Rate My Startup

AllForLocal is my small business. What we do is not unique, but how we do it is. Instead of focusing on a feature set, we have taken a small business-focused approach - get to know your community and then serve them contingent to direct needs. This approach allows us to challenge any competitor because we have a stake in this region, and we know it better than the rest. We know our users - we have shopped locally, we have eaten at local restaurants, we have attended local events, and we were all once part of a local school (The AllForLocal team will be creating a blog for the purpose of rating small businesses in this area if you want to see our perspective on local companies).

Up until now, I have yet to tell you exactly what AllForLocal does, intentionally. Instead of delivering an elevator pitch, I will tell you about our market - we focus on small businesses; they are what makes small towns prosper. They give back in taxes, they have a direct interest in seeing their business, and transitively their town do well, and this is why they need our help as consumers to make them thrive.

The fact is, small businesses are struggling in many places. The major hurdle for these businesses is their reach, their marketing, and their ability to appeal to consumers. In a study by Mintel Reports, out of a group of adults that do not shop locally, 30 percent stated that they don’t know where to find local goods and services and another 23 percent say it is too inconvenient to find local goods/services. Our website inherently solves this problem. Our directory of local goods and services rivals our competitors because our information is all in one place, and thorough. If you were to go online and search for a small business, especially one without a website, you will be hard-pressed to obtain a thorough set of information about a business, including store hours, payment types, and other information that is not readily available. With AllForLocal, a user-powered directory, this will never be a problem again. 

Additionally, once we are off the ground and running, we will be implementing other features that allow our users to communicate amongst each other. Users with similar values and interests will be able to connect and potentially find new places to shop locally or keep busy. 

What I am asking of you if you have taken the time to read this far - please go onto AllForLocal's website and look around. Sign up if you are interested. Add a business or two, or look to see if your favorite business is in the database. If your friend, family, or neighbors want to find local businesses, tell them about us. 

If you aren't in the Capital Region and like our idea, send us feedback and tell us. After all, with more motivation from interested users, we will continue to create great features and functionality that will make finding local businesses near you far easier. Take 5 minutes, and "Rate My Startup". The more feedback we receive, the better we can become. Thanks!

Writing a Business Plan

Since I started working on AllForLocal a few years ago, there has never been a spare moment where nothing needed to be done. No matter the situation of our business, there was always one looming task on hand. The Business Plan (BP). For those of you who do not know, a business BP is an extremely dynamic document of every strategy, competitor, market, component of your business in a written form (by dynamic I mean that it should be revisited once a month in order to add updates accordingly; it is as dynamic as your business).

Depending on your business' situation, the purpose of this document may vary. It may be created to give to potential investors. It may be created to enter a BP competition. Or you may create it for the purpose of having it. Whatever the reason, this document is necessary, and beneficial even if it has no immediate purpose. Why? Well, forcing yourself to structure your business in such a document not only allows you to get your idea into its most concise form, but it also creates an excuse to cut out ideas that are unprofitable, or useless to your overall goal (let's call the BP a screen shot of your business' future).

One big question that always gets asked by BP writers is what the standard length of this document should be. The answer to this question varies by source, by business (or type of technology), and by the writer. That is to say that anywhere this question is answered, there is variance. The actual business type may require a shorter business plan depending. The writer may not be a professional writer so their words may be less concise than others. I like to say that a BP should be no longer than 30 pages including the financial forecasts and other appendices. This is the form of this document that would be given out to potential investors. That is how long my plan is. Some competitions require this document to be 15 pages. Others 20. It varies greatly, similar to pumpkin sizes (Halloween is coming soon!).

Also, each business should have two versions of this document, one that has an indefinite length for internal purposes, and one that has been slimmed down for external use. The internal document should detail all potential revenue sources, all competitors big and small, everything that has been discussed and ironed out by the founders. This form of your BP should also come first. That is important because then you can cut and paste the most important content for the external version. This advice is not new, Google it and you will see similar answers.

I am writing about this because it is such a critical component of any business. People will take you more seriously if they know you have a BP. Some may even not work with you if this document isn't available to them.

One more point I would like to get across involves the actual resources available for writing BPs. The structure of the plan varies similarly to the size. It varies by source, by business (or type of technology), and by writer.

Some things that are required by ALL BP guides:
1) Executive Summary -- This should be between 1 and 3 pages in length, and summarize your whole plan. Some investors may ask for this document separately before asking for the plan. This is the most important component of your plan because it is the first part read, and some will throw out the plan if they are not satisfied with it.
2) Business Summary -- This is a description of your product, where in the life cycle your product is, where your business is (is it incorporated, who possesses the majority shares etc.), and any other relevant background information about the business. This is an important component because if your don't describe your business well enough, the investor/reader may be confused. Take as many pages as necessary.
3) The Management Team -- The five key components of a BP (or investor pitch for that matter) from an investors perspective are the team, the team, the team, the revenue model, and the product. Make sure to list any key players on your board of advisors (if you have one) and the experiences of your management team. Include resumes in the appendix because investors care about this greatly. I called this section "Personnel" in my BP because I also spoke about the personnel required to build our business. Take as much space as necessary.
4) Market Analysis -- This section should highlight the major market you are entering. You should discuss the size of this market, the demographics, and the potential for profit. This section is relatively important and necessary to show market potential (is this product feasible in this market).
5) Marketing Analysis (Different than Market Analysis) -- The Marketing Analysis is very important for my business sector - The Internet. How will we market our product and get it popular in our target market. This section may not be as important if you have a product such as green insulation because that market pretty much sells itself. A website needs to be marketed well else nobody will use it.
6) Competitor Analysis -- I used to hold the misconception that the Competition section was important. This section really exists so investors/readers see that you did your research on your market thoroughly. I recommend about two pages on this subject but no more (may vary with sector).
7) Financial Modeling -- The Financials. Arguably the most important part of your BP. This section should go into great detail about your pricing and revenue models. This section will have charts and graphs and many numbers. Some investors are known to skip all content with the exception of 1, 2 and this section. Make sure to research this section greatly before writing it. Find a guide or ask your government organizations for help. Integral to your BP.

That is how I would sum up a business plan. Some guides include strategy plans, financing needs, business structure/organization, and many others. These may be necessary depending on your business, but it is YOUR job to find what your target market needs. It will be extremely difficult to write a plan when you have so many different components, some of which are completely unnecessary.

Let me give you an example: Through a guide that my business used from The Economist, it required us to write a strategic plan that went way beyond the ordinary; SWOT charts, strategic planning (what happens if a meteor hits the server with your website on it for example), and many unnecessarily stupid pieces. Well, we wrote 20 pages here alone, and when it came time to cut and paste, guess how many pages found their way onto the final plan....0. I am not saying this information wasn't important, just that everything else was MORE important. We wasted countless hours writing this section only to end up throwing it out (although we saved it just in case). The only benefit derived is that we learned from our mistake, and potentially ironed out a few ideas by doing it.

Here are a few tools that make writing the business plan easier and more organized.
Google Docs: This is a Google product (clearly). It is free. Unfortunately it is not ironed out, there were still bugs when we used it a year or so ago. The purpose of this is to allow two (or more) people to edit one document at the same time. This was a good approach at first, because it made collaboration easy. Keep in mind there are terms of use, so the potential that Google can take intellectual property is a negative. But otherwise it is a cool tool.
Dropbox: Dropbox is a free product that allows users to store documents on a remote server so it can be accessed from any place on the earth with internet access. This is probably the most useful piece of software I have ever used. There is a 2 gb maximum for storage on the free version, but for $10 per month you can upgrade to 50 gb. The key to using this software intelligently is to create a structure to the documents you put inside the "box." Split your business plan into different documents so you can edit the pieces separately and not step on your partner's toes. Awesome software.
Paint.net: Paint.net is paint only developed better than Microsoft, and it is open source (free). The reason I bring this software up is because some can't afford Photoshop/Illustrator and want to insert pictures or diagrams into their BP (recommended, think about a textbook without pictures). This piece of software is great for editing quick pictures or other files.

I have some great templates given to me by a member of the Small Business Development Center for writing BPs. They are concise and I like that. They also gave me Financial Forecast Excel spreadsheets which I would be happy to send you as well. Drop me an email (joe@allforlocal.com) or comment and request these documents. I hope some of these resources are helpful to those entrepreneurs out there. If you aren't good at writing or don't feel like spending the time on a BP, DO IT. It will get ideas flowing, and allow you to potentially improve your business/revenue models. Thanks again for reading, I will post Tasty Thursdays either very early tomorrow or very late, so stay tuned!

Why I was Wrong

A few posts back I discussed my reasoning for a fat tax, or a tax on foods that make people in America fat. I discussed high fructose corn syrup and fast foods.

This past weekend I was having an argument about this topic with others from AllForLocal and my eyes were opened to why this is not a correct solution to the problems I addressed (America is fat, health care costs rise as a result, less people can afford health care and thus education on the topic of staying healthy, it's a vicious cycle). I acted in a hypocritical manner because for all there are many flaws in America, including the need for Congress to constantly put fat bills through that are made to please all parties involved (this gives way to earmarks). Thus a proposed solution creates other problems, or pisses people off. The same goes for a fat tax: we add a tax on top of a system that is already flawed (solutions beget problems).

Ever since America was founded several hundred years ago, legislators have insisted on creating new taxes to collect from Americans in order to solve some problem. This included sin taxes like those on cigarettes an alcohol, and other taxes such as those on tea (I say tea because I wanted to include the Boston Tea Party and a fun reference!) and food products (most of which were justified). In the case of taxing corn in order to reduce the amount of corporations producing byproducts of corn, there is a much better solution. Instead of adding on top of existing laws, we should just start eliminating the subsidies that make it so easy to become rich through corn. This includes NOT growing corn because farmers are getting paid for it. This would eliminate (well, reduce) the amount of farmers producing corn, thus bringing the cost of corn up, thus discouraging manufacturers to use corn byproducts. Problem solved. Less taxes, a healthier America, lower cost for health care, more money to give to farmers that produce better vegetables (and so on.).

Let's look at it from my perspective (I eat healthy, I avoid high fructose corn syrup, and other corn products), because I am sure there are others who are in the boat with me. Since I am an American taxpayer, I am paying the government to give subsidies to farmer's to not produce corn on their farms. This means I pay to make a product I use sparingly become cheaper for corporations and consumers (and then I have to pay for higher health care costs, because of a fatter America). This is assed backwards. Why is our government paying to produce such an unhealthy sweetener? Because it is cheap to produce in mass quantities ever since it became trendy to grow corn, or profitable (lobbyists also). Instead, we should be giving this money to farmer's who produce crops organically, or in season, which is better for the environment, and better for the health of America.

There are numerous other reasons why Americans should stop paying subsidies to corn farmer's. It has been proven that the growth of agriculture (and I mean irresponsible agriculture) has terrible effects on the environment and the ecosystems within it (THIS article tells a bit about it, I'm sure there are many more). Corn is just one example of our government being used by lobbyists to encourage them to create products that are cheap and effective in making food taste better (soybeans are another massively produced product). When farming was a much bigger part of the employment of America (now only 2%), farmer's had the help to produce a variety of items on their farms. They needed the skills necessary to ensure that crops are cycled in soil, in order to take and put new nutrients in the soil. Now with modern machinery and less farmer's per square acre, it is encourage (and easy) to produce only one product, which causes the soil to become deficient in important nutrients. SO, not only are we destroying the soil, but our food has less nutrients in it as a result.

In conclusion, reduce or eliminate subsidies of corn, and other products that make America unhealthy. This way, we pay less taxes, health care costs fall, and we can stick it to the lobbyists who are trying to ensure the demise of America. If the environment doesn't kill us, not being able to get off a bus because of so many fat Americans, will.

I could get into GMO's (genetically modified organisms), but that is a whole new topic.

I hope I have shed new light on this subject, now pick at my argument because there are about 100 different tangents that can come from this statement. I want to try and break this topic down to the bare bones, but that would be practically impossible. Thanks for reading (COMMENT!!).

Moving Forward

America is Flawed

Over the past weekend I had several discussions/arguments originating from this statement ("America is flawed") on my part. I also got the usual comment when I expressed my opinion, "Then why don't you go and live somewhere else?" Keeping with the theme of some past blog posts I will say that this is not a black and white situation, because let's face it, America is the land of opportunity (or was?). This has enabled me to see more clearly where this blog will go.

In addition, I have decided to create more "structure" to my blogs in order to attract those that care about the respective topics. In one set of blog posts (or an all-together new blog) I will discuss my problems with America, but also where the balance exists that makes it worth living in this country. There is a Yin/Yang in America, and where there is crime and hate and all things bad, there is also giving and love and other good things. I will analyze the systems of government, including the judicial system, Congress (and other law makers), big corporations, the environment, and many other institutions that I believe are flawed in this country. I will be as straight forward as I can, give as many facts as I can (although I will also state my opinions), and tell it like I see it. I will also revisit the proposed "fat tax" and offer a new solution to the problems of obesity and Health Care that were offered to me by a friend and business partner (he sometimes has the ability to make me see clearly and overlook my stubbornness which often makes me overlook certain important aspects to an argument).

I will also be creating a blog on my partner's site with the same content as this one, in order to get more viewers to see what I have to say. That would also enable us to discuss and argue certain topics that may be suggested on that website. This way, users of AllForLocal will be able to get inside the mind's of its founders in order to appreciate our perspective on everything we may argue about in person. For those of you who do not like to argue, because you are a pacifist or dislike confrontation (or for some other reason), I encourage you to join in. I have learned that arguments are the most effective way to learn more than you will learn from any teacher. Arguments make people think outside of the box, analytically, and partially unbiased (although it is practically impossible to be completely unbiased).

As stated in my first few posts, I will still continue giving recipes every Thursday (TASTY!). Since I have been only talking about cooking on that day, I will attempt to visit the topic at least twice every week, Thursdays included. These posts about food will get more attention because they highlight a great deal of my creative side, and since Ends&Odds is geared towards creativity, it works perfectly.

The third (and last for now) set of posts will be geared once again towards those interested in business and all things related to starting a new venture. I do have many resources, and obtain new resources on a daily basis, so I will continue to pass on that knowledge, because I would want someone to help me in this manner as well (and I do get help from people eager to pass on knowledge).

Since I just got home from a 9-5 job (and I am tired and hungry), I will end my post here. I will explain my new structure as I build it, but please check out Ends&Odds to support my boyyys! Thanks for reading!

Communities vs. Apathy and The Fat Tax

Communities vs. Apathy
When I am discussing my venture to other people, the more intelligent catch onto a potential conflict of interest with respect to our goals: we are creating a big business to help only small businesses. Of course, this is the black or white perspective, and our business definitely falls into the gray category. That is to say, that we are not just trying to help small businesses, but communities, which may contain local big businesses, such as Price Chopper or Stewarts (these may be considered medium sized depending on who you ask).

It also seems necessary that we become a big business, offer an IPO when applicable, employ hundreds if not thousands, and eventually become public (might be redundant with IPO, but I thought it would be appropriate to say it this way too). Even though these decisions are solely based on our success and what is necessary to keep helping communities.

Another question that was brought up by one of our advisors is: What happens if one of the businesses using AllForLocal's services outgrows AllForLocal? This was another very interesting question, and potentially another paradox. The answer to that question is simple now that we have analyzed it: We would leverage that business as an example for what AllForLocal can do for our constituents. It is these types of questions that force us to think outside of the box, and address unique issues.

So...we must become a big business to obtain the capital and reach that will allows us to help local businesses in all parts of America, and eventually the rest of the world. America is a great place to start because corporations currently own Main Street, and we (U.S.) are the worst off because of this greed. AllForLocal is needed as soon as possible to combat this greed, and give some market share back to small business America. I must ensure that I do not look silly by making outrageous statements, because again this issue is in the gray area. We are not trying to combat big businesses, but to help local businesses combat big businesses. Instead of calling this "small vs. big" we will call it "communities vs. apathy" because that is just what it is, communities facing off against the corporate monsters who don't care about who they steamroll out of town.

Anyway, I will stop with these bold statements for now. If you don't like anything I have said, feel free to comment and let me know why!

The Fat Tax
Nutrition, working out, and staying healthy are all very important to me. I find it necessary to consider my body my temple, because after all, we only get one body and one chance. I have been watching the food I put into my body since I stopped drinking soda and other crappy beverages about 8 years ago or so. The purpose of me saying all this is so I can lend some cool links to you about health and nutrition starting with, The 29 Healthiest Foods, assuming you care.

If you don't care, then I will contribute a sickening statistic that is increasing in America daily: 30.6% of Americans are obese. Fast food, high fructose corn syrup, entertainment have all lead to America being the fattest country by a pretty large margin. This is why I believe America needs a fat tax, increase the cost of all items that contain certain ingredients. Just imagine that as a solution to paying for health care. It would not be possible due to corporations in America, but it is a cool idea to dream about.

Anyway, I have nothing left to say for today. I could ramble on about obesity in America and the ties to corporations for several pages, but it is a matter of opinion and I would prefer to argue about it than just state my opinion. So please start an argument with me so I can have some fun!

Check back tomorrow with another scrumptious recipe because it is "Tasty Thursday!"

Looking for Money?

Obtaining Capital
Running a small business has its ups and downs, sometimes on a daily basis. From the (sometimes) mundane tasks that are necessary to run a business, to the excitement of obtaining some sort of funding that will ensure you can continue running your business for another, week, month or year. But finding this funding is no easy task, in fact it is the most difficult I have found when trying to ensure that my company succeeds.

I have searched Google, investment networks, met with banks and so far have done about every other possible thing to try and obtain any sort of funding for AllForLocal. In some cases I have been successful, but in the vast minority. I have been able to find many funding sources, but cracking the code to these riddles has been the difficult part.

Since I hope that some reading this blog will be entrepreneurs like myself, I want to lend some resources that I have found useful for finding and obtaining funding. I also welcome any comments, and any further resources that some of you may have out there.

This may not be the right season for Business Plan Competitions, but in the Spring, this is the best way to find funding, because colleges all around the United States are offering their own types of funding at this point in time. Simply go to Google and type in "business plan competitions" and you will automatically have several resources at your disposal. Of course, this requires that you have a business plan already created. I will probably go into some detail about how to write a business plan and the resources for this at another point in time, for the sake of keeping my posts short, and not running out of material too quickly.

As for other points in the year, two organizations come to mind that are especially useful depending on your type of business. The first is a grant for social entrepreneurs, known as Echoing Green. This organization provides grants to its fellows who are trying to make a change socially. It also has a book called "Be Bold" that tells stories about some of its fellows.

The second resource is the National Collegiate Inventors and Innovators Alliance (NCIIA). The catch for this is that you need to be affiliated with a college or university in order to get money, venture funding, or be part of their network. But they are associated with many great organizations for students who are looking to get funding for their ventures. A great one to look at!

One thing I have learned from all these types of resources is that there is a network associated with each one. A network that leads to other resources. Do not try and find government grants because they will always lead you in circles, and eventually disappoint you. Foundations, and social organizations are definitely the way to go. I admit these links may not help if you are not a social entrepreneur, or in the technology sector, but maybe they will lead you to where you need to go.

All you student entrepreneurs out there, let me know if you need specific help because I know where to look, even if you are not tech/socially oriented. I also have friends that have created products and have gone down the path of intellectual property.

This post may not be as dense as you may like, but I don't want to give away all my resources at once. There are many more to come and I hope what I have revealed so far has been useful to at least somebody. Please comment with questions, comments, resources or anything else that may further our cause of helping all those trying to run a successful small business. Thanks!Looking for Money?

Why my mission is "small"

Let me tell you a little bit about my passion, local businesses, and AllForLocal, in order to lend some background so you can understand me and my goals. Currently, AllForLocal has created a directory for the purpose of listing small businesses online, in one centralized database. This idea may not seem unique to you, but we stand apart from competitors in that we ONLY list local businesses. This defining characteristic has not been seen in sites such as local.com which strive to accomplish different goals. I go and peruse these sites but am disappointed when I type in "pizza" and the first entry that comes up is Dominos Pizza.

Dominos
Now, as far as some are concerned, Dominos is local to them, because they may live within a mile, or 100 feet of a location. But Dominos is not local; they report to headquarters that is nowhere near Troy, NY; they don't give back to the community because they are more concerned about profits, and they can succeed without helping the town they inhabit flourish. This is possible due to supply chains, bulk ordering and other advantages that allow them to produce the 5, 5, 5 deal, or 2 dollar cheesy bread. That does not make them local. It makes them apathetic towards their community (some may argue that big businesses give back to their communities, and this may be true, but it is the lowest proportion).

Local
When you shop at a local store, the feeling is just....different. The store owner cares about each customer. They try to get you what you need, and if you can't find it with them, they don't try and hoodwink you into buying something different, but instead guide you to a different location where you can find what you are looking for. Obviously this may not be the case with all local businesses, but in my experiences, mainly in Troy, business owners are so kind and considerate. They care about their community, about their peers (business alliances such as CDLF are a good example of this), and about their customers. That is the formula for success.

AllForLocal is not going to be just a directory. That is just the beginning. The "seed" if you will. We strive to make AllForLocal so much more, to businesses, to consumers, and to communities.

Businesses
For businesses, we want to help create an online presence for them, the likes of which do not currently exist online. We want to give them the tools that make big businesses succeed, at a lower cost than they may pay right now. For example, a free open source inventory system that is geared towards local businesses. By cutting their costs, consumers can benefit because prices will fall.

Consumers
To consumers, we want to be the source to find anything local, anything within a community. If someone wants to avoid going to a big store, we will be the resource to get them what they want. Consumers will also benefit because they can have the security of knowing the items they are searching for are in stock locally, potentially within walking distance.

Communities
For communities we will represent them online. This idea is very powerful, and very difficult to accomplish, because what makes a community is the interaction between members of that community. This interaction defines the community.

All 3
The overall goal of AllForLocal is to connect all 3, the businesses, their consumers, and their communities. This cannot be achieved without interest and involvement (in your community). The social fabric of the United States becomes ripped with every passing day. The communities that once existed, where interaction was a daily event, has somewhat ceased to continue. Why is this? Feel free to comment with your opinions...Is it because of the Age of the Internet, or because of cheap fossil fuels. How about the apathy of Americans? It could be any of these, or something else. But that is part of the social problem we are here to fix.

The Environment
There are also many environmental benefits to shopping locally. I don't want to seem like a "Tree Hugger" (which I am), but I want to give my perspective on this topic. Generally when someone shops at a big business, there are direct consequences to the environment that may not exist at a local store. The supply chain is a very big cause of huge global emissions (I studied Management of the Supply Chain at RPI, although I did not learn how to manage it, but how to despise it). You can get a salad at McDonald's that may have come from thousands of miles away. You can get bananas and pineapples in upstate New York. I know there aren't any banana trees in my backyard...Wal-Mart is a great example of working the supply chain. Their massive infrastructure allows them to get the cheapest products they can find to their stores through a distribution network that makes the Gold Rush in 1849 look like an afternoon jog. Local businesses make efforts to source their products locally. This fact may have exceptions, because not all products can be found nearby, but the effort that is made is the defining factor.

Another direct consequence to the environment is the fuel it takes to power a car to your local franchise store. America has turned into a car society, where if you step out of your house, you are in your car until you reach your destination, leave that destination, get back in the car and go home. I too am guilty of this, but that is because the infrastructure of society forces me to drive everywhere. If we can promote local businesses, this environmental impact need not exist (as dramatically). Shoppers can take a bike, or a walk to their destination. And if you are worried about carrying too much, then get a basket on your bike or a guy to help you!

Now I want to say that today's post is a unique one, in that I stated some of my beliefs, in order to get some discussion going on this topic. I welcome any comments, whether you agree with me or not, and I want to hear both sides of the story. Talking about this problem is the first step towards not being apathetic about your community.

I will leave you with one more thought: I feel that if we start shopping locally again, at the small businesses that make our towns unique, we can get out of the economic crisis we are currently in....Just some food for thought. Thanks for reading!