How to Stay Ahead of the Competition

I’m a small business owner. I don’t have a million dollar budget. And I don’t have cherry conference tables either. I used to, though. When I worked in the corporate world, I was a Marketing Director for a multi-billion dollar international corporation. It was good, and the perks were even better. I had a fat expense account that was used to entertain customers. The first time I went to my favorite steakhouse and had to pay with my own greenbacks, I was shocked at the prices. I couldn’t believe it. I immediately became green with envy for the “good old days.” Such is life. Today, as a small business owner, I know where my company is, and I know who my customers are. In my industry (print), the competition is everywhere, and the “good old days” are long gone. Here’s How to Stay Ahead 1) Divide and conquer. Understand that there are multiple aspects to your business and make each one a functioning profit center. Most business owners come to know this by their second or third year. It’s important to realize that each of those profit centers will, at some point, be experiencing pressures that they haven’t had before. It could

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