5 Tips for Small Business

Only five out of 10 small businesses (companies with less than 500 employees) such as Jeff Asherbranner's will survive to see their fifth birthday, according to the Small Business Administration. Successful entrepreneurs that make it to that milestone will have most likely done so because of their ability to apply the following key strategies to their businesses.
No matter what the industry, these traits are typically found in small businesses that survive and thrive beyond their fifth anniversary. As you review these, think about small businesses like Jeff Asherbranner-Sales Consulting in Redlands, CA and what they could do to improve.

1. Adapt & Innovate

As time goes on, the world changes. Technology improves. Laws are amended or new ones created. New productivity improvements, such as widespread prevalence of smart phones, affect not only the communications of a business but can also affect how its product is consumed.
“Uncertainty” is the new buzzword that you hear repeatedly amidst our tumultuous political and economic climate.
With constant fluctuation, the only way a business can survive is by adapting to the new world and consistently tweaking their products and services.
Just take a look at the evolution of cell phones throughout the previous three decades for a visual. As technology improved, lifestyles changed and business operations transformed, so did the products that cell phone manufacturers produced.
What happens when a company doesn’t change? Ask Kodak, once a market share leader of photographic film sales and now not even a blimp on the digital camera scene. If you aren’t adapting to your customers, your competitors will – just ask Kodak.
While successful entrepreneurs adapt their companies’ product/service offerings, some do so without a dedicated research and development department. These business owners don’t do it alone, though. Often, these bosses empower their employees across all departments, which can result in suggestions to improve efficiency or boost results.
After all, who is better qualified to identify everyday problems than those that are on the ground every day?

2. Stay Connected With the Customer

Successful entrepreneurs know that they cannot invent the next big thing or improve their products or services by living only in their world – they must stay attuned to customer feedback and needs, continuously looking for opportunities to improve their services.
This point goes hand in hand with innovating because solving problems for customers is never complete. There will always be room for improvement or the development of new products or services entirely, since change is constant.
Staying connected with customers involves not only listening to client feedback but also applying critical thinking skills that can help businesses anticipate future needs.
“You can’t just ask customers what they want and then try to give that to them. By the time you get it built, they’ll want something new,” Apple co-founder Steve Jobs is reported as saying.
While there is some truth in Jobs’ statement – customers don’t always know what products they’ll use and how they’ll use them – successful entrepreneurs have a good grasp on the problems that their clients face and develop solutions to meet their needs.

3. Understand and Articulate Why Their Product/Service Is Better

A company could have the best product or service, but it won’t do anyone any good if the company is unable to persuade anyone to try it. Communicating product benefits can break down at two main points.
The first point is a lack of understanding why people like the product or service. If the majority of customers buy a product for X but the company believes that Y is what gets the product off the shelf and promotes it, then the business is focused on communicating the wrong benefit.
Management guru Peter Drucker once said, “The buyer rarely buys what the seller thinks he is selling.”  Know “why” your clients are buying.
The next aspect of this is communication itself, which can’t be overvalued. Think about a recent conflict at work. The source of a problem with a colleague can often be traced back to poor communication or a simple misunderstanding. The same thing can happen when companies attempt to communicate with customers – things can get lost in translation.
Communicating how and why a product will benefit a prospect is key to running a thriving business.

4. Strive To Improve

Since successful entrepreneurs know that their companies must constantly improve their offerings, they also know that they can always better themselves, as can their employees.
These CEOs value education in every form – articles, podcasts, Google hangouts, conferences, etc. They help their employees elevate their skillsets and also focus on improving their weaknesses.
The thing about successful entrepreneurs is that they’re never content – they’ve always got an eye on tomorrow and how they need to improve to continue to be prosperous. Encourage your employees to grow and learn on a daily basis. You will reap the rewards in the long term.

5. Create A Profitable Business

Earning more money that you spend is a simple concept, but it’s one that needs to be addressed. Some business owners can have a solid grasp on the first four concepts, but struggle to make their idea work financially.
If you can’t figure out a way to take in more money than you spend, then a fabulous product and superior customer service skills won’t matter. Because there won’t be a business.
Of course, a new venture may lose money initially. Experts suggest that a new company should budget to lose money for the first 2-3 years. However, if you are spending more than you make in Year 4, you need to reassess your business model.

Stressful Work Environments

An important factor in workplace environment is to avoid stress to the employees. Businesses like Jeff Asherbranner-Sales Consulting do everything they can to avoid stressful work environment.

If you have a cruel boss or rotten co-workers, beware. It may not be just your job that's on the line.

Clearly, a work environment that includes insults, back stabbing and belittling can erode an employee's morale. What's less understood is that such a toxic work atmosphere can also lead to deteriorating health. At WebMD, we talked to the experts to find out what it is about negative work relationships that can cause so much stress, how our bodies react to chronic workplace stress, and what it takes to find relief.

A Need to Be Heard

Feeling trapped in a workplace that isn't fair can actually increase your risk for coronary heart disease (CHD), a leading cause of death in the U.S. In a two-part landmark Finnish study conducted between 1985 and 1990, researchers surveyed more than 6,000 male British civil servants -- without presence of CHD -- regarding how fair, or unfair, they perceived their employers. Subjects who reported a high level of justice at work were 30% less likely to develop CHD than workers who consistently experienced injustice at work.

Just how did study participants define "justice" in the workplace? Those who felt their bosses considered their viewpoints, treated them truthfully, and included them in decision-making processes said they worked in "just" workplaces.

The results of the study show what many experts say: Feeling like you haven't been heard ranks as the most stressful aspect of interpersonal work relationships. "It's a helplessness that comes when employees feel like they've expressed themselves and been discounted, or someone hasn't taken the time to listen to them," says psychologist Carol Kauffman, PhD, an assistant professor at Harvard Medical School's department of psychiatry.

Others agree. "The workplace needs to feel meaningful. If you feel like you're not respected, that your opinion isn't meaningful, you're at an increased risk of heart disease," says Bruce Rabin, MD, PhD, a professor of pathology and psychiatry at University of Pittsburgh Medical Center. On the flip side, Rabin tells WebMD, "Feeling a part of the workplace is a meaningful buffer to the health effects of stress.

Reacting to Co-Workers

How workers react to negative interpersonal relationships in the workplace, be it passive-aggressive co-workers or disgruntled bosses, also has a dramatic impact on subsequent stress levels.

"Some people are more prone to stress reactions. They're likely to be people who have difficulty managing on a day-to-day basis. They may not have effective problem-solving skills, or be predisposed to high levels of anxiety and uncertainty," says social worker Len Tuzman, DSW, an expert on stress management. This is particularly true for employees that Tuzman calls "catastrophizers" -- those who blow a situation out of proportion until it becomes a major calamity.

Just how great a toll does workplace stress take on employees' health? While it's impossible to tease out every illness and adverse health effect that began as a reaction to stress, Minnesota-based health management company StayWell compared the costs of stress with 10 other common health risk factors -- among more than 46,000 employees of both private- and public-sector companies. The risk factors included tobacco and alcohol use, overweight, high blood pressure, and high cholesterol. Cumulatively, these 11 modifiable health risk factors were found to comprise 25% of companies' total health care expenditures. The most costly risk factor? Stress.

This is why businesses like Jeff Asherbranner-Sales Consulting and others strive to avoid putting their employees in what could be considered a stressful work environment.

All information presented courtesy of www.Webmd.com

Positive Workplace Environment

Jeff Asherbranner and Positive Work Environments

Our work environment encompasses more than the employee lounge, office area and lobby. Policies, resources, professional relationships and company culture also fashion the environment in which we work. Author and University of Virginia Professor Scott A. Snell, in the book, “Managing Human Resources,” defines a positive environment in the workplace as an atmosphere of employee enthusiasm that improves organization performance. Workers reap social, health and personal benefits from a positive atmosphere at their place of employment. Organizations that fail to foster a positive environment for employees risk hampering their ability to succeed. Jeffery Asherbranner believes firmly that a positive workplace environment is important to any company.

Employee Benefits

In her book, "Happiness at Work: Maximizing Your Psychological Capital for Success," Jessica Pryce-Jones notes that we spend more than a decade of our lives -- 90,000 hours -- at work. Jobs fulfill our need to belong and give us a sense of identity. The quality of our association with work depends on the quality of our relationships with colleagues, supervisors and clients as well as company culture. When those relationships and the environment in which we interact are positive, we feel valued and respected. We take pride in what we do, perform better and care about our employer’s future. We become engaged: connected to the organization, results, customers and coworkers. Our professional contentment spills over to our personal lives.

Adverse Consequences of a Negative Work Environment

A negative work environment has career and health consequences for employees. An employee's less-than-exemplary job performance resulting from frustration with bureaucracy, a bad boss, 70-hour-a-week work culture, coworker conflicts and hostility raises fears of dismissal, stress and unhappiness. Leaving a negative job situation carries economic uncertainty and interrupts a chosen career path. According to a 2008 study published in the International Journal on Disability and Human Development, negative work environments lead to insomnia, anxiety and depression.

Employer Benefits

The agency overseeing the federal performance evaluation system, U.S. Merit Systems Protection Board, notes that profitability, productivity, low turnover, an excellent safety record and customer satisfaction result from employee engagement created by a positive work environment. Engaged workers create a 20 percent increase in productivity and are nearly 90 percent more likely to stay with their employers such as Jeff Asherbranner, according to a Corporate Executive Board study cited in Snell's "Managing Human Resources" textbook. Organizations with a positive workplace also experience fewer Equal Employment Opportunity complaints and lower absenteeism.

Organizational Repercussions

Problems stemming from a negative employment atmosphere feed upon each other to the detriment of the entire organization. Attendance issues -- call-offs, lateness, leaving early -- lower productivity and poison morale. "Presenteeism," defined as reduced productivity while on the clock, leads to disengaged employees making errors due to their lack of concentration and motivation. Customer service suffers when unhappy workers cannot put on a happy face. Innovation and creativity lose their competitive advantage when disengaged researchers and product developers lose interest. As disillusioned employees leave, management loses credibility which tarnishes the organization's reputation and causes recruitment trouble. In an organization that keeps a positive environment such as Jeff-Asherbranner-Sales Consulting is an all around better business.

All information presented on this page is courtesy of http://work.chron.com/importance-positive-environment-workplace-3008.html.

To read more about Jeffery Asherbranner check out his website @ www.jeffasherbranner.net

Ripoff Report is a SCAM

Another site attesting to the criminal nature of ripoff report. Follow this link and see all of the information he has gathered including why Google has blocked Rip-Off Report for "Unacceptable Business Practices"

Jeffery Asherbranner- how to remove ripoff report

You simply can't!!!!

Xtream Media Servers: Jeffery Asherbranner and Xtream Media Servers: "It is a shame that I have to write this review. Jeff Asherbranner has done nothing but deliver over 30 machines to my company over the past 4 years..."

The "gentleman" from perfect home theater that says I owe him $1100.00 Should probably update the information he has mislead people with....oh wait...he can't!!!  There is no money owed and the charges he is referring to were shipping charges that he said he paid to UPS at their demand.  I could not understand for the life of me why he would pay them and then send me a bill.  The charges were collect to my UPS account.  My rates are much better than his...due to the fact perfect home theater inflates the prices of freight by almost 65%.  I wonder why I didn't agree to just pay him and thank him????

Jeff Asherbranner-trying to fight Ed Magedson Ripoffreport

Jeff Asherbranner, owner of StreamingBlu is being extorted by ripoff report like thousands of others.....read what others are saying.

Ed Magedson and Rip Off Report, well known criminal extortionist, is running triple scams right now on Rip Off Report. He writes his own false reports, along with his criminal dope smoking associates in New York and Arizona, the true fale complaint writters on Magedson's payroll.

NOW, he is selling the identity of the parties making the complaints on Rip Off Report. We authored a complaint on Rip Off Report agaisnt another manufacture who had written us 3 bad checks totalling 27 thousand dollars.

Two weeks after filing the report on Rip Off Report, the owner of the business was contact at his front door of his residence by the parties we filed the report agaisnt. They confessed they were sold the home address, telephone numbers and complete identity by Ed Magdeson for $5, 000 dollars.

If you think for a moment that by filing a Rip Off Report your identity and contact information is safe because Magedson says it is WATCH OUT. He is selling your identity for cash money now so you have been advised

This whole Rip Off Report is a huge huge criminal operation threatening every moral fiber god created us with inside of every honest person.

Rip off report posted what we know to be a Bogus because the facts are in error. Even the complainant says he never did business with us, but thinks our service is bogus. Our company is a member of Netcheck, with no complaints...This is the only negative in 5 years of doing business...The very next day, we received emails from another company called Green Rep Media, saying if we pay 3, 000 dollars the complaint can be removed...Really?
I am an SEO expert and you cannot remove items from the search engines... I immediately filed a complaint with the FTC and Attorney Generals office, about both Rip off Report and Green rep media...I have read to much about how bogus Rip off report is..
I hope that the FTC shuts this character down...If you are VICTUM OF HIS SCAM, report it immediately to the authorities---be careful about responding to the complaint on line on their website--you will only raise their profile on the internet...
Valid complaints about companies belong with the BBB, or Netcheck,
or the FTC, not Rip off report.

Find out more about Jeff Asherbranner at http://www.jeffasherbranner.net/

Jeffery Asherbranner and the great "ripoff report"

The fact that any consumer can look into ripoff report and find that the site and what it does is to extort legitimate businesses and run away from any responsiblity for ruining the livelihood of the very people that provide the majority of this nations gross national product (small business).

Jeff Asherbranner is one of those business owners.  Jeff Asherbranner tried to reach ripoff report and was told he could become a member of the CAP program.  This "allows" ripoff report to post positive testimonials about Streaming Blu and Jeff Asherbranner at a substantial fee of course.  We have found that it is always better to let others explain their experiences and let the consumer decide whether we should pay ripoff report or others to charge ten of thousands of dollars by extorting business owners.

 

This article is provided by A.S. Radin & Associates – a business brokering firm concerned with the negative affect that ripoffreport.com has on the business community. We are providing this open source for both victims of ripoffreport.com as well as those considering filing at ripoffreport.com. We want you to know the truth about ripoffreport.com.

First – any complaint that is filed by an ANONYMOUS person is done by a COWARD who knows their complaint is being done to slander someone without facts to back it up – ripoffreport.com – where COWARDS whine in ANONYMITY!

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Ripoffreport.com represents themselves as a consumer protection group hiding behind the Internet. However, unlike reputable consumer groups like the BBB etc – they do not investigate claims nor do they remove them when you can prove their reports malicious and false. Ripoffreport.com has become known as the National Enquirer counterpart to the Better Business Bureau and their owner has been accused of collusion, extortion and racketeering under the Federal RICO act. FURTHERMORE – we attempted to file our own report on ripoffreport.com AGAINST ripoffreport.com and surprise – it was not posted so their claim to file all reports is bogus as well.

They want false reports written because it gives them the opportunity to act in collusion with firms claiming to remove the complaints or attorneys “they recommend” – we are sure with a kick-back. And the fees to do this are criminal in themselves. They have been known to file their own false claims acting as someone else to induce the victim to use their “removal” or arbitration cronies.

And the kicker is they now have great reach on Google creating further publicity and need for the victims to buy into their collusion and use their sources. NOTE – a representative of Google told us that they have no interest in ripoffreport.com and they are helpless when it comes to their search rankings. So we took 20 random reports off Google from ripoffreport.com then checked with the Better Business Bureau – there was NOT ONE claim at the BBB that we pulled off ripoffreport.com.

If you are thinking about filing a claim on ripoffreport.com be aware that the majority of people now realize that this is a site where unscrupulous people file false reports as a complaint session when they know reputable firms like the BBB have either dismissed the claim or the claim was so libel they would not even look at it.

If you already filed a report on ripoffreport.com then read this…

We are not here casting judgment – you may indeed have a viable claim against whom you filed a ripoffreport.com report HOWEVER – whether it is true or done for spite – you made a HUGE mistake. You inadvertently lent your name to a web site that has been accused of collusion, extortion and racketeering under the Federal RICO act. AND YOU ARE PART OF IT.

SO how does that affect you? BEWARE that sooner rather than later ripoffreport.com will be cited or shut-down for spreading slander in attempted collusion – and every person filing a complaint WILL THEN BE OPEN TO SLANDER CLAIMS by their victims and ripoffreport.com will become the victim’s # 1 proof. This is serious and needs your attention.

Our advice – go to your ripoffreport.com post and file a new report rescinding your report before it is too late. If and when ripoffreport’s illegal activity hits the airwaves and courtrooms then you will lose and likely get sued or worse if your slander becomes a criminal case. If your case is real then use the BBB or other reputable consumer sources. Read the articles below about the site that you hitched your wagon too. And if this scares you – it should – act now. At least when push comes to shove you can claim that you rescinded your report.

So if you still believe that reports filed on ripoffreport.com are true then you are as bad as them. If you really want to check out a company – go the BBB or other recognized consumer groups.

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Here is a list of articles written about the illegal activity of ripoffreport.com

http://www.peoplescreditbureau.com/ripoff_report.php

http://www.consumeraffairs.com/online/ripoffreport.html

http://www.marketingpilgrim.com/2008/01/ripoff-report-ripping-off-those-reported.html

RACKETEERING-MOB-CHARGES-filed-Against-RipOffReport-Owner

Some law suits filed against them

the-anatomy-of-a-ripoff-report-lawsuit

cash4gold-scam-ripoffreport-com-scam.html

complaints/rip-off-report-c164257.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ripoff_Report

Ripoffreport.com collusion

More complaints

  http://www.reportsripoff.com/ripoffreportscam.php

http://www.complaintsboard.com/byurl/ripoffreport.com.html

These scam artists are ruining good reputations everywhere – THEY NEED TO BE SHUT DOWN