The answer to that question is: no. Not any more than the next person. They just like their business better. They took risks because they saw the goal. It was the dark side of building the company. They had to. But when it comes to savings and investment, no.

Well, actually, the most correct answer to that question is:

Identifying your target market is one of the most important factors in the success of your business. If you’re clear who your ideal client is and what problems they are dealing with, marketing to them will be much easier. You’ll know their wants, their hopes, their dreams and their desires and will be able to communicate the difference you can make for them. 

Do you really love your business? Be honest. Do you get up every morning and think ‘YESSS!!’ as you punch the air, leap from your bed and throw open the windows—filling your lungs with the fresh morning air of another business day? Or is your main priority to justify another five minutes to catch up on your sleep before you pull on yesterday’s underwear…again.

Also published by Search Engine Watch on September 2 2010

he big question for small business owners five years ago was, “Should I use Google instead of yellow pages to attract new customers?” NowGoogle is commonly used by SMBs and that question gave way to a new one: “Do I need to be using social media?“

Yes, it is true that plans are stories and stories drive plans, but that’s not stories as visions of the future and plans as managing and steering to make those visions true; we’re not talking about fairy tales. Make your planning real. Make it help your business. Make it help you control your destiny and manage better.

As I referred to on a previous post (LinkedIn? Locked Out More Like) many people join LinkedIn because they have heard it is an important place to be.

Everyone talks about being on that elusive first page of Google.

It's the pinnacle of success and companies spend thousands of dollars to try and outspend their competitors.

Social media is all the buzz in prospecting lately. You hear about it everywhere with Facebook Fan pages, tweeting, and LinkedIn profiles. You may even have an account on several different social networks. But have you given thought to how to use it to increase your prospecting results, or do you just see it as something fun to do when you have time?

Or, is it possible that you're one of the skeptics who don't believe social media can really bring you new prospects?

Let's ponder that for a moment.

There’s a lot of people talking about innovation these days, myself included.