 |
| HOME | AUCTIONS | CONTACT US | ASRN RADIO | |
|
||
|
|
EIGHT STRATEGIES TO MAKE YOUR SMALL BUSINESS SUCCEED
ALPHA DOGS: How Your Small Business Can Become a Leader of the Pack By Donna Fenn
"For small-business owners looking to give their enterprise a boost, this practical and chatty book provides solid strategies for shifting into high gear." --Publishers Weekly
There are approximately 5.7 million small businesses in the United States, and Americans are launching new ventures at the rate of about a million a year. But while the lure and the promise of entrepreneurship are great, so are the challenges. In a fiercely competitive environment, what does it take for a small business to not only succeed, but succeed spectacularly? How does a company move far ahead of its competitors to become a "leader of the pack"--to become an "Alpha Dog"? Donna Fenn, a contributing editor for Inc. Magazine, has more than twenty years' experience writing about entrepreneurs and small business trends. In ALPHA DOGS: How Your Small Business Can Become a Leader of the Pack (December 1, 2005/$24.95 hardcover), she has selected eight representative companies, each of which has pursued a specific strategy to become preeminent in their market. In choosing these Alpha Dog companies, she focused on what she calls "'real world" businesses--the kinds of companies you'll find in virtually every big city or small town in America--to reveal the extraordinary wisdom that can be found in the most ordinary businesses. "You'll meet entrepreneurs in a variety of industries from all over the United States whose companies appear quite ordinary, even mundane, but who have moved to the head of the pack," she writes. "And I think they have more to teach us than the high-tech and high-glitz companies we so often read about in the business press." Meet the Alpha Dogs: Auction Systems Auctioneers & Appraisers (Phoenix, Arizona). Strategy: Use of Technology Deb Weidenhamer was an early adopter of technology in an old-line industry that has a reputation for clinging to the status quo. By approaching eBay and other Internet auctions as opportunities rather than threats, she has grown her company exponentially, earning a place on Inc. Magazine's annual list of the 500 fastest-growing privately held companies three years in a row.
Zane's Cycles (Branford, Connecticut). Strategy: Customer Service Chris Zane has leveraged a stellar reputation for customer service at a single small-town retail store to expand into the lucrative corporate sales market. He's now one of the biggest bicycle dealers in the country and the number one Trek dealer in the United States.
Dorothy Lane Market (Dayton, Ohio). Strategy: Employee Engagement Independent grocery stores are a dying breed, but Norman Mayne has kept his family-owned company growing and vibrant not only by offering great products and service, but by regarding his employees as his most effective secret weapon. He's converted them into true believers--people whose words and deeds thoroughly and consistently reflect his long-term vision.
Amy's Ice Creams (Austin, Texas). Strategy: Community Connections Amy's has thrived even as chains like Ben & Jerry's and Cold Stone Creamery have moved into its territory. That's because Amy Simmons has solidly established herself as a quintessential Austin company, embracing the local culture and community to give herself a killer competitive advantage that the chains can't touch.
THOR∙LO (Statesville, North Carolina). Strategy: Innovation Jim Throneburg applied the principles of innovation to a commodity product, creating a whole new category of socks. As a result, this family-owned company has grown, thrived, and continued to manufacture in the United States while many other sock companies have gone belly-up or moved their manufacturing operations overseas.
Dancing Deer Baking Company (Boston, Massachusetts). Strategy: Branding The majority of specialty food manufacturers remain small and local, unable to navigate the obstacles that lead to national distribution. But by branding her company, her products, and her mission, Trish Karter has given Dancing Deer the kind of national, cross-channel appeal that other artisanal bakeries can only hope for.
PRConsultants Group (nationwide). Strategy: Alliances PRConsultants Group is a formal alliance of small public relations companies and solo public relations practitioners. Each retains its independence, yet the group leverages its combined expertise and contacts to land and serve clients that would have been out of reach for any one of them working alone.
Mike's Famous Harley-Davidson (New Castle, Delaware; Smyrna, Delaware; Groton, Connecticut). Strategy: Reinvention Mike Schwartz bought a lackluster Harley-Davidson dealership on the wrong side of the tracks and transformed it into a major roadside attraction. But reinventing his business just once wasn't enough; to keep several steps ahead of his competition, he does it every day. In 2004, his New Castle, Delaware, facility sold more new Harley motorcycles than any other U.S. Harley dealership.
Fenn devotes a chapter to each of these companies, revealing in an accessible narrative style exactly how they became market-leaders. Each chapter concludes with specific tips from the founder of the Alpha Dog company profiled, as well as from other successful small businesses, that illuminate the specific strategy. In a concluding chapter, Fenn discusses the qualities that these disparate businesses have in common. Chief among these is an awareness that what makes an Alpha Dog isn't its stock in trade; it's the company itself. "Companies make the leap from ordinary to extraordinary when their leaders step back from what they do and focus on how they're doing it," she writes. ALPHA DOGS combines real-life success stories with practical, hands-on advice and proven strategies that can be used by virtually any business, large or small. It also drives home "one of the most important and inspiring lessons that any business owner can take to heart," Fenn notes: "It's possible to grow a great company in any industry or any economy."
About the Author Donna Fenn is a contributing editor for Inc. Magazine. In 2001 she was a co-recipient of the Women's Economic Round Table Entrepreneurship Prize, sponsored by the Kauffman Center for Entrepreneurial Leadership. Her work has appeared in The New York Times, Newsweek, The Washington Monthly, Working Woman, and many other publications. She lives in Pelham, NY with her husband, two children and three dogs.
About the Book TITLE: ALPHA DOGS: How Your Small Business Can Become a Leader of the Pack AUTHOR: Donna Fenn PUBLICATION DATE: December 1, 2005 PRICE: $24.95, hardcover PAGES: 224 INDEXED ISBN: 0-06-075867-8 |
|
© Copyright Auction Systems
Auctioneers & Appraisers, Inc. 2008 |
