Forums: Discussions for entrepreneurs and small business.

Kathleen,

Give them a try, you`ll love it. You can have notifications texted to you or emailed. Plus it will ring what ever number you want it to.

John


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"I am only one, but still I am one. I cannot do everything, but still I can do something; and because I cannot do everything, I will not refuse to do something that I can do."
-- Edmund Everett Hale, writer

Hello, great to see all the feedback.

One question you posed was to print business cards without your name on them.  I would advise against that, because it creates confusion for the potential customer.  You want to project every indication that you are a real "in-business" business.  I think you should simply put your real contact info on all marketing materials including your website.

If the boss finds out, come clean, let them know your not competing directly or leveraging their customers for leads, and you should come out okay.

Making concessions may be a requirement during the day job/startup phase, but not when it comes to presenting your business to customers.

great point.




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"I am only one, but still I am one. I cannot do everything, but still I can do something; and because I cannot do everything, I will not refuse to do something that I can do."
-- Edmund Everett Hale, writer

I work in a different industry so I do not have to worry about that. But, any tips to try and not advertise in a way your current employer would find out. I relized there is an account on here, so I gotta find was to be more discreet.

We use an answering service.  This has nothing to do with conflict of interest or anything as we own both of our own companies.  It is just a convenience for those that call.  The live operator will answer 24/7, "Pripps Sugar Bush", as if they worked for the company and then take an order or give whatever info we need them to give.  Very customizable for each business  There might be one in your area.  If not, let me know and I will give you my contact info for them.

Greg

I love it.  It is pretty good.  Wonder what it will cost when they get out of beta.  I currently use Angel (http://www.angel.com).  They will forward the call to you with a number that shows up as a number you designate for the business.  I know when to answer officially.  I can also opt to use the forward-to-email feature which works just as well.  It is wonderful.  Price for one line is $29.99 a month and each additional number is $4.95 per month (these include 800 numbers).  A great way to sound professional.

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http://www.startupnation.com/leading-moms-in-business/contestant/12907/index.php

I think that this 1-800 idea is a great idea and you should defenitely go with this. 

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LISA

GotVMail.com is another good one.  Fairly cheap (starts around $9 per month i think) and lets you have different extensions for sales, supports, direct lines, etc.  Also it allows you to set hours of operation so you can choose when call go to you or when they get picked up by email.  Very professional, we have used it for almost a year now and we love it.

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-- Rex Stevens TR Design Studio LLC 253-238-7769 rex@trdesignllc.com www.trdesignllc.com

Wow! Great info from you all. I`m new to this site, but a fossil to marketing

I saw a question relating to marketing without an "identity," which is a really tricky thing. I never recommend this. However, there are ways around revealing who you are as a "CEO" by presenting a larger front. When you do this, branding your company is even more important. You must have a strong identity out of the gate. Since you`re booststrapping, I encourage you to sign up for a free Marketing Success Kit at www.boostyourbottomline.com, which will really help you get started in branding your business for no dollars. Best of luck!


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Holly George, Certified Marketing Spitfire
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1 in 5 Customers will make you rich! Find out which
one in your FREE Marketing Mastery Success Kit:
http://www.boostyourbottomline.com

    Hey Gang,

 I had no idea when I first posted this forum that there were so many great ideas and helpful people out there. Thanks to you all!! I"m currently getting a bad case of cold feet in trying to market my shower business. If I want to have a successful business, plus support my family, I know that I`ll be in direct competition sooner or later with my current employer, plus the fact that the glass business is a rather small community and word travels fast among the glass shops when a new cowboy rides into town. With the info that i got from some of you out there, I think that having a service taking my phone messages would really be a help. That part I`m not worried about. What scares me is when I go out to quote the job, people may recognize me from my current shop.  My question is that am I doing anything unethical business-wise if I go out and bid on jobs that my current employer doesnt even know exist? In other words, if I do all the ground work for getting customers(business cards, talking to people at tile stores, plumbing shops,etc.) and get these people, would this be a conflict of interest with my current employer, even though they wouldnt even think of going to the places I"m going? These guys dont advertise at all, they basically wait for the phone to ring or someone to walk through the door and give them the work.  Its not like I am following one of their leads and taking money out of their pockets. But I really want to be realistic and know if they have any grounds for firing me if and when they find out that I am doing my own thing..I never signed anything at the time of my employment that bans me from side work..How would that stand up if I was to be fired? I can totally feel that my business will work, I just need to keep my current job until I can rely on my new business, which will take a bit of time.. Any advice would be great, dont hold anything back..

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showerman