Case in point: My friend Carol took early retirement from her employer, a large university.  She was the administrator for a department, and her work included administration, personnel,  and financial management;  she also has a PhD.  She is looking for work, but she is finding many people who say she is “over-qualified” and they are afraid she will get bored. Carol needs to work for her own self-esteem and to keep busy.  Carol and other Baby Boomers like her could be a great asset to your  small business.

Work Ethic. Baby Boomers know how to work; they have been doing it for many years. They know how to keep a job, show up on time,  and follow directions.  They didn’t get where they are without that work ethic.

Dependability and Reliability. Baby Boomers are reliable; they don’t take time off to care for young children.  They come in early and stay late and they understand responsibility.

Skills and Experience. They know their fields well; many have been working for 20 years and more. They aren’t over-qualified; in fact, they have the qualifications you need to help you.  Carol, for example, can help you hire employees, keep your finances in order, and provide you with reports and analysis.

Carol and others (yes, me too) are just what you need.  In my case, I was ready to leave the stress of a management job for a quieter life working from home.  Like Carol, and me, Baby Boomers can be a huge benefit to your new business.  Don’t count them out.

Image source: Newscom

Post from: EveryJoe

Need Business Help? Hire a Baby Boomer!

All Businesses Start as MicroBusinesses. Hewlett-Packard started in a garage in Palo Alto, California in 1939.  Microsoft was basically a two-man start-up with Bill Gates and Paul Allen.  You get the picture.   McDonald’s was a little hamburger place in California when it was discovered by Ray Kroc. Any big company you see today probably started as a Very Small Business.

MicroBusinesses Employ People.  Microbusinesses represent 87% of U.S. businesses.  This alone doesn’t mean much, until you see that:

• One out of every six U.S. private sector employees works for a microenterprise,
• More than 4.5 million new jobs were created in the US by microenterprises between 2000 and 2005,
• On average, microenterprises are responsible for 900,000 new jobs created per year.
• In 2002 when the US saw record high unemployment of 5.8%, microenterprises created close to 1 million new jobs.

MicroEnterprises are Necessary for Future Economic Growth. With even higher unemployment today and little prospect for regaining those jobs, many people will be turning to the creation of a Very Small Business as a way to make a living and provide a better way of life for themselves, their families, and their employees. Baby Boomers in particular, who have been the victim of downsizing, have little prospect for new careers except as business owners.  For us, it’s either find a way to own your own VSB or sign on as a WalMart greeter.

As you can see, whatever you call them – MicroBusiness, MicroEnterprise, or VSB – these businesses are an important factor in the success of business enterprise in the U.S. and ultimately the world.

The statistics on MicroBusinesses are from the Association for Enterprise Opportunity.

Image source: sxc.hu

Post from: EveryJoe

MicroBusinesses Are Vital to Future

Baby Boomers are on a “recession diet” (coined by Miranda Marquit of Yielding Wealth) and they are spending less.  Boomers are starting to retire and their incomes have been cut significantly.  This “diet” they are on includes very little discretionary spending. Even younger Boomers are on a diet, concerned that they will run out of money.

Boomers are waiting to see what will happen next before they spend money.  They are holding on, hoping the market will increase.  If they don’t have to buy that appliance or Hi Def TV, they won’t.  If they don’t have to take that vacation, they won’t.
Some Baby Boomers are borrowing for living expenses (10% at one count), so they don’t have money for much of anything.

But, having said that, there are some ways to get Baby Boomers to buy now:

Lower your prices. I know this is difficult but it worked for the cruise lines. Carnival Cruise Lines had its best month ever in February by lowering prices.  Go as low as you can to get the business.

Outsmart the competition.  I talked with a Bed and Breakfast owner who said, “Room nights are a perishable commodity.  Once they are gone, you can’t get them back.  And you have to be competitive with your prices to get people to come to you.  B&B’s used to say, “We’re not competing with hotels.”  Now they are and they have to figure out ways to give potential customers something that the competition doesn’t have.

Concentrate on value. Think about benefits, not features.  Features are gadgets, things you think are cool about your products or services.  But benefits are what make people buy.  If you can find a way to get people to see the value in what you are selling, they will buy.

Post from: EveryJoe

How to Get Baby Boomers to Buy Now

Image: www.SXC.hu

As you can see, according to the graph, older boomers almost doubled in each area from 2007 to 2008 as they started incorporating social technology into their daily business. The only area that decreased were the Inactives (see the legend below for more details). What does all of this mean in today’s business environment and economy?

• Many major companies are starting to recognize that reaching this age backet now includes social websites such as Facebook, LinkedIn or Twitter.
• Create an interactive way for baby boomers to be attracted to your website through the use of videos or audios.
• Incorporate marketing plans that reaches out to baby boomer online communities such as:
  • www.BoomJ.com: The name BOOMj derives from the two primary audiences we serve: the Baby Boomers Generation and Generation Jones – both born during the big 20-year, post-World War II boom in births from the mid-1940’s to mid-1960’s.
  • www.Senior.org: The Seniors Coalition is the nation’s leading free-market senior education and advocacy organization with a membership of more than 4 million seniors.
  • www.TBD.com: or TeeBeeDee is a social network that allows people at midlife to exchange information and experiences, learn from each other, and connect to like minded people. Membership is free.
  • www.AARP.org: is a nonprofit, nonpartisan membership organization that helps people 50 and over improve the quality of their lives.

Each section is divided up into different types of Social Technology or Internet users as followers:

• Creators: those who are actual producers of web content or websites that interact with others via the Internet
• Critics: those who provide feedback regarding web content
• Collectors: those who gather information via the Internet
• Joiners: many who feel that uniting with others via social media is their way of connecting via the Internet
• Spectators: usually have limited interaction with others socially via the Internet
• Inactives: not actively interacting with others via the Internet.

Image: Flckr.com account for Jeremiah Owyang

Post from: EveryJoe

Business, Baby Boomers, and Social Media