You might think your customers are happy. But are they really?

Let’s hope so.

But wouldn’t it be better to know for sure?

Well, you can’t read minds, but you can accomplish second best.

Create a survey.

You’ve probably seen them, a website attached to the bottom of a receipt, asking you to fill out a survey online.

“Get 10% off your next purchase by taking 10 minutes”…that sort of thing.

You’ve got to add an incentive. A discount. A “Buy 1, Get 1″ offer. Something.

And in exchange, you’ll receive valuable information that will ultimately help your business.

Try Zoomerang. And get ready to read minds!

A good way to make sure you’re protected is to look for local legal clinics happening in your area.

A legal clinic can give you the tools you need to make sure you are legally protected in your business venture(s).

If you can’t afford a private attorney of your own, get help from volunteer attorneys who can give you the knowledge you need to proceed with confidence.

Being an entrepreneur, you have to educate yourself to make sure you are not being taken advantage of or misled.

No one is going to do it for you.

You need to enlist the appropriate help and do it first thing! Before you get too carried away with making plans, make sure the legal issues are taken care of.

You’ll be glad you did when/if your legality is tested.

Have you ever had “one of those days?” You know, the ones where you can’t seem to make anyone happy?

Dealing with hard-to-please customers can be a drag. The truth is, we’re not always equipped to handle touch situations with the grace and professionalism required of us.

How do we learn how to do better?

Well, the first step is admitting you are not a miracle worker, and that other people just might be better at handling these types of situations than you are.

Yep, it’s a tough pill to swallow.

The good news is that there is something you can do to better yourself and increase your power to please!

It’s a simple solution, really. Attend a workshop at your local community college!

Many facilities offer small business seminars and classes on how to deal with difficult and irate customers, amongst a plethora of other business topics.

Check out your own community college class schedule to find out more information.

Need to get busy?

Accelerate your business now!

Want to avoid eating someone else’s dust?

Get moving…fast!

It just might be time to kick your business into high gear.

Sales slowing? Employees lagging?

These are signs of impending doom. So don’t wait another minute. Start looking for ways to get ahead of the race.

Update your computer system. Get rid of slacking staff members that are bringing down morale. Rewrite your business plan. Arrange a high-energy meeting. Have a sale. Do something!

But whatever you do, don’t go backward. Rise to the challenge and always…always…move forward.

One of the worst things you can do when trying to build a good reputation is make a grammatical mistake!

Believe it or not, one simple spelling error or typo can make your public see you as irresponsible, unprepared, messy, lazy or ignorant.

People can be very unforgiving! And when you put yourself out there in words, you’ve got to make sure those words are written correctly!

Think of it as being in school. You turn in an essay. Your teacher grades it.

Do you want an A?

When you were a student you used a dictionary. You used a thesaurus. So what tools do you use these days?

Remember, your learning doesn’t stop when you achieve a degree. And whether or not you like to admit it, you DON’T know everything!

So get some help. Be conscientious and extra careful when proof reading your own work.

Because no one likes to be distracted by run-on sentences and misspelled words. And once you bump into one, it’s very hard to forget about it.

I recently had a disappointing experience at a restaurant. They had offered me a “Buy One, Get One” dinner promotion through the mail, which I decided to take advantage of.

As with most offers of this kind, I assumed I would have to actually dine inside the restaurant to be eligible to receive the free entree. However, I wanted take-out!

I read the coupon over and over a few times, making sure there were no stated restrictions. It didn’t say anything about not being valid on take-out orders, so I decided to go for it. I phoned in my order and a short 15 minutes later was at the restaurant to pick it up.

I suspected the staff might give me some grief. I was right. Although, when I pointed out that no restrictions were placed on the promotional deal, they shrugged and agreed to let me have the free entree.

They had to.

Still, I walked away annoyed. In truth, I wouldn’t have gone to that particular restaurant in the first place. It was only because I had received the coupon in the mail that I decided to give them my business on that particular night!

And isn’t that the point of a promotion?!?

Yet, the staff still had to push it, even though they were in the wrong. I don’t need that kind of hassle, especially when I’m patronizing YOUR business!

Let this be a lesson to all you business people out there: HONOR YOUR COMMITMENTS. OH, AND THE CUSTOMER IS ALWAYS RIGHT! (Especially when they really are!)

Whether we like it or not, summer is coming to an end - at least in the business world.

While the weather may still be telling you there is plenty of time for camping, beaches, picnics and barbecues, businesses must start to get prepared for the next season.

You might still roll your eyes when passing windows dressed with Halloween costumes (Halloween?…in August!?!), but you’re right there with ‘em.

At least you should be.

Now is the time to gear up for the Autumn months to come.

And having a summer blowout sale is a great way to clear your inventory.

As a small business owner, you’ve got to practice forward thinking if you want to stay ahead of the game.

So long summer, hello Holidays!