As business owners, the idea of knowing your target market is quite important for the ultimate survival of a business. If you know who they are then it is easier to meet their needs by way of your service or product. Using research is a great way to identify issues, characteristics, behavior, beliefs, and of course lots more about the people that you serve as customers or clients. If the main population that you serve is women then The Center for Women’s Business Research has research publications that you can acquire and use as a resource.
“For nearly 20 years, the Center for Women’s Business Research has produced cutting edge, research-based intelligence showcasing the achievements and documenting the challenges, characteristics, and trends of women business owners and their firms on topics such as: Access to Capital, Access to Markets, Financing and Risk-taking, Nontraditional Industries, Growth of Firms Owned by Women of Color, Leadership and Decision-Making Styles, and Trends in Women’s Entrepreneurship.”
For example below are current statistics from the Center for Women’s Business Research’s website about women business owners:
• 10.1 million firms are owned by women (50% or more), employing more than 13 million people, and generating $1.9 trillion in sales as of 2008.
• One in five firms with revenue of $1 million or more is woman-owned.
• 3% of all women-owned firms have revenues of $1 million or more compared with 6% of men-owned firms.
“The Center for Women’s Business Research is a 510(c)(3) nonprofit, tax-exempt organization established in 1989 to validate and accelerate the economic power of women’s entrepreneurship by conducting groundbreaking research, sharing myth-busting information, and creating new knowledge.”
When attempting to identify your target market, it helps to have resources that can reveal aspects of this population of people that will help you serve them in the best possible way. The available resources from this organization are by no means inexpensive. I would venture to say that you may be able to find this type of information in other places if you have the time and desire to search the internet for it. One thing is certain and that is that the Center for Women’s Business Research has survived for about 20 years offering quality service and products by way of their rigorous research. They have definitely exposed the state of affairs of women-owned business all the while bringing focus and integrity to this sector of the population.
According to Ladies Who Launch, women are launching businesses at twice the rate of men, and the primary lifestyle reasons given are more freedom, flexibility, and creativity.
Does that sound like you?
This media company shares success stories of women entrepreneurs as part of their weekly newsletter.
They also provide online resources and tools.
The Ladies Who Launch mission is to make entrepreneurship accessible to any woman with a project, dream or aspiration to start her own business and be successful.
A great benefit of this online community is that it also makes available to women entrepreneurs many in-person local communities around the world with live workshops.
In this video Miriam Buhr addresses how creating local network business groups can offer many benefits to the small business owner.
The idea to blend online and offline marketing methods makes great business sense because it offers small business owners the ability to increase their exposure at the local level using powerful social media tools and platforms which have served well the online business owners.
By creating a local group that caters to a specific group with a specific need, the likelihood is that whoever creates such a network is bound to see some gains.
Be sure to watch end of video to see the results experienced by the Boston Networking Club which is found in the LinkedIN platform.
Home and Small Business Owners are categorized as self-employed and as such have no company-provided health insurance. It’s a different story if you are married to someone who has company benefits because you then enjoy the benefits of being included in the policy with potential of catering to your needs.
If you do not have a spouse with those bennies, there are still other options. So my next question is, do you belong to a professional association? If so, you may be eligible for group insurance. Another option for the self-employed is that you can connect with an independent insurance professional and talk about getting individual group coverage.
Or follow the lead of other business owners, hit the online pavement and do your own research.
Before you make a final decision, be sure that you are dealing with a reputable company. Research their history to get an idea about their track record. You can start your research online but then take it to a live platform and call the companies that you are researching. Keep in mind that companies have issues every once in a while. Find out how they resolved these issues and how prompt was their response. In the end, be wise about your choice and use your judgment to determine if it fits your needs, values, and if they are likely to be around when you need them.
What follows is a list of INFORMATION Sources to get you started.
Miriam Buhr discusses a trend in mobile marketing that is causing a stir with big brands and online auction sites and has great potential to increase business for smaller companies and businesses. By using an iPhone and the RedLaser mobile phone app, you can take a picture of a product’s barcode and this application quickly provides information about the product.
As a business, you can check on your competitors’ prices and sales without leaving your own store. The information revealed in this video gives you an idea of the potential of mobile marketing and the effects that a small device and application is having on StuffBuff.com and eBay.
There are a myriad of programs for the expressed purpose to help women entrepreneurs to start, grow, and expand their businesses. I am cognizant that a good portion of business owners personally finance their businesses. Yet there is another part of this sector that seeks financial support.
It is well established that business financing come in many forms. The information that follows targets US based government programs, which categorize government financing into two areas: grants and loans.
The current federal and state government agencies do not offer grants to women to help them start a business. Non-profits and private organizations normally endow business owners with grants. Yet based on experience these grants are very rare and the focus has typically been on helping minority women and women in economically disadvantaged communities.
Although limited in numbers, loans are available specifically to help women start and expand their businesses.
Keep in mind that the above mentioned resources not only provide information about how and where to locate government funds, but some of the web sites listed also provide other business related information for different types of entrepreneurs: home based businesses, self-employed, non-profit organizations, disabled people, and minority owned and veteran owned businesses.
Ladies, it is wise to research so that you can make a sound business financial decision as well as determine what is available for your own personal use or referral purposes. If you live outside of the US, I encourage you to make note of these financial resources. You have a good probability that you can locate similar and available programs in your particular country.
Feelings of isolation can be addressed with other business owners in professional groups for expressed purpose of gaining perspective on issues related to your personal and business lives.
Study mentioned in video was done by North Carolina State University. NCSU conducted a study about how job leads are generated from engaging in these types of groups.
Coffee and Contacts is a power networking group for women. It addresses the needs of this population of entrepreneurs. Even in 2010 there still is a disparity in the amount of information available to women and minority groups. By joining these types of groups, the gap can be addressed and more people will be informed about the availability of resources and opportunities.
Research groups like these online or in your community.
Join Miriam Buhr as she discusses the use of interns in your home or small business and how to get them started to insure success.
Interns are a wonderful source of low or no cost labor for your business and if you are set up to manage them correctly from the get go they can truly help propel your business forward while providing a student with valuable work experience.
