing that would prevent you from dedicating 12-18 hours per day to your new business, you are not going to have the time to learn and perform all of the above listed professional services yourself.

Knowing and accepting that you will need help from professionals to make a successful go of any business is the first step in achieving your business goals. Planning and budgeting for the necessity, and not overlooking them in the beginning is the second.

Agreed that the initial investment in these services can often appear better spent on inventory or more effective as a liquid asset, it is important to consider that any thing worth doing is worth doing right, and that any money spent on an endeavor will be lost if the endeavor does not have the chance to succeed from the start.

Consider, as you read this document, that fees for services offered by the professionals in the following categories should not be considered expenses as much as they should be viewed as investments. After all, you are investing in yourself and the future of your company.

Having said this, you should carefully select those from whom you seek advice.

LEGAL SERVICES

Chances are this will be your first business. No one is an expert their first time out. You will need advice and direction from a reputable business lawyer to get your new business incorporated, to register trade-marks and copyrights, and to ensure that you are not infringing on other business owners trade-marks or copyrights. If you know business owners in the community, seek their advice on reputable law firms.

If they make a recommendation, make sure that they are fully satisfied with the service they have received from the firm. If you have a personal or family lawyer, ask their advice. Their firm may offer business services as well, though not likely with the same lawyer.

Check with your Chamber of Commerce or your Downtown Business Association if you have one. Both will gladly recommend any of their members who are highly regarded in the community.

Don’t be afraid to consult with more than one lawyer until you find the one that you are comfortable with. Most, but not all, will offer a free consultation. Keep in mind, once you have chosen a business lawyer that while they are the professional in their field, you are paying for their time and as such, they work for you. Consider their advice, but make sure both parties understand the implications of each decision.

FINANCING

All businesses, new or established, need funding. If you are fortunate to be fully capitalized with no need to borrow, you may still wish to seek financial advice on maintaining or improving your liquid assets through investment or leveraging. If you are like the majority of start-up small business owners, you will need to borrow some or all of the money you need to meet your business goals.

Something important to keep in mind while you are shopping for a financial lender is that the odds are not stacked in your favour. 33% of businesses fail within their first six months of operations, 50% will fail within their first two years and 75% of all new businesses will fail within their first three years of operation.

All potential lenders will be familiar with these statistics. Therefore, your business plan must show a reasonable potential for success, your financial forecasts must be realistic, and the lender must have confidence in you and your business management team’s ability to obtain success.

Friends, family or private backers are most likely your first option for funding. The second option is typically the major financial institutions (Banks). Failing both of these, you must turn to Business Development Lenders, Private Investment, or take your company public. All lenders will have different methods of calculating the risk, and furthermore, their tolerance of risk will vary. Of course, you can expect the interest rate to vary proportionately with the lenders tolerance.

Whether you have adequate funding already, or are seeking a business loan, you may wish to seek the advice of a financial advisor. A skilled advisor will help you determine the most effective method of managing, growing, and repaying your liquid assets. They will also be able to recommend a viable leveraging strategy that will allow you to reach maximum effectiveness and borrow less money.

MARKETING AND ADVERTISING

While marketing and advertising are two very different professional services, they are frequently co-associated or mistakenly substituted for the on another.
Marketing is truly about taking your company, its products, and its services to market. The image your company portrays and how it is represented to your potential clients directly affects their choices.

Everything from your company colours, your logo, your message or tagline, down to the font or text style and paper choice have much to say about who you are and what your client can expect from your company. An effective marketer can develop a brand that is “positioned” to achieve maximum saturation within your desired target market. The most skilled marketing firms can provide maximum retention and brand recognition while allowing for a higher residual value to every campaign.

Marketing is also about defining markets, adapting your methods to develop a specific demographic or to target a specific geographical area. It’s about creating markets and exploiting existing ones. It’s about strategy and technique.

Advertising is more about the distribution of your message. Which papers or magazines will reach your market? You have a beautiful brochure (the message has been carefully developed by an experienced marketing firm) but what is the best way to distribute it? What web sites or search engines would you benefit from purchasing ad space on? Which side of which bus and on which route would your ad be best placed on? These are all typical questions that experienced and professional ad agencies can answer for you.

Your marketing and advertising providers must work closely together if they are not one and the same. Every distributed or communicated ad must portray the consistent message and look to achieve the goals of the marketing campaign.

Ask for references, and check them. Make sure clients have been satisfied with the results. Look for repeat customers. Choose a company that is established and has been in the community for some time. This benefits their credibility as much as their efficiency. If they’ve been dealing in your community for some time, they have
a relationship with the newspapers, advertising outlets, and media sources and can often produce more effective results in less time than new marketing firms or ad agencies.

IT SERVICES

Information Technology! Today’s computerized business environment can present challenges to new business owners that they are not prepared to deal with. For some, your IT needs may never exceed the need for 1 or 2 computers and a printer. For other businesses you might need several computers networked together, or perhaps your retail store will require a POS system integrated with your accounting software.

You should assess your IT needs both at start-up and over the first 3 years of your business growth. Do you anticipate challenges for which you do not currently have the expertise to handle on your own? Will you need to develop new skills, or hire an individual to assist in the day to day technical aspect of your business? More than likely, your needs will lie somewhere in between.

Finding a reputable computer consultant can be a challenge on its own. In many cases, you may find that consultants specialize in one area but lack in another area that is equally important to you.

Your best bet is to seek out established consultants that have been serving your community for some time. Seek the advice of peers whose business model closely matches your own. Their IT providers are more apt to have experience in the areas you are likely to need.

In cases where specialized equipment is anticipated, such as POS systems, security or surveillance needs, manufacturing equipment or communication systems, check with your peers and competitors to see what brands are favorable. Check with the manufacturer or distributor of these brands to see if they offer integration or automation services with purchase. Also consider whether you and/or your staff will require special training to use your new equipment on a daily basis.

ACCOUNTING

While basic bookkeeping is commonly a task performed by the small business owner, as your company grows, and your time becomes more in demand, you may want to hire a part-time or full-time bookkeeper to manage the day to day transactions and keep the cheque book in balance.

A Chartered Accountant (CA) or Certified General Accountant (CGA) or can be a huge asset to a small growing business. They can prepare your year end reports, financial statements, and tax returns regardless of how complex your accounting system becomes. They can offer advice on how to streamline your accounting system to keep you or your bookkeeper efficient and effective.

They can advise you of potential pitfalls ahead of time and keep you abreast of changes in tax laws.

Choosing an accountant can be stressful because in a sense, you are entrusting your money to someone else. Again, look for a firm that has been in the community for some time. Ask for references and verify them. Ask your lawyer or financial advisor for a recommendation. Have a consultation with those that are recommended, and choose the one that makes you feel most confident.

We’ve identified the 6 most likely professional services you will require, and offered advice on choosing the one that’s right for you and your business. You are likely to encounter a need for additional services as your business grows that are best served by professionals or experts in that field. We recommend you apply the same principles we’ve outlined here for each professional from whom you seek advice. Establish your goals, ask for references and verify them, get recommendations from other professionals, don’t be afraid to shop around, and make sure you are comfortable with your choice.

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