Innholdsfortegnelse for June 2019 i Entrepreneur Magazine

Even the smartest, most ambitious entrepreneurs can’t build a successful business all on their own. They rely on a network of advisors to help them fill in the gaps and make the best decisions. That’s why you likely hired an accountant to help with finances, and probably bend the ear of a mentor to find out what mistakes you absolutely need to avoid. One area you can’t afford to skip: technology advice. As your business grows, your technology must evolve. You’ll need a knowledgeable advisor to keep your productivity running high and your security as strong as possible. After all, system downtime and security breaches—from ransomware to hijackings, and phishing to worms—can result in financial and brand damage. Putting things like security and data protection on the back burner can…

Lacrosse may not be the most popular sport in America, but this summer it may beat everyone else out for sheer business drama. The sport has been dominated since 2001 by an organization called Major League Lacrosse (MLL), and its most famous player was Paul Rabil. But Rabil was frustrated with his old league. So he hung up his cleats and, along with his brother Mike, decided to launch a competitor. Their new Premier Lacrosse League (PLL) kicks off on June 1, with games airing all summer long on NBC. They poached many of MLL’s greatest players and are pursuing a totally new approach to teams: Rather than have teams based in cities, the way MLL (and most major pro sports leagues) does, PLL’s six teams have no local identities.…

Koby Wheeler has launched and crashed three businesses. But he’s not embarrassed by any of it. “It gives me more confidence,” he says, “because I have those experiences. I know to ask better questions, I know to trust my gut, and I have a more long-term way of thinking.” It’s a good perspective to have at any age—and in Wheeler’s case, he’s starting young. He’s a freshman at the University of Texas at Dallas. His first three businesses failed while he was in high school. And he attributes his thick skin to a program he completed prior to graduation: It’s called Whatever It Takes (WIT), a San Diego–based program that helps high schoolers ideate and launch businesses for college credit, and it puts a heavy emphasis on learning to celebrate…

Sleepless, worry-filled nights are normal for any founder. But they shouldn’t continue for weeks. My subconscious mind was telling me something. But what? I run a company called Personal Trainer Development Center, which, like the name suggests, produces resources to help personal trainers grow their businesses. We do this in many ways—articles, books, an online certification program, and more. And around the time the insomnia hit, we had just created a new resource: It was a print newsletter called Fitness Marketing Monthly. But that can’t be the problem, I thought. The newsletter was a hit! Consider our numbers. We launched in July 2018 with 1,615 subscribers, who paid a special introductory rate of $39.97 a month. By September, we had subscribers in 62 countries paying as much as $59.97 per…

Tech entrepreneurs like to create cool technological solutions. Then, they often only want to provide their solutions to customers or clients that are equally cool—favoring the few buzzy opportunities over many other unexciting ones. I know this sounds crazy. Who turns down business? But it’s true. Many tech startups have focused on splashy, slick apps of consumer convenience, rather than attending to the less visible infrastructure necessary to keep all this running. According to CB Insights, the number one reason cited by startups in postmortems was “lack of a market need” for their product. Hmm. So what are they missing? First, let’s consider the disconnect. Sure, it’s exciting to see yourself helping someone disrupt an entire industry. But most technology solutions get applied to mundane things in everyday businesses—the kind…

ON March 7 at 4:30 A.M. Greenwich mean time, a tech company’s worst nightmare began. For eight and a half hours, a catastrophic network failure disabled Basecamp’s popular project management software. Instead of boosting productivity for its three million accounts around the world, Basecamp stopped people from getting their work done. “We’re incredibly sorry…especially for our European customers,” wrote cofounder and CTO David Heinemeier Hansson on the company blog. He explained that the problem originated with their cloud provider, took full responsibility, and promised they would work diligently to make sure it never happened again. But it did—just six days later. This time, Heinemeier Hansson couldn’t apologize enough. “I’m sorry. I’m really sorry (and ashamed),” he told customers. “It’s also been a mighty fall…From riches of reliance to rags of…

Crunchy tacos? Four-cheese soufflé? A house salad with a side of double-crunch bone-in wings? How about a beef-and-cheddar sandwich served with zesty Red Ranch dressing on an onion roll? Lunchtime for Greg Flynn means more than 1,245 restaurants to choose from. Conveniently, they’re all his: 283 Taco Bell units, 135 Panera Bread, 458 Applebee’s, and—his latest addition as of December—369 Arby’s. Sitting in his skyscraper office in San Francisco’s financial district, the founder and CEO of the Flynn Restaurant Group (FRG) picks at a salad from none of the above. “My goal was to finish this bite before you finished your question,” Flynn jokes as we talk about how he got to here. There are multi-unit franchisees, mega-franchisees, and then there’s Greg Flynn—a category all his own. Trim with gray-flecked…

In 1986, when I was 17, I bought a tiny, 600-square-foot flower shop with a loan from a family friend. My mother was my first employee. I would drop her off on my way to high school and come back afterward to run the shop. She’d made it only through the fifth grade in Pakistan, but during those early days, when we would sometimes struggle just to make $100, she was instrumental in teaching me the fundamentals of success. When I began testing the idea of selling bouquets out of fruit cut into various shapes, people thought I was crazy, and it was impossible to get bank financing. But the first time my mother saw an arrangement, she got it. “That is amazing,” she told me. “This is going to…

✓ Data Security Some businesses think that because they’re small, they don’t need to worry about cyber attacks and data breaches. Especially in today’s always-on, mobile world, this is an increasingly risky strategy. Truth is, they are more vulnerable than ever to security threats and data loss. Helpful Data Security Tips Train employees in security policies. Establish basic security practices and strategies for employees, such as requiring strong passwords, and develop appropriate internet use guidelines that detail penalties for violating company cyber security policies. Establish rules on customer privacy and the protection of customer information and company data. Protect computers, networks and data from cyber attacks. The best defense is keeping systems updated with the latest security software, web browser and operating systems. Remember - Microsoft is ending support for…

Nearly all the merchandise that makes it from a shelf into a physical or even virtual shopping cart must first take the journey from manufacturers and suppliers to retailers. It’s an age-old concept but serves as a useful reminder that winning and keeping new sales channels requires that business owners prove to retail clients that their products will arrive in the time frame and condition that the client’s shoppers demand. In an increasingly competitive retail environment, excellent customer service from vendors to their retail customers is more important than ever. Maximizing your profitability depends as much on the quality of your reputation among retailers as on the volume of product you can ship. Here are three ways to get the most out of relationships with retail clients: 1. Deliver consistency.…

Packaging design is an opportunity, one that often gets overlooked in the day-to-day crush of running a business. Smart brands understand that beyond protecting the products, exceptional packaging can also create an unboxing experience that can delight customers. “In our age of consumerism and anxiety, any sense of luxury or personal differentiation is a big deal,” says Isis Shiffer, the founder of Spitfire Industry, a New York City-based industrial design consultancy. Packaging can also communicate your company’s values, whether that’s a commitment to a seamless user experience, sustainability, or a focus on health. Wellness brands, for example, often use undyed simple prints and plain, unvarnished corrugated cardboard, an aesthetic that conveys simplicity and transparency. Below, Shiffer shares tips for harnessing the innovative applications of paper to create packaging that gives…

When cannabis was legalized in Oregon, many people saw business opportunity. But Amy Margolis saw something more specific: She saw business opportunities for women. Margolis was a criminal defense attorney in Portland and had spent a decade defending cannabis growers who’d been caught by the police. Once the state legalized bud, she turned to corporate law and helped local entrepreneurs enter the industry. “I just pivoted with my clients,” she says. And as she did, she says, she saw women flood into the marketplace. They were starting dispensaries, creating new products, and, like her, providing needed services to cannabis entrepreneurs. The industry struck her as more equitable than others, where men tend to dominate the upper ranks. But she wouldn’t say that anymore. Four years after recreational marijuana was legalized…

Ask someone to name a franchise, and chances are it will be a food-based one. Some of the biggest and best-loved franchise brands center around food, and perhaps that’s no surprise—after all, everybody eats. And more than that, everybody enjoys eating. Food isn’t just a necessity—it’s a desire, one that draws in both customers and franchisees. More than a fifth of the companies that applied for our 2019 Franchise 500 ranking were food-based franchises, offering everything from tried-and-true favorites like burgers and pizza to the latest trends, like poke and acai bowls. You’ll find the top 200 of them on the following pages, ranked within their respective categories. These rankings are based on the scores each company received from our Franchise 500 formula, which evaluates more than 150 data points…

THIS VALENTINE’S DAY, Qdoba held its ninth annual Qdoba for a Kiss promotion, offering customers a free entrée when they purchased an entrée and shared a kiss with anyone—or anything (yes, kissing your burrito counts). The company also uses the event to raise money for No Kid Hungry, inviting guests to donate at restaurants, and encouraging them to post on Twitter, Facebook, or Instagram, where Qdoba would donate $1 (up to $10,000) for every post containing a #QdobaForAKiss hashtag. What’s not to love about that?…

THE STATISTICS are familiar, and disheartening: Women in business hold less than 25 percent of all executive positions and less than 5 percent of CEO titles. For the women who do climb the corporate ladder, it can be lonely at the top—but a group called Chief is out to change that. The New York–based private network and club connects high-ranking women across industries, with the goal of fostering community and elevating more women into leadership roles. Chief launched in January with $3 million in funding and 200 founding members from such organizations as HBO, Amazon, Walmart, and Instagram. (The waitlist currently exceeds 4,000.) Its flagship offering, the Core program, splits members into groups of eight to 10 for monthly meetings to discuss their experiences in the workforce, and the Salon…

First things first: What’s your definition of a tech startup? I think some people have a hard time understanding why, say, a makeup brand like Glossier identifies as a tech company. Oh, people are so confused! We get pitched so many businesses based on a beautiful product I’d love to buy, but it doesn’t fit the profile of what we want to invest in because the company’s model is selling in a big retailer. Yes, we invest in brands and product, but we mostly invest in founders that see opportunity for change. Glossier is about the customer. It’s anchored in selling product, but consumers trade in and out of product. So Glossier has used technology to create a deeper connection with its consumer to grow. Purchases are often about more…

When Paul Flick launched his company 360° Painting, in 2006, he didn’t consider himself to be in the house-painting business. He just saw it as the first step into the $450 billion home maintenance and repair industry. Flick wanted to build a trusted, holistic solution that would help people solve any problem they might encounter as homeowners—and to accomplish that, he spent the next 13 years developing a portfolio of home-care brands. Now his original business lives along with three others (providing handyman, garage door, and maid services) under the umbrella of Premium Service Brands, with 187 locations throughout North America and more than $60 million in annual sales. What’s next? Flick says he’ll keep growing his Charlottesville, Va.–based operation until he can truly deliver a one-stop solution to his…

1/Think Holistically From Kenny Wu, director of corporate marketing, Scorpion Franchisors are concerned with brand awareness and cohesion, but franchisees see marketing as just a small slice of their daily to-dos and are hyperfocused on performance. Both sides can be made happy…but it means a lot of careful planning, and no rogue franchisee campaigns! The ideal strategy: Build a playbook that broadens and deepens brand awareness, while also developing localized, brand-compliant tactics to help franchisees stand out in their neighborhoods. To pull all this off, franchisors should shop around for a holistic marketing agency that works in different channels—not just search engine ads but also social media, email advertising, remarketing, and video marketing. It’s an approach that goes beyond low-hanging fruit, and instead helps franchisees reach their ideal customers wherever…

WHEN FOUR FRIENDS opened a pop-up booth selling macarons in New York, they met with unexpected success, and Woops! was born. The company offers a multitude of unique flavors, including cotton candy, peanut butter and jelly, and mojito. And franchisees have almost as many choices as customers, with multiple revenue streams they can pursue, including corporate gifting (macarons can even have logos printed on them); catering (colorful macaron pyramids have become a popular alternative to wedding cakes); and, of course, pop-up sales events.…

The List THE TREND TOWARD to-go orders versus dining in was a problem for Firehouse Subs, because its signature steamed meats and cheeses didn’t travel well. It has solved that challenge by using bagasse containers—made from the fiber mass of sugarcane—which are heat tolerant, microwaveable, and biodegradable. A partnership with UberEATS is also making it easier for guests to enjoy their subs at home, and in keeping with the company’s firefighting theme, stores now offer a Rapid Rescue rack where to-go orders can be grabbed.…