Small Business Internet Consulting Charleston |

Host: I am having problems with my website what can you do to help me?

Patrick Bruce: Well the first problem with the question is thinking that it is only one problem. Generally, I find that most websites have multiple problems, if you are asking me what I do to help business owners fix their websites; I start at the net bottom line profit

Host: Wait a minute what does the net bottom line profits have to do with my website.

Patrick Bruce: Where do you think, the money to build the website is going to come from? A website is like building a business within a business and if done correctly it will dramatically increase your net bottom line profits.

Host: How?

Patrick Bruce: Because the website compresses time, for example we can build a website in one week for $300 and $50 per month. ($900), and for that money you not only get a “electronic billboard” you also get an interactive calendar where anyone that does business with you can log in and update your calendar. If you have a secretary you are paying $10.00 per hour to keep your calendar, you just freed that person from a primary task in their job description. If it saves just 1 hour per day, the website pays for itself in 90 days.

Host: So you are saying the website is saving administration time.

Patrick Bruce: Right

Host: You have my attention tell me more

Patrick Bruce: You reduce your marketing cost immediately because of what Google is doing. Now when you place an ad, Google does not charge you unless someone decides to look at your advertisement.

Host: Yeah but that can get expensive.

Patrick Bruce: Well that is why you have to hire me. (Smiling)

Host: (laughing) how much?

Patrick Bruce (smiling) how much you got? (Laughing aloud), I am laughing but I am very serious, because it depends on what you want to accomplish on line. If you just want a brochure or a bunch of pages on the internet, that no one will ever find unless you tell them where it is, that is less then $1000 per year! On the other hand, if you want to reduce your marketing cost, and improved your employees’ productivity that a different approach

Host; How much more?

Patrick Bruce: Well the first thing is I look at the financial statements, to determine where the company is leaking profits. Let us say your labor cost is too high, I would then design the website that would allow you to track your employees time by having them sign in and sign out on your website.

Host: What do the financial statements tell you about my business?

Patrick Bruce: (Laughing) it tells me whether your business is under control

Host: How can you tell my business is under control by looking at the financial statements?

Patrick Bruce: The first clue is the bottom-line, if the bottom line is consistent the business is under control, but I am not referring to consistent dollars I am talking about consistent share of revenue.

Host: Explain

Patrick Bruce: Most people monitor the success of their business based on how much money they make. I base the success of a business about how much of the revenue you keep.

Host: My business has always made money and I invest it back into my business, I have always made money.

Patrick Bruce: I hear that a lot, my answer is always a question; would you rather make 10% on million dollars or 25% on a half million - $250,000!

You see the problem is that business owners have been trained by Wall Street that Revenues drives earnings and frankly, for a major corporations like Disney that might be true, but for a guy that owns a small software computer company the most important thing is cost controls.

Host: Easier said then done.

Patrick Bruce: Not necessarily, and you can do this without me, instead of looking at your balance sheet in terms of dollars only, have your accountant give you another copy that shows only the percentages and you will see exactly what I am talking about.

Host: So you are telling me that percentages are easier to measure.

Patrick Bruce: Well, not necessarily measure, but to manage; Let me give you an example if your rent is $1,000 per month, and your sales for the last three months were; $10,000, $20,000 and $30,000 – the rent as a percentage of gross sales is 10%, the rent goes from 10% in the first month to 3% in the third month. Where does the extra 7% go….directly to the bottom line!

Host: Well that certainly makes sense with the rent but what about my other primary cost my employees, it would take me more time, both mine and my employees to do $30,000 then it would be for $10,000.

Patrick Bruce: (smiling) to a point, however this is the first place most business owners lose control. Frankly, if your business is doing $10,000 and goes to $20,000 you are not going to hire another employee. . .

Host: (interrupting) . . . I do it myself

Patrick Bruce: Exactly and what that means is that 50 hour work weeks become a 70 hour work week.

Host: What do you do; it is hard to find good people, and the customer needs service.

Patrick Bruce; You plan for success, by controlling the growth of your business, and that is my whole point relative to the percentages.

Host: What would you recommend I do.

Patrick Bruce: (laughing) Pay me and I will tell you, seriously, the first thing is to develop a predetermined net profit, and put profit at the top of every product or service in the business, and put it on a spreadsheet and study it and plan on the growth

Host: What do you mean by pre-determined net profits?

Patrick Bruce: Pre-determined net profit is simply the value to your time. My business is not dictated by dollars but by the amount of time, I want to spend working. In my case I have set my income at a reasonable $5000 per month. However, I only want to work 100 hours per month. Therefore, my breakeven rate is $50 per hour times 100 hours.

Host: What happens when you cannot sell 100 hours per month?

Patrick Bruce: (Laughing aloud) I work 200 hours like every one else. Fortunately, I can sell more hours then I really want to work and that is the whole point about pre-determined net profits. If you go to my website, you can see my pricing plan you will see my rates and the amount of time it takes to complete each assignment.