Laura Nicholson, Executive Director/CEO

The Yuba-Sutter Chamber of Commerce works in partnership with many business organizations in the community. One of our strong partnerships is with the Small Business Development Center. The SBDC is a resource for small businesses that offers classes, one-on-one counseling and a solid sense of what it takes to run a successful small business.

The following article by Ken Freeman, Director of the SBDC has previously shared the following steps businesses should take to "Survive This Challenging Economy."

History shows that each downturn is followed by a turnaround and then an upturn--however, no one knows when this will occur.

One of the hardest things for a business to understand is that many mistakes are made during good times and are found during tough times. No one goes bankrupt overnight; it is the result of many months of poor cash flow, not reducing expenses, too much overhead and no marketing plan.

The following actions should be taken during all economies - but are critical in this poor economy.

1. Goals - Know what you must do to be profitable. Set a goal to not only survive but to thrive. Goals must be SMART--specific, measurable, accountable (who does what), realistic and with timelines for accomplishment.

2. Where are you getting your information? Everyone has opinions, but unless your advisor has successfully been through this, it is just talk - listen only to successful people and those who have been through what you are going through.

3. Make "NO" excuses and place "NO" blame. Both of these just distract you from making the decisions that must be made - and what happened doesn't matter - what does matter is what are you going to do about it.

4. Focus - Know what you need to do to thrive and brainstorm possible solutions. Ask for help - set an appointment with a business advisor.

5. Create your action plan. You can plan forever - but the cure is in the actions taken. Identify step 1, step 2, step 3, etc. Then get started.

6. Identify the resources available to you - do you have a proper set of books? Do you know who your top customers are? Your top 20% of customers will bring in 80% of your business, so know who they are. Do you know your top selling products or services, are your margins adequate, is your marketing effective? These are all easily identified with proper accounting records.

7. Continually "Touch" your customers - in person, by telephone, by emails, by marketing, Do you even know who your top customers are, what they purchase, how often, and why they do business with you? If not, why not?

8. Do you know what your Profit and Loss Statement and Balance Sheet are telling you? Do you have a weekly or monthly statement? If not, get this done now. Ask an advisor--an accountant, the Yuba College Small Business Development Center, SCORE or other qualified advisors to teach you how to use these valuable documents.

9. You must check your inventory and receivables - poor asset control may have your money tied up in non-performing assets which causes you to be late in paying your bills - leading to finance charges, being cut off from suppliers, and being unable to respond to special deals.

10. Decide to do whatever it takes to turn your business around. Sit down with a competent advisor before it is too late to save your business and determine all the options available to you. The longer you wait, the less options are available for survival.

The Small Business Development Center is local, staffed with capable business consultants to help you - not just to survive, but to thrive and become a valuable asset to the Yuba-Sutter communities. You can reach the SBDC at 822-0140.