{"id":9684,"date":"2015-10-15T09:05:06","date_gmt":"2015-10-15T14:05:06","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/smallbizsurvival.com\/?p=9684"},"modified":"2015-10-07T08:14:39","modified_gmt":"2015-10-07T13:14:39","slug":"small-is-not-an-excuse","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/smallbizsurvival.com\/2015\/10\/small-is-not-an-excuse.html","title":{"rendered":"Small is Not an Excuse"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Shop<\/a>

Small Business matters on more than just one day.<\/p><\/div>\n

As a small-business owner, how often have you said, in conversation, “I can’t compete with the big stores?”<\/strong><\/p>\n

How often has a customer been told you can\u2019t do something because this is just a small business?<\/p>\n

Stop it!<\/strong><\/p>\n

That sounds harsh, but your words just made you your worst competition<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Instead, offer the customer information on what you can offer: local service; setup help; great returns; more often than not, competitive pricing; and a biggie, you\u2019re part of the local community.<\/p>\n

Take advantage of being small<\/strong>. Call customers by name, carry the products they buy or ask for, and help them find what they want.<\/p>\n

But the mindset of not being able to match the big store goes deeper. I often hear that small businesses don\u2019t have the skills to do financial reports, the time to do planning, the budget for marketing or the need for technology, especially websites and a social media presence.<\/p>\n

I agree you can\u2019t do all of this at once. But it\u2019s possible to get it all done. How?<\/p>\n