Experienced entrepreneurs sharing business challenges featured on Transparency online showcase

Showcasing experienced entrepreneurs offers an added marketing communications or social media element to help promote their businesses. In addition, it provides a forum through which they can share solutions to unique business challenges that might be the answer to a similar challenge with which yet another entrepreneur is struggling. This openness of information flows with the following story offered by

Gary Swiontek, Owner
GrooveMaster Graphics, Arlington Heights, Illinois
http://www.groovemastergraphics.com/ - gary@GrooveMasterGraphics.com
http://www.linkedin.com/in/groovemastergary on LinkedIn
847-394-8512

MY BUSINESS
GrooveMaster Graphics is a graphic design company that in reality creates “message delivery systems.” Attractive graphics are only a means to an end. We create logos, brochures, postcards, ads and other printed marketing communications to help clients build their brands. In the end, they’re able to sell their goods and services as a result of our broadcasting their messaging via professionally designed graphics.

OUR UNIQUENESS
Our tag line is “We Listen, We Deliver.” So listening to clients in order to understand their goals is important to us. We ask for specific information about the project as well as general information about their brand, philosophy and so forth. Most projects begin with a questionnaire used to gather this information so that we are in the right neighborhood before we start development. Ultimately, because we are listening we can deliver the appropriate artwork. But, much more importantly, we will deliver the client’s precise messaging. We seek clients who have solid marketing plans and are committed to them. We also look for prospects who understand the value a professional graphic designer adds to the success of their businesses. The ideal client is one who puts a great deal of trust in our judgment.

UNIQUE BUSINESS CHALLENGE
An ongoing challenge that faced GrooveMaster Graphics was how to handle the roller coaster environment of projects either coming in all at once or widely spaced apart. The main reason that this was occurring was due to the fact that we were not acquiring enough clients who required services on a semi-regular basis. This would have generated a strong, consistent revenue stream. This predicament affected our bottom line as well as our growth potential by never knowing for certain where the next project was coming from. At the same time, we found it even more difficult to be as creative as possible when squeezing multiple projects into a small time frame. Everything seemed out of balance.

OUR EFFECTIVE RESOLUTION
I decided we needed an action plan. It began by seeking advice on how to be more focused and organized in terms of marketing GrooveMaster Graphics. I got in touch with professional business and marketing consultants. Here is the result of working with them.

1. We have put our marketing plan in writing. Until we did, it wasn’t real. Seeing it in black and white makes it a concrete element for which we are accountable.
2. We’ve also clearly defined our services so that clients have no misconceptions as to what we provide. In addition, we have created service bundles to give clients an economical choice of “message delivery” options.
3. Next, we identified our specific target audience. This makes our own messaging process much more focused and effective.
4. A social media strategy came next. We are a social media participant, yet we are still exploring what forms of social media are most appropriate for reaching our ideal clients.
5. GrooveMaster Graphics does email a monthly newsletter. It is a major element in our marketing strategy. It provides informational and educational content to our readership.
6. A great deal of effort will be put into building a new website with easier navigation, more information and highly effective SEO and SEM initiatives as part of its overall scope.

While many of the plan’s elements are in action today, several others are in their development stages. Our evenly-spaced projects problem is not entirely resolved as of yet, but we are putting a stronger focus on new goals which our action plan should help us reach. We feel that a true commitment to our plan along with follow-through should help in GrooveMaster Graphics’ overcoming its roller coaster challenge.

Early entrepreneurs gain new marketing and social media opportunities through online business showcase

Showcasing early entrepreneurs offers an added marketing communications or social media element to help promote their businesses. In addition, it provides a forum through which they can guide other aspiring business owners around avoidable obstacles and toward a path of attainable goals. Sharing their insights begins by hearing their stories like the one offered by

Barrie Hinman, Licensed Acupuncturist (L.Ac.), Diplomate Acupuncture (DiplAC), Barrington Acupuncture Clinic, Barrington, Illinois
www.barringtonacu.com – barrie@barringtonacu.com
847-382-1884 or 847-624-4ACU (4228)

My Motivation
By my mid-fifties I knew I would want to work for a lot longer rather than planning to retire but I wanted to make a shift to something that would give me joy and allow me to give back to the community in a more proactive way. As I have always been interested in alternative means of healing and personally found acupuncture to be a tremendous way to maintain health and well being I decided to pursue it as my longer term career. While continuing to work and serve my existing clients for payroll and bookkeeping, I enrolled in the acupuncture program at National University of Health Sciences in Lombard IL and graduated after three years of rigorous studies in August 2009 with a Masters degree in Acupuncture.

Uniqueness
I bring a lifetime of experience in living and working to the practice along with a life-long love of alternative healing methods that promote wellness by considering the mind and emotions as two other significant components of physical well being. As a Buddhist, I am also well-versed in the impact of spiritual well being on our physical health. Having spent time working in both large and small corporate America over the years I have a clear understanding of the pressures people face in balancing work and life with the inherent physical imbalances that tend to crop up while attempting to juggle conflicting demands. Having been the beneficiary of acupuncture treatments for many years I am a firm believer from experience that it can help us maintain balance and well being in our lives. As an acupuncturist, I treat the whole being not just physical symptoms so I spend time listening carefully to my patients to help them find relief from stress and pain in their lives.

Client Profile
Given the culture we live in, our dietary habits and how we live our lives, people are experiencing the stresses and strains of the imbalances that cause physical pain, anxiety, depression, loss of sleep and other hardships very early in life. So, my perfect client is anyone who suffers from chronic pain, headaches, fatigue, difficulty sleeping, stress, depression, gastrointestinal disorders, gynecological disorders or frequently recurring illnesses.

Marketing Methods
While still in school I developed a business and marketing plan and started working with a branding specialist who designed my logo and the theme for my website's visual appearance. I used VistaPrint® to print my business cards and a local printer, Forrest Press in Barrington to print my rack cards (the new brochure) and prescription pads to give to doctors for patient referrals. Since I believe that the Internet has pretty much become the new Yellow Pages® I have focused on visibility via the Internet. I registered with Acufinder.com and created a profile to highlight my practice in Barrington as well as to highlight my work at Healing Tree Physical Therapy in Wilmette. Acufinder.com does a good job of getting my practice on the first page of a lot of search engines and if someone goes to the acufinder.com web site and searches for acupuncturists by zip code it shows my practice by geographic location. I’ve also registered my business with Google Maps® so that when a person googles “acupuncturist Barrington Il,” I’m featured on a Google map indicating various acupuncturists in the Barrington area. I also have registered with Yahoo® and Yelp® and have updated my listings on LinkedIn® and Plaxo®. In addition to all of the collateral materials for marketing my practice I focused on finding a physical location that would be visible from well traveled streets with signage out front so that people driving by would be reminded that acupuncture is available here in Barrington. I also have been making sure I got my name out locally by rejoining the Barrington Area Chamber of Commerce, visiting doctors’ offices, placing business cards and rack cards in local businesses and joining a local business networking group Pro Alliance in Barrington. I will be continuing to establish referral relationships with various health care providers in the area; I see these relationships as a win-win for both myself and the other practitioners as we can complement each other’s strengths to ensure maximum wellness for our mutual patients.

Learning Experience
I envisioned taking board exams before I graduated so that I could be licensed and have my practice up and running by mid-September of 2009. The reality was that I took boards after graduation and it was a tremendous gift as the studying gave me time to integrate all of three years’ education and start visualizing a practice that truly reflected my vision. It also gave me some time to slow down and recover from the rigors of school which was much needed for my own health and well being. I also didn’t comprehend the complexities and wait times between completing board exams, receiving national certification, applying for state licensure and waiting for licensure to occur. I had a great realtor who expedited my finding a space and I moved in about three weeks after we started looking in mid-November. I also didn’t foresee that it would take me a month to get settled in and organized but moving in early December plus the holiday season and starting to see patients in Wilmette did complicate that process. By January 2010 my practice was finally open for business in Barrington.

My advice to other potential entrepreneurs is this:
· Don’t put too much pressure on yourself
· Be realistic about the timelines of opening a business
· Have other ways of making money or supporting yourself while you’re trying to get your business going
· Possibly get some other form of financial backing – loan or line of credit
· Get your marketing materials in place – online positioning, website, business cards
· Plan and order inventory, develop forms and establish bookkeeping procedures you will need to support your business before opening
· It will take time, but with constant attention and outreach you will grow your practice and number of patients seen each week

Business showcase offers new marketing and social media opportunities to entrepreneurs

Showcasing early entrepreneurs has a twofold purpose. One is to offer an added marketing communications or social media element to help promote their businesses. The second is to provide a forum through which they can guide other aspiring business owners around avoidable obstacles and toward a path of attainable goals. Sharing insights starts with hearing their stories firsthand beginning with a conversation with

Lisa Shanahan, owner of Fitness Together in Barrington, Illinois
http://www.fitnesstogetherbarrington.com/ – (847) 304-0505

My Motivation
While my early career was in personal fitness and training, what motivated me to choose it as a life-long business was my own mother’s passing away at the prime age of 50 from a heart attack. So, when the opportunity came along to purchase a Fitness Together franchise, I took advantage of it. Working intimately with a client base of 200 was more appealing to me over the traditional 15,000-member health club.

Our Uniqueness
Fitness Together is different in that it not only offers private, one-on-one training, it adds personal accountability to fitness and nutrition. We are one of the few truly private training studios. We provide private suites for client and trainer. Many people are uncomfortable with their weight so privacy becomes a big factor. At the same time, we stress goal setting, follow-up and accountability. Clients are able to tap into our online nutrition program that offers sample meal planning to get them started with healthy menus. They key in their food intake each day and are then graded on their protein and carb totals to help them stay on track. We also offer full fitness assessments and retest our clients every six weeks to make sure their personal goals are met. Our strong focus is on achieving goals.

Client Profile
Our target audience is made up primarily of women between 30 and 65 with disposable incomes who truly believe that their health is important. However, today, many people outside that range are realizing the importance of health and fitness and are willing to spend money on both. Ultimately, we’re perfect for those who say "I’m sick and tired of being overweight and having no energy. I’ve been putting everyone else first, now it’s time to take care of me." I've also been partnering with chiropractors and doctors for referrals. When people require the next level of therapy we can take them to it. The same holds for cardiac patients. Our studio is a great supervised environment for heart patient rehab.

Marketing Methods
We’ve tried advertising in all the coupon magazines which took up a lot of funding. Other marketing efforts included direct mailings and ads in local publications – some of which offer the opportunity to write your own article to accompany purchased advertising. I’ve got a lot of ideas to market the business, but I need to find what works best in my area.

Learning Experience
Like all new entrepreneurs, I was excited about the venture in October 2007 and wanted to open quickly. As a result, I was a little too hasty in selecting a location for the studio. I leased space in a building before it was built and put my trust in people that – in looking back – I shouldn’t have. For a variety of reasons, the building wasn’t finished until a year later in late 2008. Naturally, the economic climate didn’t help matters either as far as gaining clients.

My advice to other potential entrepreneurs is this:
· Really think through the whole concept before making your decision
· Know that it will be a lot of stressful work
· Don’t expect profits your first year or two
· Be patient because in the end your dream will be rewarding

Lastly, I was truly surprised to learn that most people weren't setting health and fitness as a priority in their lives. I am in the business of changing that mindset – one fit and healthy lifestyle at a time.