Six Steps to Small Business Success How to Start, Manage, and Sell Your Business

by Doerhoff, Bert; Lillge, Lowell; Lucier, David; Manning, R. Sean; Orcutt, C. Gregory

• ISBN13: 9781938548215
• ISBN10: 1938548213
• Edition: Revised
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2014-07-01
• Publisher: Maven House

Summary

* The first edition of this book won the prestigious Book of the Year Award presented by the Professional Association of Small Business Accountants

Many entrepreneurs fail, not because they have bad ideas, but because they don't have the knowledge it takes to convert their ideas into success. In Six Steps to Small Business Success, five seasoned CPAs provide practical advice, step-by-step guidance, and proven ideas to help you dream big, think realistically, and plan and manage carefully, ultimately achieving more than you ever imagined.

Take these six simple steps to convert your dreams into reality:

1. PRE-BUSINESS PLANNING. Learn from others who have succeeded how a little front end planning can ensure your success.

2. START-UP: FINANCES, BUDGETS, AND NUMBERS. Discover the key fundamentals that must be put in place for your business to grow.

3. HUMAN RESOURCES(PEOPLE). Learn best practices in hiring, training, managing, and terminating employees.

4. OPERATIONS: WORK FLOW, CUSTOMERS, AND SALES. Learn how to make good decisions about products and customers.

5. BUILDING A SALABLE BUSINESS AND THE SALE. Learn how to plan for your eventual sale.

6. TRANSITIONING TO LIFE AFTER BUSINESS. Finally, learn how to plan for life after work - personal adjustments, wealth management, leaving a legacy.

Author Biography

Bert Doerhoff, CPA, started his own CPA firm in 1978, which was later named one of the top fifty most innovative firms in the nation by CPA Digest.

Lowell G. Lillge, CPA, started his own accounting firm in 1983, specializing in bookkeeping, tax preparation, and accounting, and he has worked with hundreds of clients.

David J. Lucier, CPA, is an entrepreneur, real estate investor, and business adviser who has worked with hundreds of start-up and emerging companies over the past thirty years.

R. Sean Manning, CPA, owns an accounting firm as well as several other businesses. In 2008 his firm was awarded Innovative Accounting Firm of the Year from the Professional Association of Small Business Accountants.

C. Gregory Orcutt, CPA, has owned an accounting firm for over twenty-five years. He was recently awarded the Small Firm of the Year from the Professional Association of Small Business Accountants.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgements
Foreword
Introduction
Before You Read This Book

Step One – Pre-Business Planning
1. The Dream: Running Your Own Business with Integrity
2. Pick the Right Business for You
3. Self-Evaluation for Small-Business Success
4. Advisers for Your Business
5. Buying a Franchise or Starting from the Ground Up
6. The Business Plan: Creating Your Map to Success
7. Strategic Marketing Planning
8. Partnerships and Agreements for Multiple Owners
9. Business Formats and Tax Structures
10. Business, Family, and Personal Relationships: Making Them Work

Step Two – Start-Up: Finances, Budgets, and Numbers
11. Business Loans: A General Overview
12. Another Use for Your Business Plan
13. How to Read Financial Statements
14. Key Operating Statistics (Vitals)
15. Comparing Your Key Operating Statistics to Industry Standards
16. Tax Planning
17. Real Estate and Your Business
18. Insurance: A General Overview

Step Three – Human Resources: The People Factor
19. Assembling Your Team
20. Compensation and Benefits
21. Training Employees
22. Managing Employees
23. Terminating Employees

Step Four – Operations: Work Flow, Customers, and Sales
24. Managing Daily Operations
25. Managing Customers: Credit, Collections, and Service
26. Managing Marketing and Sales: Some Low-Cost Tactics
27. Managing Growth and Expansion

Step Five – Building a Salable Business and the Sale
28. Is It Time to Sell?
29. Valuing Your Business to Sell
30. Tax Planning for the Sale
31. Who Are the Buyers?
32. Negotiating the Sale
33. Sale Documents and Escrows for Contingencies
34. Transitioning Customers and Employees through the Sale

Step Six – Transitioning to Life After Business
35. Wealth Management and Investments
36. Lifestyle Changes
37. Leaving a Legacy of Values

Glossary
Further Reading
Recommended Websites
Endnotes
Index