Marketing Expert Offers Rules to Strengthen Business Foundation

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Mar 18, 2011, 08:20 ET

BUFFALO GROVE, Ill., March 18, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- As small businesses continue to struggle in an economy that has yet to find its footing, marketing expert Tom Ryan offers some advice on how to build a stronger business foundation. Ryan is Marketing Director for SMS, a marketing company which provides services to consulting companies serving the small to medium-size business market.

Ryan created the "10 Rules to Strengthen Your Business Foundation," which have been gleaned from more than 18 years helping entrepreneurs grow their businesses.

"During the past two decades we have experienced times of tremendous growth and painful periods of economic downturns. While the media focuses on the big economic picture, we know that the small and medium-size businesses are the ones which usually suffer the most and are the last to benefit from a growing economy," Ryan said.

"At SMS we have developed a strategy for entrepreneurs to strengthen their business foundation to survive the short term so they can grow their business in the long run," Ryan said.

Ryan suggested 10 rules for entrepreneurs.

1. Create a strategic plan for growing the business, establish benchmarks for performance and hold managers accountable for the numbers.

2. Don't wait for annual reviews to make adjustments to your business plan. Markets don't wait for annual planning reviews, nor should you.

3. Every business owner must make a personal transformation from technical expert to master strategist for the enterprise.

4. Adopt the 3 cardinal principles of business growth: Drive the numbers higher today; drive the numbers higher tomorrow; and drive the numbers higher this week. If you focus on growing your business in the short term, you won't have to worry about growth over the long run.

5. Develop a financial and operational reporting system that allows you to track all your critical numbers. If you don't measure it, you can't manage it.

6. Hold a daily management "huddle" with all department heads to go over the numbers and make adjustments to daily action plans.

7. Control your costs when growing your business by budgeting percentages rather than dollars.

8. Identify all the key people who are driving your business and create incentives for each of them to grow your business for you.

9. Throw out the old management model you started your business with and create a new one. Innovation in management systems is the key to outdistancing your competitors in the race to the top.

10. Success in business is like competing in a championship sport. Play the game the way a championship athlete plays: Play to win instead of playing not to lose. And enjoy the game!

"The key to success for entrepreneurs is to have a plan to control your own destiny rather than relying on 'hopium' -- hoping that things will get better," Ryan said. "Business owners who put these rules into practice will build a stronger foundation for their business and maximize their chance for success."

SMS will fax or email a copy of the "10 Rules to Strengthen Your Business Foundation" to any business owner. Please call Liza Vitello, 877-269-0827, for a free copy.

About SMS

Tom Ryan is Director of Marketing for SMS. SMS specializes in providing marketing services to analytical and management consulting companies serving the small to medium-size business marketplace. SMS is a leader in B2B marketing services to entrepreneurs. For more information, please visit http://www.sms-na.com