Author Archives: mikesimmons305
The Gaping Hole in Capital Funding
Along with countless other entrepreneurs out there it has been nearly impossible to acquire funding for my consulting firm, WIMS Consulting. It’s a constantly looping game of “chicken or the egg.” You can’t get a business loan or start-up funding without demonstrating two-three years worth of income. Simultaneously you can’t grow your business to a sustainable level without having an appropriate amount of capital. See the dilemma?
While I’ve been fortunate enough to walk this tight rope since I launched my business back in March, at some point the only way my business can truly grow is with additional external funding. Only that’s much easier said than done, as you can only operate on retainers and short-term projects for so long before the bills start piling up. But for professional service businesses like mine it’s difficult to show predictable and sustainable revenue in the beginning. It’s not only the case with consulting; it’s the same whether you want to start an accounting firm, a law practice, a hair salon, or photography studio among countless others.
Perhaps I’m just going about it all wrong? I certainly realize that’s a distinct possibility. To quickly digress, this isn’t meant to be a “woe is me” post, I may have to struggle now but don’t get me wrong, it’s been the most exhilarating and rewarding experience I’ve had in my professional life to date. But in case I’m not the only one stuck in this catch-22 let’s review the existing options out there along with their shortcomings.
The first one that comes to mind is going to an actual bank. Theoretically their sole purpose of existing is to give access to capital to those that need it, right? Ha! Unfortunately that is far from the case. They only loan money to those that already have it and don’t need it. Even when they do consider shelling out a measly slice of the multi-billion dollar pie they’re hoarding they make you jump through insurmountable hoops while holding you hostage throughout the entire process.
After banks the idea of peer-to-peer lenders came to mind. Companies like the Lending Club would be more understanding that I can’t provide two years of my business’ tax returns because I just started it, right? Wrong. It doesn’t matter how much money you made at your previous position, starting your own business deems those years of income moot.
Unless you have a world-changing technological innovation or company that can prove solid cash flow over multiple years, venture capital and private equity aren’t really an option. Not too mention the equity hit you’ll have to take for them to give you the time of day typically isn’t worth it either. Moving on.
I finally found the ideal solution, or so I thought. Crowdfunding is all the rage these days and the success stories receive a ton of media attention. While it has been a step in the right direction, and has done wonders for things like financing movies of old TV shows and launching innovative new products like the Coolest Cooler, it doesn’t help much when you’re starting another “boring” service business. I tried getting in on the action by setting up a GoFundMe account; sadly it still remains bare after several months. There remain challenges with this approach, but at least upcoming (still pending) changes allowing the incorporation of equity provides hope.
What’s left is the dreaded and awkward “friends and family” option, another far from perfect one however. This is especially true in my case as I personally come from a very poor family. While I’m generally very proud of that fact, it’s an unfortunate one when you’re trying to raise capital for your business. Yet, even when you get past the awkward ask and get to pitch to wealthy friend, it’s quite challenging to assure them that you will be able to generate enough revenue to be able to pay them back as these can be quite unpredictable businesses. You can’t blame them for being concerned, like any reasonable person they just want that elusive guarantee that their investment will be returned to them.
Despite this ongoing challenge, starting my own business from scratch has been one of the best decisions I’ve made in my life, and one I’d remake over and over again. And on a sort of related note, the best businesses always solve a huge problem that a large number of people face. Therefore there is a huge opportunity here.
When I became the CMO of the start-up (and soon to go live) Hathrup Capital Funding it’s clear that this is a problem that I personally can become part of the solution for, while helping potentially millions of people in the future so they don’t have to go through the same experience I have. I’m very much looking forward to the challenge.
CRM Revisited: It Should be Your #1 Priority Heading into 2015
Customer Relationship Management (CRM) programs aren’t only the future of business; they’re the present. And they aren’t just for Fortune 500 companies anymore either. Like with most technology, competition, economies of scale, and innovation have driven costs down significantly. Now, you can even get a basic version of a CRM program for free. Without a doubt, acquiring and implementing a CRM program is my #1 recommendation for businesses of all kinds looking to grow and increase revenue.
Whether you’re an independent freelancer, a sales mercenary who is compensated by getting to “eat what you kill,” or a large and complex company, there is a CRM program out there for you. Regardless of your budget (or even a lack thereof), you can customize the level of sophistication of your CRM program as they all have various subscription levels. Most integrate with your email provider of choice and have a mobile app too. Additionally there are an incredible amount of third-party add-ons you can incorporate depending on how robust your operations processes are.
Now don’t get me wrong, it’s not like building a CRM program is a cheap and easy task, far from it in fact. So keep in mind when considering which CRM program is best for you that the cost typically exceeds that of the user license fee. They require a significant amount of time and commitment, especially in the beginning when you’re just getting started. Don’t let that deter you however, as the ROI (while seemingly intangible at first) will more than make up for it, assuming it’s implemented correctly. In fact, the average ROI of a CRM system is $5.60 for every $1 spent.
CRM systems allow you to track and store vast amounts of data about your customers and prospects. The more data you have about your sales cycle that is accurate and relevant, the more deeply you can analyze that information to gain insight that will not only help increase revenue, but ultimately help you improve:
- Close rates,
- Customer service and retention,
- Length of sales cycle, and
- Forecasting efforts and projections.
Just as important, CRMs also help you automate your sales process. The more automated your sales cycle and follow up efforts can be, the greater volume of deals your business will be able to close as opportunities will be less likely to slip between the cracks.
By now you are probably either thrilled by the amazing potential a CRM program can provide, or perhaps you’re overwhelmed by the thought of endless amounts of data. If you’re like me and skew towards the former, below is a list of the necessary things to consider before rushing into it, along with some things to keep in mind after you’re fully operational.
- Conduct an “audit” of existing processes and database.
- Clean up your existing data to avoid the dreaded trap of “garbage in/garbage out.”
- Code your database to more easily identify priority contacts, “ABC”.
- Perform a sales cycle analysis, what are the typical steps involved and the time frame?
- Customize CRM pages, fields, and layouts with your appropriate specifications.
- Training of users/administrators.
- Import your database and start beta testing.
- Integrate with your existing systems, i.e. email, QuickBooks, etc.
- Reporting and sales forecasting.
- Ongoing maintenance, monitoring, updates, and improvements.
While implementing a CRM program can be relatively time‐consuming and expensive, if you do it right, the benefit to your business is invaluable. Don’t dismiss CRMs and cloud‐computing as trends that will soon go away, otherwise your competition may have already long passed you by the time you’re ready to get on board. With just over a month left in 2014, now is the perfect time to start planning and conduct your due diligence to start 2015 with yet another resolution.
Bootstrappin’: How to Launch Your Business on a Barebones Budget
Starting a business today is far easier than anytime in history. The caveat is that it depends on what type of business however, thus I’m primarily referring to professional service businesses (i.e. consulting, accounting, real estate, photography, legal, etc.). The type that don’t have the overbearing regulations attached to them or endless red tape to acquire permits and licenses, on the contrary those probably have more hurdles than ever (particularly in the US). But if you’re like me, and want to start a consulting or other service business, you can do it quicker and cheaper than ever, not to mention minimize overhead so you can compete with larger competition.
Before I begin, I want to emphasize that every single business is different and has various requirements, so while I’m speaking from a more general manner, please make sure to do the appropriate research regarding your specific industry and niche to make sure everything is legitimate.
Establishing Your Entity: My attorney friends may not be too happy to read this, but you don’t necessarily need one to establish your business. You don’t always need an automated service like Legal Zoom either. If you’re certain of the structure you want to use and don’t plan on having partners (which require more complex operating agreements, etc.) than in most instances you can go directly to the source and bypass additional fees (they can range anywhere from $150 to $1,000+). In my case, WIMS, Inc. was established in Coral Gables, FL so I used Sunbiz and set it all up for around $75. I will say that in most instances seeking counsel from an attorney is invaluable and worth the cost, however.
Website: Nowadays you can create your own website for free, using sites like Wix and 1and1. They have many elaborate templates to choose from so that you don’t have to start from scratch or learn to write code. You can simply swap out generic text for your own as well as graphics to completely customize it. It even ads easy to incorporate SEO (Search Engine Optimization) functionality. The catch of using these for free is that you can’t use your own domain name (they include theirs in the free versions) and there may be some ads. However, it’s quite affordable to create your own domain name (costs typically around $15 a month) if you’d prefer to go that route.
Email: By now it’s no great revelation that you can get great email service for free using Gmail. In most cases businesses can even get away with solely using a Gmail account (not to mention you get the added benefit of the also free Google Docs). However if you want to step up the professionalism a notch and create an email account using your domain name it’s relatively affordable to do so. For example, when I registered my domain name with GoDaddy, it also allowed me to leverage a custom email account via Office365 for about $10 a month. I find both to be well worth the cost.
Blog: Another one that is far from a novel idea, but you can start a blog for free using sites like WordPress (my personal preference) or Blogger. This is a great marketing tool that when coupled with social media can be very powerful, and all it costs is time. Providing thought leadership type content to your network demonstrates your expertise and adds value to the services you provide. Of course, there are upgrades to the service as well that are both affordable and worth it as your blog’s following begins to grow.
Marketing: I’m going to keep this section short and sweet as most of you know the usual suspects that can help market your business for free (yes, I’m referring to social media). My personal favorites: LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Google+. If what you’re selling is more visual (photography, hairstyling, tattoo artist) consider Pinterest too. There are plenty others as well.
CRM: CRM programs used to be thought of as these overly expensive and overly complicated Big Brother like programs that only the big boys could afford. Not anymore. Now you can get access to simpler CRM programs for free. My favorite is Insightly, it has a web based version coupled with a free app. Can’t beat it for the price!
Financing: If you need to raise money and aren’t able to get financing from a bank (you can’t show “2 years worth of income” when you just started, HELLO silly bankers!) consider crowd funding. Kickstarter is a good one, as is GoFundMe, which leverages your social media accounts to spread awareness. They’re “free” to start but make money by taxing 5% per donation or so (but hey 95% of something is better than 100% of nothing)! Although I’ll admit, I’ve recently set one up without much success yet.
Freelance Income: As you’re getting started you may need to build up some short term income with smaller projects as you build your network. Consider sites like Elance (I use it and love it so far) or others like Fiverr and Freelancer. There are million of projects searchable by expertise that you can do online or in person depending on location. Typically you get paid using PayPal (you do have PayPal right?), which is great, if you don’t have a fancy credit card machine. Although one solution I’m evaluating now is Square as I’ve heard good things.
Loose Ends: Just wanted to touch on some other things to consider in this paragraph. For one, you can get free digital storage space at either (or all if you’re a true hustler) Dropbox, Google Drive, or Box. For business cards, (which some people don’t even use anymore, although I advocate for them still) check out either Vista Print or Moo. Lastly, office space, this can be one of the hugest overhead expenses around. Do you really need to pay a ton of money each month in rent? I advocate a mix of home office, Starbucks, or local library (free internet!). But if you need tangible office space you can look at some of the shared office spaces from places such as Regus, or if you’re in Miami, Pipeline Brickell.
So there you have it, just some of the ways to start your business on the cheap. There are plenty others of course but I wanted to hit on some of the main ones to help get your started (if you have others please share in the comments!) Keeping low overhead is one of the ways to remain competitive with larger competition, so be relentless about every dollar you spend and you’re business will stick around long enough to start being profitable. Good luck!
WIMS Client Spotlight: PHD Pharma
PHD Pharma specializes in wholesale human growth hormones (HGH) and testosterone supplements among other cosmetic health and wellness products. Some of their products include:
Human Growth Hormone (HGH) Transdermal Patch
-2500 times more HGH than oral HGH sprays-
Unlike high-cost HGH injections, their transdermal HGH patches do not require a doctor’s prescription. Their human growth hormone patches are very convenient to use, simply put one on in the evening and remove it in the morning. In 8 hours, the time-released HGH formula enters your system transdermally.
Their HGH Maximum Strength 25mg patch is specifically formulated for bodybuilders and athletes who perform an intense physical fitness regimen. HGH supplements can increase:
- Body Strength and Physical Power
- Lean Muscle Mass and Body Fat Burn
- Energy Levels and Stamina
- Concentration and Reaction Time
- Healing and Exercise Recovery Time, and
- Blood Oxygen Carrying Capacity throughout the Cardiovascular system.
They are available for a fraction of what the HGH injections cost without compromising on strength and quality. Their patches Introduce HGH into your body’s system and is quickly processed by the liver into various component growth factors in a natural, safe and effective fashion. One HGH Maximum Strength 25mg patch, every 5 days, delivers a transdermal dosage of 25mg of HGH throughout a 12-14 hour period.
Increases Testosterone levels 3 ways. Testosterone is the most powerful anabolic muscle producing hormone found in the body. Great for an increase in:
- Muscle mass
- Strength
- Speed
- Fat loss, and
- Muscle definition.
PHd claims this is absolutely the strongest and best testosterone builder in the world! It contains real testosterone capsules and is not a testosterone precursor or herbal testosterone increaser like many other products.
Testosterone is the most important male hormone. During puberty, testosterone levels are at their lifetime peak. They begin to decline around the age of 21. Testosterone replacement therapy is the most effective way to combat the signs of aging and increase lean muscle mass and fat loss. Testosterone is essential for health and well-being.
Some of the anabolic effects include growth of muscle mass and strength, increased bone density and strength, fat loss, and stimulation of linear growth and bone maturation (leading to increased height). In addition in can lead to an increase in libido.
***These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. These products are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.***
For more information, please visit their website here.
WIMS Client Spotlight: iTourMobile
iTourMobile is a start-up technology company that provides a customer relationship management platform that enables clients to offer rich and interactive digital experiences to their clientele on mobile devices, Facebook, and websites. Its also the future of the interactive mobile & social customer experience. The platform provides a soup-to-nuts experience for clients as there is no need for technical staff, and they also offer marketing, consulting, and production services to get their clients started.
What is an interactive experience? It’s a fun way for users to interact with surroundings using a mobile device that really helps our clients stand out. Embark on an adventure, scavenger hunt, and find local deals or discounts. GPS based experiences combine audio, text, video, and images to create fun and educational experiences for any guest, for both outdoor and indoor locations!
iTourMobile is much more than just another travel/city-guide app as it’s CMS (content management system) and analytics features make it an invaluable resource to businesses. Content is hosted on our content management system and virtual private servers that let you control your content. Updates and additions are free, unlimited, and in real-time. Benefit from detailed analytics reporting on the number of downloads and see where and how people are engaging with your organization.
The unique range of content offerings for users also sets iTourMobile apart, by offering exciting features like the ability to go on movie excursions (e.g. a Harry Potter Movie Experience and a Dark Knight Trilogy tour among others), ghostly expeditions, and outdoor adventures. The benefits of this technology expand across a variety of industries, including: cities, tourist destinations, museums, entertainment, zoos, historic attractions, universities, amusement parks, speedways, and wineries.
iTourMobile leverages iBeacons, which are changing how customers experience retail, museums and indoor locations, and other experiences. This allows them to help clients:
- Improve processes with mobile devices
- Strengthen their brand and customer loyalty
- Increase revenue
- Mobile marketing tools like advanced push notifications to help drive engagement and sales
- Mobile e-Commerce
- Location based advertising and promotions
- Mobile ticketing
- Mobile donations lets users donate with ease and share it on social media
- Save time and money
- Collect analytics and feedback
- Track participation, donations, time spent at each location, survey
answers, the most and least favored locations, and devices. - Interact with customers.
- Track participation, donations, time spent at each location, survey
- Improve customer interactions and communication.
About iTourMobile
iTourMobile is a technology, design, and consulting firm helping organizations to connect with their customers and to enhance their customer experience through technology. The company offers a hosted content management system (CMS) that lets organizations create engaging and entertaining virtual tour experiences on mobile devices. iTourMobile is a Service Disabled Veteran Owned Small Business by the Federal Government and a SWaM vendor in the state of Virginia. For more information, please visit https://www.itourmobile.com/.
About WIMS Consulting
WIMS, Inc. was founded by Mike Simmons in 2014 to provide marketing and business development consulting services to entrepreneurs and small businesses alike. Mike discovered his passion for assisting entrepreneurs while in his previous position, however he wanted to be able to focus on working with these like-minded people directly, and without the bureaucracy and bloated costs associated with working with larger firms.
Why My Fantasy Football Obsession Makes me a Better Business Man
Despite the current negative climate surrounding the NFL I’m still an avid fantasy football enthusiast. That being said, the focus of this post isn’t related to that unfortunate side of game, rather it’s designed to discuss some of the parallels between playing fantasy football and the business world, and how skills acquired and enhanced via the former can help improve those in the latter, and vice versa. These are just a few of my observations, so if you have others, or even want to elaborate on some of mine, please feel free to leave a comment. Here goes.
Knowledge and Information = Currency
Knowing things before the rest of your league can be very lucrative, assuming that information leads to action. The rate at which information is distributed nowadays has reached breakneck speeds and the definition of instant is constantly being redefined. Access to these information distribution tools is pretty widespread, I remember the days when Rotoworld was my secret weapon, then NBC Sports acquired it and now its common knowledge. The key differentiator in a world of instant information however, is having the courage to act on it. Most people see the world the way they want to see it so when they hear things their initial reaction is disbelief, which creates hesitation. If you hesitate that lotto ticket sitting on the waiver wire gets scooped up and leads someone else to fantasy glory.
Perception is Reality
In the crazy “Twitter-Mob-Rule” world of today facts are often secondary to perception and propaganda with regard to the establishment of market value. Perception tends to be molded by which information source you use, the writers you read, talking heads you watch, etc. When you have a level of familiarity it leads to trust which leads to bias, which is ultimately the basis of perception. For example, if you use ESPN rankings rather than Yahoo’s you’ll notice they both are mostly different despite being made up of the same players. Therefore if you do a draft in Yahoo you can find value from guys who are ranked much lower compared to ESPN where they may be priced more accurately, and vice versa. As such, whether you get your stock news from Yahoo Finance, CNBC, or Fortune, you can read many different opinions about the same stock which could lead to different actions, one says buy, the other sell, your preference for information will directly impact the subsequent transaction. Before many drafts the buzz surrounding guys like Toby Gerhart reached deafening heights, causing many to reach, the current reality however is most likely nauseating for his owners (I wouldn’t know though as I wasn’t buying what they were selling).
The Rich Usually Get Richer
Having a wealth and depth of assets gives you leverage. In fantasy football it allows to you to offer two-for-ones and three-for-twos trades, the things that lead to upgrading your weaker positions. It also gives you the ability to have a higher tolerance for risk, the kind that can lead to a higher reward. Having the knowledge and foresight to identify “sleepers” and get them at a discount is crucial for success. Whether you play them yourself in lieu of your “busts” or trade them for more proven stars having the knack for picking winners is valuable. This often requires an objective mindset, leaving emotion and the persuasive rants of the so-called experts out of it. Be more like Buffet than Cramer when it comes to finding value and you’ll end up rich.
Sometimes Past Performance is Trumped by Upside and Potential
This lesson is more something to be aware of than a fact of life. Everyone is different and the human element and opportunity play a huge role in dictating future performance. I will say this though, people often have a burning desire to be the one that “discovers” the next big thing. Therefore they will reach for someone with high upside rather than take a boring old veteran with a well-established and predictable floor. The results of which are always mixed. Guys that took Monte Ball over Demarco Murray are probably second guessing themselves right now; then again that feeling could change tomorrow. I feel that you need a mix of both to truly do well, coupling a high upside with a high floor as well.
Starting Well Doesn’t Mean Ending Well and Vice Versa
Nearly a decade ago Netscape Navigator came roaring out like gangbusters, while Google was a little late to the search engine game (remember Ask Jeeves?!). In hindsight we now see how both of these stories turned out. The market and fantasy landscapes change literally every second of every day as they are impacted by a variety of external forces. Sometimes they’re changed by politics, more or less demand, or emerging competition. Sometimes they’re changed by injuries or suspensions. Just because you’re in 1st place today doesn’t mean your whole team won’t get injured tomorrow, it’s the NFL and crazier things have happened. In addition, being in last place after 2 weeks of the season doesn’t mean you’ll stay there (I’ve experienced both phenomena many times)! The key is to never rest on your laurels whether you’re failing or succeeding. Always be open and aware of potential changes and opportunities coming down the pike and be prepared to act accordingly.
Aside from the time consuming distraction of keeping track of my teams, players, injuries, etc. required for playing fantasy football it can actually be quite a learning experience. The correlation between fantasy football approaches and techniques with that of the business world are many and lessons that applies to each in order to be successful. It even goes further than business as it’s undoubtedly made me a better write too, you should see how clever yet vicious some of the trash talking/verbal lashings get. Perhaps I’m simply trying to justify my obsession, or perhaps I’m on to something here. Regardless I’d love to hear your thoughts on the matter!
So I Moved to Charlotte for a Girl…
Well THE girl. And if you knew Claire you’d understand. I like to think she’s the Daisy Buchanan to my Jay Gatsby, except I’m still working on building the fortune of course. The other difference, which is a fortunate one, is that we still have the opportunity for the happy ending Gatsby and Daisy never got.
Mike Simmons, CEO of WIMS Consulting, and Claire Hosmann
To make it happen I had to move from the city I love and lived for the past decade, Miami. After nearly 6 months of this new adventure, in hindsight I’d still make the same decision every time. Not only did I take a big chance moving to a new city to be with the love of my life, but it also led me to taking another risk by starting my own business. It’s not every day you get the opportunity to pursue both of your biggest dreams at the same time.
In order to find true happiness you need to take chances on the things that matter. Life is tough though, and it makes holding on to your comfortable and predictable job, or your same circle of friends, the easy and safe choice. But the only way to grow is to get out of your comfort zone and chase after the things you want in life.
Alas, rather than settling for a job working for someone else, and having to start over, I decided to start my own consulting firm. I had been planning on how best to do this for a couple years, yet while having a comfortable and mostly enjoyable job it was tough to work up the courage to take the leap of faith. I found myself over-thinking and second-guessing myself. I kept postponing my dream for tomorrow when I would have more time and money saved, like that would ever happen!
Sometimes you just need to jump and hope for the best; otherwise you risk living a life of regret. To me, that’s a fate far worse than trying and failing. It certainly hasn’t been easy, and it’s probably the hardest thing I’ve ever done in my life, but so far it’s been the most fulfilling as well.
Fortunately, with the help of technology, my business can service clients all over the country and even the world. So moving to Charlotte doesn’t mean I have to completely forget about all the relationships I’ve built in Miami. I will absolutely keep working with clients and helping people there too. I’ll even be pursuing business where I grew up in PA and CA as well. I don’t plan on stopping there either. They say you can’t have your cake and eat it too, but I certainly plan to try. And hopefully I can help many other aspiring business men and women to the day same.
I know I have a long way to go, and I haven’t figured everything out yet, but I’ve learned so much along the way that I wanted to start a blog (as if the world needs another blog!) to share my experiences and insight with all you like-minded entrepreneurs and young professionals out there. Who knows, perhaps it will help me finally finish the book I’ve been “planning” on writing for years now too.
The purpose isn’t just to tell you stories or offer suggestions with how to market your business, but to create an open dialogue and share ideas and resources in a collaborative manner. I can admit that I don’t have all the answers, but I believe you can learn something from every single person out there if you’re willing to listen.
The WIMS Guide as I’m calling it, will discuss a wide range of topics that impact the daily (and future) lives of entrepreneurs and young professionals alike. It will feature regular posts from me, along with a variety of featured authors to ensure a well-rounded, dynamic, and fresh perspective. If you have an idea or desired topic you’d like to discuss, or if you’d like to be one of our featured authors, please don’t hesitate to reach out. In the mean time I hope you enjoy and perhaps learn a thing or two along the way!