The Main Street Post

POTTSTOWN PA – Seats remain available for budding entrepreneurs, interested in learning practical, real-life information on how to start and operate a business, during workshops over four consecutive weeks that begin Monday (April 22, 2013) from 7-9:30 p.m. by the Pottstown chapter of SCORE at its office, 244 High St., Suite 102.

• These events have been added to The Post calendar.

“How to Start and Operate a Small Business” is intended for those who are considering starting a business, as well as those who are currently operating a small business. All courses are taught by local and experienced members of SCORE, an affiliate of the federal Small Business Administration, and by outside practitioners recognized as experts in their specific fields.

Workshop sessions include:

• Sources of Information and Legal, Tax and Accounting Considerations in setting up a business, April 22;
• The Business Plan and the Business Loan, April 29;
• Sources of Market Information, Marketing, May 6; and
• It’s All About Profit, May 13.

Instructors for the series are Scott Cass, owner, eScott Marketing LLC; Don Havas, president of Applied Technology and Sciences Inc; Jeff Kofsky, president of Higher Vision Coaching and Counseling; Laurie Kercher, vice president and commercial relationships manager of the Victory Bank, Wyomissing office; David Megay, attorney with O’Donnell, Weiss & Mattei; Scott Rakowski, CPA, of Rakowski and Company; Ralph Clemmer, chairman of the board of Evans-Hauseman & Richard Inc.; and Carolyn Wiker, head of Adult Services at the Pottstown Regional Public Library.

Registration begins at 6:45 p.m., and all classes start promptly at 7. Each session costs $25. A manual on preparing a business plan is available for $20. A special price of $100 is offered for the 4 classes as a package, and includes the manual. Each additional person attending from the same company also qualifies for a 50-percent discount. Free parking is available in the lot behind the building.

Customers of Limerick PA-based Victory Bank, which is a workshop sponsor, can apply for a free workshop scholarship by contacting the bank.

Past workshops have been successful and well-attended; advance reservations are suggested. For more information or to register, call the Pottstown SCORE office at 610-327-2673.

Photo from Google Images

POTTSTOWN PA – After a fast start, small businesses sometimes seem to lose momentum.  What happens to them and, more importantly, what can business owners do about it?

Business counselors with the Pottstown chapter of SCORE, report that – given the interconnected nature of today’s economy, even largely local businesses are influenced by trends and events in other industries and on other continents. A slow-down here might simply reflect a slow-down nationally.

A business owner’s internal approach to generating and managing growth also could be the source of dragging sales, even in the face of what appeared to be bright opportunities. The detailed business plan an owner followed since the outset may no longer be applicable in a marketplace where changes happen on a daily basis, SCORE members caution.

A growth plan that acts like an internal compass can be a helpful tool for getting things back on track.

• Start with day-to-day actions. Owners who want business to grow should make growth the focal point of everything they do.

• Gather financial details about what’s happening internally. Put a plan in writing. It does not need to be lengthy and ultra-detailed; just basic points will do. How has the business done in fulfilling its original mission? Did it start with a bang, only to see things flatten out? Is it delivering what was first promised to your customers. Fix any problems or shortfalls quickly.

• Keeping up with marketplace changes is crucial. New research may be needed to stay up-to-date. This doesn’t have to be formal. Start with a simple customer survey, or check for available research online. Make adjustments as needed.

• Communicate the growth vision to others involved with the business, including outside vendors and contractors as well as partners, investors and employees. Don’t just dream; delegate specific actions to reach those goals.

• Find out what objections customers raise to your sales effort. Why they have purchased, or declined, your product or service? Adjust your sales process to place greater emphasis on closing.

• Find valuable guidance for growth planning in two books: “Strategic Planning for Small Business Made Easy,” the latest in the “Made Easy” series from Entrepreneur Press; and “The 7 Irrefutable Rules of Small Business Growth,” by Steven S. Little. Both are available in bookstores and online.

Other ideas for growing businesses are available from the Pottstown chapter of SCORE, 244 High St., Suite 102, which is a unit of the national non-profit organization that offers free, confidential business counseling and training workshops to small business owners. Call the chapter for more information at 610-327-2673.

Photo from Google Images

POTTSTOWN PA – The idea of a partnership may appeal to those considering the launch of a small business, according to the Pottstown chapter of SCORE, the Service Corps of Retired Executives. Unlike solo ventures, where the burdens fall on a single person, partners can share responsibilities and often bring different skills and knowledge to the business.

Partnerships have many potential downsides as well, it warns.

One partner may be great with numbers and planning, while the other is a whiz at marketing and sales. Combining these elements can open more doors and help a business realize more opportunities more quickly than it could with only one person involved.

However, partners in conflict can waste time and money, erode focus and strategic direction, cause emotional and financial pain and destroy businesses and reputations. Business schools rarely teach successful partnering techniques. Without proper preparation, partnerships are often doomed,, says George Gage, a business mediator and partnership expert with BMC Associates in Washington DC.

Gage, who wrote “The Partnership Charter: How to Start Out Right with Your New Business Partnership (or fix The One You’re In),” lists seven cautions that would-be and existing partners should consider:

1. If you think you are not “partner material,” don’t take the partner path.
2. Use extreme caution when selecting a partner.
3. If you don’t really need a partner, don’t get one.
4. If it doesn’t feel good before you start, follow your gut and don’t do it.
5. Don’t be fooled into thinking that legal agreements and documents will keep you out of trouble with one another.
6. If you currently have a partner, and it does not feel like a positive working relationship, don’t just ignore it. Try to fix things.
7. If there are unanswered questions or vague boundaries and responsibilities with current partners, address these issues while you are still getting along.

Another valuable resource for prospective partnerships is Nolo.com, a provider of legal information for consumers and small businesses.  Nolo’s Web site has free information about partnerships, including tips for crafting fair, reasonable partnership agreements.

To learn more about partnership issues, call the Pottstown SCORE chapter at 610-327-2673. SCORE is a national non-profit organization of more than 10,500 volunteer business counselors who provide free, confidential business counseling and training workshops to small business owners.

Photo from Google Images

POTTSTOWN PA – Outsourcing is a common practice in today’s business world, but it’s not solely the domain of large companies, according to members of the Pottstown chapter of SCORE, the Service Corps of Retired Executives. Small business owners use outsourcing to handle work overflows, receive specific expertise in a new or unfamiliar area, or handle routine administrative tasks that take up too much of their time and attention.

The decision to outsource certain functions requires a professional approach, particularly because small business owners may be understandably leery about relinquishing control over a task they have handled from the outset.

Developing a successful long-term relationship with an outsourcing partner requires effort on both sides. It’s important to treat it like a partnership, because that’s what it really is. A vendor who supplies a vital service for a business is like part of its staff, so owners should go through a similar interviewing and reference checking process before you “hire” them.

Using outside service providers who have experience working with particular type of businesses is important. Owners will want someone with the technology and expertise to deliver cutting-edge services.

Be sure to ask detailed questions about the service being sought, and the access to someone who can answer questions and solve problems as they arise. For most small business owners, this kind of accessibility and service are top priorities. If the firm under consideration won’t be available when something goes wrong, look elsewhere.

Also ask candidate firms for current and past clients who received services of a scope similar to what you’re looking for. If possible, ask for references to similar clients to properly gauge how well the company understands specific needs.  Always meet with a service provider’s leadership, as well as the people who will be working directly. Eliminate any doubts about their ability to handle what may be critical tasks for your business.

A “go-to” resource for help is the Outsourcing Institute, the world’s largest professional community dedicated solely to outsourcing. It provides information about outsourcing trends, articles on securing IT and business processing services, and tips for ensuring an outsourcing partner delivers a desired level of performance.

To learn more about successful local outsourcing, call the Pottstown chapter of SCORE at 610-327-2673. SCORE is a national nonprofit organization of more than 10,500 volunteer business counselors who provide free, confidential business counseling and training workshops to small business owners.

Photo from Google Images

POTTSTOWN PA – Hurricane Sandy may have left greater Pottstown area property owners with building damages, but members of the Building Industries Exchange (BIE) of Pottstown and Vicinity Inc., 801 N. Charlotte St., warn those damages could become worse if improperly handled.

The BIE office on North Charlotte Street

The BIE, which is a chapter of the National Association of the Remodeling Industry, reports that con artists often show up at a property owner’s door after a storm like Tuesday’s (Oct. 30, 2012) blows through. They may offer a “great deal” for their services, based on using materials left from a neighbor’s job, but they also may demand a hefty down-payment up front.

That’s when homeowners should remember a “great deal” isn’t always as great as it seems, according to BIE Director of Operations Eileen Gilbert.

Fly-by-night operators frequently drive vehicles with out-of-state license plates, or set up temporary offices from which they can move quickly once authorities start looking for them.  Before writing a check, and especially before allowing an unknown individual into your property, BIE suggests owners should:

• Get the name and address of the company that person allegedly represents;
• Get all details of an offer in writing and carefully review it. Understand everything in the contract, and ensure it includes any verbal promises made;
• Determine how long the company has been in business, and call organizations with which the contractor is affiliated to determine its legitimacy;
• Ask for references and contact each one; and
• Don’t fall prey to high-pressure tactics, such as “this is the only chance you have” or “by tomorrow the extra materials will be gone.”

The BIE is a non-profit trade association serving the construction industry and their allied businesses since 1952. Its members voluntarily subscribe to a strict code of ethics.

Photo from the BIE

by Burt Stein, Business Editor
for The Post Publications

POTTSTOWN PA – Montgomery County Community College’s Career Center has received a bronze level certification from Out for Work’s Career Center Certification Program, for developing and implementing career resources designed for lesbian, gay, bi-sexual, transgender, and questioning (LGBTQ) students.

Out for Work is a non-profit organization that offers programs, services and other assistance to LGBTQ students, as well as staff training and webinars.

“There are laws protecting students with disabilities, minorities, and women, but in many places, there are no laws protecting the rights of LGBTQ students,” said Kate Shirey, Perkins Career Coach at the MCCC West Campus in Pottstown. “These resources provide tools and information for students as they leave college and enter the work world.”

“Students in the LGBTQ community face a unique set of challenges during the job search process.  For many, it becomes vital to decide if and how they want to come out during the job search. That decision affects how the student will market his or her skills and experience via the resume, interviews and while networking,” Shirey said. “There are also resources available identifying workplaces with accepting environments.”

MCCC students and alumni can access these career resources, here.  For more information, call 610-718-1800 (for the Pottstown campus) or 215-641-6300 (for the Blue Bell campus).

Photo from Google Images

BIDDING THEM WELCOME – Representatives of the TriCounty Area Chamber of Commerce recently joined representatives of two area businesses to welcome them to their respective communities and ceremonially open their doors to the public with ribbon-cuttings. Outside the newly refurbished Steel River Playhouse, 245 High St., Pottstown PA (above), Deborah Stimson-Snow handled the scissors while, from left, Terese Brittingham, Reed Lindley, Rob Curtis-Brown, Lisa Waltz, Marta Kiesling, Bill Kiesling, and Steve Reazor watched. In Birdsboro PA (below), at All About Family Counseling LLC, 119 N. Furnace St., those assembled for the event were, from left, Adele Klein, Janet Flack, Tim Forester, Mario Di Nenna, Sandy Pierce, Betsy Chapman, and Peggy Brendlinger. Both ceremonies were reported Tuesday (July 17) in the chamber’s weekly newsletter.

POTTSTOWN PA – A “Paws For Pets” fund-raising event conducted during the Memorial Day weekend by Weis Markets in its stores in Pottstown, Boyertown, East Greenville, Oley and elsewhere across five states collected $191,000 to benefit 94 local animal shelters and rescue organizations, the company said Tuesday (June 19, 2012). The amount was nearly double the sum raised during 2011, it added.

Pets did well be Weis’

“This year, we added a number of donation options,” Weis Director of Public Relations Dennis Curtin said. “Many of our associates worked hard to increase overall awareness of our program. We are grateful for their efforts, and we are also grateful to our customers for their generosity at a time when animal rescue agencies are seeing record demand.”

Customers this year were offered an opportunity to make donations by purchasing vouchers for $1, $3 or $5, or Paws for Pets bracelets for $1. All donations within stores were given to local shelters, Curtin reported. Weis shoppers also donated dog, cat, puppy and kitten food, cat litter, collars, harnesses and leashes, toys and treats, pet shampoos, nail clippers, pet brushes, combs, food and water bowls, dish washing liquid, bleach, new mops and brooms, towels and washcloths and powder-free latex gloves.

Photo from Google Images