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Starting a business can be a daunting experience, but it can be a lot of fun too.

Entrepreneur.com.ph asked Eileen Grey, owner of the Picture Company, five questions that every startup entrepreneur would want to ask. To give you a better perspective of how business is run and things that you might have never thought you needed to know until, well, you started your business, read through the interview below:

1. How does one come up with professionally made marketing materials?
“Have a clear vision of your target market and the product you are selling. The billboards, the brochure, and other advertising materials have to communicate at once who you are and what you offer.”

2. How does one create a store logo?
“Get a really good artist to create the logo, which should communicate what you are all about. Keep in mind that the logo must work for the signage – not too thin or too long that it wouldn’t be readable. It should also stand out and not just look like any other brand in the mall. Colors and look should not be cliché. Don’t follow what everybody else is doing, such as hanging back-lit signages. Do what works for you.”

3. How does one conduct a sales meeting?
“Keep the meetings short but focused. Create the momentum, but let your staff do the reporting. Ask them to report by twos, or dyad style, to the whole group. Set a time limit for each report; don’t let anyone butt in. Get a good facilitator with a discipline for this. Assign someone to record items for further discussion so these don’t take up everybody’s time. This way, the managers know you value their time.”

4. How does one motivate his sales people?
“At the start, set monthly targets and incentives for everyone in the company. Announce the incentives during the weekly meetings to get everybody excited. Monitor performance to find out who needs coaching. Get creative with sales monitoring charts; you can present them like the game of ‘snakes and ladders.’ Set a monthly meeting for sales reporting, and let the managers call up one another to check on everybody else’s standing so they can rally their team to outperform the top-grossing store. For quarterly or yearly meetings, research new lessons, or go back to basics and define the meaning of sales. And keep it fun! After the meetings or training, get together for drinks to know more about each other.”

5. How does one keep the sales team from feeling burned out?
“Make them a part of the solution and the goal setting. Reward them for reaching goals. Share the vision with them. Those who are part of something big always have the big picture, instead of the obstacles, in mind.”


This article was originally published in the March 2006 issue of Entrepreneur Philippines.