(Add to Favorites | View All Articles | Resource Directory)
|
|
|
Small Businesses With Work Trucks; A Warning
If you are a non-operator owner of many work trucks, you should keep your business credit card with you not leave it in one of the trucks. You should not issue them to employees without strict guidlines. Employees may tend to abuse credit cards by buying things that are not an emergency such as tires that are over priced instead of simply plugging a hole in a flat or spraying fix-a flat into the valve stem. Here is a story: A franchisee's manager who we'll call 'Arnold' had a blow-out in one of the rear tires on the duallies. It turned out the valve stem ripped out. He drove about two miles to a tire shop and decided to take care of the problem. The tires were one-half worn, good for another 10,000 miles or one-half year. When he got to the tire shop, he could have: Purchased a valve stem for $2.50 Put a tube in the tire for $10.00-$15.00 Or bought a used tire that was one-half worn to match the other set. Arnold wasn't sure if he had destroyed the structural integrity of the tire by driving the two miles to the tire shop. So he decided to replace the tire and not just the valve stem. Since he had a company credit card and it wasn't his money, he purchased a new tire for $75.00 plus $5.00 mounting and tax plus $2.00 for balancing. About $90.00 in all. Unfortunately, it didn't match the other three rear wheel tires and the tire man said "Tell you what I'm going to do!" He sold Arnold what he called real truck tires, four (4) of them for $350.00 calling them 'on sale.' The four used tires were taken off and thrown into the used pile. Arnold drove off with four new tires. The next day, Steve, another franchisee noticed his tires needed to be replaced. He owned the franchise that bordered Bill's franchise. (Bill is Arnold's boss.) He drove to Herb's tire shop where Arnold went the day before. Herb's manager that helped Arnold into a new set of tires figured Steve was an easy kill but this time the $90.00 per tire became $109.00 a tire and a set of four was only $440.00 on 'super sale' of course. Steve also had a company credit card, but unlike Arnold, Steve had to pay the bill. Steve asked about used tires. The manager of the tire store tried to persuade Steve for ten minutes with talk on the safety of new tires. Meanwhile, Steve's helper had already signed up three car washes and had completed one. The manager of the tire shop gave up in frustration on trying to close the big sale and said "I have four used tires the right size but they are in good shape so I need $30.00 each plus $5.00 for mounting and tax and $2.00 for balancing." Steve laughed and said "No tax. I pay cash and it will have to be more like $20.00 per tire including everything. The manager said "I'll have to ask Herb." Herb said "Cash. Hell yes! Put them in the front of the line." By this time Steve's worker was wiping down his third car. $80.00 for four tires is a good deal, right! Right, but Steve asked Herb if he wanted his car washed and waxed. Herb said "How much?" Steve said "How about $50.00 off my used tires?" Herb said "Great." So Steve washed and vacuumed Herb's car and then brought his truck into the work bay. Steve paid: $80.00 Cash Price -50.00 Trade = $30.00 Amount To Be Paid - $15.00 Amount Made By His Worker = $15.00 For Four Tires Hmm. Good Deal? Yes or No? Well guess what. Herb sold Steve Arnold's old tires that he got for free because Arnold left them there. Herb's manager charged Arnold a $1.00 disposal fee for the used tires. Moral of the Story: Trade whenever possible Don't let employees have company credit cards You can always get a better deal for cash Company credit cards are good in some ways. For instance, you will get an itemized invoice monthly, which is good for record keeping. They are also good for making purchases over the phone or by mail. Credit cards make things much easier. They are also a necessity for ordering supplies from your online small business vendors. Think about it. "Lance Winslow" - If you have innovative thoughts and unique perspectives, come think with Lance; www.WorldThinkTank.net/wttbbs
MORE RESOURCES: News provided by Yahoo! News and Google News Tools And Tips For Small-Biz Spam Assassins - bMighty.com Small-business leaders, aerospace group give Colorado lawmakers their wish lists (BizJournals) Small Biz Must Be Creative To Survive - NBC4i.com Is Your Small Business Web Provider Up to the Task? (HispanicBusiness.com) Small Biz: New shop strives for global connection - Online Athens |
|
|
|
RELATED ARTICLES
Build Credibility, Value, and Trust on a Shoestring Setting priorities in your business? Your first job is to sell. Selling is - writing the orders; receiving the cash; feeding the beast. What Happened to the Money and Freedom? Ask anyone trapped in a cubical about their entrepreneurial dream and they will tell you, "I want to own my own business. I'll make more and have more time. Get Approved for a Franchise Deciding to start your own franchise is just one of the first steps to getting started. Buying a franchise is a lot like dating. Creative Metrification - A Technique to Improve Some things in business are relatively easy to measure - these are the "hard" metrics such as sales volume and profit, production per man-hour, time without an accident, shipments without error, number of customers served, on-time delivery, etc. Other, "soft" metrics, are more difficult to quantify, but with a little creativity, measurement can be made of just about anything. Top 10 Lessons for Small Business Success - As learned From My Twin 3 Year Olds Small business success is very similar to learning to walk, talk and spell. The basics have to be understood before moving on to the next step. Most Franchises Are Small Home Businesses Many of our nations 400,000 franchisees run their businesses out of their homes and therefore their home addresses and phone numbers are listed in the Unifrom Franchsie Offering Circular's, attachments. Uniform Franchise Circulars, UFOC, are for franchise buyers and they explain the investment involved. Franchisor Prospect Checklist Sample Form Due to the over regulation in the Franchising Industry and the litigation it is important to keep impeccable records. From the first phone call, email to the signing of the franchise agreement everything should be documented. Surviving in a tumultuous economy Contrary to popular belief, small businesses can survive a crazy economy by taking some proactive steps. Provide spectacular customer service -- every time. Government Does Not Pay Its Bills on Time Many small companies work very hard to get new accounts. Occasionally they try to get government contracts to supply products or services. Small Business Failures in America - Cash Flow Issues We are noticing an increase in the length of time it takes Large corporations to pay on their invoices to our team. Fortune 500s are tending to pay their vendors more slowly, which will hurt the already strapped small businesses in America. Who Makes the BEST Alliance What types of companies do you want to align yourself with?What is the best company to align with? It is a company that does not quite compete with your core business. By this we mean that the company has offerings that dovetail into what you have to offer. Pet Grooming Business Do you like animals? Would you like to work for yourself? Pet grooming could be the career for you.A grooming business is more than just washing dogs. Keep TRACK of your Business Relationships and Gain Profits How do you know when an alliance needs to be monitored and tracked?More often than not, an alliance needs to be monitored and tracked. If you ignore your alliance partner at all, you will be losing ground and your business relationship will not be what you expect. You Are Invited Business card size works well for invitations to special events.What do you visualize when you think about invitations? More than likely you are thinking about a wedding or a party. FFP vs. CPFF Contracts SBIR Corner: FFP vs. CPFF contracts:In the SBIR/STTR world, the single most important decision you need to make is whether you are going to bid a job as Firm Fixed Price (FFP) or as Cost plus Fixed Fee (CPFF). Creating a Power Plan Part of the power plan is making sure you have all the necessary contact information within a company. It is one thing to have the CEO's information, as he is the decision-maker, but it is quite another to have the information on others that you may be working with directly. Small Business Marketing: Specialize or Generalize? There have been many great points raised on both sides of this discussion. In order to make a final decision, we must look at how the business world is moving and at the purchasing patterns of the consumers who will be utilizing your services. FTC Franchise Rule if Enacted will Trigger Hardship for Private Sector The FTC Franchise Rule maybe changed, as the Federal trade Commission has put out a report to the franchising industry as to upgrade the rule. If enacted will it will trigger hardship for private sector and cost many trees their lives; Paperwork. Looking for small business financing $37.4 million funded from venture capital today. Wichita Kansas is a Great Place to Run a Business We love Wichita because it has great all round weather except during ice storms and the once in a while Tornado threat, which could carry away you best workers to meet Dorothy. 225 sunny days a year snow about 5 days a year.
|
| home | site map | articles |
| © 2006 |