Why Your Business Needs To Break Free of Excel

How many business owners either plan or run or both their business with an Excel spreadsheet? Truth be told, I’m a huge fan of Excel. I used Excel to track wedding expenses, my personal budget, even as a basic calculator.  I even lived Excel while working for GE.  But as a business management platform, Excel can and is a real nightmare.

Yet so many folks are using it to do just that.

If tools that are time saving, money saving and allow you to act with confidence matters when making  business decisions are important to you, then you owe it to yourself and your business to have an Excel intervention and see how you can spend your time focusing on the things that really matter like, say, running your business.

But first, let’s look at a few reasons why it’s time to shut down Excel.

Your business is dynamic, and Excel is static

Among larger companies, gone are the days of the formal annual budgeting process. More and more, businesses are adopting a rolling forecast that flexes to the constantly shifting marketplace. These same large companies are swiftly shedding the giant, clunky planning tools of the ‘90s in favor of agile, web-based tools.

But for small businesses, planning is happening in Excel. According to NY Enterprise Report, a whopping 93 percent of small businesses—including those using QuickBooks as their accounting software—are planning and managing their business with a spreadsheet.

The problem, in case we haven’t noticed, is that nothing is static anymore.

Manually keying historical data into Excel is a drag, and manually plying through QuickBooks to understand where you were off target and why the numbers don’t add up is time lost that could be spent thinking about your products and services or your customers. Your business is constantly generating new information, and Excel just sits idly by, waiting for you to fill it up. Then, it provides no “so what” or sense of what’s next.

Even your business model is dynamic

Not only is your data dynamic, but your business model is too. Let’s say you read an interesting article about the emergence of Content Marketing as a fantastic channel for driving new customers your way. You are thinking about dipping your toe in and acquiring tools to help facilitate amazing new content, to facilitate amazing new web traffic, to facilitate amazing new business… you get the idea. To fit that strategy into Excel, you’re adding a row here, inserting 10 there, filling down formulas, and checking the results. Pretty soon, you’re spending more time building your business model when you should be building your business.

Because the very nature of your business is unique, and because it continually evolves, you need tools that are flexible enough to allow you to model out a new channel, or perhaps a new customer segment you’re thinking about going after. You should be able to test out a change in pricing and see the impact to your bottom line instantly. Excel can do that, sure. But it takes so much time to grind it out that most business owners end up following gut instinct rather than owning the numbers. And that’s a missed opportunity.

You need a web app…

Seems like a silly thing to say, right? But it’s true. To kick the Excel habit, your business needs the aid of smart, fast, cloud-based tools that turn a “one person team” into a one person army.

Excel is no longer the go-to place to run and plan your business. The times are changing with a series of new tools like those provided by CLS and they are worth paying attention to.

I’m not saying you have to un-install Excel. But just know that if you want to get back to building and running an amazing business instead of amazing spreadsheets, the days of Excel are numbered.

About www.Cool Life Systems.com
Based in Montgomery NY, Cool Life Systems provides dynamic software as a service business solutions for multiple industries. Cool Life Systems, implements business solutions for a company’s unique processes, philosophies and policies to connect people, systems, and technology, enabling a seamless integration of CRM (customer relation management) processes, websites, and all marketing efforts in one centralized system. Learn how Cool Life Systems’ provide users with the tools they need to grow and manage their business in many areas that include: marketing, sales, lead-acquisition, client management, and project management by visiting our Website at www.CoolLifeSystems.com.

Making the Internet 100x Faster

As businesses and consumers appetite for web based content and Internet driven applications increase, the barrier of slow transmission speeds inhibits the growth and use of data intensive, Internet based applications for all users.  A recent article in Computerworld.com tells about a viable, near term solution being developed by researchers at MIT that could allow Internet use to explode.

The article is short and well worth the 5 minutes to read.  You can access the article here.  Happy Reading!

CRM Data Disconnects

Traveling to conferences always gives me the opportunity to catch up on my reading of marketing journals, new web technologies, b2b best practices.  During a recent trip to Chicago I read an article in B2B Magazine written by Lisa Sutrick.  You can access the article with this link.

I recommend you take the 10 minutes to read the article and then consider your own CRM practices. Some items to reflect upon might include:

• Do the employees at your company have ability to access all client data in one snapshot so that they can make an informed business decision?
• Does your CRM & database package provide a single view of all data?
• What types of data disconnects exist within your business? Why?
• Is it my software, my processes or both that is preventing me from achieving the next level of

Software services, regardless of provider, need to be effective and provide measureable ROI for continued use.  If the software and processes are broken or a data disconnects exists the negative outcome: your business suffers, customer data suffers, user adoption suffers, and customer experience suffers which creates a drag on your business earnings, profitability and reputation.

You need to focus on solutions like CLS 3.0.  The ability of applications like CLS 3.0 to provide integrated platforms that eliminate disconnects surpasses the functionality of many popular applications.  Paying for an application where you can’t measure the returns and capture the benefits means that you are wasting money and not getting  the results you expect and need.  Think about moving to applications that actually produce results.

Work on your Business not in it

Small & medium business owners of all stripes have one thing in common – they are looking for financial reward.  James Deyo clearly illustrates, in his article below, the difference between a business owner working for their business and business owner working on their business.  However, he left out one key component – “The How”.  One of the easiest solutions to accomplish “The How” is implementing business technology solutions provided by Cool Life Systems.    The business software tools from Cool Life System allow a business owner to focus on the strategic because their employees have tools to effectively and successfully complete their job without interference, while still being managed.

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There are several reasons why people go off on their own and start a business. Some see the chance for financial success. Others want the freedom of being their own boss. Still others just want to prove something to themselves or others. But, anyone who starts, or buys a small business gets to the point where they ask, “Why did I ever try to do this?” And, even after achieving the success, it’s easy to reflect back on the process and wonder, “How did I ever do that?” In the end, the most meaningful question is, “if I had it to do all over, would I do it again?”

The concept of working “on your business, not in it” isn’t my own. It belongs to Michael Gerber, who wrote about it in his best-selling book The E-Myth Revisited. I’ll touch on the concept here, but I strongly suggest you read the book – you’ll never look at your business the same again! Four (of the many) questions Gerber asks are:

1. How can I get my business to work, but without me?
2. How can I get my people to work, but without my interference?
3. How can I own my business, but still be free of it?
4. How can I spend my time doing the work I love to do, rather than the work I have to do?

Small businesses get started because the owners have a new idea, or something they want to accomplish. Not all entrepreneurs with an idea, however, know how to run a business. They are often well versed in a couple of disciplines, but not all of the ones necessary to really make their business work. So, they do what people normally do. They focus on the things they are comfortable with and don’t look closely enough at tasks they know they should do, but are “hard.”

At some point in time small business owners become consumed by the business – and maybe the possibility of losing it. This fear is compounded by the fact they have to do every important thing themselves because they do not have the necessary infrastructure. If this is where you are – if these are the four questions you are asking yourself – you need to change the way you’re looking at your world. You don’t own a business – you own a job!

If you can sit in your office, put your feet up on your desk, and think about the “big picture,” you’re working on your business. If you are the one who builds, and rebuilds, and tweaks, and re-tweaks the direction of your company, you are working on your business. If you define your job as being the person who prepares your business for growth, you are working on your business. If you are doing what you set out to do one, or five, or 25 years ago when you started your company – and having fun doing it – you are working on your business. If you are not doing these things, you own a job. It may be a high paying job and your family may appreciate you all the more for it, but it’s still a job – and you are working IN your business, not ON it!

The ultimate goal of working ON your business should be to have it function as well as possible without you. In other words, it’s an investment! You’re probably never going to get this investment to the point where you can treat it like a common stock or a corporate bond. But, your objective should be to get as close to that point as you can. If you do, you will own something that is valuable to someone else and you the have the option to sell it. If all you own is a job, don’t expect people to line up at your door to buy it.

Your objective should be to get your business to the point where it is NOT dependent on you! Develop your employees to do things without your involvement. Figure out how to give your customers what they want, without having to go through you. Have your employees take care of the day-to-day tasks, freeing you to focus on the more strategic issues. Build a model for your business that ensures things get done right at the first point of contact.

Getting your business to this point is not going to happen overnight; it takes a conscious, sustained effort and time. If you want to make it happen, you have to make it happen! You must put the processes in place to support it. Any individual who has built a successful, mature business knows how it happened. If it didn’t start with a clear vision of what the “finished product” would look like, the architect certainly developed one early in the process.
Author:  Jim Deyo, Originally published 4/2006. Reprinted with permission.

Cool Life Systems Achieves Significant Growth in 2009; Unveils Strategy for 2010

Cool Life Systems, a leading provider of Software as Service (SaaS) business solutions, announced today that they exceeded forecasted targets in 2009 in both client and revenue growth. In 2009, Cool Life Systems achieved significant increases in revenue and an 18% increase in overall client base. Cool Life Systems also announced its 2010 strategy to develop an exclusive Channel Reseller Program to further capitalize on the substantial gains made in 2009.

The development of a new Channel Sales Program will allow Cool Life Systems to target key multiple market segments that lack a strong technology presence. The initial channels that Cool Life Systems will develop include Professional Services, Eateries & Restaurants, and Groups & Associations. The products being made available to these industry segments are designed for rapid deployment and ease of use by non-technical personnel. As a result of this new program, Cool Life Systems is expanding
to existing staff by adding three additional positions.

“Given that Cool Life Systems, a ‘young’ company, is able to expand and hire three Channel Sales Managers in this turbulent and stressed economic environment, is attributed to the strength, capability and value our software provides,” said David Cummings, CEO of Cool Life Systems. “The addition of our Channel Reseller Program further reinforces our position as a technology and software leader that business owners should turn to as they look to implement technology solutions that allow them to make more money.”

2009 was also a significant year for Cool Life Systems as they garnered awards and accolades. Cool Life Systems was recognized by Financial Advisor Magazine as a leading provider of technology solutions to professional services firms in the financial services market place. Cool Life Systems was also recognized by the National Committee for Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve as an employer displaying outstanding support to its armed services employees.

A copy of the original press release for republication can be found here

Small business, social media not mixing

CNNFN.com recently published an article about how small businesses have yet to fully embrace the world of Social Media.  Why?  It appears that they spend their scarce  resources to generate revenue/sales on more traditional methods, especially during these lean times.  This article underscores the need of small firms to engage companies, like Cool Life Systems, to help them better navigate the consumer shift to social media as a communication method so as to spend their limited budgets in the best possible way.  The article follows below:

Thu Oct 8, 2009 3:33pm EDT

Original Source, http://www.Cnnfn.com By Ellen Wulfhorst

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Few U.S. small businesses have adopted social media outlets such as Facebook and Twitter for business uses, according to research released Thursday.

Three-quarters of small businesses say they have not found sites such as Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn helpful for generating business leads or expanding business in the past year, according to a survey conducted for Citibank Small Business of 500 U.S. businesses with fewer than 100 employees.

Also, 86 percent said they have not used social networking sites for information or business advice. Ten percent said they have sought business advice and information on expert blogs.

The low number of small businesses using such sites for business purposes was unexpected, particularly as social media use has grown overall, said Maria Veltre, executive vice president of Citi’s Small Business segment. Citibank is part of Citigroup Inc.

“We were very surprised we did not see more use of some of the social media outlets, even if just for advice,” she said.

“What this survey indicates to us is small businesses are very, very focused on running their business and on generating sales and managing their cash flow and doing the things that are really important, especially in these economic times,” Veltre said. “I don’t think quite yet the social media piece of it has proven to be as significant.”

The survey found 42 percent of small businesses have made greater use of their company websites to generate business leads and sales.

Nineteen percent were doing more advertising to attract new customers in the economic downturn, 38 percent said they were doing less and 41 percent were doing the same, it found.

Also, 28 percent were using more email marketing and 25 percent using more online advertising to generate business leads and sales, it found.

The telephone poll was conducted for Citibank Small Business by GFK Roper from August 20-27 of a sample of 500 small business executives across the United States. The margin of error was plus or minus 3.5 percentage points.

A New Year – A New Way to Market

2009 is drawing to a close and in terms of marketing; businesses are reflecting on the often lackluster 2009 and now brainstorming new plans and strategies for 2010. To achieve 2010 success, Web Marketing is an essential ingredient for ensuring business success.

Over the last few years the elements of the marketing mix have evolved to include not only traditional channels like print, radio and television, but also online channels like search engines, banner adverts and social media platforms.

Online media offers a flexible structure and is far more cost-effective and measurable than traditional media. Depending on the goals and objectives of each business, different online marketing elements will be used. While online fundamentals like email marketing and banner placements are very effective when executed correctly, there are many other elements to consider while planning your online strategy for 2010.

Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
SEO drives traffic to your website via search engines like Google, Bing and Yahoo. The purpose of SEO is to increase a websites ranking on search engine result pages for relevant search terms. This is achieved by optimizing the website for key-phrases related to the business products and services in order to provide searchers with relevant and high quality content.

Why should you include SEO in your marketing plan?

Even though SEO is a long-term commitment results from such a campaign are sustainable and provide proven ROI. When implementing a SEO campaign will tweak existing content, create new web pages and include website usability changes. Better usability makes it easier for visitors to access your website and increases conversions or desired actions.

Social Media Marketing
By correctly leveraging platforms like Facebook, YouTube, and Twitter and social media can create brand awareness and build relationships with new and existing customers. Social media marketing has been likened to word-of-mouth, because it’s all about the conversations. These conversations occur amongst and between your customers and yourself. Social media marketing is not push-marketing – if you use social media platforms to broadcast overt commercial and marketing messages your social media campaign is guaranteed to fail.

An integrated strategy comprising a mix of social media elements will ensure maximum return on your marketing investment. When creating an online strategy the Cool Life Systems team provides tools and that help to create a strategy that will amplify your message. It is important that online not be included as an after-thought. If you want to achieve great results, involve your Cool Life Systems from the conception phase as they can advise which elements will work best to achieve the specific goals of the campaign.

Unemployment?

Normally I do not post links, but I found this interesting and worth the 30 seconds it takes to watch.   Click this link to see a time elapsed view of unemployment across the United States.

Cool Life Systems

LAUNCH OF THE NEW FINANCIAL CONSULTING GROUP WEBSITE

I would like to share with everyone a piece of Cool Life Systems new work.  Recently, we relaunched the website for Financial Consulting Group website in addition to providing the organization a new back office system and a member and organization management system.  Financial Consulting Group, also known as FCG, is the largest organization of independently owned accounting, business valuation, and financial services firms in North America.

Cool Life Systems is responsible for the revised look, feel and functionality of FCG’s new website as well the technology that runs behind the scenes which includes member and event management, marketing systems and the exclusive FCG member extranet. The new extranet system will offer FCG members a better way to request assistance on engagements, learn to use resources, and post questions and receive answers from other FCG members.

FCG only showcases a portion of the technology and services we offer to our client base every day.  So go ahead, take a look around our website look at some of our work and let us know what you think.  This blog regularly points out shortcoming that we see in the small to mid size business segment whether it is data management, sales and marketing efforts, or organization management.   The shortcomings pointed out are all too often easily corrected, and unabashedly can be easily corrected with use of the Cool Life Systems product.  We look forward to speaking with you soon.

B2B Channel Marketing & Content Distribution

Before we break away for the Thanksgiving Holiday – I wanted to post an article concerning B2B marketing and the importance of having the neccessary tools in place to manage, track and engage clients, referral channels, and leads.

In today’s world of B2B marketing there are multiple channels used to for audience development, client retention and referral channel development.  These channels typically include the use of various media segments such as:

• eMail (both one to one and one to many)
• Newsletters
• Live In Person events, such as seminars and conferences
• Webinars (both live and recorded)
• Print Media

If this communication is to be effective, the sender must deploy a message of perceived value to a targeted/segmented audience that may or may not include some form of tangible takeaway benefit besides the initial content. For example, offering a free 1 hour online marketing seminar to CPA’s and accounting professionals for referral channel development that is delivered by a marketing expert from a Fortune 100 company and you should expect a 10% participation rate.  If you a add a tangible takeaway benefit to the seminar such as including 2 free CPE credits, your participation rate will increase to 20% or higher.  And your goal for the seminar?  Develop referral channels for your product.  This same scenario can be applied to consumers and businesses alike.

On the surface the above scenario appears to be a relatively benign process. You setup a conference and invite a bunch of people to attend and hope for the best.  However, if you break down the process there is a lot of administrative/organization work involved to achieve your goals.

1. Development, distribution and promotion of event via email and print,
2. Tracking results of that distribution,
3. Event registration and tracking of event registration,
4. Tieback of yes/no responses to database records,
5. Results of seminar; comments from participants, generation of referrals?

In addition to the above:

1. What the event promoted to the correct segment?
2. Did you record who did and did not respond to the event and showed up?
3. Did the attendees refer a client?
4. How does any of this tie into your contact management system? If at all?

The real question is do you have a system in place to perform this type of marketing and event management without a lot of manual interaction?  And does your ‘system’  integrate with your contact management system?

In today’s world a professional services firm requires a system to distribute content to all market segments.  The result of the distribution need to be trackable, reportable and return definable measurable benefits to acquire valid ROI costs.  Systems like those developed by Cool Life Systems allow firms to perform this functions for creation and distribution of content, tracking the success of each distribution, and providing tools for follow up with persons in each identified channel.  These tools work together to allow you and your firm to increase competitive market share, achieve market differentiation from competitors and influence audience segments for a desired outcome.