The Business Behind Small Business

39. Let's talk about quality control for what you are delivering to your clients! How do you make sure you are hitting the mark for your customers each and every time? In today's episode, Sevana and Tiffany talk about what and how to install quality control in your company along with software, systems, and tools they used themselves or would highly recommend for other business owners who...

#38. In today's episode, Sevana and Tiffany are back with part 2 of talks about getting into government contracting, the major pitfalls to avoid and some cautionary tales of contractors who didn't follow the rules and what happened to them. Famous Example -  #1: https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/government-contractor-sentenced-57-months-prison-37-million-procurement-fraud-scheme #2: https:/...

#25. Government contracting is one of the most lucrative and least understood revenue channels available to small businesses — and most owners who could qualify never pursue it because the process feels impossibly complex. This episode demystifies the path into government contracting for small business owners: what certifications exist and which ones you might qualify for (8(a), WOSB, HUBZone, SDV...

#36. Today, we have a replay...business and life got in the way of our recording schedule so we pulled out an episode that is an oldie but a goodie, as they say, and the perfect followup to our last episode about client who ghost you. This replay is of the 3rd episode that Sevana and I have ever worked on together. We were (and still are) two good friends with lots to say and share, while trying t...

#35. In today's episode, Sevana and Tiffany talk about what does it mean when a client ghosts you, especially when they owe you money, and, how do you prevent it from happening? Famous Example -  The 5 Best Debt Collection Agencies ( https://www.investopedia.com/best-debt-collection-agencies-4846335 ) E-Book: Accounts Receivable Management Best Practices By John G. Salek ( https://www.amazon....

#34. In today's episode, Sevana and Tiffany talk about Sole Proprietorship, S-Corp, C-Corp, and what you should be and when. Famous Example -  Hulk Hogan and Gawker Media Rihanna and Fenty Videos -  Explanations on entity formation: https://youtu.be/uXOHnZy0y4A https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H3BcB1r5h74 Books: LLC vs S Corp vs C Corp Explained ( https://www.amazon.com/LLC-vs-S-Corp-C-Corp-Ex...

#33. In today's episode, Sevana and Tiffany discuss who you should hire when and why. What purpose do key personnel serve, and how would you know when you them?  Famous Example -  Brian Scudamore of 1-800-Got-Junk ( https://bench.co/blog/small-business-stories/brian-scudamore/ ) Other Brian Scudamore interviews: YouTube Interview: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yDDaHMZYE3s NPR How I Built Th...

#32. In today's episode, Sevana and Tiffany dive into a question that business owners who hire employees will ask: at what point should you consider hiring an HR professional and what are the benefits and drawbacks (if any)  you should consider? Famous Example -  Uber ( https://www.usatoday.com/story/tech/2019/12/18/uber-sexual-harassment-investigation-me-too/2694091001/ ) FedEx Wegman's...

#31. In today's episode, Sevana and Tiffany will discuss working with a team you don’t see. How to build a remote culture, is it possible, can you do it effectively, and if so, what is the secret to that success? Famous Example -  Slack ( https://hbr.org/2021/02/wfh-doesnt-have-to-dilute-your-corporate-culture )  Alibaba ( https://hbr.org/2021/02/wfh-doesnt-have-to-dilute-your-corporate-cultu...

#30. In today's episode, Sevana and Tiffany discuss onboarding practices and how to create a workplace experience that goes hand in hand with that. Has the conversation changed since Covid, and do you expect things to stay the same? If they do, how do you ensure you’re the right fit for this new wave of workplace culture? **We apologize for the inconsistent sound quality in this episode, but...

#29. In today's episode, Sevana and Tiffany talk about the interview process and what to do and not to do for a successful hire in the 2nd part of our 3-part series about hiring post COVID! Famous Example -  Chic-Fil-A (Article 1 Here ) Chick-Fil-A (Article 2 Here ) Books -  Redefining HR: Transforming People Teams to Drive Business Performance By Lars Schmidt Articles -  Best Practices for S...

#28. In today's episode, Sevana and Chloe/Tiffany will focus on how culture has changed! The expectations of a job from the employee’s perspective and how important that is for you as the employer to know when searching for talent. Famous Example -  WWII, Apollo 13, Dyson, Alibaba, Chick-Fil-A (Article Link Here )  IBM, Peloton, Mirror(Article Link Here and Here )  Articles -  Work After Covi...

27. In today's episode, Sevana and Chloe shed some light on what digital marketing is and what you should be doing with it at any stage in your business. Famous Example -  Dollar Shave Club (Article Link Here )  ALS Ice Bucket Challenge (Article Link Here )  Books -  Hooked: How to Build Habit-Forming Products by Nir Eyal  Jab, Jab, Right Hook by Gary Vaynerchuk  Articles -  What is Digital M...

#26. In today's episode, Sevana and Chloe share why networking for the purposes of creating long-term relationship is so important to your business and your business future. Article refer'd by Chloe: Paul Teshima  Article refer'd by Sevana: Harvard Business Review   Famous Exp - Paul Teshima & Eloqua (Article Link Here )  Mark Z. & Steve Jobs (Article Link Here ) Books - You...

#25. In today's episode, Sevana and Chloe want to help you think about your brand and how your brand is your success! Article about Branding from 99designs.com referenced by Chloe. Famous Example -  Warby Parker (Article Link Here ) Apple (Article Link Here )  Books -  Building a StoryBrand by Donald Miller  Start with Why by Simon Sinek Website -  Simon Sinek TED Talk   https://storybrand.co...

#24. In this episode, Sevana and Chloe are deep diving into what happens to your business when something happens to you. Famous Examples -  Jeff Bezos ( HRD Magazine Article ) Sarah Winchester and the Winchester Mystery House ( History Chick Podcast Episode Link ) Books -  The Culture Code by Daniel Coyle Keep the Family Baggage Out of the Family Business: Avoiding the Seven Deadly Sins that Destr...

#23. In this episode, our hosts, Sevana Stone and Chloe Lee talk about ways to avoid or take steps to transition out of being a slave to your business and feeling like you've created a job for yourself rather than the business owner that you set out to be! Famous Example -  Cathy Hughes: How I Built This - Radio One  Ford's and Mazda's Process Mining   AirBNB Product Development Pro...

#22. In this episode, Sevana and Chloe share actionable advice of how to make 1-2-1s work for you so you don't miss an opportunity or waste your time.  Famous Example: It Takes A Village to Raise An Entrepreneur Ada Loveletter Recommendations: Books -  Duck Tape Marketing By John Jantsch The Referral Engine: Teaching Your Business to Market By John Jantsch Video -  The Art of Asking - Ted Tal...

#21. In this episode, Sevana and Chloe share actionable advice of how to make 1-2-1s work for you so you don't miss an opportunity or waste your time.  Today’s famous examples include: Matthew McConaughey BMW and Louie Vuitton Target & Influencer and Local Brands Today’s recommendations include: Books -  (Original Article of Chloe's list is found here: https://www.forbes.com/sites/rh...

Sevana and Chloe hosts a short and special holiday episode that previews what's to come next year, ending with a small Christmas story as this episode's famous example.  *************************** To all our listeners: THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU We are honored to have you listen to us in 2021 and we hope we can continue to provide value to you in 2022. Happy holidays and happy new ye...

#20: In this episode, Sevana and Chloe talk about what to do with those business cards you are giving out or receiving from your networking activity so you are making the cards work for you and your business. Do business cards still have a use in this day and age or are they a relic of the past? Today’s famous examples include: Mark Zuckerburg's first business card A History of Business Cards...

#19: In this episode, Sevana and Chloe start a 4-part series about networking! To kick things off for Part 1, they discuss how you can best navigate a networking event, the do's and the don'ts that you can apply to your next networking opportunity, and advice to help make you a more effective networker. Today’s famous examples include: Jimmy Fallon ( Business Insider Article ) Business W...

#18: In this episode, Sevana and Chloe share stories about themselves, talk about their most impactful lessons while creating and working on their business, their inspirations, and dig a little deeper into what makes them tick. This is a great episode you don't want to miss! Today’s famous examples include: Sara Blakely ( https://spanx.com/pages/about-us ) Tony Robbins ( https://www.tonyrobbi...

#17: In this episode, Sevana and Chloe share share tips, advice, and pain points to help you hire right the first time, every time.  Today’s famous examples include: www.greenhouse.io > www.booking.com > slack.com www.nerdwallet.com www.docusign.com www.airbnb.com Today’s recommendations include: Websites:  www.16personalities.com www.ziprecruiter.com builtin.com - list of 67 recruitment too...

#16: In this episode, Sevana and Chloe talk about falling out of love with your  business. How do you know and what do you do when you've stopped loving what you do or what you've created? Can you spark your excitement again or is it time to move on?  Today's famous examples include: Bob Bowman Caleb Bradham Warren Buffett Today's recommendations include: Meditation (apps)    -...