I was having lunch the other day with an old friend discussing the consulting that I do. He asked me how I come up with prices to quote potential clients, specifically when the work is being done on a project basis, not hourly. After explaining my system to him, I realized that other people likely [...]
To anyone who thinks that I am referring to something they said or did, be aware that the incident triggering this article did not, in fact, involve me in any way. A story was told to me in which some of the topics in this article were brought up, and I therefore decided to write [...]
A while back, I wrote an article about Managing Accounts Receivable, focusing on management from the perspective of growth of a business. In today’s article, I’m going to discuss collections and getting paid for the work you’ve done. In order to give yourself the best possible chance of being able to collect, you need to [...]
Several months ago, I wrote an article The Customer is Always Right… Sometimes in which I discussed many of the reasons a business should be listening and obeying its customers, even when it seems to go contrary to what the business stands for. However, there are times when not only is it inappropriate to listen [...]
If you are developing a new product or service, you’ve probably wondered a bit about this topic (and if not, you should have). How do you protect your ideas, especially from the people who work with or for you? Before I go any further, I must point out that I am not a lawyer, and [...]
This week’s feature article is about a great business resource that I use time and time again – SCORE. The basic description of SCORE comes from their site: SCORE, the “Counselors of America’s Small Business Owners”, is a national association dedicated to helping small business owners form and grow their businesses. Unfortunately, their own description [...]
In any endeavor, it is of critical importance that you be able to communicate clearly, and that you exercise that ability as often as needed.
Elie Kochman is the author of Advice for Small Business Owners and the founder of Optimal Upgrade Consulting. Using his experience working in the corporate world along with his exposure to the world of small businesses, he writes these articles to assist others avoiding common pitfalls of growing a business. His experience in the corporate world, building his own business, and working directly with other growing businesses has given him some perspective on the trials and pains of running a business.
