NZ Entrepreneur e-Magazine

SECTION NEW ZEALAND’S E-MAG FOR ENTREPRENEURS AND BUSINESS OWNERS

September 2012

10 Questions with Tony

Falkenstein

Building an Opportunity Conscious Mind Dealing with Buyer Objections How to Buy a Website Plus more #nzentrepreneurs inside!

Kevin Sun • Bruce Aylward • Isabella Morris 1

iP is about ideas protected iP is about ideas protected iP is about ideas protected

0800 257 275 I www.ajpark.com I New Zealand + Australia 0800 257 275 I www.ajpark.com I New Zealand + Australia Great ideas shape our world if they are harnessed, protected and nurtured in the right way.

With over 120 years experience helping innovative Kiwis protect and grow their ideas, we are confident we can find you the right path for your intellectual property, from patents At AJ Park, we take the time to understand your idea, AJ Park is about iP • intellectual property • igniting passion • ideas pervading • innovation protected • integrated processes • intelligent people increasing potential and trade marks to e-commerce and •offshore contracts. invention or business and where you want to take it. So you get sound iP advice for a better shot at commercial success.

For clear, concise and jargon-free iP advice about turning your ideas into commercial assets, talk to our team.

AJ Park is about iP • intel ectual property • igniting passion • ideas pervading • innovation protected • integrated processes • intel igent people • increasing potential 0800 I www.ajpark.comI New I NewZealand Zealand + 0800 257257 275275 I www.ajpark.com + Australia Australia

AJ Park is about iP • intellectual property • igniting passion • ideas pervading • innovation protected • integrated processes • intelligent people • increasing potential

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AJ Park is about iP • intellectual property • igniting passion • ideas pervading • innovation protected • integrated processes • intelligent people • increasing potentia

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d ents

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Contents 4

Welcome from the Editor

6

What It Takes - Have you got the entrepreneur attitude?

10

Interview: 10 Questions With Tony Falkenstein

13

An Intro to IP

14

Time Saving Tips for Entrepreneurs

16

Taking The Plunge: Kevin Sun from The Freelance Project

18

Sales: How To Deal With Buyer Objections

20

Tomorrows Entrepreneurs: Isabella Morris

22

Entrepreneur Tips: How To Buy A Website

24

Personal Trainer: Building An Opportunity Conscious Mind

26

Taking Care of Business

27

The Pitching Session: Bruce Aylward from Psoda Ltd

28

How to read our e-mag

30

Parting Shot 3

From the Editor WELCOME TO NZ ENTREPRENEUR!

E

ver thought about starting your own business? Maybe you’ve

Zealanders creating world beating businesses that bring in mountains

already started a business? Maybe you’re an experienced

of foreign cash.

business builder or investor with several businesses under

With this in mind we have four goals for NZ Entrepreneur:

your belt and the scars to prove it? Wherever you might be in your entrepreneurial journey, NZ Entrepreneur is for creative, ambitious,

•

they’ve always dreamed of starting.

hard working Kiwi entrepreneurs like you!

No doubt about it, entrepreneurs are vital for a healthy economy,

•

“bach, boat and ‘Beemer’” mentality is holding us back!

citizenship. They’re the ones with the guts to put it all on the line (their • •

And most importantly we hope to provide a voice of

Those who succeed create the entities and industries that provide jobs

encouragement for anyone who is out there, slogging their guts

and wages for employees, income for suppliers and service providers,

out in pursuit of their business building dreams, and wondering

revenue for the government... and maybe, just maybe, financial security

if it’s all worth it!

and a sense of fulfillment for their owners!

Becoming an entrepreneur is certainly not easy and not for the faint-

New Zealand is an amazing country and we have a lot to be thankful

hearted, but like anything else in life, I firmly believe that anyone

for, but it seems to me (and a bunch of other people far smarter

committed to learning the skills, attitude and mindset of successful

than me!) that the key to the future wellbeing of our country, and

business builders can do it.

our future standard of living, lies not in the hands of our politicians,

If this sounds good then please help us spread the word about NZ

academics or public policy advisors, but in the hands of our entrepreneurs. While it’s the job of the Government to decide how to “carve up” the pie, it is our wealth creators - our entrepreneurs - who are the key to “growing” the pie.

Quite simply, to ensure New Zealand remains a vibrant, wealthy country, with plenty of jobs for our people, and a government that can afford to invest in world class healthcare, education, infrastructure and all the other public services we want, we need more visionary New

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To share, celebrate and learn from the hard learned lessons and successes of Kiwi entrepreneurs who are out there doing it.

their vision to help solve a particular problem, fulfill a need, or simply make the lives of their customers better, easier or happier in some way.

To encourage those who have started businesses to set their sights beyond just being the biggest or best in New Zealand - the

a thriving country and communities, and a healthy and wealthy jobs, time, money, ego, status, health, relationships) in the pursuit of

To inspire more Kiwi’s to get on with starting the business

Entrepreneur by sharing this this issue with your friends, family and colleagues, and then taking a moment to show your support by subscribing to NZ Entrepreneur. It’s free and that way you’ll receive a new issue as soon as it comes out each month!

We must say a huge thanks to all the entrepreneurs, supporters, well wishers and contributors who have helped bring NZ Entrepreneur to life. We are especially grateful for our partners AJ Park, Results.com, Business.govt.nz and 2Degrees - without their vision and support

you wouldn’t be reading this and NZ Entrepreneur would not exist so thanks guys and gals - you rock!

We’ll be doing our best to make as good a publication as we can for everyone involved. No we won’t get all the grammar right, and yes there are bound to be typos and spelling mistakes, but if just one idea, story or article we can share contributes to the achievement of your business building goals, we’ll be happy!

(And to any knockers or nay-sayers - there’s always some - I extend you a warm and hearty, “Get stuffed!” The last thing the world needs is

ABOUT / Short and sharp, New Zealand Entrepreneur is a free e-magazine delivering thought provoking and enlightening articles, and industry news and information to forwardthinking Entrepreneurs.

EDITOR / Richard Liew

any more negative thinking, pessimism, or small mindedness.)

ART DIRECTOR / Jodi Olsson

We hope you enjoy the first issue of NZ Entrepreneur and we’d love

GROUP EDITOR / Trudi Caffell

to hear your comments or messages of support so please send me an email, leave us a message on our LinkedIn Group or Facebook page, or tweet us at @nzpreneur.

CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER / Alastair Noble CONTENT ENQUIRIES /

24/7/365... NZ Entrepreneurs... Chur!

Richard

Email richard@nzentrepreneur.co.nz LinkedIn http://nz.linkedin.com/in/richardliew

Phone Richard on (09) 522 7257 or email richardl@espiremedia.com ADVERTISING ENQUIRIES / Phone Richard on (09) 522 7257 or email richardl@espiremedia.com ADDRESS / NZ Entrepreneur, C/- Espire Media, PO Box 99758, Newmarket, Auckland 1151, NZ WEBSITE / nzentrepreneur.co.nz

ISSN 2253-5683 NZ ENTREPRENEUR IS PROUDLY BROUGHT TO YOU BY:

NZ Entrepreneur is a GREEN MAG created and distributed without the use of paper so it’s environmentally friendly.

Please think before you print. Thank you!

5

ENTREPRENEURSHIP

What It Takes HAVE YOU GOT THE ENTREPRENEUR ATTITUDE?

By Nick Harley

M

any people dream of starting their own business but having the right attitude is an important part of being an entrepreneur and getting your business

idea off the ground.

If you work for “the man”, you haven’t got it.

If you planned not to work for “the man” a few years ago, but you still are, you haven’t got it.

Sean Parker, founder of Napster and early investor in Facebook, once said: “To be an entrepreneur you have to be prepared to be poor.”

As every entrepreneur fights their way to the top of the pile there is an inevitability that along the way, you will lose money or in some way waste some of it – and that is not a nice feeling. Nobody plans to, but it does happen. You don’t tend to read stories about Richard Branson’s failures. Only his successes. Most success stories paint a very different picture to what actually happened. Famous and successful entrepreneurs write stories about the company they built that made them successful.

But they didn’t quit their job one day and start making loads of money with their new business within a couple of weeks. I would challenge you to find an entrepreneur that has built a business which was profitable from day one, they spent money in all the right areas and their product was flawless. It just doesn’t happen like that.

Talk to any seasoned entrepreneur and you will find they have made mistakes and lost money. They thought they had a great business, but

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built a website that didn’t function properly, or a product that was too complicated for the market, or they misjudged the market reaction. They had an advertising campaign that flopped or they basically just had a failed business attempt.

About 4 years ago I set up a software system aiming to capture a niche in the marketplace. I wasn’t a programmer, just the guy with the ideas so I found a company in India who built a system based on my designs. It had hundreds of spelling mistakes and crappy coding and I found the whole experience a absolute nightmare, but anyway, eventually the website was launched and it was a flop.

I had a good core business idea but the execution wasn’t right. I hadn’t done any market research apart from what I could find out from the internet. I had built a complicated software system when I should have started small, got my basic system in place and then expand the features. Instead I built a large software system that had fundamental flaws. I thought I knew what the market wanted. I thought I could do it all myself.

I had to spend more money to fix those flaws and undo a lot of the work already done. You could not have managed to do things in a more backwards way than I managed to if you tried.

That website was built, modified and redesigned more times than I care to remember. The worst thing is it cost me a lot of money and I hadn’t made much at all in return.

Now I had no money and a liability.

I had to get a “proper job” for a while to be able to eat and keep a roof over my head. I tried to sell my software but nobody

Do I regret losing all of that money and time? Of course I do.

If I could have my time again I would do things differently.

But I didnt know any differently back then.

wanted it. So I worked my ass off again to build up my savings, and when I had a small stash of money I decided to build another website.

Ignoring the plea of my parents to consider “a real career”, I built another website based on another business idea. I still had to employ someone as you can’t do everything on your own but I had learned valuable lesson from my previous failure. Even though I learnt these lessons I still made a similar mistake and again built it all backwards, ending up with a website completely different to the first build! This time I was working in the day and working on creating the website in the evenings. Effectively two jobs.

I’d work from 5pm till midnight most nights and be up again at 6am for work the next day.

At this point I was doing all of this and I still wasn’t making

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any big money. Sometimes I wondered if it was worth it. Whether I

might not pay off. But without risk there is no reward. Whether the

should just get a “proper job”.

risk is leaving your job after starting a new venture, an important

I eventually decided to stop the madness. I emailed all my users

business decision, or taking a gamble on working with someone else,

and told them the website was up for sale to the highest bidder.

entrepreneurs are the people that don’t conform to the usual mentality.

I managed to get a sale at around half of the development costs

Instead of focusing on the fact that they may lose money,

based on the amount of users that the website had generated, not

entrepreneurs focus on the potential rewards and take calculated

on any profitability.

risks. They are not scared to lose before they win.

Do I regret losing all of that money and time? Of course I do. If I could have my time again I would do things differently. But I didn’t know any differently back then. It took that journey to teach me things I know today, learn new skills and develop my understanding of how business works. I might not have a degree in business or

Entrepreneurs wake up at 3am worrying about their start-up, the fact they have no money coming in, the fact that they may lose everything and the feeling of failure. It eats away at you. It doesn’t go away. Are you able to deal with that and play the long game?

marketing but I have valuable life experience which I think is far

Yes you get to be your own boss, in charge of your own destiny where

more valuable than any qualification. The ability to follow your

the sky is the limit and you are no longer constrained to the dreams

nose, follow your gut, take that risk and want to succeed. That is the

and aspirations of the employee.

mentality of an entrepreneur.

But will you trade safety for adventure?

When you first start in your entrepreneurial career you are faced with

Can you handle the risk of failure?

a choice. To spend the money you have on your new business venture or not, and it is uncomfortable. What if you lost it all? What if you fail? Although we take every precaution not to fail in life there comes a

Can you afford to lose it all if it doesn’t go to plan?

If I lost everything I have, I wouldn’t care.

point where you need to take a risk.

I’d just go for it again.

A good entrepreneur sees a risk as an opportunity and many times it

Twice as hard.

Nick Harley is a Wellington based entrepreneur, business advisor and writer about all things start-up.

Nick is CEO of PAPERKUT Paperless Receipts, an innovative new technology company helping to turn everyday paper receipts, paperless. http://paperlessreceipt.com

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INTERVIEW

10 Questions Tony Falkenstein with

T

ony Falkenstein is an Auckland based entrepreneur, philanthropist and Chief Executive at Just Water International Limited, a business he founded in 1989 and listed on the

NZX in 2005. Other business interests include Bartercard NZ, Buro Seating and Boyd Visuals. In 2003 he instigated the establishment of the Onehunga High School Business School and in 2010 Tony was appointed as an Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit (ONZM) for his services to business.

Richard Liew dishes up 10 questions for Tony, hot off the back of his recent award for New Thinking at the 2012 World Class New Zealand Awards.

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Richard Liew: You started Just Water in 1989 - how did you first come up with the idea?

Tony Falkenstein: I actually started Red Eagle Corporation Ltd, trading as Red Eagle Rent-a-Fax in October 1987, one week after the 1987 sharemarket crash. Two years later I was looking

“

for an office product that I could rent, and thus started Just Water. We bought 6 water coolers and advertised them in a “horror” press ad, “Do your staff drink Gunk? Your water is contaminated etc…” They all were rented out within days, so we realised that we were onto something.

Everywhere else in the world office water was delivered in 15 litre bottles – we couldn’t afford to buy a bottling plant and delivery trucks, so our business model was to rent a water cooler, a 15 litre bottle, a filter

Motivators often say things like “Never, ever give up…”, but that is stubborn, and often stupidity. Persistence is focusing on the end game, but always be evaluating your opportunity cost

and a piece of hose, so that the renter could produce his own filtered water.

RL: Many entrepreneurs are told that they need to have a plan to

so walking for two hours without your partner, dog or iPod will result

either exit via a public listing or an acquisition, before they even start

in sorting your mind out, and giving you some great ideas. If there is a

their businesses. Do you think this is good advice and did you have

problem, face it immediately – don’t delay.

these goals in mind when you started Just Water?

TF: I think that is good in theory, but most entrepreneurs are just thinking about their new business, not how they exit it. I had been a CEO of a public company, so my intention when starting Red Eagle was to float the company within five years…it took 15 years in reality!

RL: Most people will accept that persistence is critical for any entrepreneur - but how do you know the difference between persistence and stubbornness?

TF: Motivators often say things like “Never, ever give up…”, but that is stubborn, and often stupidity. Persistence is focusing on the end game,

RL: Through your company Red Eagle Corporation you’ve helped

but always be evaluating your opportunity cost – if the time to get to

build a wide range of businesses over the years – how do you know

market lengthens too much, decide whether you would be better off

when you’re on to a good idea?

doing something else.

TF: Some have been good, and some bad, but generally I decide how much I am able, or prepared, to lose on a venture. For example when I went into the fax rental business, the figure was $20,000; in water coolers it was $100,000. Normally you know when you’re onto a really good one very quickly. I knew I was onto a good one in terms of water coolers within a week, because there was such a positive response from customers.

RL: Learning from our mistakes is essential if we are to grow as entrepreneurs. What’s one of the biggest mistakes you’ve made as an entrepreneur and what lessons did you take away from it?

TF: I have made so many big mistakes, but it’s where you are in your entrepreneurial journey, that determines which mistake is biggest.

So my biggest is not my most costliest. My biggest was my launch of a brand of watches called Zee Watch, up against Swatch. We sold

RL: Financial pressure and stress is part and parcel of the

four times as many Zee Watches as Swatch pre-Christmas, but the

entrepreneurial journey – what advice can you offer to young

plasticiser in the strap had gone brittle and they snapped when the kid

business builders on how to deal with these pressures?

put them on their wrist on Christmas Day. My learning – don’t screw

TF: Put some balance in your life. Make sure you eat reasonably

down your supplier, especially when there is margin in it - take the

healthily, and exercise. I believe in my subconscious working for me,

most reputable supplier.

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RL: The average New Zealand family is going through tough times at the moment with wages barely keeping up with the cost of living - what role do you believe entrepreneurship plays in raising the standard of living for all NZ’ers in the years ahead?

TF: All depressions have been turned around by entrepreneurs – there will be new ones coming along in the next few years who will be the success stories of the future. New Zealanders need to think positively, think creatively and go after their dream.

RL: New Zealand has a high number of new business startups every year but also one of the highest business failure rates in the OECD. Why do you think this is and what can be done to help us grow bigger, internationally successful businesses in the future?

TF: New Zealand has a big opportunity – having ‘business’ in the National Curriculum as an achievement standard is more than most countries have. Most families are families of employees, or possibly small trade businesses. Thus most students don’t know what business is, and certainly don’t realise they could be a successful entrepreneur on a global scale. This is a bit like having to pick the All Blacks out of Invercargill, because nobody else in the country knows how to play rugby. If we put more into business education at secondary and tertiary levels, we could rise above other countries in terms of business nous.

RL: You’re well known for your advocacy for entrepreneurship and business skills being taught in our schools, having set up the Onehunga High Business School, and also sitting on the Young Enterprise Trust Supporters Council. What do you say to those who believe big business is the cause of many of today’s social, environmental and economic problems?

TF: Well I do I think currently the banking and finance sector have tarnished the reputation of big business, but as for big business being the cause of today’s social, environmental and economic problems, that is a myth. For example, without a company like Fonterra, NZ would be in deep trouble. If we want low unemployment, we need companies of all sizes, especially new entrepreneurial companies to survive and prosper and get big. Unfortunately we cannot satisfy everybody, so some of the decisions made will affect the environment, but generally this is monitored by Government.

RL: You’ve already achieved a lot in terms of business success and helping New Zealand and New Zealanders get ahead. What’s your big goal for the next 10 years?

TF: I would like to see if we can be one of the first countries in the world to reduce obesity, and Type 2 diabetes. This is not just a health issue, but an economic one – just Type 2 Diabetes is going to cost the country $2 billion a year by 2016. I am up against the Coca-Cola’s and McDonalds’ of the world in fighting this cause. In terms of business education, I would like to see more young people succeed in business, and am determining how I can do that in a better way.

NZ Entrepreneur has two copies of Tony’s book “The ABC Of Business - Never Hire A Person Who Walks Slowly” to give away. To be in the draw simply subscribe to NZ Entrepreneur for free at https://www.facebook.com/NZEntrepreneur/app_100265896690345 by 21 September and we’ll announce the two winners next issue. Easy!

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I P / I nno v a tion

An intro to IP

By Corinne Blumsky

At the core of every technical and knowledge based

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Trade marks – trade marks protect names, logos, signs, symbols,

business is intellectual property (IP). One of a business’s

tastes, smells, slogans, colours and shapes that identify the goods

most important business assets is your IP. But you need

or services of one business and distinguish them from competitors’

to know how to recognise and protect your IP to make

goods and services. A trade mark registration is an enduring right;

the most of the business opportunities and advantages it gives you. Our innovation go-to guys, AJ Park give entrepreneurs an overview of the basics of IP.

it can last forever. Trade marks are often called brands.

•

Copyright – copyright protects the particular way in which an idea is expressed. Copyright is a property right which automatically exists in some original works including literary works like articles,

What is Intellectual Property?

IP is an umbrella term that describes “the innovative idea behind new technology, products, processes, designs or plant varieties, a brand, trade secret, or the goodwill associated with a business, product or service”.

Underpinning the term “intellectual property” are distinct rights.

Some of these rights are created by applying and registering to own the rights, and others exist automatically and remain unregistered.

Each right protects distinct aspects of a new product or innovation and each has different terms.

The main kinds of IP rights •

Patents – a patent protects the ideas embodied in new technologies, products and processes. Patents cover a principle or idea and not just a single physical form of an invention. A patent can last 20 years.

•

Designs – a design protects the appearance of an article, such as its shape, configuration, pattern or ornamentation. A design

website content, promotional material and artistic works like logos and advertisements. Copyright also exists in technical drawings, plans and prototypes. Copyright has different terms depending on the nature of the work but generally lasts for 50 years following the death of the author or 50 years from the end of the calendar year in which the work is created.

A single product or innovation is capable of holding more than one of these different IP rights. Other IP rights include trade secrets, confidential information, domain names, business methods and plant variety rights.

An IP strategy is important A starting point for making sure you protect your IP properly is an IP strategy. An IP strategy aligned with a business strategy will allow you to take advantage of the IP you create and alert you to any problems with using IP owned by others.

More to come on creating your own IP strategies next issue...!

registration lasts 15 years.

Corinne Blumsky is a trade mark Partner at AJ Park, specialising in cosmetics, fashion, food & beverage and clean technology. Contact Corrine at http://www.ajpark.co.nz/our-people/corinne-blumsky

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GROWTH/MANAGEMENT/LEADERSHIP

Time Saving Tips for Entrepreneurs HOW TO GET STUFF DONE

By Stephen Lynch

M

anagement guru Peter Drucker said, “If you cannot

Avoid being interrupted by people dropping in to your office:

manage yourself for effectiveness, you cannot expect to

•

manage others.” Studies show that on average, business

owners are interrupted every eight minutes (or about 73 times per day). Interruptions can include telephone calls, email messages,

not well managed • • •

were at prior to the disruption.

It is easy to see why execution, the discipline of getting things done

Close your door, or use a “do-not-disturb” sign for at least two hours per day

productive time being wasted by interruptions. Once interrupted, it can take 20 minutes to get back to the level of concentration you

Let people know what times of the day you are available for them to drop in

interruptions by colleagues, and crises. An average interruption time of five minutes – equates to about four hours - or 50% of your

An “open door policy” can severely reduce productivity if

Beware of “reverse delegation” - train your people that if they have a problem, they must present options for solutions as well

•

Ask people for a brief overview of what they want to discuss. If it

is still the number one challenge for entrepreneurs. So here are some

is going to take more than five minutes, book a time for it in your

tips to help improve your productivity...

calendar. Booking in your calendar lets people know that while you are busy right now, you view their issue as important. It also increases the likelihood they will come prepared with solutions when you do meet to discuss it and chances are they will learn to solve the issue themselves in the meantime.

Avoid wasting time with meetings: •

Ask – do you really need this meeting at all?

•

Only invite those who absolutely need to be there

•

Avoid last minute meetings

•

Create an agenda to define the purpose, and specific topics to be discussed

•

Prioritize the agenda so the most important issues are dealt with first

•

Send the agenda with a reasonable notice period so people come prepared

•

Make a clear decision – even if you only solve one issue on the agenda

Avoid being interrupted by phone calls and email: •

Turn off email alerts - and schedule specific times to read and reply to email

•

Turn off your phone for two hours per day while you complete key priorities

•

Ask for your phone calls to be held (making exceptions for key customers)

•

Check phone messages and return your calls at a specific time every day

•

If you must answer a phone call when you are in the middle of a task, let them know you are busy, and schedule a return call later that day

Stephen Lynch is Chief Operating Officer of business execution and growth specialists, Results.com

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TAKING THE PLUNGE

Profile: Kevin Sun Each month, we talk to an up and coming New Zealand

Some research showed that I was a little late into the game, with

entrepreneur who has set about turning their idea into a

global competitors Elance, oDesk and Freelancer.com, well ahead of

real business.

me. However, the research also showed many flaws with these big

K

competitors, notorious for the lack of quality control. Many people evin Sun is an Auckland based entrepreneur who became frustrated with the lack of support and resources available for the New Zealand freelancing community. Kevin

complain about how clients expect work done for a ridiculously low price, where freelancers from the likes of China and India were underbidding those in countries with higher expense. But this doesn’t

decided to do something about it, launching his new web based

help the clients, quality delivered from paying a low price is generally

venture - The Freelance Project.

poorer and makes communication difficult.

I then went on to build the Freelance Project for the New Zealand market exclusively with a feedback rating system, a section where

Briefly tell us about your business. How did you first come up with the idea?

freelancers can detail their previous work experience and skills to solve the client’s problem of having to make too many phone calls. Allowing the freelancers to reach new clients by bidding on

The Freelance Project is an online marketplace where clients in

projects. Freelancers can detail a price and how many days it will

need of freelancers for one-off jobs can post their projects and

take them to finish the job. Oh, and I’ll personally be reviewing the

solicit bids from freelancers. Once the project completes and is

projects posted.

deemed satisfactory by the client, the payment is then released to the freelancer. The service is offered to New Zealand businesses and freelancers only.

This idea was first generated when I worked as a recruiter. New Zealand has a huge market for contractors but finding the next contract or finding a contractor can sometimes be difficult.

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What is the big goal for your business?

With such a big community of small businesses in New Zealand, why are so many people still stuck in full time jobs which restrict their knowledge growth, human interactions and even lifestyle? It’d be difficult to change the entire country into this way of thinking,

I often thought, it’d be great if there was a way for clients to access a

but I’d like to see a big majority of New Zealand freelancers and

complete database of contractors, without having to make call after call to

small businesses take advantage of this service, creating a lifestyle

find the right person with the relevant expertise. The client then has their

where they can manage their own time, clients and make a good

respective profiles in hand, where price and quality can be compared.

living out of it.

What inspired you to take the plunge?

I’ve made many friends through my recruitment experience in this sector, but have been powerless to help them when market conditions and existing employment methods were disappointing. I took the plunge because I wanted to change the way things are done, so everyone has an opportunity to move forward with ease.

What have you found to be the most challenging aspect of building your business so far?

The biggest challenge was learning. I started the project thinking I knew what my customers wanted, so I delayed the launch and tried everything I could to perfect the system. From the design of the content box corners, colours to drop down menus, payment systems, the whole lot.

Recommendations from friends and family didn’t make things easier. They gave me genuine recommendations which were all very helpful, but it only delayed me even further. I finally decided that I was going to launch, even if I didn’t think it was perfect. I had to beat myself into realising that my product did not belong to me, it belongs to my customers.

What keeps you going when you feel like giving up?

Even though the rent is free, being stuck in a small Newmarket office with my mother who distracts me from my work is a huge motivator to expand further so I can move out of there. I’m an entrepreneur - but not a rich one (yet)!

What advice would you give to any people reading this who are thinking of starting a business?

Everyone will tell you that it’s not easy. You just need to believe you can do it and at the same time not be stubborn about taking advice from other people along the way, especially your customers.

For more information you can check out Kevin’s business, The Freelance Project, at http://freelanceproject.co.nz

Are you a New Zealand entrepreneur that has recently “taken the plunge?” Would like to tell our readers your own story? Get in touch with Nick at nick@nzentrepreneur.co.nz

17

SaLES

What Do You Mean, “No?!”

HOW TO DEAL WITH BUYER OBJECTIONS

By Paul Newsom

Being able to sell is an essential skill for all entrepreneurs and one of the most common problems I hear from entrepreneurs, is how to handle sales objections from the customer. We asked sales expert Paul Newsom what entrepreneurs should do when a buyer raises an objection.

W

ell, the key point here is that if you’re getting lots of objections, you probably need to take a good hard look at the way you’re selling. Entrepreneurs who concentrate

all their efforts on pushing product features and benefits and trying to convince their prospects to buy, instead of getting their buy-in, can expect objections, and lots of them.

Part of the problem created by the sales industry itself is that traditional sales training has included so much material on objection handling and closing that salespeople are actually being trained for battle. It creates a mindset of preparing for sparring, and trying to win over the customer. Buyers expect it and are prepared for it.

But worn out myths such as, “Selling doesn’t start until the buyer says no,” must be condemned to the gallows if you are to succeed in developing any sort of sustainable relationship with a buyer. Buyers have changed the way they are buying and old school objection handling techniques have little effect.

When looking at how to deal with customer objections, I advise that you focus on fixing the cause, not the symptom. You, the salesperson are the cause, the symptom is the customer objection.

18

"

"

Here are four things you can do, to help prevent objections:

1 •

•

U nderstand how and why

S low down for yellow

the customer buys .

lights , and stop for

•

Know the game that you are playing

before you start. Selling starts by understanding the customer before you even talk to them. It continues throughout the sales cycle by finding out what it is that the customer values. You do this by asking questions.

3

red lights .

This concept is covered really well in Mahan Khalsa’s excellent book, “Lets Get Real, The Demise of 20th Century Dysfunctional Selling and The Advent of Helping Clients Succeed”.

Khalsa says: “When you are driving

Let’s be real, price will always be somewhere on the list of buyers

along, particularly when you are anxious to arrive somewhere

criteria, but find out what all the decision criteria are, how they

important, and you encounter a yellow light, what do you do? If you

go about selecting suppliers and what their top suppliers do well.

are like most people I know, you go faster. Unfortunately we use that

Get agreement that you meet these criteria as you progress the sale.

same response with our clients. We hear something that concerns us, see a reaction that spells potential trouble, feel we are running into difficulty, and we speed up to avoid running into our own worst fears.

Ultimately we are afraid the light will turn red. We don’t want to fail

2

G et better at

at a red light, so we speed up, hoping we’ll make it through. If we can’t

qualifying that the

slow down for yellow lights, it’s hard to get real.”

prospect actually has the issue or problem that the your product or service fixes .

We call this “discovery” - to identify a valid

When selling, if you hit a yellow light, pass it to the customer and see whether it is going to change to red or to green. Ask the question, ‘If I understand this correctly (explain the situation as you see it) ...so what should we do at this point?’ Eliminate the red lights (objections) before you get to them by slowing down for each yellow light.

business reason or establish relevancy.

The over eager sales person who focuses on selling product features

C reate an air of

and benefits too early in the conversation is sure to get objections. You are going to come up against resistance if the customer is thinking, ‘Sure, I could always go bigger, faster, better, but that’s not what I need right now - the cost of going bigger, faster or better is higher than the value it will provide to me.’ And all too often, also going through the buyers mind is, ‘This sales person has no understanding of my business, they are only concerned with their own interests, and I don’t trust them’. Of course they are going to object!

We often think we have lost a sale when in reality we should never have been selling there in the first place, because there was never a valid business reason to be talking to that customer!

4

cooperation with the customer .

Be there to help the customer to buy, not to sell them something. Try to understand the world from their perspective. In their view, they will believe they are right, and you know what, they probably are.

Selling is something you do with

people, not to people. That is, if you value the relationship and want repeat business anyway.

In summary, your biggest competitive advantage is you, the sales person, not your product or service. The secret to overcoming buyer resistance is to change the way you sell, not come up with more and better answers to handle objections.

The key point here is that if youre getting lots of objections, you probably need to take a good hard look at the way youre selling

Paul Newsom is an expert in the field of solution selling and complex sales and is the editor of NZ Sales Manager magazine.

19

TOmOrrOwS ENTr EPrENEurS

Young Enterprise

STUDENT PROFILE

Isabella Morris, Tauranga Girls College

Terry Shubkin, CEO YOUNG ENTERPRISE TRUST

T

he introduction of NZ Entrepreneur magazine is a wonderful way to recognise and highlight the amazing variety of businesses and social enterprises that Kiwi’s create in this country.

There are some really amazing enterprise stories in this magazine which will inspire, inform and entertain you. I hope you’re looking forward to reading them as much as I am.

I lead an organisation that is focused on creating New Zealand’s next generation of entrepreneurs. At Young Enterprise Trust, we offer enterprise programmes and financial literacy resources to schools throughout the country.

Our work starts with primary programmes for children aged as young as 5, and staircases through to our senior programme, the Lion Foundation Young Enterprise Scheme. Each year, we connect with approximately 40,000 students across the country.

I

sabella Morris of Tauranga Girls College was chosen at the Enterprise in Action weekend as the Young Enterprise Student Ambassador for the 2012 Business Hall of Fame. Her articulate and

impassioned speech urging today’s business leaders to invest more in tomorrow’s business leaders, wowed the entire room, so much so that by 10am the next morning, she had her first offer of an internship from a member of the audience.

“In this room we have 300 of the most influential and successful businesspeople in the country. One thing you have in common, is that

We meet some incredible young people, like Isabella Morris of

you have all been leaders in NZ business. Another thing you have in

Tauranga Girls’ College. The more I work with young people like Izzi,

common is that you are all Baby Boomers - a generation that youth

the more confident I am in New Zealand’s future.

today look up to – but also a generation we are scared of.

Enjoy!

No - it’s not your fashion choices, your 80’s hair styles or your lack of friends on Facebook that scare us. It is the future cost of your mobility

LUE YOUR VSAIT PO ION O R P Yes - in the next 10, 20, 30 years - me, and my generation, are going scooters, rest homes and medical bills which instil fear.

to be the people supporting you. By the time all of you have officially retired, only three people will be working to support every one of you.

I am going to be one of those people.

This tells a story of a very different New Zealand to the one you have experienced. The aging population is not a new phenomenon. It’s been in the media a lot lately with discussion around whether the superannuation age should be raised or means tested. In my opinion, as a young person, the more important discussion we should be having is how can we make those three people who will be supporting you as efficient, productive and effective as possible?”

Watch Izzi’s full speech from the 2012 Fairfax Business Hall Of Fame at: http://www.stuff.co.nz/business/opinionanalysis/7189781/Enterprising-Izzi-into-business

20

N

Enjoy nZ EnTREPREnEuR? Check out these other great Espire E-Mags ISSUE 6 March 2011

nZ FISHER DO YOU LIKE fI fIsh shIng? ng?

If you love fishing you'll love NZ Fisher, the fresh e-magazine for Kiwi fishing enthusiasts... and it's free! Packed full of tips, ideas and stories to see you th through rough to your next fishing outing, you'll land a shiny new issue direct in your email inbox every four weeks!

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TOP TIPS

HOW TO BU RIGHT CAMEY THE RA FOR YOU

PHOTO ES SAYS

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LL FU E TH H L: .K. D IT L .L A WWE .I S LO W K M N N IE C D S W Rv B L AH I N I OT I P T DO TEFF BE T I P FF S : I NE O N P E S H OS T U U A G M M TO L & E !

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Short and sharp, New Zealand Sales Manager is a free e-magazine delivering thought provoking and enlightening articles, and industry news and information information to forward-thinking sales managers, business owners and sales professionals.

www.nzsalesmanager.co.nz lEadErs for salEs NZ’s E-mag

KIWI PHOT OG WIN 4 PLA RAPHERS CES WORLDWI IN THE M.I.L.K. CO DE FRESH MPETITION

IssUE 61

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KIWI

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Introducing NZ Photographer - the fun, free and informative e-magazine for Kiwi camera owners every four weeks. Whether you’re an enthusiastic weekend snapper, a student of photography, or just want to learn more, NZ Photographer will help you take better photos and make the most of your camera!

July 8 th 200 9

anager.co.nz

1 / www.nzsalesm

wEB/SOCIaL/ONLINE

How to Buy a Website A ENTREPRENEURS GUIDE FOR AN AVOIDING THE PITFALLS

By Forsyth Thompson

L

et’s start first with you: have you put together a clear brief for what it is that you want? By this, I don’t mean the design, I mean the functionality, in two different ways. Firstly, are

you clear on what functions the website needs to perform for your business? What does your company need or want visitors to your website to do? Make a clear list, and then prioritise them; be selfish – this is about building a tool for your business.

Whether you’re building a new website from scratch

Next you need to think about what it is that visitors to your website

for your new business, or updating an old one for an

want. This is unlikely to be the same list as your first one, and

existing business, there are a lot of potential pitfalls.

that’s ok. Marrying those two things up is the job of your chosen

Avoiding these pitfalls will not just save money

developer/designer. Now to the next part of the functionality: what

and time in the short-term, but can also ensure that

does the website need to do? Think about every step the visitor goes

your business is not constrained by your website in

through and what you want to happen.

practical or financial terms as it grows.

You’ve now got a great starting point for talking to potential suppliers for designing and building your site and what’s more, you’re clear about how this tool needs to work for your business and your visitors.

Now for the part where people often find themselves swamped by jargon they don’t understand and/or costs they hadn’t anticipated.

Here are some key things to think about and which will help you keep your potential suppliers honest and make sure that you get what you need, not what they might want to sell you:

22

•

C ontent M anagement S ystem ( C M S )

Do you need a custom build, a proprietary system or should you go open source? A custom built solution is probably essential if you’re doing something genuinely new (technically) or if you’re integrating a website with a lot of complex back-end systems. If your requirements are more simple, you could use a proprietary system, but why use a proprietary system developed and supported by just one set of developers. A local company with their own system means you’re tied to a single company whereas a global company like Adobe has a proprietary CMS too, but there are hundreds or thousands of

“

The real secret to buying a website is to get what you, your business, and your customers want, not what a vendor wants or needs to sell you.

developers globally who you could work with. Greater choice normally means lower risk and lower cost. Why tie your future success to a single company which could close, be bought, or simply not end up being a cultural match?

Open source is not some kind of geek counter-culture! What it means is that the code running the CMS is open to developers to work on.

In a recent global survey, the open-source Magento CMS was found to be the most popular across a million websites surveyed and has been chosen by small local companies to global giants such as Adidas and North Face. Wordpress (also open source) runs over a million websites globally. This is not coincidence! Challenge potential vendors by asking why they’re proposing a particular platform, which other ones they considered in response to your brief, and why they have chosen the one they presented.

•

these will be highest for custom work, and lowest for open source.

Proprietary can vary wildly depending on whose system it is – as a rule of thumb if it’s a big global company it’ll be easier and cheaper to get work done than if it’s just a single local company who has built it. Again, more choice and more competition probably mean better prices for you.

O wnership

If you want to move provider or indeed platform, how easy is this going to be? Again, a custom build will be very difficult, and with some proprietary systems provided by NZ vendors you can find that you never actually own the website, just the content in it, so you simply can’t move.

•

S earch E ngine O ptimisation ( S E O )

Getting found on Google is, for most businesses, absolutely crucial.

Almost all open source platforms we’ve encountered are very “Google friendly”. However with the proprietary systems we see in NZ, the same is rarely true. If SEO is going to be important, make sure that the CMS you’re choosing is going to help not hinder this. Talk to an SEO company for impartial advice, preferably not one which is partnered with a single web development company.

•

better business decisions you’ll be able to make. Do not compromise this under any circumstances, it will come back to haunt you.

•

S calability

Over the years I’ve seen many clients who’ve started out with an off-the-shelf package, or something proprietary from a single local company. The one thing they all have in common is that, as their businesses thrive and grow, they are restrained by their websites

T otal C ost of O wnership ( T C O )

In the future, what are the ongoing costs going to be. Normally

•

going to need far more data than that. The better data you have, the

either in the form of escalating costs to make a system do something it wasn’t designed for, or by hitting a functional glass ceiling. You’ve got a great idea, you’re going to run a successful growing business, make sure that your site can grow with you in an affordable way.

With one client recently I challenged them to think of all the things they could possibly want in a year or two if the business took off, then we made sure the developers would be able to deliver these, and what the costs would be. Why not do the same?

•

TIE-IN

If a vendor wants you to sign a lock-in contract with your website, ask yourself why. In your business, you deliver your customers a great product and/or solution at a fair price and they actively want to work with you. The same should perhaps be true of your website vendor.

As you start down the online road, for every answer you get, you’ll also come up with more questions. That’s ok, but make sure you don’t get bogged down in detail, and keep the general principals and goals of the project in mind at all times. It’s easy to get fixated on micro details and to lose site of the bigger picture, and that’s often when it stops being fun and exciting, and can get off track.

The real secret to buying a website is to get what you, your business, and your customers want, not what a vendor wants or needs to sell you. I hope this starts you off on the right road.

R eporting

If online is critical for your business, then I’d bet the house that

Forsyth Thompson is a director of Digital Hothouse, an

you’re going to be needing to use Google Analytics. If your potential

online agency helping companies do more business online.

vendor doesn’t support the latest version of GA and can’t install the

He was the first employee of Google New Zealand and

code (including e-commerce tracking) for you, then move on. It’s

remembers SEO in the days before Google existed! Reach

that crucial. Don’t settle for the reports your website produces, you’re

Forsyth at forsyth@digitalhothouse.co.nz or on 021 979740.

23

P E R S O N A L T RA I N E R

An Opportunity Conscious Mind

By Charles Donoghue

Edward de Bono, says “To discover opportunities we must first become opportunity conscious.”

I

believe to achieve this state of mind requires you to first examine

people are stuck in some job they don’t really like, all their life, while

the visions you hold about yourself. Anyone with a limited

others soar to high levels of achievement in fields that they love? The

vision of themselves can read all the inspirational books, listen

answer lies in the brains programming. When people understand the

to motivational CD’s, attend seminars and build a massive personal

real power that lies within their mind and that they CAN learn how to

library of these stimulants, but nothing will happen for them in the

reprogramme their brain at anytime, nothing is impossible for them.

long term. It is psychologically impossible for temporary motivation to accomplish long term changes in your thinking. The mind is too strong and has been too well programmed by the time you were sixteen or seventeen and creates your belief or expectations, which in turn creates the all powerful SELF IMAGE.

We experience our expectations. Your future is predictable by your belief system and your success restricted by it.

You can have all the necessary qualifications and experience in the world but if you limit your expectations of success you will never succeed.

If that belief is full of limitations eg “ I didn’t do too well at school,” then that kind of programming only reinforces what you already believe and it becomes impossible to change your expectations for the future. Likewise if you hold a contrary belief such as, “I’m good at this or that, or I can achieve whatever I want,” then nothing is impossible.

If we all possess one hundred billion brain cells, why is it that some

24

Charles Donoghue is a New Zealand based high performance psychology coach and author of numerous books including Kites Rise Against the Wind and MegaThinking.

25

G etting I t D one

Taking Care of Business Want to know how to get things done when it comes to government matters?

Business.govt.nz is a great place to start.

By Adrian Nacey

Between starting and growing a business, marketing products and services, managing staff and paying bills, entrepreneurs have precious little time to be searching for resources on what they need to do with government.

We asked Business.govt.nz to provide us with some guidance for entrepreneurs on a range of government and compliance related issues, starting with an explanation of what the Business.govt.nz website is all about.

B

usiness.govt.nz seeks to provide entrepreneurs with the information they require to make dealing with government as quick and easy as possible. From advice on employing

staff or paying your GST, through to health and safety, intellectual property or fair trading regulations - Business.govt.nz is the place for all things government.

Mobile Business Toolbox has already surpassed 1200 downloads.

Regular visitors to Business.govt.nz may have noticed some changes in recent weeks. Feedback from SMEs showed they wanted a user-friendly site with more focus on government matters and less

Operated by the recently formed Ministry of Business, Innovation and

overwhelming terminology. Business.govt.nz has arranged clear

Employment, Business.govt.nz is the government’s website for small to

and straight forward guidance in a way that is logical to business.

medium-sized enterprises. With the focus on providing credible, accurate

“The result is a website that is easy to navigate with content that is

and up to date information on what small businesses want and need

informative, friendly and easy to understand. It’s an excellent resource

from government, the site also provides a number of tools and resources

for entrepreneurs seeking quality information on what to do with

to help business owners and managers start, manage and grow their

government,” says Business.govt.nz Manager, Katie Wellington.

business, as well as other initiatives including an iPad application and the annual ANZ Flying Start Business Plan Competition.

So whether you’re managing a flourishing small business needing information at your fingertips for when government matters arise, or

The recently launched Mobile Business Toolbox is an all-encompassing

an entrepreneur with a brilliant business idea and curious to know

iPad application that provides SMEs with handy tools and tips to

how government can help you get off the ground; a visit to Business.

develop and run a successful business. In addition to relevant and

govt.nz is well worthwhile.

popular content from the website the App includes interactive business health checks and templates as well as videos and news updates on all things small business. Available free from the Apple App store the

26

Adrian Nacey is an e-Business Advisor at Business.govt.nz.

T h e P itc h ing S ession

Are you a New Zealand based company looking for early stage investment? Let us help and apply for The Pitching Session!

Get in touch with Nick at nick@nzentrepreneur.co.nz

Psoda KEY FACTS

What is the main purpose of the funding?

C o m p a n y N a m e : Psoda Ltd

•

APAC marketing and growth into APAC

I n d u s t r y C l a s s i f i c a t i o n : Software as a Service/Cloud

•

Additional development staff for R&D

What stage of the startup/business cycle are

•

Design work on the look & feel of the Psoda tool

y o u a t ? Established / With Steady Revenues

•

Translation of the toolset into additional languages

ELEVATOR PITCH

Would you like to find out more about this

Psoda is a suite of cloud-based tools for Portfolio, Programme and

investment opportunity or do you know

Project Management. We provide tools for project team members

someone who might be able to help them?

so they can get their jobs done more efficiently in a collaborative

Please contact the CEO, Bruce Aylward, via the contact details below

space, and then roll up the data automatically, to provide strategic

and mention NZ Entrepreneur, or visit their website for more info.

information to management and other stakeholders.

C o n t a c t E m a i l : baylward@psoda.com B U S I N E S S OVE R V I E W

P h o n e N u m b e r : +64 4 562 7904

Psoda was established in 2006 by Bruce Aylward with the goal of

W e b s i t e : http://psoda.com

providing excellent software and customer service to our customers.

In six years the business has grown from 1 to 9 people; 5 in NZ and 4 in Australia and is managing in excess of $5 billion worth of projects.

We have customers in New Zealand, Australia, UK, Sweden, Canada,

: Pic

ve Cli

go Pig

t/A

e.co.nz rtfuldodg

the USA and elsewhere.

Some of our key customers in New Zealand include NZTA, Auckland Transport, TrustPower, Transpower, Hutt Valley DHB, Capital & Coast DHB, Foodstuffs. Australian customers include ACARA, UTS Sydney, Mission Australia. CEO Bruce Aylward won the Emerging ICT Leader of the Year award at this year’s CIO Summit.

In the next 5 years we want to: •

Grow Psoda into the dominant PPM solution in APAC

•

Grow the team from 9 to 25 people

•

Develop new mobile offerings

•

Target the mining industry

What type of investment are you looking for?

•

Angel/VC

•

Connections

•

Mentoring

Approximate level of financial investment being sought?

Between $250,00 and $500,000

27

How to:

Read Our Emag

28

HOW TO READ OUR EMAG

B

eing an emag has some great benefits. We can get content

pump out more issues with just the right amount of content. But

and news to you far quicker than a print magazine as we

most importantly for you, it’s free! We’ve put together a bit of a guide

have no lengthy printing times, furthermore it allows us to

to show you how you can get the most out of reading our emag.

1 2

Print the PDF If you must get your hands on some ink, you always have the option to print out the PDF. While this isn’t overly encouraged, as we love that our emag is so clean & green, if you simply must you can always print the PDF out.

Download the PDF The easiest option is to simply click the “Download PDF” button in the email that we send out. This will download the PDF to the device you are on, and nearly every device these days can open a PDF with ease.

Read on iPad or other tablet

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SECTION

P AR T I N G S H O T

Nelson Mandela

“

It always seems impossible until it’s

30