tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1391459843364109343.post6351130173008344886..comments2024-01-08T04:25:00.059-08:00Comments on CommonCensus: Small Business Ownership And Black WomenNuWire Investorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02512928198926080436noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1391459843364109343.post-44088907364644191432008-03-14T16:12:00.000-07:002008-03-14T16:12:00.000-07:00Traci,Thanks for sharing your perspective and expe...Traci,<BR/><BR/>Thanks for sharing your perspective and experiences! <BR/><BR/>According to the Center for Women's Business Research, 81 percent of women whose businesses generate $1 million of revenue or more belong to formal business organizations, associations or networks. Of those women whose businesses earn less than $1 million of revenue, only 61 percent are members of such organizations. I think that shows that seeking out advice and knowledge from mentors and experts, as you recommend, can indeed go a long way in helping women become successful business owners. <BR/><BR/>For more facts about women-owned businesses, check out this link: <BR/><BR/>http://www.nfwbo.org/facts/index.phpTrista Winniehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14382617732016247867noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1391459843364109343.post-28869686711413908162008-03-13T13:06:00.000-07:002008-03-13T13:06:00.000-07:00As a black woman small business owner (I am an att...As a black woman small business owner (I am an attorney with my own law practice), I can attest to the struggle we face in driving topline revenue in order to increase the bottom line. One struggle we don't have is with expense management. Much like in our personal lives historically, we have always been able to "stretch a dollar" and "make do"...in other words we are great at "fake it till you make it". However, as a mentor once told me, as a business owner, you can't "save" your way into prosperity. At some point, you have to increase revenues. The issue of how to increase revenues is a complex one, but starts with improving customer/client service. I think that there is a perception that black-owned businesses in general have poor customer service skills. I don't think that's true, but we have to eliminate that issue altogether by being better at it than others. Second, we need to expand our networks beyond our friends and family. It is imperative that we connect with others in order to increase referrals to our business. Our friends and family are great support when launching our businesses, but we can't depend on them to sustain them. Reaching the "critical mass" of customers/clients is important and we need a wider support network through which to do so; otherwise, we're left spending precious dollars on marketing efforts that oftentimes work, but with too high of an acquisition cost relative to the revenue generated by the client. Finally, we have got to be prepared to accept that just because we have technical expertise in a field, or a flair for fashion, that does not make us instantly ready to be CEOs. We should seek out mentors and competent professionals (CPAs, bookkeepers, etc.) to help us run our businesses and make sure compliance issues are properly addressed and our financial records are in order.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com