Lucerne Valley's History of Industry in a Nutshell and How it Still Shapes us Today

Lucerne Valley was once inhabited by the Piute, Chemehuevi, and Serrano Native American tribes, who used the natural springs. James E. "Dad" Goulding began cultivating his homestead with apple orchards, vegetable gardens, and eventually alfalfa fields in 1897. The community became known as Lucerne (a French word for alfalfa) in 1916. Goulding, who has been generally accepted as the founder of Lucerne Valley, developed the first school, library, and post office on his ranch property. By the 1920's Lucerne Valley was being used as a filming location for western movies and then in 1947 Dunton Quarry Mine opened by the Minerals Materials Company, attracting the railroad to the community. As a result, Lucerne Valley began to see increased growth from the mining industry. While there are still railroad tracks in the area, Lucerne Valley now has major roadways that run through it, including State Highway 18 (CA-18), Old Woman Springs Road (CA-247), and Barstow Road (CA-247), which mean 2 local truck routes run through the area. Despite Lucerne Valley being a major thoroughfare for truckers, many privately owned and local roads are unpaved, without pedestrian or bicycle facilities.

Lucerne Valley's Major Industries

Water

Just as the Native American's settled here for the Natural Springs, people today still get their water from Lucerne Valley, its just a bit different now.

The Mojave Water Agency monitors the Mojave River Regional Aquifer which is where Lucerne Valley's Natural Springs had once bubbled up from.

Many homes in Lucerne Valley are supplied with water by a hauling service. Some properties have "free" water because they have a well and pump water directly from the Mojave River Regional Aquifer themselves. While others have their households supplied with water from 1 of the 10 private water "companies" here in Lucerne Valley who also pump water from the Aquifer.

Homes and Businesses handle wastewater treatment by septic tanks and leach field systems, as there is no regional waste water treatment plant in Lucerne Valley.

Agriculture

In the same tradition as James E. Goulding, Lucerne Valley still actively cultivates Agriculture today. Lucerne Valley is home to at least one egg farm, pig and cattle ranches, and several orchards that produce fruits that are exported all around the world.

If you're a Ranch, Farm, or Orchard - please contact the Lucerne Valley Chamber of Commerce so that we can begin to accumulate data and calculate just how valuable Lucerne Valley's Agricultural Industry is to the world.

Film

Hollywood has a history as far back as Somewhere in Sonora (1933) of filming scenes in and around Lucerne Valley. Today, Lucerne Valley still serves as an exciting backdrop for feature films, such as Fallen Cards (currently in post production), commercials, and even music videos.

Lucerne Valley is home to several entrepreneurs who scout and preserve sections of Lucerne Valley's land, specifically for filming. Additionally, some of these mediacentric moguls also provide mobile bathroom amenities and cater food to the film's production team and cast.

If you'd like information on filming in Lucerne Valley, please contact the Lucerne Valley Chamber of Commerce and we'll help put you in contact with these stewards of the land.

Transportation

Lucerne Valley is a crossroads for many products that American Citizens' enjoy. The trucks that carry those products often pass through Lucerne Valley on either Highway 18 or CA-247.

Not only is Lucerne Valley a crossroad for truckers, but many Class A licensed Drivers call Lucerne Valley home. It isn't an uncommon site to see Big Rigs parked along the side of our dirt roads.

Lucerne Valley is even the headquarters of a trucking company, S.S. Hert Trucking.

Whether the load a truck carries be raw minerals (like limestone), dry bulk pneumatic products (like cement or flour), or a liquid delivery (like water) - you'll see it pass through our town of characters.

Mining

Lucerne Valley is currently home to three mines: Mitsubishi Cement (purchased Kaiser Cement from Hanson Trust in the mid-I980's), Omya (formerly Pluess Stauffer), and Specialty Minerals (formerly Pfizer).

All three mine for Limestone, however each use the limestone differently. Mitsubishi uses it for cement, Omya has a variety of applications the Limestone is used for such as pharmaceuticals, plastics, paint and food. Finally, Specialty Minerals, who also use it for several products, such as roofing granules, garden stone, and concrete block manufacture.

Retail & Service

Lucerne Valley has multiple restaurants to support the various industrial workers we have in the area, as well as feed the truckers and tourists who pass through.

Because Lucerne Valley caters to visitors, most weekends residents don't even need to leave Lucerne Valley for entertainment, as it is typical to find a band playing live and for free at a local restaurant.

Lucerne Valley also has a few retail locations where you can purchase clothing, movies, tables, flowers, and home improvement materials.

Land Use, Housing, Houshold Economics, and Demographics

According to San Bernardino County, Countywide Plan, Lucerne Valley Community Action Guide - published in 2020 - Lucerne Valley Community Plan area is 277,591 acres and as of 2016, nearly 73% of the land (203,246 acres) in Lucerne Valley was devoted to agriculture and resource conservation uses. The second-largest use was rural living, covering 22% (61,896 acres). All other uses, save the floodway which accounted for 2% (5,132 acres), in Lucerne Valley accounted for 1% or less of the total zoned acreage.

The Census Reporter has Lucerne Valley as being 105.6 square miles, (which is 67,584 acres so San Bernardino County must be counting land past Lucerne Valley's "city limits" to get their acreage count). The Census Reporter also states that Lucerne Valley is home to 6,212 people and has 2,650 housing units in total. Of those 2,650 housing units, only 2,163 are currently being utilized and contain 2.8 people on average. Which means, of the total available housing in Lucerne Valley, only 82% are occupied. 66% of the occupied homes are owner-occupied (75% of these owner-occupied homes are still paying a mortgage) while the other 34% are rented. Of the types of housing available, 82% are single units, 15% are Mobile Homes, and less than 1% are multi-unit. Boats/RVs/Vans are also listed, but weight in at less than 1% as well.

It is reported that the owner-occupied homes have a median value of $203,900 in Lucerne Valley, yet the median income of a Lucerne Valley household (yes across all 2,163 households) is just $45,444. Additionally, Lucerne Valley households report that they owns 2 cars and that 73% of Lucerne Valley residents drive alone to work, while 15% report to carpool. 1% say they take public transit and 3% of residents report that they walk to work. 8% of residents say they work from home. Despite the mode of transportation, the mean travel time of a Lucerne Valley resident's commutes is 46.4 minutes. You can find more Statistical data about Lucerne Valley by clicking here.

Below are Statistics of Lucerne Valley's Population by age range, median age, age by category, sex, race and ethnicity. Even more statistical data can be found by clicking here.

How to Use This Information to development Your Business

What is a Target Market? and Why is it Important to Identify it?

For a business (or product) to be successful, it must satisfy a need or solve a problem (or both). Ask yourself, what need or problem is your business (or product) solving? Write it down.

Usually the need (or problem) is not universal, and so it is only needed by a subset of consumers. Ask yourself, who has the problem that your business or product is solving? Write it down.

That subset of consumers can be defined as having certain shared demographics. Ask yourself, what demographics does the person with this problem belong to? Write these features down. Here are a few questions to help you get started identifying their demographics: What age range are they? Where do they live? How much money do they make annually? Do they have pets? Do they have a car? etc.

Once you have identify your customers demographics, review statistical information about the area you want to open your business in. This will help you see if you have a large consumer base in the area. If you do not, you may need to open your business online or advertise online to attract your ideal consumer to your store.

People with the shared demographics you've identified, will be most likely to buy your company's product or consume its services, this is called a Target Market.

As you can see from the exercise you've done above, identifying your businesses target market is important for the development and implementation of a successful business, as it will help you attract the people who need and/or want to frequent your business the most. It will also help you determine where and how to advertise to ensure your advertising dollars are maximized and your business, product or event is as successful as possible.

Additionally, if you have an existing business that seems to be in a slump, you might want to review your current target market's demographics and compare them to the statistics of the area your business is currently located. Your original target market may no longer exist in your area and you may need to begin marketing in a new way to bring your target market back to your business OR you may need to identify a new target market in the area and begin advertising to them.

Click here to go to a really good webpage to help you identify your target market - OR - Click here to just view their target market worksheet (that you can print!)

How do I find my Businesses Target Market?

Market researchers use AIO (activity, interest, and opinion) Surveys to make psychographic profiles of their customers by dividing consumers into four major segments: Demographic, Geographic, Psychographic, and Behavioral. These four groups are often referred to as Audience Segmentation by Marketers and are used to analyze a consumer's lifestyle factors like hobbies, passions, and viewpoints to create highly targeted marketing campaigns that resonate deeply with their specific needs and desires. Demographic: The main characteristics that define your target market. Examples of Demographic include age group, income level, gender, occupation, and education level. Geographic: Where do they live? This segment is more and more relevant in the era of globalization, as regional preferences or challenges need to be taken into account for a product/business to be successful. Psychographic: This goes beyond basic demographics as it takes into consideration lifestyle, attitudes, interests, politics, religion and values. Behavioral: This segment relies on research into current customers decisions and helps companies introduce new products based on customer's proven appeal of past products. Here is a link which contains a lot of Lucerne Valley's Statistical Information: https://censusreporter.org/profiles/16000US0644420-lucerne-valley-ca/ to help you create Audience Segmentation and identify your target market.

Secondary Target Market & Secondary Audience

Secondary Target Market

A Secondary Target Market are individuals who can and will purchase your product/service, but not as frequently as your Target Market.

An Example:

Service: Manicure

Target Market: 30 to 45 year old women

Secondary Target Market for the manicure: a Husband

Here's how marketing to the Secondary Target Market leads to more sales: A Husband is picking up milk at the store. He sees valentine's day cards and candy near the check out stand. He picks a card but does not buy candy as he knows his wife is on a diet. As he checks out with the milk and card he sees a flyer on the store front for a local nail shop offering gift certificates. He calls the local nail shop to ask how to get a gift certificate. He then travels to the nail shop and buys a gift certificate, enough to cover a complete manicure, to put inside the valentine's day card. The Husband then presents his wife the card and certificate to the nail shop on Valentine's day.

While the Husband was not the target market for the manicure, his wife was, by the company focusing on the secondary target market during a gift giving holiday, the local nail shop was able to secure an additional purchase for their service.

Identifying your secondary target market is critical to capturing "extra" sales, boosting your income temporarily while creating an opportunity for a return customer.

Secondary Audience

A Secondary Audience are individuals who are not going to purchase your product/service but have strong influence on your Target Market.

An Example:

Product: Toy Dump Truck

Target Market: Parents of young children

Secondary Audience for the dump truck toy: a child

Here's how the secondary audience might influence the target market to purchase something: A male child, aged somewhere between 6 and 8, is watching a superhero cartoon on YouTube. During the cartoon, YouTube airs a 15 second commercial for the toy dump truck. The child then talks about the toy several times over the next couple of weeks to his parents. The parents realize the child's birthday is coming up very soon. His parents discuss the topic of the child's birthday and decide to buy the toy dump truck for the child. The child's mother goes an online retailer and buys the toy to give it to the child for their upcoming birthday.

While the child was not the target market for the toy, the parents were, by the company focusing their marketing on the secondary audience they were able to convince the target market to purchase their product.

Identifying your businesses secondary audience and marketing to them will help direct and motivate your target market to purchase your product/service.

How to Use Your Target Market(s) To Successfully ADVERTISe

Flyers

Door Hangers

A flyer is a promotional material that informs people about your business or product. Flyers are often printed on paper and distributed in public places, but they can also be shared online. Flyers are a cost-effective marketing tool that can reach a large number of people quickly.

However, to be most effective, flyers should be placed where your target market frequents. For example, if your target market is 70 year old men who wear hearing aids - placing a flyer at an elementary school will most likely not benefit you.

Additionally, your flyer needs to be placed in a spot, at the location, that your target market will see. As an example, Trix Cereal is often placed on the second or third row from the bottom of the cereal aisle in grocery stores, as the box is designed to be attractive to children, who are not as tall as their parents (in most cases).

Door Hangers

Door hanger advertising is a marketing tactic that involves leaving printed advertisements on doorknobs. Door hangers are a cost-effective way to generate leads, increase brand awareness, and can be an effective way to reach a target market because they are hard to ignore.

Door hangers work best when promoting local businesses or services that are relevant to the neighborhood and are ideal for any home service business: lawn care, landscaping, house cleaning, HVAC, plumbing, tree care, etc.

Door hanger advertising is especially effective for services that happen regularly (house cleaning, plumbing) or seasonally (HVAC, landscaping), because you can time their delivery for when the client is most likely to need you. They are less effective for one-off services, such as roofing or general contracting.

Direct Mail

Door Hangers

Search Engine Ads

Direct mail is an advertising strategy of sending mail, such as pre-approved credit card applications or nonprofit fundraising letters, directly to potential consumers based on demographic information.

Although direct mail can have a negative reputation for being perceived as junk mail, it remains a large income stream for postal services and is effective in marketing to older generations, such as Baby Boomers or Gen X.

Direct mail remains an attractive strategy for many companies because of the permanence of physical mail, which tends to have a higher rate of engagement than electronic advertising. Marketers often increase engagement with messages of pre-approved offers and by including samples, such as fake credit cards, and/or enclosing special perks, like enrollment in a reward programs.

Search Engine Ads

Google, Bing, even Safari - all Search Engines (or browsers) have advertising programs of some kind. You create an account and define things like keywords for them and then give them your credit card. Then, every time someone types those magical keywords into their search bar and hit enter, your "ad" will appear in that persons search results.

You can even narrow down who will see those search results by demographics like age, sex, and location, allowing your "ads" to appear in your ideal target market's search results. Helping you save money on advertising while maximizing your return on investment (ROI).

Social Media

Search Engine Ads

Social Media

Ads on Social media work very similar to Search Engine ads, they even pay search engines to display ads people have created with them.

The difference is that with social media, if you cultivate a following on your business page, you really don't need to create any ads there.

However, the questions are, which social media platform does your target market use and interact with most frequently? And can you effectively cultivate a following from your target market on that social media platform?

Video Ads

Search Engine Ads

Social Media

TikToK, Snapchat, YouTube, and Twitch are video apps/sites that in some ways mimic social media sites. But the main use of these sites/apps isn't to connect with others, it is to allow users to upload videos and watch other users uploaded videos.

Each of these apps/sites, allow companies to make and post video ads. It would be in your best interest to make a video your target market actually wants to see. Then they use the target market data you defined for them, to find users via their algorithm. Once they've done that they squeeze your ad in-between videos your target market is watching on their platform.

Television

Unlike video apps/sites on the internet, getting an advertisement on television is a bit more complex.

First you need to find a show that your target market watches.

Then contact the station that broadcasts that show to ask what their video requirements are for commercials and how much they cost to air.

Now you make a commercial that appeals to your target market.

Finally, you contact the channel that broadcasts the show you want to advertise during again to give them a lot of money and the video of your commercial.

Over the air TV Channel List for Lucerne Valley

25 – 1 KCBS Los Angeles (Ch 2)

25 – 2 KNBC Los Angeles (Ch 4)

25 – 3 KOCE PBS (Ch 50)

25 – 4 KCET PBS Los Angeles (Ch 28)

27 – 1 KCOP Los Angeles (Ch 13)

27 – 2 KABC Los Angeles (Ch 7)

27 – 3 KTTV Los Angeles (Ch 11)

27 – 4 FETV

29 – 1 KCAL Los Angeles (Ch 9)

29 – 2 H&I Inspiration

29 – 3 METV Los Angeles (Ch 20)

29 – 4 IONTV KPXN Los Angeles (Ch 30)

Radio

Television

Radio Advertisements are much easier. You need to identify a station or show that your target market listens to, then contact the radio station about how much an ad would be.

Usually they have several options and price points for you to choose from, that can range from an actual radio commercial to a shout out from the DJ between two songs.

Radio can reach a wide and diverse audience, with 88% of Americans listening to AM/FM stations weekly. However, most radio stations have the ability to target a geographic area. The only real draw back of radio advertising is that listeners may not remember the ad after it airs. To fix this, most businesses run ads multiple times throughout the day and week to reinforce the message.

Click Here to find a list of radio stations that "reach" Lucerne Valley

Billboards

Television

Billboards

Billboards are great to drive traffic off the highway and into your parking lot, however they can be expensive. To advertise on one, you need to find the owner and contact them - they will provide you with information to proceed.

Luckily, with the rise of digital billboards, more businesses have access to billboard marking then ever. This is because the cost of advertising on one can be set by the frequency of your ads appearance on the screen and when the ad appears.

The Location of these digital billboards also allow for multiple businesses to advertise to a target market who frequents the location of that billboard.

Sadly, Lucerne Valley does not have a Digital Billboard, but Adelanto Does!

IS the Cost of Advertising Worth It? Calculating ROI (Return on Investment)

Advertising Costs Money, but its money well spent when targeted to your market correctly, and you can calculate if your marketing correctly by calculating a ROI (Return on Investment).

Return on investment (ROI) is calculated by dividing the profit earned on an investment by the cost of that investment, and is always shown as a percent.

For example, you designed a flyer online about a toy you'd have in your store starting December 1st that would be perfect to give to 6 to 9 year old children for Christmas. Then you printed 10 pages of the flyer at the library for $0.25 a page - so in total you've spent $2.50. You displayed a flyer at several Churches, the Moose, the thrift stores, and the grocery store in town. Then on December 1st, you had 30 new customers come in to buy the toy, profiting you $2.00 for each sale (a total of $60).

60 minus 2.50 equals 57.50.

57.50 divided by 2.50 equals 23.

23 converted to a percent is 2300%.

So in this, ridiculous example the ROI would be 2300%.

The above is a very basic explanation of an ROI, there is a lot more to know about ROI's, to learn more please visit: https://www.investopedia.com/terms/r/returnoninvestment.asp#:~:text=Return%20on%20investment%20(ROI)%20is%20calculated%20by%20dividing%20the%20profit,when%20expressed%20as%20a%20percentage.

Now, what if you need to utilize a more expensive form of advertising to reach your target market, or want to expand your business, or just need some cash to operate because you don't want to reduce your current liquid capital. Well, there's funding options, but before you go to a bank to ask for a loan you need to do a little bit of homework.

Cash Flow, Liquidity Ratio, and obtaining Loans or Credit

Creating a Cash Flow Projection Sheet, template seen in image above

Firstly, we need to create a cash flow projection, to do this we need to define a few terms:

Operating cash, beginning: The amount of money you have at the beginning of each month.
Sources of cash: All money coming in each month (receivable collections or direct sales, loans, etc.).
Total sources of cash: Add the amounts in the "Operating cash, beginning" row to the amount in the "Sources of cash" for each month.
Uses of cash: List every likely expense your business may incur, such as payroll, accounts payable to vendors, rent and loan payments, etc.
Total uses of cash: Tally all your expenses so you can see exactly what will be going out the door each month.
Excess (deficit) of cash: This is the number that counts. If you see positive numbers across the board, congratulations! You may have some extra dollars to invest back into your business. If you see a negative number for one of the months, don’t panic: You have time and options to prepare your business.

Now that you understand the terms we'll be using as headings, lets brainstorm to help you find money in your budget, or plan for money in your budget, for advertising lets discuss how to creating a cash flow projection, it only takes an hour a month to do this and is SUPER helpful to your business because it helps you identify potential cash shortfalls and surpluses in your business's future.

Take a piece of paper, turn it to be landscape in front of you, then draw a vertical line down the middle of the page. At the top of segment on the left write Sources of Cash, and then at the top of the segment on the right write Uses of Cash. Under the Sources of Cash section of the page, list all your incoming money for the month. Examples include: Standing Orders, receivable collections, direct sales, or loans. Under the Uses of Cash section of the page, list all the expenses your business may incur for the month. Examples include: Payroll, accounts payable (to vendors as well a eCommerce site fees), rent and loan payments.

Now, in a spreadsheet program (like Excel) you'll want to type the following (see image above to see example of how to fill out your spreadsheet):

(In Cell A2 Type) Operating cash, beginning
(In Cell A3 Type) Sources of cash
(In Cell B4 Type) Standing Orders
(In Cell B5 Type) Receivable Collections
(In Cell B6 Type) Direct Sales
(In Cell B7 Type) Loans
(In Cell A8 Type) Total sources of cash
(In Cell A9 Type) Uses of cash
(In Cell B10 Type) Payroll
(In Cell B11 Type) Amazon Fees
(In Cell B12 Type) eBay Fees
(In Cell B13 Type) Vendor Fees
(In Cell B14 Type) Rent
(In Cell B15 Type) Insurance Payments
(In Cell B16 Type) Loan Payments
(In Cell A17 Type) Total uses of cash
(In Cell A18 Type) Excess (deficit) of cash
(In Cell C1 Type) January
(In Cell D1 Type) February
(In Cell E1 Type) March
(In Cell F1 Type) April
(In Cell G1 Type) May
(In Cell H1 Type) June
(In Cell I1 Type) July
(In Cell J1 Type) August
(In Cell K1 Type) September
(In Cell L1 Type) October
(In Cell M1 Type) November
(In Cell N1 Type) December

Now, look at your Brainstorm Sheet - anything you wrote in the Sources of Cash column that is not already listed in Column B (cells 4 through 7) please add in Colum B, under cell 7. Again, look at your Brainstorm Sheet - anything you wrote in the Uses of Cash column that is not already listed in Column B (cells 10 through 16) please add in Colum B, under cell 16. Now that you've Created your cash flow projection Spreadsheet template. Go ahead and begin filling in the money totals, in cell C2, that you've been bringing in and sending out, and then begin trying to calculate out, past today's date.

This sheet uses real information from your past business dealings to allow you get a good projection of what your future financials will be. It will help you see potential pitfalls and months when you may have a surplus. For more information on this, and even get some Strategies to improve accuracy, please visit: https://smallbusinessresources.wf.com/creating-a-cash-flow-projection/

What is a Liquidity Ratio?

A Liquidity Ratio is actually the combination of 3 different asset ratios (current, quick, or cash) divided by a business's liabilities (debts/obligations).

Current Ratio: Compares all of the business's current assets to all of its current obligations. To calculate a Current Ratio, you need to divide a company's total current assets by its total current liabilities. For more information on this ratio please visit: https://www.investopedia.com/terms/c/currentratio.asp

Quick Ratio: Factors in on

Quick Ratio: Factors in only the business assets that can be accessed relatively quickly. To calculate a Quick Ratio, you need to add up a company's most liquid assets (cash and cash equivalents, marketable securities, and accounts receivable) and then divide that sum by its current liabilities. For more information on this ratio please visit: https://www.investopedia.com/terms/q/quickratio.asp

Cash Ratio: Compares obligations to only cash and cash equivalents. To calculate a Cash Ratio, you simply divide the sum of a company's "Cash and Cash Equivalents" by its "Current Liabilities" - essentially showing how much of its short-term debt a company can cover with readily available cash. For more information on this ratio please visit: https://www.investopedia.com/terms/c/cash-ratio.asp

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Lenders and investors often use the Liquidity Ratio to factor company's financial health.

A Liquidity Ratio is actually the combination of 3 different asset ratios (current, quick, or cash) divided by a business's liabilities (debts/obligations).

A high current ratio is when the ratio is higher than 1.0, and occurs when a business has cash that could be used or invested in other ways.

A business with a Healthy current ratio (typically considered a 1.0) means it can typically meet its short-term demands and still have enough cash to invest or expand.

A current ratio of 1.0 means th

A high current ratio is when the ratio is higher than 1.0, and occurs when a business has cash that could be used or invested in other ways.

A business with a Healthy current ratio (typically considered a 1.0) means it can typically meet its short-term demands and still have enough cash to invest or expand.

A current ratio of 1.0 means that a company's liabilities do not exceed its liquid assets, but this varies by industry and a number below 1.0 may be acceptable in industries where there's a quicker turnover in product and/or payment cycles are shorter.

A Low current ratio is when the ratio is lower than 1.0 and is a result of a business having trouble paying short-term obligations, this means that the business is a bigger risk for lenders and investors.

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If your business has a Low liquidity Ratio, you need to boost it. Here are a few suggestions to do that:

A Liquidity Ratio is actually the combination of 3 different asset ratios (current, quick, or cash) divided by a business's liabilities (debts/obligations).

If your business has a Low liquidity Ratio, you need to boost it. Here are a few suggestions to do that:

Control overhead expenses. There are many types of overhead that you may be able to reduce — such as rent, utilities, and insurance — by negotiating or shopping around. You can also look at where you expend time and energy. You may be able to identify some potential cash shortfalls and ways to manage your cash flow more effectively. One s

Control overhead expenses. There are many types of overhead that you may be able to reduce — such as rent, utilities, and insurance — by negotiating or shopping around. You can also look at where you expend time and energy. You may be able to identify some potential cash shortfalls and ways to manage your cash flow more effectively. One simple move: If your company has a paper trail, going digital can save you time and money that’s now spent submitting and accepting paper checks.
Sell unnecessary assets. Eliminating items such as surplus business equipment can provide a small sum of capital and reduce the average cost of equipment maintenance.
Change your payment cycle. Talk to your vendors about opportunities for discounts if you pay early, which can save you hundreds to thousands of dollars. On the flip side, you can consider offering your customers discounts for submitting payments ahead of schedule.
Look into a line of credit. A line of credit could help you cover gaps in cash flow due to payment schedules. Some business lines of credit offer access to up to $100,000 per year, with no annual fee for the first year. If you’re considering this, be sure to compare terms before choosing a lender.
Revisit your debt obligations. If you have short-term debt, switching to long-term debt can lower monthly payments and give you more time to pay off the sum. On the flip side, switching long-term debt to short-term debt may mean higher monthly payments, but your debt may be paid off more quickly. Also consider options like debt consolidation and loan refinancing, which may help lower monthly payments now, while also saving you money in the long-term.

https://smallbusinessresources.wf.com/5-ways-to-improve-your-liquidity-ratio/

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Obtaining Loans and Lines of Credit

First and foremost, if you need business financing, first ask yourself these 3 questions:

What do I need the money for?
How am I going to pay it back?
What is my backup plan?

You WILL need to be able to easily articulate the answers for ANY person or institution you're asking money from, because they will ask during the appointment when you present your business documents.

After you're able to answer these 3 questions, the next step is to realize what kind of financing you'll need:

Are you trying to open a new business?
Did you just open and are considered a "start up"?
Have you been in business for less than 2 years?

If the answer to either of the above 2 questions is yes - you'll need an SBA loan and not a small business loan. We'll talk more about SBA loans later, for now, we're only focusing on "established" businesses trying to get a small business loan.

Now that you have answers to the 3 most pressing questions, you'll need to schedule an appointment at the banking institution you'd like to obtain a loan from. At this appointment you'll need to bring proof that the business has been under your ownership for at least 2 years as well as bring proof of the following:

Your Name
Business Name
Business street address (no PO Boxes)
Date the business moved to the current address
Phone number
Tax ID
Nature of business
Date the business was established
Business acquisition date of current ownership
Number of employees
Annual net profit
Annual gross sales
List of outstanding obligations, if any (list should include lender, current loan balance or credit limit, and monthly payment)

Bring the following information about EACH business owner/guarantor and controlling manager as well:

Name and title of the person opening the account
Name and address of the entity for the account
Name, date of birth, Social Security number (for U.S. citizens), passport number and country of issuance (for foreign individuals), residential address, country of citizenship, country of residence and percentage of ownership for each beneficial owner
Name, date of birth, Social Security number (for U.S. citizens), passport number and country of issuance (for foreign individuals), residential address, country of citizenship and country of residence for each controlling individual (this information is required even if no equity owner has 25% or greater ownership)
Certification that the information provided on the beneficial owner and/or the controlling manager is accurate
Personal income
Residence status (rent or own) and monthly housing payment

While not required, it will be helpful to have copies of your most recent business and personal tax returns and/or financial statements available. Lastly and if applicable, banking establishments may also require specific information about equipment, vehicles and/or real estate you intend to finance.

The above requirement information was taken from Bank of America's website about small business loans, most other banks have the same requirements for small business loans, please visit this page to learn more about requirements: https://www.bankofamerica.com/smallbusiness/business-financing/learning/what-you-need-to-apply/

Some financial institutions do not give loans, but instead give lines of credit.

Before filling out an application to get a line of credit, you'll need to review your credit history, both personal and your business, after all a bank will want to know if you are earning enough income to support not only your current debt, but also the debt that you're requesting. Keep in mind, your business needs to be generating positive cash flow.

Additionally, before you approach a lender, be sure to request a copy of your personal credit report from the three consumer credit reporting agencies (Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion) and your small business credit report from Dunn & Bradstreet. Then review your reports carefully for accuracy. If you spot an error, file an online dispute with the applicable agency as soon as possible (within 30 days of receiving your report).

After reviewing your credit history, gather the following financial documents, and double-check it for accuracy:

Business revenue reports
Personal income reports
Tax returns for the past three years
Asset and bank account information
Proof of ownership
The full legal name of your business

Now, determine how much capital you need and be prepared to tell the lender how you plan to use the money. For example, you may explain that you will use the capital to pay for additional office space and furniture or for a website redesign. Also be sure you are asking for a realistic amount to fulfill those particular goals.

The information for getting a line of credit was taken from Wells Fargo's website, to read more please visit: https://smallbusinessresources.wf.com/five-steps-to-consider-before-applying-for-credit/

Finally, fill out an application and schedule an appointment with the banking institution of your choice.

the Multiple paths of getting funding

Venture Capital (VC) Companies

Venture Capital (VC) Companies provide financing to your business from investment funds in exchange for an ownership stake in your business. Typically they fund startups and early-stage companies that they believe have a high potential for growth. However, some want to be the second firm to invest or only want to invest in an established businesses that wants to grow. There are some that don't care what stage a business is in, they only care about the business being in a specific industry. You'll need to review each Venture Capital Company to see if your business meets the interests they're communicating, on their website or portfolio, that they're looking to invest funds into. Often, VC companies proudly display other businesses that they've invested in, allowing you a chance to review those companies and hone your pitch deck.

A Pitch Deck is a visual presentation that summarizes your business plan, highlighting key aspects of your company to potential investors. When crafting your pitch deck be sure to touch on the market opportunity your product/business has, your team/staff, and your financial projections. With your pitch deck, you want to attract the interest of the Venture Capital Company, igniting their imaginations as to what your business could do if it had more funding. If your Pitch Deck doesn't promote discussion, you need to refine it immediately. If you've ever seen the show Shark Tank you've seen businesses presenting their Pitch Deck to Venture Capitalists. If you haven't seen the show, we've included a link to a 43 minute episode so you can enjoy an example.

Below we've provided links to real Venture Capital Companies and statements they have on their websites. Take a moment to read their statements. You'll see that most are very straight forward in what type of business and what stage of business they're looking to invest their dollars in.

Archer Venture Capital - Specializes in direct secondary investments, primary growth equity, and reserve follow-on capital.
Crosscut Ventures - Partners with early-stage companies developing cutting-edge frontier technologies to address the world's most pressing problems.
Correlation Ventures - Investing in private, U.S.-headquartered companies across all industries and investment stages, from seed to late-stage.
Acre Venture Partners - We invest in companies creating fundamental change in food and agriculture in order to address large scale problems in human and environmental health.
Flux Capital - Turning audacious ideas into world-changing realities.

If VC Companies websites contain some statements or terms that you're unfamiliar with, look them up! Below are a few term you'll run into while reading VC Companies websites and portfolios.

Primary Investment: When an investor can directly invest in a fund or company at the beginning.
Secondary Investment: Involve acquiring shares from other investors who want to exit before it matures or is sold.
Primary Growth Equity: Private investment strategy that involves providing capital & guidance to fast-growing companies in exchange for a minority stake.
Growth Equity: Investment strategy oriented around acquiring minority stakes in late-stage companies exhibiting high growth with potential in expansion.
Reserve Follow-on Capital: Money set aside to support future investments in portfolio companies.

Angel Investors

Angel investors are wealthy individuals who invest their own money in startups and other businesses in exchange for a percentage of your business, somewhere between ten to fifty percent.

They are very much like VC Companies, however, they typically look for established businesses past the startup phase. Generally Angel Investors are looking for businesses have have the potential for profits, but need money to expand in some way. Because part of the Angel Investor's private wealth is on the line, they are highly motivated to help your business succeed and often mentor or become a direct manager in your business. However, if you've agreed to give them a controlling percentage of your business, and they determine your keeping the business from succeeding, you could lose control of your business. Angel investors typically want to see a Pitch Deck, your business plan, and an exit strategy, not only for themselves but for you as well (if your business goes south). They need to know that you've given thought to every aspect and potential outcome.

An Exit Strategy is a plan for selling or transferring ownership of a business, either after a predetermined objective has been achieved or as a strategy to mitigate failure.

A network you can join to find Angel Investors is the Angel Investment Network Ltd or you can always find Angel Investors through LinkedIn. Here are some examples of Angel Investors I was able to find on the world's largest professional networking website:

Crowdfunding

Crowdfunding is a way of raising money to finance projects and businesses by collecting money from a large number of people. There are four different types of Crowdfunding:

Donation - backers donate money without expecting anything in return.
Equity - backers invest funds and receive shares of your business, becoming partial owners.
Rewards - backers provide funds in exchange for unique perks and/or products.
Debt - works like traditional loans, but funds come from multiple backers and, in most cases, have more favorable terms for the borrower.

When using a crowdfunding site, there are fees associated with each platform that must be paid from the capital you raise. Additionally, some crowdfunding sites return funds to investors, instead of passing those funds on to you, if your Campaign doesn't reach it's funding goal.

Some popular crowdfunding website include:

You'll need to review each site to see if your business fits with the sites fostered interests, as each crowdfunding site attracts different types of users/investors, before deciding which (if any) to use. Most of these crowdfunding website work like this: Users launch a Campaign, seeking to raise funds from other users by offering Perks to Contributors in thanks for their donation of funds. Users can choose not to create Campaigns and instead search other users Campaigns seeking opportunities to which they can contribute to in exchange for Perks. Additionally most of the crowdfunding sites and their payment processors will usually deduct applicable fees before transmitting the proceeds of your campaign to your bank account.

It is important to know that you can crowdfund without technology. Many businesses in town hold events where they raffle or auction off items to a crowd. Some have charity dinners. Others utilize the trusted method of the clear plastic boxes placed at cash registers of various businesses throughout town. Usually they have a picture displaying their logo and an explanation of why they're raising funds.

The point is, there are many ways to raise capital. The most important thing to remember is to record how much money is raised and how it is spent. This is critical for tax purposes.

Another Funding Option: Grants

Many people have heard the term grant and think it's "free money", which it is as it doesn't need to be paid back. However, a grant is actually a form of financial aid, awarded to an individual/organization for a specific purpose. Usually the business who has been bestowed with the grant must report back about how the funds have been used and provide updates about the projects progress. Grants can be rescinded, or you may even need to repay them, if you're not following all of the guidelines/requirements set forth in the award agreement. Which is why most businesses don't consider grants as tangible funding opportunities.

To see if your business is eligible for a grant, first consider your businesses specific purpose. Write it down. Next you need to research foundations, companies, and programs offered by the government to see what grants are available. Read each one carefully and determine which of them have missions/objectives that are in line with your own. Write them down. Narrow down the list to just two that closely align with your businesses philanthropic goal(s). Review the requirements you'll need to submit to them when requesting a grant. Write them down - make a check list and check off each requirement as you gather them into a file. After gathering your resources, it's a great idea to review the projects they've awarded grants to in the past. You can use those projects as models to hone your proposal. While you refine your application requirements, monitor the foundations websites so you don't miss the the application submission deadline.

Below are a seven foundations, as a business owner in Lucerne Valley, you may find helpful:

Tides - Advance social justice by shifting resources and power to historically excluded communities.
The California Endowment - Targets specific focus areas and geographical regions to achieve health and racial equity in California.
Conrad N. Hilton Foundation - Improve the lives of individuals living in poverty and experiencing disadvantage throughout the world.
The James Irvine Foundation - Our goal is a California where all low-income workers have the power to advance economically.
Annenberg Foundation - Dedicated to addressing the critical issues of our time through innovation, community, compassion, and communication.
Weingart Foundation - Partners with communities across Southern California to advance racial, social, and economic justice for all.
Blue Shield of California Foundation - Supports lasting and equitable solutions to make California the healthiest state and end domestic violence.

Please be aware that some foundations never actually have an "open application season". You need to write a letter to someone who works there and hope they "invite you" to apply.

If none of the suggested foundations above are inline with you goals, you can find more at The Grantsmanship Center which has a wonderfully resourceful website that is free and open to the public. Grants that the government offers are also available to the public for free. Finally, if you can't seem to find a foundation or government grant that is inline with your endeavor, you can always check your favorite brands website for Grants as well! Many of them award grants to worthy causes and missions: Bank of America, Wells Fargo, Geico, Walmart, Kroger, John Deer, Clif Bar, and Coca-Cola just to name a few.

Customer Retention - The Backbone of your Business

You've got Customers

You've done the research to identify your target market. You've done the work and secured a loan from the bank. You've invested that money into an advertising campaign, crafting an advertisment and distributing it to where your Target Market sees it. You're seeing new, fresh customers walk into the door. You've even refined that campaign to where the calculated ROI is sitting at 25% - you're rocking this! But sadly, you're only seeing new faces come into your establishment.

How do you convert new customers into returning customers? And then make those returning customers into repeat customers?

Return vs. Repeat

It is important for you, as the business owner, to understand that there is a HUGE difference between returning and repeating customers. A return customer is simply someone who has bought your product or service once before and has returned to make another purchase.

It is the goal of any business to turn first-time customers into returning customers. A repeat customer is someone who returns to your business over and over and repeatedly buys your product(s) or service(s). The real goal is converting return customers into repeat customers — the most loyal and dependable segment of your customer base.

Why Repeat Customers are Better for Your Business

Repeat customers often talk about your business with friends and family, that's free advertising!

They also, in most cases, are willing to try out new products/services and give you feed back.

But the most important feature of repeat customers, is that its cheaper to retain customers then to find new ones. You know this, because you have already done the time consuming work and spent the money to advertise and get those new customers walking into your doors.

Different Industries Utilize Different Methods of Customer Retention and Conversion

There are many tactics businesses use to get customers to walk back through the door. Gift Cards, for example, are offered for purchase at check out stands in almost every store in America. These are great to not only bring in new customers, but it often brings in returning customers as well. Pizza places will often put flyers with coupons on top of their pizza boxes, allowing customers to get a discount if they choose to order with them again. Once again, this turns new customers into returning customers, and sometimes creates repeat customers. However the best example of customer conversion (from new, to return, to repeat customers) is done by many clothing stores. Most offer a rewards programs. These programs work by giving customers different levels of discounts on later purchases, based on how much they've spend in these stores on past visits. These can be implemented easily in many ways, examples include punch cards and apps. Most apps work with your Point of Sales (POS) systems and use customers phone numbers to keep track of purchases. These programs really focus on making new customers into returning customers and then return customers into repeat customers.

Each Business & Customer are Unique so Retention Suggestions Are NOT One Size Fits All

If you research Customer Retention on the internet, you're gonna get the same advise over and over:

Customer Service needs to be friendly
Fresh offerings in your store in line with your target markets trends
Offer a variety of products or services in your store to keep them coming back
Keep in Contact with your loyal customs

Honestly, the advise is the same everywhere and lack luster, because the truth is: There is no 100% sure fire way to convert new customers into returning customers and then retaining them as repeat customers.

Your Business is unique, as are your customers. It is best to find out what your customers want/need often and then offer it to them. For example, lets say you own a restaurant, and you find out most of your customers leave their homes at 6am without eating breakfast and often do not pack a lunch. Why not offer a "ready to go" club, where customers pay you as a monthly subscription that allows them to stop in every morning after 6am to pick up a brown bag filled with a breakfast burrito, a large sandwich, can of soda, and a bag of chips. Your customers would then walk out with a cup of coffee in one hand and a bag of breakfast and lunch in the other. The fuel they need to get them through their day. The best part is, your customers get what they need/want from you daily, and you've created a reoccurring revue stream, as its a subscription. Additionally, you know exactly how many brown bags you need to make each day. Allowing you to control your inventory costs.

Let's use another example, say you own a clothing store and your customers are young and really don't have a lot of places to hang out on the weekends. After reviewing your books, you find that Saturday's are your slowest day of the week. Why not create a repeating event on Saturdays (like taco Tuesday) for customers? Let's call our event, Sassy Saturday's and at this event you allow customers to come in and play "dress up". You encourage them to come in and try on all of the clothes on your racks. Allow them to take selfies, maybe make a little runway and let those customers "model" the clothes they're trying on? If they walk your runway make it a rule that you get to take videos and post them on your stores social media accounts. Be sure that you communicate that on "Sassy Saturday's" there is no obligation to buy any clothes, that this event is just for fun.

Enough with the examples, what's really important is that you need to get to know your customers and give them what they want consistently so they keep coming back.

Find Out What Will Attract Customers to Come Back Over and Over

Granted, nice sales people and competitive prices will get you a some repeat customers, for sure. But by tapping into what your customer like and offering it to them, is really what brings customers into your door over and over again.

The big take away: Talk to your customers! Then be creative and fun when creating events, keep your Target Market in mind when purchasing products you're going to offer them, and finally, remember to reward and celebrate them. Your not gonna be able to compete with Walmart or Amazon, but you can enrich your customers lives by creating moments and creating a feeling of personalization when they visit your store. These are things those big stores can't compete with because they're just too big.

Beware of Pitfalls thought of as normal business practise

The Employment Trap

Multiple Hats & Unfair Compensation

Customer Entitlement

You Started a Business to be a Business Owner, not to give yourself a job.

A Business Owner, in short, is someone who controls the financial and operational aspects of a business. This means, as an owner, you should be focused on customer experience, market and/or product expansion, advertising, and creating policies to get more customers in your door.

If your working for your business more then directing it, your business is in trouble.

Maybe you just opened and you didn't budget for employees or you really did open this business so you had a job doing what you love - then this isn't a pitfall for you, because you designed your business to work this way. However, if you'd like to no longer be working at your business and instead work on your business:

Review the operational policies and directives you've implemented, maybe some of your rules are not inline with your target markets views/behaviors and causes them to be driven away.

Reassess your service/products pricing to ensure your not undercharging while being overworked, but be sure the pricing is still affordable for your target market.

Check to see if your target market is:

1) still active in your local area

2) frequenting the locations your advertising in

3) that your product/service is still something they want/need

4) liking your advertisment designs.

Remember, demographics factor into identifying your target market and age is a major demographic staple. Your old advertising designs may no longer "speak" to the people who currently occupy the age demographic that make up your target market.

The last two target market checks require you to talk to former and current customers, and speaking to customers leads to the next potential pitfall.

Customer Entitlement

Multiple Hats & Unfair Compensation

Customer Entitlement

Many customers are under the impression that they are always right, and businesses should listen to them and do what they want and I'm here to tell you that:

The Customer is NOT always right, but they are your Coach.

As with any coach, they are going to guide you to success or failure. Its up to you to research the suggestions that they give you to see if the ideas are feasible for your business.

If the idea is feasible, you'll need to ensure that it is inline with your target market wants and/or needs.

Any feedback or complaint they give you, is only from their perspective. Their perspective was crafted by the experience(s) that they've had during their visit to your business. But keep in mind, that most feedback and complaints are only from one customer.

Now, if you hear the same feedback, complaint, or idea multiple times from multiple customers - that's a different story. That means your customers are coaching you to REALLY look in a certain direction.

However, a coach is never on the field, which is why it is important for you to do research to see if what your customers are saying will work for your business.

Customers want you to be successful but they are not business owners, and even if they are, their business is not the same as your business so the strategies and advice they give may not be applicable to you and your business. However, listening to your customers is a great way to cement their loyalty. I recommend having a notebook and pen with you to jot down ideas they may give you as you speak with them. But whatever you do, do not install a "suggestion box", they are not personal so you miss out on making your customers feel special.

This talk about feeling special is a great segue to the topic of our next potential pitfall.

Multiple Hats & Unfair Compensation

Do not ask your employees, or yourself, to wear multiple hats. If they're hired for customer service, they should not be unloading trucks. Bait and Switch job titles lead to employees feeling burn out, used, and underappreciated. Once that happens they begin dreading coming to work and eventually, they'll develop poor attitudes. Soon - you'll be frustrated and saying "no one wants to work anymore".

A good way to prevent this:

Identify all the tasks that need done in your business.
Write them down.
Group like tasks together.
Rewrite those like task on different pieces of paper, towards the middle of the page.
Write a job title at the top of the grouped like tasks.
Under Job Title, then write out qualifications someone needs to be able to complete the like tasks below.
Under the Task List, put down an estimated amount of time all of these tasks would take to do weekly.
Under the estimated time, write out how much you'd be willing to pay someone to do this job - weekly.
Check to see what the average competitive pay and benefits package this job title/job duties is advertised for in your area.
Adjust your pay OR benefits package to make the job listing competitive, so you get quality candidates to interview.
Post the job description online.
Now interview and hire!

After you hire an employee - do not ask them to do anything outside of their job duties list or ask them to work more hours "to get the job done". Instead if you see tasks are not getting complete or there are other tasks that need to be done but do not make sense under anyone's job description, you can create a new job posting and hire another person. Additionally, you can hire another person for the same job and have two people working together to ensure the tasks get done.