Cash Mobs: Flash Mobs for Small Businesses |  |
- Cash Mobs: Flash Mobs for Small Businesses
- Small Business Lending Enhancement Act: Capital Into the Hands of Entrepreneurs
- A Review of The Reinventors
| Cash Mobs: Flash Mobs for Small Businesses Posted: 18 Mar 2012 02:30 PM PDT You may have heard of a flash mob: a group of people meet at a certain time and place and begin “spontaneously” dancing a routine. But what in the heck is a “cash mob?” And why are businesses all over the United States (and other countries) clamoring to get involved in them?
Cash mobs were first seen in 2011. The idea is to get people into local businesses to shop and support them. Consider cash mobs the people’s stimulus package, to help small businesses. Participants are encouraged to visit a particular business on a given day or time period and spend at least $10 or $20. Many spend more, and that’s exactly what struggling small businesses need right now. Do Cash Mobs Work? The proof is in the pudding: in Mount Clemens, Michigan, one business that participated in a cash mob there saw a 600% increase in sales over the previous weekend. Another doubled its Saturday afternoon sales as a result. People are waiting in lines that wrap around the block just to make a purchase in honor of the cash mob. There are dozens of other stories of small businesses seeing an injection of cash as a result of these pop-up sale days. Why Do Consumers Flock to Cash Mobs? In the same way that liking Pinterest is cool, being a part of a cash mob is, too. It’s being a part of a story, and people like that. Cash mob organizers are using social media to announce locations and get collective buy-in from consumers, who help spread the word to their friends on Facebook and Twitter. And supporting local businesses is always something that makes people feel good. Get Involved in International Cash Mob Day Thanks to the growing popularity of cash mobs (there are over 100 cities that have created them in the U.S.), March 24, 2012, has been designated International Cash Mob Day. If you’d like to start cash mobs in your city, here are some steps for doing so, as well as some general rules you can apply to your city’s cash mob program. Here are some other tips for getting started:
It will be interesting to see how more cash mobs might affect the health of small businesses. After all, it’s the small things (like one person spending $10) that add up to success. From Small Business Trends |
| Small Business Lending Enhancement Act: Capital Into the Hands of Entrepreneurs Posted: 18 Mar 2012 11:30 AM PDT This week, Senator Mark Udall (D-CO) vowed to introduce his bipartisan Small Business Lending Enhancement Act as an amendment to the Jump-Start Our Business Start-Ups (JOBS) Act. The legislation would raise the business lending cap credit unions currently face.
The most attractive thing about this proposal is that it would help to create jobs without spending any taxpayer money. “There continues to be a phenomenon in this country where small businesses are starving for credit, yet the federal government is still standing in the way,” Senator Udall said. “I’m talking about the smallest of small local businesses. These are the men and women who need $50,000, $100,000, or maybe even $200,000 to move from their garage to a retail store front, to renovate their sales floor or to upgrade their equipment and expand.” Credit unions are filling the void when the borrowers are deemed too small to be worth the banks’ time or just don’t fit the lending guidelines of the banks’ corporate headquarters. “Small-business owners know credit unions in their community that have money to lend, and truly want to help. They probably see each other at little league games, church or play cards together,” Senator Udall said. The Jump-Start Our Business Start-Ups Act, or JOBS Act, that the House passed last week seeks to increase the availability of credit to start-up companies by expediting and easing the process of making an initial public offering. The problem is that the JOBS Act is aimed at companies with revenue under one billion dollars. There is a big difference between a multi-million dollar company and a local business that needs $50,000 in working capital. Federal law limits the amount of small business loans a credit union can extend to 12% of their assets. Nearly 350 credit unions are facing their cap, and 500 of them have had to slow or stop their small business loan-making altogether. Senator Udall seeks to change this and hopes to raise the credit union business lending cap from 12.25 percent to 25 percent of total assets One thing is for certain, over the past year credit unions have been increasingly active in funding entrepreneurs pursuing their dreams of business ownership. My company’s monthly Biz2Credit Small Business Lending Index has reported a steady rise in small business loan approval rates since the beginning of 2011 and into this year. Approval rates of small business financing requests in February 2012 by credit unions were up 0.2% to 57.8%. A year ago, less than half of small business loans (49.1%) were granted. A few days ago, I addressed the National Association of Federal Credit Union’s “Strategic Growth Conference” in Scottsdale, Arizona, and encouraged attendees to continue their activity in the small business lending space. Innovation and entrepreneurship have always helped to lead the country out of recessionary periods. I believe that increased entrepreneurship is what has helped turn around “The Great Recession.” Raising the credit union member business lending cap would help take small business lending by credit unions to a higher level and aid our nation's economic recovery. The legislation that Senator Udall proposes is an effort that both parties should support. Money Photo via Shutterstock From Small Business Trends |
| Posted: 18 Mar 2012 05:30 AM PDT
As I searched for the web site to share in this review, I learn that Jason Jennings has written four other books: Hit the Ground Running, Think Big Act Small, Less is More and It's Not the Big That Eat the Small, It's the Fast that Eat the Slow. Usually, I start these reviews based on a topic, but today, I'm curious about Jason Jennings. Granted, he's not the first person to write five business books, but when I looked at the titles as a series, I couldn't help but wonder if there was a unifying theme. Call it my nostalgia for the days of vinyl records, when you had to listen to songs in a series, and could pull together a story or a theme for the album. It's clear that this is the latest in what looks like a series of books about companies and what some have done to be successful and what others still have to learn to achieve that same success. What makes Jason Jennings so special? A-HA! I knew it! Jason Jennings (on Twitter @jasonjennings) started out as a reporter before he started his media consulting company, Jennings-McGlothlin & Company. Since I've been writing these book reviews, I've noticed that authors who have a journalism background bring a unique perspective to the topic. They have this ability to fully participate in events and be with the people that they are writing about, while still standing outside the situation and explaining it in a way that those of us who weren't there can understand and appreciate. This is the gift that Jennings brings to this book and each previous book he's written. OH NO! Do I really have to reinvent myself? Well, according to Reinventors, if you want to end up like Kmart, Blockbuster and EMI – nope. You don't have to reinvent yourself. Feel free to take the position of "If it ain't broke, don't fix it" and watch what happens. Jennings doesn't say that reinvention is fun. He says it's necessary. As you might expect from a journalist and media consulting expert, Jennings has done his homework. He's researched 22,000 articles and 100 companies. Then he and his team selected the best examples of companies who have reinvented themselves and went inside and learned how they did it. You won't be surprised to find companies like Starbucks (you can read our review of Onward for the details on that story), Southwest and Apple on the list. Don't worry, Jennings has included "The Rules" The myriad interviews and research have yielded a set of reinvention rules that you can apply in your own business. Sorry, I have to tease you here. But you'll have to get the book for yourself to learn how to:
Applying the lessons in the book Although the end of each chapter has some useful-to-do's it isn't a pre-digested recipe and to do list that will magically give you the holy grail and turn you into a reinventor. Instead you'll find tips and insights that you might have to practice over the course of your business such as these:
Or:
(You'll have to read the bagged lettuce story to get this one.) Just notice that this book re-chewed and pre-digested for you. You will have to read it, digest it and perhaps get help from a few experts in some of these areas. Don't be fooled. This isn't a how-to book. It's a what-to-book. You will have to create your own how-to's if you're really committed to reinvention. Who should read The Reinventors This is a book written for business book lovers and company watchers. If you enjoy learning about what makes companies succeed and fail – you'll appreciate The Reinventors. This is a general management book, marketing strategy book and leadership book all in one. I'd recommend this book as an excellent “travel reader.” It's the kind of book you'll want to pick up for your next business trip to read on the plane or at the airport. It will inspire you for whatever meeting you're going to and educate you on some healthy business principles. Not only that, you'll probably finish it in one trip! The Reinventors will be released in May and is available for pre-order.
From Small Business Trends |
Well, isn't that embarrassing. I've never heard of Jason Jennings. I've just received an advanced review copy of | You are subscribed to email updates from Small Business News, Tips, Advice - Small Business Trends To stop receiving these emails, you may unsubscribe now. | Email delivery powered by Google |
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