We have heard a great deal about small businesses of late. It's been said they are the engine that will power our economy out of the recession. They will be the catalyst for employment growth, and future lending to small business will be the basis of any economic recovery. And while I agree that small businesses will be the impetus for change within our economy, it often seems that our leaders do not fully understand the pace at which small businesses move and how quickly they make decisions. Small businesses are not led by burdensome management or boards of directors who have fiduciary responsibilities to their companies' stock holders and as a result must weigh many factors in order to make a decision. Small businesses are agile, make both quick but thoughtful, rational business decisions, but also tend to react to the immediate needs and requests of their clients, customers, employees, and suppliers.

For small businesses to truly be the agent of a stronger economy, our leaders, our bankers, and our suppliers must recognize that small businesses make much faster decisions and can change direction quickly. Small businesses cannot afford to wait for months of legislative debate to take place before laws are created or fiscal policy is changed. They need ready access to capital, and once obtained will make business decisions that benefit their customers, their employees, and the economy.

The Speed of Small is FAST. Decisions and actions take place every day within small businesses that affect all their constituencies. It is only when those decisions and actions are delayed by outside forces that small businesses are hampered from moving forward. Delayed laws, withheld capital, slow access to products and services keep small businesses from starting the economic engine that they should be.

Having worked with small businesses for almost 25 years, it's exciting to see how they react, how they make decisions, and how they strive to move forward. Small business will lead our recovery and set the direction for our economy and country. Again, the Speed of Small is FAST.

You're In Sales No Matter What Your Title

by Debra J. Schmidt - used with permission

If I ask you right now whether or not you are in sales, chances are you would say, "No, I'm in accounts payable or customer service or marketing." You might even say, "I'm the CEO."

No matter what your job is, you are in sales. Every time you interact with a customer, you are selling your professional credibility, the company's products or services, and the company's image. So, even if you don't work in the sales department, read on.

When a customer has a bad experience in shipping, in accounting, in technical support or any other department in your company, you can bet that negative word-of-mouth will follow. That word of mouth reduces sales in the same way that customer testimonials increase referrals and sales. You are selling all the time, so it's important for you to recognize what your customers want from you.

Regardless of who your customers are, there are 5 key actions they want from you:

1. To have you spend more time listening than talking
Who do you find more interesting to talk with; the person who rattles on and on sharing their wealth of knowledge, or the person who asks you about yourself and then listens to your response? Your customers do not call in order to be impressed. They call because they have a need or a problem and believe your company can offer the solution. But before they decide to do business with your company, they are going to decide if they like you and can trust you. Asking your customers intelligent questions and, then, actively listening to their responses is the best way to build trust and get at the heart of what your customer really needs.

2. To have things explained in a way they can understand
So often, people sell confusion rather than solutions to customers. In today's high tech world, many products and services on the market are quite complex. I don't know about you, but I'm technically challenged. So when I contact technical support to get help with my computers or phone system or software, I want to talk to support reps who can clearly communicate the solutions. Your customers don't want to be insulted by listening to jargon and acronyms that are meaningless to anyone who doesn't work in that industry. They also don't want to deal with a condescending employee who sounds exasperated because they're not catching on.

3. To deal with nice people It's like a breath of fresh air when your customer is greeted by a friendly voice answering the telephone or a smile as he or she walks through the door
Remember that your customers are most likely bumping into negativity everywhere they go. They deal with traffic jams, long lines in stores, frustrations at work, stress at home and more. When they pick up the phone to call your company, they want to talk to a "nice" person. They need to believe that you are someone who genuinely cares about their concerns. They want you to sound warm and friendly. They want you to treat them like an old friend.

4. To have their time valued . . . not wasted
Your customers are juggling their schedules to make time to contact your company. If they feel their time has been wasted, they are far less likely to return. Classic time-wasters are placing customers on hold, transferring their calls to other departments, not getting their requests right the first time and not dealing with knowledgeable employees who are empowered to make decisions. Take a look at how you're handling your customers' calls and identify the situations that waste a customer's time and eliminate those.

5. To be offered solutions
Your customers wouldn't call if they didn't need what your company has to offer. Once they get through, they want to know that you have the resources and the willingness to do everything you can to deliver what they need. This will often mean that you need to go the extra mile to explore a variety of solutions for them. Or, you will need to help them build a relationship with a co-worker who has more expertise than you in a given situation. In other words, don't cut your customers short with responses like, "I don't know," or "We don't do that in this department." Instead, commit yourself to being a possibility thinker for your customers.

You are impacting your company's sales, every time you talk with a customer. Your goal should be to want your customer to leave with a strong positive feeling about you and the company. You can help your customers feel comfortable with the decision to buy by reinforcing their decision. Show enthusiasm for your products or services and sincerely thank your customers for choosing your company. Above all, communicate to your customers that everyone in the company is part of one big team whose goal it is to make them happy.

Debra J. Schmidt is known as the Loyalty Leader®. She is an author, consultant, trainer and professional speaker who helps companies boost profits by leading the way to greater customer and employee loyalty. Subscribe to her free online newsletter at: www.LoyaltyLeader.com.

by Rieva Lesonsky
reprinted with permission from the Microsoft Small Business Center

Q: I know from past experience that bosses sometimes favor some employees over others based on personal reasons. Now that I'm a business owner, how can I be sure I'm treating my employees fairly and not showing favoritism?

A: You're right to be concerned about this; it's a common employee complaint about bosses. Since it's human nature to like some people more than others (and bosses are people, too) you have to constantly monitor your actions and deeds to make sure you're not favoring some employees over others. But being fair doesn't mean everyone on staff gets treated exactly the same. All too often when business owners try to dole out equal treatment, no one benefits.

This is not as contradictory as it sounds.
Of course you cannot discriminate when it comes to salaries and "hard" benefits (medical, vacation, personal and sick days, etc.). But you do have some flexibility when it comes to the "softer" benefits-and here's where you can tailor your offerings based on the needs of your individual employees.

Let me tell you about a situation I faced several years back. I heard one of my single staffers thought I favored the mothers on the staff since they were allowed to build their schedules around their kids' schedules. Instead of letting the situation fester, I asked the employee to come into my office to discuss the situation. She (after a bit of coaxing and several assurances I wouldn't get mad) said she thought it was unfair that the moms got so much flexibility in their schedules. I pointed out that I gave her a flex schedule when she wanted to take some classes (non work-related). And it was as if the proverbial light bulb went off in her head. She realized that she had been treated exactly the same as the moms, just under different circumstances.

As this shows, sometimes it's not actual favoritism that's causing the problem but the perception of it.

As the boss, it is your responsibility to know how your employees feel and nip any problems before blossom. You also need to find out what matters to your employees. While flex time may work for some, others might appreciate a comp day or even tickets to a ball game. It's not important what you do, but that you do something for everyone.

All that said, many bosses actually do like some of their employees more than others. The key is not to show it or you can easily end up with a morale problem. I talked to my sister, the HR guru, who added that in some cases favoritism could be considered a type of discrimination and can lead to legal troubles. She also recommends you have policy and procedures guidelines concerning raises, promotions and perks and make sure you adhere to them.

The key is awareness. You need to know what your employees need and/or want and if it's possible for you to offer solutions.

More important you can't sit in your office and wait for the you-know-what to hit the fan. I'm a big fan of managing by walking around. That way you're more apt to learn if perceived favoritism is causing a morale problem and your staff will feel more comfortable talking to you about their concerns.