Business Owners Don’t Need Stimulus Money

Bill Warner Wednesday, July 08, 2009

That’s right. Business owners, you are on your own, and that’s OK. In its recent survey of 1,000 customers, Intuit discovered that an overwhelming number are relying on themselves, and not the government, to survive this recession.

What’s the situation?

An unbelievable 94 percent of small business owners say that they depend on themselves the old fashioned way. They use the same operational strategy they did when they bootstrapped their businesses in the first place. Almost none of them have received any stimulus money and don’t believe that the government’s stimulus plan will benefit them.

In fact, sources of financing have declined as shown by the Small Business Administration backing 30 percent fewer loans than it did a year ago. It is still unclear how this situation will change under the Americas Recovery Capital program.

So what are small businesses doing?

Small businesses are again demonstrating why they are the heart of America’s economy.

  • Most of the surveyed companies see new opportunities for their companies, showing the adaptability, innovativeness and responsiveness of entrepreneurs, even in the face of continued recession.
  • More than half of those surveyed expect to see business growth over the next 12 months, driven by their focus on marketing and sales.
  • They also say that now is a good time to invest in a small business, exploiting new opportunities and innovative ideas.

What do entrepreneurs need to do?

Successful entrepreneurs are those that act decisively and quickly. They put their instincts and innovativeness to work to deal with the changes that have occurred in their markets. Some of the keys to success are:

  • Financing is still available, but harder to find. In many cases, entrepreneurs need to go back to basics of identifying potential investors within their own scope of influence (friends and family). Strategic partnerships should be purposefully pursued to join with established companies who have the cash to invest in new products and services.
  • Don’t let all the media hype get you down. Look deeply into your market segments and see what is really going on and respond to it. Let the facts that face you direct your decisions.
  • Recessions also bring changes to markets. Make sure you understand the changes in yours and find the ways to exploit them with changes to what you are currently offering and providing new products and services.
  • By all means, act. Do not simply let circumstances overtake you.

Filed Under: Business Operations, Business Strategy and Planning, Marketing Plans & Strategies



Bill Warner is the Managing Partner of Paladin and Associates, a business consulting firm in the Research Triangle Park area of central North Carolina, and is the Chairman of the Triangle Accredited Capital Forum, an angel investor network with over one hundred members throughout the southeast.

Nice post Bill.  While stimulus money from the government is always nice, most of us never see any.  I know I’ve bootstrapped and grown organically over the past 3+ years.  While a nice grant or low-interest loan from the government would certainly open new doors, it’s not a necessity or even a to-do item on my list.  I imagine most entrepreneurs who are surviving the recession are operating with the same thought process.

Cutting sales and marketing is the worst possible idea.  If you want to survive this, you have to close new business now.  While your competitors are cutting their spending and not growing, you have a huge opportunity to gain market share.  When the world comes out of the recession, you’ll suddenly find yourself atop a nice perch in your industry if you executed successfully during the down time.


Matt Enders
Thursday, July 09, 2009

Thanks for the feedback Matt. Well said.

Sell, sell, sell. Now. But in the right market with the right product that satisfies a current need.

Bill


Bill Warner
Thursday, July 09, 2009

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