Business Brain – The Entrepreneurs’ Podcast

Welcome to episode 76 of the Small Business Show! This week, Dave is back from Europe and shares some time saving strategies that are good for travel as well as in your daily business. We then get an update from Shannon about his social media business experiment (spoiler alert: it’s working!) and we spend a few minutes sharing Scott from DC’s experience with community banks and why he feels they are a good fit for cash businesses. Want to share a story, ask a question or offer a critique? You can text or leave us a voicemail at 401-472-4249. We wrap up the show with a question from Sharon L. who wants to know how and where to source products to sell. It’s a tricky question, Sharon, but we hope we at least got you started on the right path to finding sources for a product that might work for you. Listen in for these stories and more! The post Community Banks, Social Media Small Business and Finding Suppliers – SBS 76 appeared first on Business Brain - The Entrepreneurs' Podcast.

On this week’s episode of the Small Business Show, one of our hosts is starting a new business. But, there’s a twist! They have vowed to do things completely different than they have in the past by focusing solely on social media for promotion and to sell their products only using apps on their phone. Listen in and then stay tuned to find out if this experiment will be a profitable one, or just a learning experience! We also dive into a Small Business Study that surveyed thousands of Small Businesses to learn about the surprising demographics of most small business owners. Hint: it’s not what you think it is! Show links from our discussion include: Poshmark Small Business Owner Study Free worldwide Boingo Wireless for SPG Amex cardholders! eBay mobile selling app. The post Starting a new Small Business using Social Media – SBS 75 appeared first on Business Brain - The Entrepreneurs' Podcast.

It’s time for a Rant! Specifically, Small Business Show co-host Shannon Jean has had it with a new bank that does a poor job of managing customer expectations. After Dave calms Shannon down, we dig deeper into ways to manage your customers expectations so you can be a hero to your clients as well as your employees. The discussion leads us into the dreaded Terms and Conditions document and how to not rely on it too much when trying to make your customers happy. We wrap up the show with a crucial question to ask your employees that can make their jobs much better. Listen in! Then, share your story by visiting our Facebook page or texting us at 401-472-4249.   The post Managing Customer Expectations for your Small Business – SBS 74 appeared first on Business Brain - The Entrepreneurs' Podcast.

How often are you getting patted on the back as a Small Business owner? Not enough, we know. On episode 73 of the Small Business Show, Dave and Shannon discuss developing a “Success List” that you can refer to when things get tough (because they always do), to remind yourself of just how awesome you actually are. By measuring your success in small steps, you’ll achieve larger victories that much faster. We also spend a few minutes talking our recent Vaya Island interview from our previous show, how to stop yourself from being paralyzed by the “what-ifs” and much more! Join us and then come share your Small Business success story via email or text at 401-472-4249. The post Remind Yourself of your Successes – Small Business Show 73 appeared first on Business Brain - The Entrepreneurs' Podcast.

Live Easy with John Moran of Vaya Island What’s your small business story? Do you promote your geographic location as a strength? Do you promote your authenticity? How do you find the influencers to help you grow your Instagram presence? Join us for episode 72 of the Small Business Show to find the answers to these questions and more! John Moran from Vaya Island joins us this week for the Small Business Show to discuss how he has created a successful business and a huge social media following in a very short time. John shares how he grew his “Ambassador” program to over 5000 strong by sharing product and discounts with loyal fans on Instagram where he has over 23,000 followers that love Vaya Island products and the Vaya message of leading a positive and stress free lifestyle. Vaya Island’s story is an inspiring one that all of us can learn from. Listen in and let us know your thoughts with a quick text or voicemail to 401-472-4249! The post Authenticity and Small Business Success with John Moran from Vaya Island – SBS 72 appeared first on Business Brain - The Entrepreneurs' Podcast.

What technology products and services does your Small Business need to succeed? Computers, phones, software and more – essential tools for starting and running your business.  Join Dave and Shannon on episode 71 of the Small Business Show to learn more! For the first time, both of your hosts are on the West Coast, recording the Small Business Show together! We leave Skype behind for this show and jump right into a discussion about what technology we use to run our various businesses. We start the show with a discussion about computers, then jump right into which type of phone system you’ll need, what type of credit card processing is the best choice, which software will make your life easier and much more. Products and Services mentioned on the show: Cloud based phone systems: Phone.com, RingCentral, Grasshopper Accounting Apps: FreshBooks, QuickBooks, AccountEdge Payment Processing: Paypal, Square, Stripe ShipWorks, ShipStation Customer Support: HelpScout, ZenDesk Database Awesomeness : Filemaker Pro We only got through about half of our show notes, so look forward to Part 2 of Tech and your Small Business coming soon! The post Small Business Technology – Hardware and Software For your Small Business – SBS 71 appeared first on Business Brain - The Entrepreneurs' Podcast.

This is NOT how to handle change in your Small Business! Welcome to Episode 70 of the Small Business Show! This week we do a quick follow up on Facebook advertising with comments from Dave about ads for the Gig Gab podcast and their interview with Jan Hammer. You’ll hear about some inexpensive ways to get started with Facebook ads and how to keep tweaking your ads as you start to see results. We then jump into this week’s primary topic: Change and how to make it work for you. Shannon spends some time discussing how, as an entrepreneur and business owner, you may love change, but what about the people around you? Your employees, and even your family. How does change impact them and how do you go about getting everyone onboard when you know a change needs to be made? Changing quickly can be a critical part of success for your small business. Join us this week on the Small Business Show for tips and tricks that have helped your co-hosts succeed over the last 20-years with their businesses. Mentioned on this episode of the Small Business Show: The Real Story of New Coke (as Coca-Cola tells it, anyway) Henry Ford’s interview tactic with Salt. (even if not true, is interesting) Shannon has a favorite quote that he (nor Google) knows who said “When you want to compliment, look out the window, when you want to criticize, look in the mirror” – Do YOU know who said it? Want to reach us? Comment here, email, twitter, facebook or text us at 401-472-4249! The post The Impact of Change on You and Your Small Business – SBS 70 appeared first on Business Brain - The Entrepreneurs' Podcast.

Join us this week for episode 69 of the Small Business Show! Dave and Shannon talk about Dave’s new business venture and then they jump right into part 2 of their series of tips about managing the tricky relationship that your business has with the IRS. Things like the importance of putting a human element into the relationship, getting advice BEFORE you need advice and more insight into how to turn a potential problem into just one more challenge that you will power through. If you do have the pleasure of going through an IRS audit, Shannon spends some time discussing how the IRS will also be auditing YOU in addition to your business. Every contact you have will be either a positive opportunity or a reason for the IRS to delve deeper into your business. You’ll want to be sure your lifestyle matches your tax returns. Listen in for more details. Finally, we talk about the all-important Payroll Tax and how to not go astray when managing those funds and we wrap the show up with tips on deciding if your independent contractors are actually employees and the importance of managing the sales tax you collect in your state. Want to chime in and share your experience? Send us a text or leave us a voicemail at 401-472-4249. We would love to hear from you! The post Part 2 of the Small Business IRS Show – SBS 69 appeared first on Business Brain - The Entrepreneurs' Podcast.

This week on the Small Business Show, we start off by revisiting the concept of not setting financial goals for your business, but rather, developing systems that you can continually achieve success with and adjust for mistakes over time. Dave and Shannon have been using this concept for years, but it took Scott Adams book, How to Fail at Almost Everything and Still Win Big to lay it out in detail. Scott’s book is a must read. Longtime listener Dan T. sent in a question which led us into the main topic of the show, How to interact with the IRS. Dan’s question: Hey guys – I have a question for you. I’ve started getting some letters from the IRS about my businesses tax filings from a couple of years ago. I think I know the answer to most of the questions they have, but I’m kind of freaking out that this may lead to an audit or something. I don’t have anything to hide, but having never been through this type of thing before, any tips for dealing with the IRS? Thanks so much for contacting us for help, Dan! It’s no surprise that we do have some tips on how to interact with the IRS that may help with your situation. We dive into a lot of details, but the two main points we want to make this week are: First, humanize your relationship with the IRS. Pickup the phone and make contact with who sent the letter, or call your local IRS office for help. Be up front, honest and transparent and chances are, you’ll find someone at the IRS that will take a vested interest in helping your situation. Treating that person with respect and connecting with them personally can make a tremendous difference in how things go for you. It’s also important not to forget that YOU are a customer of the IRS! That’s right, part of their job is to please you, believe it or not. IRS employees are trained to treat you well and to offer council to help solve problems to everyone’s benefit. Now, this doesn’t mean they have the power to relieve you of paying money if you owe it, but they can (and should) make the process as painless as possible. If you are not getting the type of treatment you expect, Shannon has some tips on getting someone else to take over your case. The IRS and your business are such huge topics that, of course, we ran out of time to cover everything we wanted to. Look for a 2nd installment of the The IRS Show soon!   The post The IRS Show – How you and your business should interact with the IRS – SBS 68 appeared first on Business Brain - The Entrepreneurs' Podcast.

Do you compartmentalize your business? How do you keep things in perspective when solving problems? We discuss the importance of AMF (always moving forward!) when tackling problems with your small business as well as setting up triggers to help keep you accountable. We then move into a discussion of the new Federal Overtime rules that hike the hourly threshold from $23,660 to $47,476. How will this impact your managers and supervisors that are salaried? Will you adjust pay rates to cover additional overtime payments? Dave and Shannon do their best to be objective and discuss both sides of this new rule. In this episode, you can also find out how to get yourself one of the coveted Small Business Show T-shirts shown below. It’s simple, we promise! And we wrap up the show with some tips on Facebook advertising that you won’t want to miss with information about targeting your audience, getting help and finding out about local Facebook events near you. Listen in, learn and join in the discussion! We would love to hear from you via our voicemail and text line at 401-472-4249 or on our Facebook page. Show links: New Federal overtime rules – article in the NY Post Facebook business advertising info What works best on Facebook? Boosted posts, promoted posts or newsfeed ads? Good article on the CBO blog. Finding local Facebook events to learn about promoting your business on the site.   The post Salaried vs Hourly Employees, Facebook ads and more! – SBS 67 appeared first on Business Brain - The Entrepreneurs' Podcast.