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White glove service refers to high-quality care and a concentrated focus on the needs of your shoppers. The phrase “white-glove service” conjures images of Downton Abbey, scenes from Titanic, and visuals from other movies where butlers and house staff don pristine white gloves to ensure a meal or experience is exceptional. 

In the modern era, white-glove service means going above what your customers expect. It means genuinely putting them at the highest priority to meet their needs. You don’t need a large budget or substantial customer service team to offer this service—you just have to know what your customers want.  

Track (and improve) your response times.

One of the most tangible ways to provide white-glove service is to respond to customers quickly. The sooner you can address their needs, the better their experience will likely be. According to a SuperOffice survey of 1,000 companies, it takes an average of 12 hours to respond to a customer email. 

However, when 3,200 customers were asked how quickly they expect a response from brands, 88% said within 1 hour, and 30% expect a response within 15 minutes or less. Asking a customer to wait 12 hours is 11 hours too long and means you will start off your conversation with a poor experience.

Try to update your customer service policies to respond to customers quickly. This process could mean sending a confirmation email that you received a query so your customers don’t think their messages are stuck in the ether. It could mean investing in a 3rd-party customer care service so you can help customers faster. 

Your business doesn’t necessarily need to be on-call with 24/7 service, but you can set a goal for 2023 to significantly improve your call and email response times. 

Avoid canned responses.

A common mistake that brands make when setting up their customer service programs is the creation of canned responses for various situations. These pre-written scripts are meant to make training new team members easier while creating a unified tone and response front across the company. Executives never have to worry that customer care team members will say something inappropriate as long as they keep up with the script. 

However, these canned responses can infuriate customers who feel like they are speaking with a robot. Placations, canned apologies, and strict customer service processes can frustrate customers before their problem ever gets addressed, leaving them with shorter tempers and a bad experience with the company. Plus, canned responses can wear out your representatives, who can start to mumble through the same phrases each day. 

Instead, develop a customer care process focused on listening and active problem-solving. Train your team members on tone and branding, rather than asking them to read directly from a script. This will make their conversations more engaging, and they’ll create personal connections with customers, driving better results. 

This doesn’t mean you shouldn’t have some responses written down for new team members or for when your staff needs help, but try to avoid forcing your employees to always “stick to the script.” 

Balance automated prompts with human conversation.

Along with canned responses, talking with automated systems and chipper chatbots can also leave your customers frustrated and feeling neglected. Automated prompts are meant to make the customer service process easier. They sort customer problems into different categories and help teams identify certain customers. However, endlessly listening to menus and pressing different buttons can grow weary, as each answer prompts a new question and fresh menu. 

“Sometimes it’s super frustrating because you enter in a bunch of information in there, only to have to repeat it again,” Janelle Matthews, senior vice president of Solution Strategy at Genesys, tells Marketplace. “It drives me crazy. So painful and it doesn’t have to happen.”

The customer already told the system what is wrong—they don’t want to go over the issue again with a customer service person. Plus, many people will click through a menu without thinking or just say “representative” until they can speak to a real person about the issue.  

This automated process gets more complex with certain industries, including insurance firms or credit card providers. Oftentimes, customer teams will have to confirm the digitally-entered information for security purposes or will lose the information due to a computer glitch and will have to ask for it again. 

In the same way that not all canned responses are bad, there is a time and place for automated prompts in customer service. However, they need to be used in moderation, and the answers need to provide value to your customer care team.  

Look into tools to easily pull up customer order history.

When a customer needs help with an order, they don’t want to spend several minutes explaining to your team what the problem is and hunting down confirmation numbers. This process is frustrating to them and can create confusion with your team members. Instead, look into tools and apps that can highlight the customer problem before they even speak to your customer service representatives.

According to the 2017 Global State of Customer Service Survey by Microsoft, 66% of Americans expect a brand representative to know their contact information and product or service information and history. This number is slightly lower than the global average of 72% of respondents, including 77% of consumers ages 18–34. 

How can having this information help you offer white-glove service? There are several ways.

• If you get disconnected from the customer, you can call them back instead of sending them through your service system again.
• Your representatives can quickly report on the status of an order and make adjustments as needed.
• You can use their previous buying history to recommend products or offer discounts on items your customers might find valuable.

Multiple customer service apps on the market can pull up buyer history based on their email address, name, or phone number. Look into these tools if calls to your customer care team are increasing. 

Listen to customer service complaints.

If you want to improve your customer service experience, then start with your customers. Learn what they consider a weakness in your company and take steps to improve it. For example, if your customers aren’t happy with your slow response times, identify ways you can address problems faster. If your phone system is too robotic, look for ways to make it more personable. These changes will make your improvements more effective as you directly address your customer needs and deliver a white-glove service that will separate you from your competition.

Small business owners aren’t restricted to operating in the original state in which they open their businesses. It’s completely reasonable to move a business—successful or not—to a new location, regardless of the state. This reality is especially true for sole proprietors who don’t have to worry about letting employees go or gaining approval from their board before relocating. 

While it’s definitely possible to move a business to another state, it’s not always easy. Whether you’re a solo entrepreneur or run a thriving small business with several employees, you’ll need to consider the numerous repercussions that come with relocating your business out of state.

This guide will cover many of the considerations that come with moving a business to another state, including taxes, licenses, permits, banking, and other requirements. Use this information to make moving your business to a new state as seamless as possible.

Update your licenses and permits.

Like any interstate relocation, a business move requires you to cut ties with 1 state while establishing yourself in another. Failing to remember each of the different registrations or licenses you need could slow down your reopening process or create extra fees—and headaches.

Evaluate the licenses and permits related to your business in your current state and your future state. Start by canceling any permits or licenses that don’t transfer or aren’t required in your new state. 

Send official documentation that your business is closing in your current state, proving that you don’t need to renew those licenses anymore. This proof can be a simple letter or even an email to alert the permitting party—you just need something in writing. 

Alerting these organizations of your impending move is a better practice than letting your licenses expire naturally. This way, you won’t receive questions from governing bodies once your permits expire or potentially accrue fines because these organizations don’t know that you’ve moved. 

As you take steps to cancel your old permits and licenses, start working on your future requirements in your new state. Getting a jump on these—or at least familiarizing yourself with the paperwork—can mitigate any delays or roadblocks from acquiring the required operating documents.

Let the IRS know.

Believe it or not, moving states is a federal issue. The IRS includes your current address in your federal Employer Identification Number (EIN) paperwork and uses it to send you mail and to analyze the impact of small businesses in certain areas. 

There are multiple ways to tell the IRS that your address has changed. You can call them, complete a change of address form, send in a written statement, or use your new address when you file your tax return. These options give you flexibility when notifying the IRS of your business move.

Decide what to do with your LLC.

If you operate as a sole proprietor, you can pretty much pack up and leave whenever you want. You don’t need to worry about state registration and can start working in your new state whenever your licenses and permits get approved. 

However, moving becomes more complicated if you have an established business entity—even an LLC.

Your first option is to dissolve the LLC in the original state and re-establish it in the next. For this step, you will need to file Articles of Dissolution with your current state to alert governing bodies that you no longer operate there. You can find examples of these articles online, or check to see if your state has a Certificate of Termination template that you can complete. 

If you fail to let your state know you no longer operate there, you may be expected to keep paying taxes for your business even after it closes. The state doesn’t know you closed and will estimate your taxes accordingly. Some states also have fines for failing to alert them to the dissolution. 

Once you have terminated your business with your current state, you can file as a new LLC in your new state. Keep in mind that state filing fees (and annual renewal fees) change by state, so your new location could be more expensive to operate in than your previous one. 

If you don’t want to terminate your LLC, you can file a foreign qualification in your next state—or let that state know that you will be operating there while staying registered in your old state. 

The foreign qualification is often used if you plan to expand your business: for example, if you’re opening a second location in a new state while continuing to operate in the first one. This option can also be used for partnerships where a single partner is staying in-state while the other is moving.

Talk with a lawyer about your moving options to find the best option possible.  

Consult with your bank.

Along with updating your customers and local authorities, talk to your bank about the move to ensure they can accommodate you. If you operate out of a national bank, this could be as simple as changing their records with your updated address and issuing new checks after you move. However, if you opened your account through a local bank or credit union, they might not service your new area. 

Even in the modern era of digital banking, it’s important to have physical locations in the state you operate in. Otherwise, you are stuck working with your bank over the phone and will have to adjust your time zone to their operating hours. 

If you need to switch banks, consider opening an account at a nationwide chain for an easy transition. You can always switch back to a local credit union after you move, but keeping your money isolated during the moving process can prevent confusion and disruptions to your operations. 

Time your move carefully.

Not everyone has the luxury of choosing when they move—but if you can, try to schedule your transition in the new tax year. If you move your business mid-year, you will need to file your business taxes in 2 different states, complicating your taxes and slowing down the filing process. However, if you close your business at the end of the year and then reopen at the start of the next, you can keep your companies separate, tax-wise. 

Your family might also appreciate the end-of-year move, as your kids won’t have to switch schools in the middle of the semester and can start fresh at a new location in January. 

Evaluate your operating budget.

Depending on where you’re moving, you could either save money or exhaust a lot of capital through this relocation. Different states have different guidelines for running a business, and everything from your annual filing fees to employee wages may change. 

You might not know the true impact of the move on your professional finances until you get settled in your new area, but you can estimate the cost of moving out of state. Work through your expense sheet to calculate which costs are going up and where you can save money. Below are a few potentially impacted expenses.

• Payroll: Minimum wage varies by state and even by city. Hiring the same number of employees for the same jobs could cost you much more.
• State income tax: Not all states have income taxes—so you may or may not have to account for income tax, depending on your move.
• Gas and utilities: If you have a delivery-based business, you will need to adjust your budget to reflect local gas prices. The cost of electricity and water could also increase. 
• Insurance costs: Some states have higher insurance premiums than others. This is particularly true if you are moving to a high-risk area, like opening a business on the beach or in a fire-prone county. 
• Licenses and application fees: The cost of doing business could go up with more expensive annual filing costs.
• Rent and real estate: Whether you own or rent your business location, the cost can increase or decrease monthly depending on the state. This expense could be even higher if you try to move your business before your current lease agreement is complete.

These changes in operating costs could force you to adjust your prices to maintain profitability. By estimating your extra costs beforehand, you can set your costs from the get-go rather than raising them after a few months in operation.  

Check local hiring laws.

If you are planning to hire employees in your new state, familiarize yourself with local hiring and firing guidelines. Along with minimum wage, see how prevalent unions are in your area—especially if you don’t currently live in a union-heavy state. 

You may need to follow specific hiring practices, report new hires to your state, and change your termination policies to follow local laws. 

You may want to consult an employment attorney before moving or see if there are any state-provided resources to improve the hiring process. Knowing these changes ahead of time can prevent unwanted fines or even lawsuits because you didn’t know the new rules when you moved.  

Prepare to move professionally and personally.

Once you have all of your documents, permits, and taxes in order, you can focus on moving your business in the same way you move homes. Decide which assets and equipment you want to move across state lines and which items you would rather sell off and buy fresh later. 

Update your business cards, email signatures, and other letterheads to reflect the move. Inform your existing customers that you’re closing and launch a marketing campaign in your new area. 

Deciding to move your company across state lines may seem overwhelming and daunting, but if you take the necessary steps and plan accordingly, you can effectively move your business from one state to the next.

As soon as you know that you’re moving, begin the transition process to ensure that every aspect of your licensing, permits, and other paperwork is covered.

Essentially, every business must be concerned with patents, copyrights, and trademarks. These are all types of asset protections, even though the assets might be intangible. Your business assets might include equipment, real estate, or cash reserves tucked away in a bank account, but you probably also own something else: intellectual property.

Intellectual property refers to things like inventions or designs for an invention, manuscripts, books, creative licenses, or logos. Patents, copyrights, and trademarks protect different types of intellectual property businesses can own. Understanding how each protection works will help you secure your intellectual property, which might be the most valuable asset your business possesses.

What is the difference between copyright and trademark? What is a patent? Copyrights, trademarks, and patents differ in what kind of intellectual property they each protect.

Copyright vs Trademark vs Patent

The United States government’s laws surrounding intellectual property can be hard to understand if you aren’t a lawyer. Each type of intellectual property involves different laws and requirements, so there are some basic concepts to understand before going forward with your patent, copyright, or trademark.  

A copyright protects original works, such as art, literature, or other created work.

A trademark protects names, short slogans, or logos.

A patent protects new inventions, processes, and compositions of matter (such as medicines). Importantly, ideas cannot be patented—your invention must be embodied in a process, machine, or object.

Trademark vs Copyright

The simplest way to understand the difference between a copyright and trademark is size.

A copyright is for entire works, like books, songs, software code, or photographs. Trademarks are for logos, phrases, or designs that identify your brand or business.

What’s a Patent?

A patent is a special license issued by the US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) that gives you the exclusive right to make, use, or sell an invention for a set period of time.

Patents aren’t all the same; there are 3 kinds to choose from based on your situation.  

Utility

These patents are good for 20 years and are used to protect machines, manufactured items, processes, methods, and compositions of matter.

Provisional

This is a short-term patent with a 12-month term that covers the same things as utility patents and allows you to fast-track market testing of your product or idea.

Design

Design patents have a 14-year term and cover the artistic or ornamental design elements of an item you manufacture for commercial use.

Remember, if your patent expires, that opens up the field for anyone else to copy and sell your invention. You’ll need to pay regular maintenance fees to keep your patent active. Once it expires, it can only be renewed by an act of Congress.

Copyrights Help Creatives

If your business involves creating original works, such as books, articles, songs, photographs, or artwork, a copyright legally identifies them as belonging to you.

But what exactly does a copyright protect against? Essentially, they’re a legal way to keep someone else from copying work you’ve created.

They don’t protect your ideas, however. If you develop an app based on an original concept, for example, and someone else has the same idea, there’s nothing to stop them from producing their own iteration of it.

Copyrights can be registered with the US Copyright Office. Once you register a copyright, it’s good for the rest of your life, plus an additional 70 years.

Trademarks Protect Brand Identity

A trademark is a word, phrase, design, or symbol that identifies and distinguishes your business’s products and/or services from another. Unlike patents, trademarks don’t expire and don’t have to be registered.

But registering a trademark with the USPTO gives you some advantages since it’s a public statement of your ownership claim to a particular mark. Once your trademark is registered, no one else can use it. If they do, you could sue them for trademark infringement.

Before registering a trademark, it’s a good idea to make sure no one else has laid claim to it. You can search for trademarks already in use here.

Can I Trademark a Phrase?

You can trademark a phrase, but many rules impact this process. You cannot trademark a phrase that is part of everyday speech common in business. The phrase must be distinctive, i.e. not generic or merely descriptive, especially in terms of your line of business. You cannot trademark a phrase just because you like it—you must show that you intend to use the phrase to sell goods or services.  

What Words Cannot be Trademarked?

Generally, trademarks are weak based on how generic and descriptive they are. If you own a bicycle rental store, you cannot trademark the word “bike.” You might be able to trademark a descriptive word if it isn’t directly connected to your business—Apple, the computer company, trademarked “apple,” but an apple orchard would not fare well with the USPTO with a similar application.

Furthermore, a trademark only protects you against competitors in the same line of business. The apple orchard mentioned above would probably not have to worry about a trademark lawsuit from Apple.

You cannot trademark vulgar, disparaging, immoral, deceptive, or scandalous words, as determined by the USPTO. Additionally, you cannot trademark proper names or likenesses without the permission of the person, and you cannot trademark anything involving US presidents or the U.S. government.

How Long Does a Trademark Last?

In the US, a trademark essentially lasts forever. If you register your trademark with the USPTO, you have to renew your registration every 10 years. If you let your registration lapse, your trademark is still protected under common law, but USPTO registration provides you with the highest standard of intellectual property protection.

Is It Better to Copyright or Trademark a Logo?

In most cases, you probably want to trademark a logo if you plan to use it connected to the sale of goods or services. If you think you would use your logo in some other way, like if you consider it a work of art in itself, you could apply for a copyright. 

Your storefront says a lot about your business. When choosing real estate or new construction for your next office or store, you’ll want to know more than just location and layout. More and more, small business owners plan on renting or purchasing historic buildings—generally designated by a specific town or state—which requires considering a few extra elements.

The National Historic Preservation Act (1966) designated more than 90,000 spaces across the United States as “historic,” whether in art, architecture, engineering, or culture. This list includes everything from famous landmarks like the Washington Monument to civic buildings like the White House and iconic structures like the Empire State Building.

While the historic buildings you’re likely to encounter as a small business owner may not be as flashy, they matter to the fabric of the town—whether it’s an old general store, important hotel, or colonial home. 

Why Choose an Old Building?

But that push for “more” isn’t exactly environmentally friendly. The EPA reports that construction generated 600 million tons of debris in the United States in 2018, including steel, wood products, drywall and plaster, brick and clay tile, asphalt shingles, concrete, and asphalt concrete.

Not only is it more sustainable to use what’s already available, the adage that “they don’t make them like that anymore” rings true with modern construction. “Whereas a century ago, it was reasonable to expect new buildings to span multiple generations, today, disposable architecture is the new normal,” said urban designer Jenny Bevan in a 2015 Tedx Talk. “We are squandering one of the few opportunities we have to connect generations and provide the community a sense of connection.”

Root Your Business in a Place

Starbucks began as a tiny outpost in Seattle’s (historic!) Pike Place Market. Since then, they’ve expanded to street corners everywhere. But in recent years, they’ve put a focus on historic buildings as sites for new stores rather than building something new, matching the facade and interior decor to the place. Starbucks opened in an art nouveau building in Damrak, Netherlands, in one of the oldest buildings on Michigan Avenue in Chicago, and in an elegant historic building in Milan, Italy, in the last few years.

“We have spent the past year living and breathing the city of Milan, working closely with dozens of local artisans to bring to life our most beautiful retail experience that engages each one of our customers’ senses—sight, sound, touch, smell, and of course, taste,” said Liz Muller, Starbucks’ chief design officer, in a press release when the store opened. “From the palladiana flooring that was chiseled by hand to the bright green clackerboard made by Italian craftsman Solari, everything you see in the Roastery is intentional, offering moments of discovery and transparency.”

Historic buildings offer small business owners the chance to be a part of something bigger. “American cities are filled with hearty and proud structures from the 19th and early 20th centuries, handsome buildings of brick and iron, timber and stone,” writes SCAD President Paula Wallace for Entrepreneur. “The great revolution in heritage conservation and adaptive reuse has only just begun.”

How to Approach Your Historic Building

• Preservation maintains and repairs an existing property
• Rehabilitation retains the property’s original character but adds or adapts it to modern times (for example, adding wheelchair-accessible ramps)
• Restoration brings a historic building back to a specific time period in its history
• Reconstruction attempts to recreate what the building would have looked like, particularly in damaged or removed areas

No matter where you are in the US, you’ll need to dig through several layers for any permitting process. First, check whether a building is federally-funded, which would mean the Advisory Council of Historic Preservation would need to weigh in on your proposed plan. 

Then, check state guidelines on the National Park Service website, as each one differs. In Massachusetts, home to almost 200 historic landmarks, from Thoreau’s Walden Pond to Plymouth Rock, you’ll need to go through the Massachusetts Historical Commission. 

Finally, contact the local historical society. While there may not be specific ordinances to comply with, if you choose to restore or reconstruct, they may be of assistance in finding older photographs of the exterior and determining period-appropriate building materials.

Sometimes Innovation Means Going Backward

As you look to use historic buildings in your business, consider the broader community implications.“Being an effective preservationist means understanding that our efforts to save buildings are woven into a complex tapestry of other important social needs, including—but not limited to—affordable housing, economic and social equity, economic development, and climate change,” writes Patrice Frey of the National Main Street Center for Bloomberg’s CityLab. “Let’s consider new opportunities for impact, confront uncomfortable truths about where we may be falling short, and be vigilant in our efforts to find and embrace creative new tools for preservation.”

The establishment of a minimum wage first occurred in 1938 with the passing of the Fair Labor Standards Act. This act ensured that employees should be paid a minimum amount for the labor they perform and was passed to prevent employers from paying their workers next to nothing for long hours in often dangerous working conditions. 

While the minimum wage has been in effect for more than 80 years, it has recently become a controversial political issue. Some argue that it should be raised to keep workers out of poverty while others assert that it needs to remain the same—or be revoked entirely. Learn more about the minimum wage and whether it actually is a living wage.

Was minimum wage ever meant to be a living wage?

From the beginning, the minimum wage was meant to be a living wage—meaning families could live off of the pay comfortably, rather than struggling paycheck-to-paycheck. 

President Franklin Delano Roosevelt was a major proponent of the living wage, saying that “by living wages, I mean more than a bare subsistence level. I mean the wages of a decent living." With this idea, a family that earned minimum wage could not only cover the costs of food and shelter but also save for emergencies and have the funds to thrive rather than just get by.

Since the enactment of the federal minimum wage, the pay rate has increased 22 times by 12 different presidents. However, it hasn’t been raised since July 2009, when it was increased to $7.25 per hour.

Arguably, the current minimum wage is not a living wage but a poverty wage. A full-time employee who works 40 hours per week for 52 weeks per year would earn just $15,080. Meanwhile, the Census Bureau places the poverty line for 1 person under the age of 65 at $13,465. 

If that full-time employee has a single dependent, like a child, then the poverty line is $17,839. A US family cannot live under the wages of 1 person—or even 2 people—who only earn the minimum wage.  

While states can set their own minimum wage and increase them based on the state’s cost of living and other policies, most simply accept the $7.25 federal level as the bare minimum.   

Can the minimum wage keep up with the cost of living?

The main reason minimum wage workers fall below the poverty line: their income isn’t keeping up with the cost of living. For example, the median price to rent an unfurnished apartment in 2009 was $1,064 per month. In 2018, due to inflation, the cost was $1,588. 

This means that rent alone would cost a minimum wage earner $12,768 in 2009, and someone who made the minimum wage of $7.25 per hour in 2018 would have to pay $6,288 more than their 2009 counterpart ($19,056). 

Furthermore, rent isn’t the only expense that increased in the past decade—car prices, healthcare, education, food, gas, and other expenses have all increased while wages have remained stagnant. Each year, a full-time minimum wage earner has less and less buying power and a harder time caring for themselves and their families as a result. 

The minimum wage vs. cost of living tension grows even stronger in urban areas where the cost of living tends to be much higher. In San Francisco, many waiters can’t afford the cost of living, so they either commute in and out of the city—difficult when you’re working a late shift—or sleep in their cars overnight. Even with California’s minimum wage set at $12 per hour, it is nearly impossible to get by in most of the city’s downtown neighborhoods. 

Is $15 an hour a livable wage?

At present, $15 is considered the new level for a minimum wage. That amount would cover the costs of a modern living wage in most areas and give families considerably more buying power than they currently have. There are several secondary and tertiary benefits to enacting a $15 minimum wage, as explained by the New York Times. Studies have shown that:

• Low-skilled workers report fewer unmet medical needs in states with higher minimum wages. 
• Rates of smoking decrease in communities where the minimum wage rises as residents work their way out of poverty and have the time and mental health to quit. 
• Raising the minimum wage by even $1 would decrease child-neglect reports by 10%.
• Increasing the minimum wage can reduce the number of homes that have their water and lights shut off while simultaneously allowing families to keep food in the pantry so kids and older relatives can eat. 

These benefits not only help the workers who are directly affected—they can also ease the financial burden of federal, state, and local governments to cover welfare and healthcare programs like SNAP, low-income housing assistance, and Medicaid. 

Lessening the need for poverty-driven assistance can free up funds for other programs or infrastructures. It can also lead to lower taxes in communities, increasing residents’ spending power.

Does a higher minimum wage increase prices?

A primary argument against raising the minimum wage is that raising wage costs will increase operating costs for businesses, causing business owners to raise their prices and pass that burden onto customers. 

This could create a snowball effect: the government raises the minimum wage again, only for businesses to raise prices again, and so on. Opponents of raising the minimum wage also argue that employers will hire fewer workers and turn to automation to avoid hiring people entirely. 

However, preliminary studies show that all of these claims might not be as dramatic as they seem. Over a 5-year analysis of McDonald’s locations, many of which opted to pay above the minimum wage to better retain workers, a 10% minimum-wage increase led to only a 1.4% increase in the price of Big Macs but did not affect the sales of Big Macs in any way. 

Yes, the cost of paying workers was passed onto customers—but no one was forced to buy a $15 burger. 

There are benefits for employers who offer a living wage. 

Paying employees a minimum living wage of at least $15 may seem expensive, but there are long-term benefits for your business and the community. You’re more likely to retain workers who are paid well, and those employees can then shop at local businesses—giving your neighbors and customers more money to buy from you. Your workers also pay taxes that benefit your area. 

Consider your state’s minimum wage and if your team members could benefit from a raise.

To have a business, you’ve got to have paying customers. But every small business owner knows that attracting new customers takes effort. Customer engagement doesn’t happen magically—it has to be encouraged. So what are some of the ways you can find new clients and get them to engage to help grow your small business?

1. Plan Your Marketing Strategy

You need a marketing strategy and budget. Everything else you do to gain a new client or create customer engagement ultimately falls under “marketing.”

To create your marketing budget, decide:

• How much should you spend on marketing?
• What should you spend those dollars on?

According to the US Small Business Association (SBA), the answer to “how much” depends on a variety of factors:

• What’s your industry?
• Are you a business-to-consumer or business-to-business company?
• Do you sell products or services?
• What’s the growth stage of your company?

Roughly speaking, the SBA suggests allocating 7–8% of revenue to a marketing budget (for an established business with $5 million or less in revenue with a 10–12% profit margin). That budget would be used for both brand development (e.g., your logo, website, business cards) and brand promotion (e.g., advertising, events).

Now that you know how much you have to spend on marketing, let’s explore ways to get potential clients to bite your shiny sales hook.

2. Advertise

Advertising seems like an obvious solution to get new customers or repeat business. The tough question is where you should advertise—in print or digital media? Digital advertising tends to cost less than other forms of advertising, but that doesn’t mean it’s always the correct choice.

Print or radio advertising works if your target market fits any of these criteria:

• Doesn’t have access to high-speed internet
• Regularly consumes a channel (e.g., reads a specific newspaper or listens to a type of radio station)
• Is concentrated in one geographic location (e.g., wants local information)

Digital advertising fits if any of these describe your target market:

• Has a specific demographic (e.g., 30–35 male homeowner living in Seattle)
• Is widely-scattered or remote
• Responds to interactive or flashy ads

Most likely, you’ll incorporate a mix of print and digital advertising. At a minimum, you’ll use some print advertising to create brand awareness, even if that is buying pens and magnets with your logo on them. But given that some of your target market uses the internet, you’ll spend some of your budget promoting social media posts or buying digital ads. And that mix will shift regularly based on factors like the needs of your current marketing campaign, social distancing rules, and what your customer behavior metrics tell you.

3. Expand Your Target Market

Perhaps you’ve been in business for a while and your market personas haven’t been updated recently. Take a step back and think outside your current target market. Would a market research project help you find new clients?

If you are a business-to-business company, are there other industries (such as the nonprofit industry) that could benefit from your product or service? If you are a business-to-consumer company, could a new distribution channel or targeting a different demographic net you more clients?

4. Spend Time Networking

Never underestimate good old-fashioned networking as a method for gaining new customers. This includes both opportunistic networking and active networking.

Opportunistic networking means taking advantage of those small, unplanned moments to connect. When you are introduced to a friend’s neighbor, mention your business and see if there are any opportunities. Or while getting your haircut, eavesdrop on the conversation in the next chair to discover new people to pull into your circle.

Active networking means seeking to connect with people or businesses. Small business associations can be a goldmine for finding new contacts. There are associations for all kinds of interests—from industry-specific associations to groups focused on businesses owned by veterans, women, or other niche groups. And nowadays, you don’t even have to leave the comfort of your couch—networking groups have gone virtual.

But whether in-person or virtual, you still have to allocate time for networking, including following-up. Plan for the long-haul as it’s unlikely that every meet-and-greet will garner an instant client.

Treat networking like dating. Don’t make the initial conversation all about you. Instead, find common ground, and then set a real date to get to know each other better. Figure out what you can do for the other person. Can you connect them with potential customers? Suggest a mentor? Recommend a business plumber? Eventually, the relationship may evolve into one that lands you a new customer.

5. Become a Thought Leader

A thought leader is “…someone who, based on their expertise and perspective in an industry, offers unique guidance, inspires innovation and influences others.” It’s not a one-and-done task and isn’t a sales strategy—it falls under the concept of building brand awareness. To become a thought leader, consistently create content—write white papers and blog posts, speak at conferences, share industry research—until you are perceived as an expert in your company’s industry.

Gigi Griffis became a thought leader for location-independent freelancers by routinely sharing her actual monthly budget numbers for living in specific locations abroad. She posts about her experiences in a location without pitching her services. But by consistently publishing content, she has positioned herself as an expert in the field of digital nomads while also generating brand awareness of her writing services.

6. Collaborate With Other Businesses

How about using the power of togetherness to attract new clients?

Think about how you first discovered your favorite food truck. Maybe you saw them at a stoplight and decided to look them up. But more likely, the truck was parked somewhere you already frequented, like at your favorite brewery. That type of collaboration is a win-win. Cross-promotion occurs as both the brewery and the food truck advertise each other on their event calendars and social media posts.

Another collaboration example exists between 2 North Carolina companies—Blue Ridge Biscuit Company and Dynamite Roasting. The biscuit cafe serves coffee brewed from the local roaster’s coffee beans and also sells bags of those beans at checkout. These 2 businesses have cross-pollinated their customer bases and succeeded in encouraging customers to support local businesses.

7. Sponsor Other Organizations

A sponsorship strategy can buy you goodwill and brand awareness. Sponsorship comes in many forms—time, talent, and treasure. Your employees could staff the T-shirt distribution table at a local race. Your business’s logistics experience could help a food bank optimize its pick-up route for food donations. Your company could help purchase a softball team’s jerseys or donate your product as a prize in a silent auction “goodie basket.”

Imagine how that donation could translate into a paying client. Other volunteers, attendees, or staff may need your product or service. Your business, via your sponsorship strategy, is now a familiar and trusted source. Or you could parlay your free service or product into paid business with the organization you sponsored as their needs change.

8. Hold a Contest

Contest marketing is exactly what it sounds like. A business holds a contest to give away something—a product, a service, or an experience. In exchange for a contest entry, hopeful participants share their contact information—and also reshare the company post or tag a friend in the comments of the contest announcement.

Reshares tend to make non-customers think highly of a company if a trusted source (Mom, a best friend, an influencer) shared the contest promotion with them. Additionally, people who win tend to give back by buying more items or encouraging others to buy from your business.

9. Host an Event

Hosting an event, in-person or virtually, is another way to attract new clients. Events can be anything from a full-blown conference to a training class to a social gathering.

For example, a winery may host an onsite party to celebrate a customer’s retirement. An art studio could lead a “paint by numbers” class as the in-party entertainment. Party-goers are now part of the potential client base for both businesses.

Virtual events, on the rise before the pandemic and now the new normal, expand your potential audience beyond your geographic location. While they aren’t necessarily less work to put on than in-person events, well-organized virtual events can be cheaper to host than in-person events and can help you build your event organization skills. Thinking about hosting training courses? Start with a free 30-minute limited-attendee “Tips and Tricks” webinar to try out your course material while building your potential client list.

10. Let Others Do the Work For You

We’ve all heard the phrase, “There is no I in team.” Why not let your satisfied customers be part of your team via a referral or affiliate program?

Referral and affiliate programs share a similar goal of getting others to bring you new customers but they operate differently. A referral program usually is a “share with your friends” program where your existing customers get a discount code if their friends make a purchase. An  affiliate programrequires you to have an e-commerce store. People or businesses (hopefully your own happy customers who can vouch for you) recommend your product or service with a unique link that earns them a small commission.

Like any marketing strategy, you’ll have to take some steps to set up your referral or affiliate program. These steps include implementing technology to handle the program, writing the rules for discount codes and commissions, and then marketing the program so folks view it as a viable source of passive income.

11. Create a Customer Loyalty Program

What does a customer loyalty program have to do with finding new customers? Well, it’s easier to keep a customer than it is to gain a new one, and happy customers tend to recommend you to others. And a loyalty program can nudge that one-and-done customer into the repeat business category.

For example, a recently widowed 88-year old senior needed her air-conditioning unit serviced, so she called the company her best friend suggested. The repair person recognized that the woman has no experience with the need for yearly maintenance checks for both the a/c and the heating unit. He explained preventive service to her and then offered her a small discount as a loyal customer if she booked her pre-winter heater checkup with his company. Based on the recommendation from a friend and the loyalty program, the widower has become a repeat customer for that business.

Keep in mind that creating and managing a customer loyalty program means more than creating a punch card to give a free cup of coffee after the purchase of 10 cups. It involves understanding what makes your customers loyal, designing the right customer loyalty program for your business, and then measuring the effectiveness of your program.

12. Leverage Social Media

Social media for small businesses can create customer leads and give your existing customers a chance to engage with you. View it as a place to build an emotional connection with your potential customers—don’t approach it as digital advertising.

Of the gazillion channels out there, which platform is the correct choice for your business? The stock answer—the one you are willing to use. In other words, while you should use the channel where your target market hangs out, you also have to choose a platform you are willing to use consistently. If you hate editing photos, then Instagram probably isn’t the social media platform for your business (unless you delegate photo-editing to a freelancer).

Forget trying to go viral or securing millions of followers. Instead, focus on building a connection with followers relevant to your business. Share stories and include some of “you” in your posts so people want to be connected to your business. Maybe that means a backstory about using your great-aunt’s recipe for a certain dessert or how your product helped a member of the community survive an illness.

Private Facebook groups enable you to build a steadfast group of champions for your business. It also gives you a place to ask questions about what your followers actually need or want from your industry. Members of your group may not be instantaneous customers but evolve over time into some of your most loyal customers. Take, for example, Amanda Kendle’s private Facebook group, “Thoughtful Travellers.” The Facebook group isn’t used to sell anything, but it builds a community of like-minded people who are more apt to listen to sales pitches from Amanda’s website or public Facebook page.

Another option to increase brand awareness and engagement is a watch party like those on Facebook. We’ve all heard that videos capture attention more than still images or words. Take that product release video or 1-hour how-to-guide you already posted and schedule a watch party. Encourage your followers to invite their friends to the watch party. During the watch party, people watch the video together and comment in real-time. Not only have you repurposed content, but you’ve also garnered new customer leads based on who attended the event. With the right call-to-action during the party, you might even get on-the-spot new customers from the event.

Reddit can be used to promote your business as a thought leader or to discover what problems your potential clients need help solving. Neil Patel, a leading digital marketer, offers tips on navigating the Reddit culture to subtly market your product while solving users’ problems or asking for advice on your marketing problems. You could even follow industry-related subreddits to brainstorm content to include on your own website.

13. Embrace Digital Tools

Digital tools, whether you love them or hate them, are key to securing new customers. 

Customers expect a “real” business to have a professional-looking and easy to navigate website. Following best practices on the website, such as placing your call-to-action in the right spot, can increase customer engagement and online sales.  

And how many times have you asked Google for an “Italian restaurant near me”? Make it easy for local customers to find you by optimizing your website SEO and correctly setting up your local online presence, including Google My Business and Yelp Business pages. These help your business appear in “nearby” searches and also give customers a place to review your business.

Digital tools also allow small businesses to pivot and adapt as needed to shifts in consumer spending. For example, The Spice House used its online store to capture more sales in April and May when customers shifted to cooking at home due to COVID-19 restrictions. Some museums, like the MET, have figured out how to monetize their virtual tours. Even traditionally offline industries like healthcare and memorial services have survived the socially-distanced culture we currently face by embracing digital.

Attracting new customers takes time and money, but every successful business must dedicate itself to the task. While it may not be effortless, using the above tips can help you gain new clients to help grow your business.

Starting a business can be exciting–and downright exhilarating–but it can also be exasperating. And while entrepreneurship can be challenging for anyone, it is particularly challenging for business owners of color, and the pandemic has only exacerbated these issues.

For example, a report from the University of California at Santa Cruz reveals that 41% of Black-owned businesses closed their doors by the middle of April 2020, compared to 32% of Latinx-owned businesses, 26% of Asian-owned businesses, and 17% of white-owned businesses.

So what accounts for these disparities? We talked to several POC business owners to discover some of the challenges they face.

Funding

“POC are more likely to be denied a business loan or a business line of credit due to racial discrimination or because their credit score is not as high as it should be, but how can you build credit if no one will give it to you?”  

Her view is shared by Nerissa Zhang, CEO of The Bright App, which helps studio owners and fitness instructors to manage their businesses on a smartphone. “A major challenge that POC business owners face is getting funding,” Zhang says. “Between 2009 and 2017, nearly half a trillion dollars of venture capital was raised, but just 0.0006% of that was raised by Black women, despite the fact that we’re the most educated demographic group in the United States.” (She’s referring to data from the National Center for Education Statistics, which reveals that Black women earned 67% of associate degrees and 64% of bachelor degrees, which is a higher percentage than any other group.) 

One person who has firsthand experience with limited funding for minority entrepreneurs is Angelique Hamilton, founder and CEO of the HR Chique Group, which provides HR consulting, and operational planning and review services. “Bootstrapping is the main finance option for POC businesses because the level of banking and financial support to POC businesses is dismal.” 

The most recent example is the Paycheck Protection Program designed to help businesses struggling to stay afloat during the pandemic. A survey by Color of Change and UnidosUS reveals that 51% of Black and Latinx small business owners that requested assistance sought amounts less than $20,000. Still, only 12% received assistance. 

Another challenge POC business owners face is a lack of knowledge regarding the funding process. “I, like many POC, had to overcome a significant learning curve around funding, financial savvy, and business development,” says Magdy Kotb, founder of The Clothing Coach, a custom clothing line. “The public education system, primarily in lower-income neighborhoods like the ones I grew up in, has failed us.” 

Kotb says he went to traditional banks and was turned down—even by one he banked with for over a decade. “My initial funding came from a nonprofit that supports immigrants and POC. This educated me on CDFIs (Community Development Financial Institutions) and other community resources.”  

The Ripple Effects of a Lack of Funding

The challenges of accessing capital mean that POC businesses will struggle to compete with their non-POC counterparts. “And this can ultimately affect their ability to scale their businesses and attract larger contracts and deals,” says Tiffany Williams, CEO and principal consultant of Organized Energy Coaching and Consulting.

The inability to access capital can also manifest in other ways. “It can affect the ability to tap into strategic software, tools, programming, and services that would aid in operating more efficiently, effectively, and strategically,” Williams explains. “Without these things in place, the client experience may suffer slightly as well.” 

POC business owners are also more likely to work alone—usually due to a lack of funding—and this can lead to a variety of problems. “It has been reported that 95% of Black small business owners are solopreneurs,” says Williams. (Recall that the PPP was designed to help small business owners continue to pay their employees during the pandemic; however, most POC businesses don’t have enough funds to hire employees.)

Williams conducted her own survey to find out how POC entrepreneurs were faring. “Many who responded to my recent survey shared that they often feel overwhelmed in their businesses due to the lack of staff/team,” she says. “Because they wear several different hats within the business, they suffer anxiety, frustration, and burnout.” 

A Lack of Respect

Williams says she also sees people making assumptions based on skin color. “Many times, before they are given opportunities in a fair and equitable manner, their character, competency, and level of performance/quality are questioned and doubted,” she says. “POC business owners are sometimes slighted opportunities for work simply because some misinformed people equate Black business with poor quality, poor service, being unqualified, and so forth—and of course, these assumptions are simply not true.”

Business owners of all colors can provide excellent, good, fair, or poor service. But our sources found that poor service seems to be an expectation for them, and Black businesses aren’t given the same benefit of the doubt as non-POC businesses. “I’m sure there have been cases in which a POC business was a scam or the customer service was terrible, but it should not be a black eye for POC business owners across the board,” Patton says. In essence, she’s asking for POC businesses to be judged by the same standard as non-POC businesses. 

And a lack of respect can come from all sides. “Another challenge I’ve faced as a POC business owner is everyone from investors to clients to employees not respecting me as a leader,” says Zhang. In fact, she says that she’s fired employees who weren’t comfortable having a boss who was a woman of color.  

A Lack of Support

However, another challenge is a lack of support from those closest to these entrepreneurs. “You have people who want the ‘friends and family discount,’ which makes it harder to make money on a regular basis,” says Patton. This is something that LaVan routinely sees. “Black business owners are frequently asked for discounts from their close friends who wouldn't dare ask the same thing of another business owner from a different culture offering the same service.” 

He says this lack of support also takes the shape of people willing to debate costs. “When we price our service or products to where we think it should be, people sometimes don't believe it's worth the number we value it at.” 

A Failure to Protect Intellectual Property

A Lack of Confidence

Studying POC pioneers like Madam CJ Walker can provide insight and inspiration for this generation of entrepreneurs.

You’ve probably heard jokes about the reliability of Ford vehicles. There are lots of reverse acronyms floating around out there, such as “Fix Or Repair Daily,” “Fast Only Rolling Downhill,” “Fails On Race Day,” or “Found On Road Dead.”

But do people really think Ford cars are inferior? Some of the most popular cars on earth have rolled out of Ford factories, so there don’t seem to be any wide-scale issues. Perhaps the derisive jokes originate from jealous folks working over at Chevy or Hyundai.

The Ford Motor Company never would’ve existed if it hadn’t been for Henry Ford’s penchant for tinkering with machines. His first gas-powered vehicle was called the Quadricycle, which he created in an old shed jam-packed with gears, tubes, and other gizmos.

Five years after establishing the Ford Motor Company, Mr. Ford was ready to release his Model T on the market. Reaching that point required ingenuity and zeal. Using 1908’s top technology, Ford managed to invent the first moving assembly line. The company’s innovations meant that it only took about 45 minutes to complete each Model T, with a new car rolling off the line every minute or so. Ultimately, they produced over 15 million of these “Tin Lizzies.”

“The Model T was actually affordable, and it became so popular at one point that a majority of Americans owned one, directly helping rural Americans become more connected with the rest of the country and leading to the numbered highway system,” says History.com. “The manufacturing needs of the Model T went hand-in-hand with Ford’s revolutionary modernization of the manufacturing process.”

While Ford doesn’t dominate the market like it once did, it still sells millions of cars each year. And the brilliance of Henry Ford continues to play a role in the company’s methods and products.

Even if you prefer Honda, Toyota, Subaru, Tesla, or some other manufacturer to Ford, it’s hard to deny the brilliance of its founder. Let’s look at some of Henry Ford’s business advice to see what it can offer modern entrepreneurs.

"Education is preeminently a matter of quality, not amount."

This quote teaches us that it doesn’t matter what’s in your past. What matters is that you have a great idea and the expertise to bring it to life.

"The short successes that can be gained in a brief time and without difficulty are not worth much."

No entrepreneur sets out to create a flash-in-the-pan company—we all want to build businesses that become legacies. So don’t shy away from challenges and failure, as they’re both part of the long game.

"Nothing can be made except by makers, nothing can be managed except by managers. Money cannot make anything and money cannot manage anything."

Henry Ford was a creator of the first order. He understood that all the money and resources in the world can’t produce exceptional results—only the right person can. Your goal should be to be that type of person.

"Most people think that faith means believing something; more often it means trying something, giving it a chance to prove itself."

The best small businesses are founded on risks. If the outcome of each of your decisions was always a guaranteed success, all your competitors would be making the exact same decisions, and it’d be impossible to stand out. Don’t be afraid to come up with new ideas that deserve the chance to prove themselves.

"Be ready to revise any system, scrap any method, abandon any theory, if the success of the job requires it."

There will inevitably be times when you pursue a bold idea and it fails to deliver. Such is the nature of innovation. Just make sure to move on when it’s time, rather than clinging to your precious idea and compounding the negative impacts.

"Many people are busy trying to find better ways of doing things that should not have to be done at all. There is no progress in merely finding a better way to do a useless thing."

The life of a business owner often feels like a crash course in multitasking, not unlike the amazing plate-spinning acrobats seen in this video. By focusing your efforts where they’ll have the most impact, you can usually save time and secure a better ROI.

"Businesses that grow by development and improvement do not die."

As the old saying goes, you’re either green and growing or you’re ripe and rotting. In order to keep your business healthy, you’ll need a mindset of improvement.

By applying the wise words of Henry Ford, you can put yourself on the path of innovation and progress. It’s no coincidence that the forward-thinking Ford installed assembly lines in his factories that literally never stopped moving. Your business probably won’t ever feature an assembly line, but it can certainly benefit from the idea of constantly marching toward greatness.

(Featured Image: Unknown author, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons)