Fri, Dec 05, 2008
 Greg Cooke, Doug Seckendorf and Leah Cooke, from left, finish up work on high school graduation programs. The three employees were busy Friday at the Arizona House of Graphix. The print shop aims to "stay on people's minds" even during the slow times of summer. Benjie Sanders / Arizona Daily Star
Assessment Technology, Inc Social Studies Content Writer Health Care Rio Salado College PA's/Online Instructors General CORT WAREHOUSE/DRIVER General CORT Warehouse Supervisor Construction Komatsu Equipment Co Mechanic BusinessSurviving the summer slump for small businessesArizona Daily Star
Tucson, Arizona | Published: 05.27.2008
Here it comes — our annual "summer slowdown," in which our humble town loses many of its inhabitants.
Winter visitors are long gone. College students have gone home. A bunch of people who live here year-round go on vacation.
What's a small-business owner to do?
One thing not to do is despair, said Charlie O'Dowd, who runs the Southern Arizona chapter of the Arizona Small Business Association.
There's no need to lay off employees — which would only contribute to the bad economy and cause business owners to work more hours in place of those employees, he said.
And if possible, folks shouldn't reduce their advertising and marketing budgets, but there's no need to increase that spending right now, either, O'Dowd said.
Rather, it's a perfect time for small-business owners to clean house and establish more of an identity within the community, he said.
"There's no doubt that this is the season to take the opportunity to organize and to assess inventories, and to spend a lot of time networking and getting your message out on an individual basis to potential customers," O'Dowd said.
He emphasized the networking aspect the most, saying, "People do business with people they know, like and trust."
By planting your business name in other people's heads, it makes them more aware of people who need your service so they can recommend you, he said.
Leah Cooke, president of the Arizona House of Graphix printing firm at 3700 N. Oracle Road, said she learned a lot of lessons about what to do during down times right after Sept. 11, 2001, when nobody was buying anything for days.
"Even if you have time on your hands, you want to stay on people's minds," she said. "Even when you're slow, you want to stay on people's minds."
Even though snowbirds and college students are not her customers, they are her customers' customers, she said.
She and her four employees give their remaining customers extra attention and clean up their hard drives so that when more customers return, they're ready.
Cooke also likes to attend networking events, she said, because they offer insight into what other industries are going through, and it's good to be around other people who are "forward-looking and haven't given up."
"Most people who are out at the networks and have a positive attitude: We're slow, but we're going to be OK," Cooke said.
Networking help: Go to the phones
Here are several Tucson-area networking groups you might want to check out this summer while you have extra time. Some are free. Some have a nominal fee that includes a meal. Some have several events each month with fees that vary by event.
Tucson Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce 792-2250
National Association of Women Business Owners 326-2926
Entrepreneurial Mothers Association 400-7723
Arizona Small Business Association 327-0222
Northern Pima County Chamber of Commerce 297-2191
Marana Chamber of Commerce 682-4314
Green Valley-Sahuarita Chamber of Commerce 1-800-858-5872
Tucson Business Connection 219-0266
Tucson Hispanic Chamber of Commerce 620-0005
Tucson-Southern Arizona Black Chamber of Commerce 623-0099
Tucson Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgendered Chamber of Commerce 615-6436
● Contact reporter Shelley Shelton at 434-4086 or sshelton@azstarnet.com.
|
|
0 Comments on this story