What is Business S.O.S.^TM?

Business S.O.S.^TM is a Business Innovation Solutions Firm

After twenty-five years of running one of the country’s top ad agency for luxury advertising and marketing I found myself in a financial struggle that had far greater implications then I had foreseen or imagined. Faced with a series of economic challenges I became shockingly aware of the quantum systemic changes that were rapidly underfoot which our government and leadership simply failed to address or identify. Like many of the world’s top economists and writers have observed, I found myself one among millions of entrepreneurs living in “survival mode” inside this continued dysfunctional global economy. Now with the fallout of Covid-19 we find ourselves once again on the shorter side of the economy in a decade after the Great Recession.

Most American small business owners are just like me – someone educated enough to develop skills in a selected area or areas of trade, but not able or aware of all the “mitigating nuances” in today’s markets to incorporate new business models or practices at a rapid enough pace to keep up with our highly competitive, giant, monopolistic global corporations.

Having operated a successful advertising agency, I found myself in the perfect storm of today’s business challenges. After more than twenty-five years of doing business with an average revenue of at least $25 million in annual sales and with clients’ annual spending levels of $500,000 To $12 million, I had the proverbial wind knocked out of me in the Great Recession of 2008 and now it is happening again as a result of social distancing and shut downs due to Covid-19. This horrific turn of events took my long-standing business to the precipice of near annihilation in a matter of weeks during the Great Recession. Of course, I had contracts and commitments through 2009, but by the middle of 2009, my business, which was considered one of the most sought-after firms in the luxury goods sector, was basically on life support. Clients were calling on a daily basis to cancel work or to reduce their budgets significantly.

While the collapse of the U.S. financial sector in 2008 was the final blow, and now shut downs of most sectors but healthcare, the structure of small businesses in America had been disintegrating for over a three decades. In the case of my business, the bursting of the dot-com bubble in 2000 left me staggering due to lost capital. Then, in the luxury goods industry the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, produced shockwaves through the U.S. consumer base that essentially turned off the facet for luxury purchases. In effect, consumers devalued luxury goods in response to such a jolt to America’s core. Businesses in New York City–where a portion of my business operated–were particularly affected by this withdrawal.

However, as a result of the economic shocks throughout the 2000s, my previously thriving business faced a critical threat. As my bottom line became increasingly lean, I scratched and clawed for a solution. But, like most small business owners, we start with a dream and a passion, and just keep plowing forward into the unknown.

We all believed what we read and what we were told – that a great idea mixed with hard work is “all you’ll need to accomplish your dreams.” This belief in The American Dream as a real possibility is the cultural ideal that has made America the greatest nation in the world. However, Joseph Stiglitz warns in his book, The Price of Inequality, that without fairness and balance in our economic systems, a system that is historically based deeply on “American values,” the perception of America as “the land of opportunity,” our “power,” our status, and our standing in the world will be diminished–significantly weakening our markets further.1

This “dream”, of course for me, had come true. Not only had I operated my business successfully for over twenty years and thought that I would sell or pass my little empire on to my daughter, it had become a machine that I thought was unbreakable unless I decided otherwise. So how is it that after more than twenty-five years of learning to be a good business stewardess I could find myself in near collapse? Now with covid-19 the challenges return but even more dire.

Looking back, I see that the answer lies in the changing structure of the economy. Even prior to the economic downturn, capital markets were drying up for small businesses and technology had rendered business models like my own obsolete. Cheap media alternatives of the Internet and social marketing accelerated these structural changes even faster. Clients had virtually no sales, and therefore very little margin with which to advertise. Millions of small businesses found themselves in the exact situation I was in and this duress continues and is cyclical again and again..
Faced with these quantum changes, we must stop listening to the generic “advice corners” and those that simply pontificate on what can and should be done and rather attack these issues ourselves.

I came to the conclusion that we could change the tides by more of us facing “the truth” and relying on each other to provide whatever it is that each of us needs to excel in our individual, community-based businesses. We could actually resuscitate one business and one community at a time and, eventually, even our country if we establish our own network – A Small Business Network specifically targeted to help companies in S.O.S. This Network would not have the typical bates and switches to creating and increasing revenue. This Network would be without the typical risk to reputations when disclosing personal or proprietary information. This Network would not take advantage of a business in duress in any fashion. This would be guaranteed in writing and based on true American values of helping ourselves by helping each other with ethics and honor. We are calling this network, Business S.O.S.^TM

I have discovered several important alternatives, methods, and resources supporting “how we can help ourselves by helping each other” and will outline them in this article. Taking alternative courses of actions and completely rethinking about how to actually conduct all aspects of business is what re-launched my own business and will be the mechanism to help thousands more finally get out of survival mode or look to bankruptcy as an alternative can become thriving and profitable once more.
Business S.O.S.^TM does not pretend to be a magical cure-all, nor should it be. What Business S.O.S.^TM does promote though, is innovative, specialized, and sustainable solutions for struggling small businesses. Further, it is an acknowledgement that each small business is unique and deserves specialized attention and resources that led to the development of the Business S.O.S.^TM Network. As the following pages will describe, this interactive network will form the foundation for a renewed era of small business expansion.

The Truth Behind the State of American Small Businesses Today

The research and data compiled for this article takes as given that many of America’s small businesses are in a state of distress. It seeks to identify the many forces making this the situation. It also offers one solution that will relieve that stress and help drive economic growth.

I have taken my personal experience and–through the shock and horror of finding myself in completely different life circumstances than I ever planned or expected–have researched and studied how the disconnect between traditional approaches and current needs happened to my firm and millions of other entrepreneurs around the US. We cannot wait for the toxic economic environment to be restored or when covid-19 ends before we undertake the task of mending and retooling our businesses. We need to find a solution to help others and ourselves. Through my search, I have found some answers and have laid out my findings for public evaluation.

The Main Aspect of all Business is Sales.

The U.S. market economy has a shrinking middle-class consumer base, and most small businesses trade only in their immediate local or regional markets. We seek out through a variety of methods to cultivate new clients in these markets but find that even with new and innovative ways to communicate the consumers simply do not have the spending capability. This issue is even more exasperated because of Covid-19. Yet, Wall Street and large corporations continue to have growth and even record profits. The complete disconnection between Wall Street and Main Street America arises from these basic issues. Why is it cutbacks and downsizing or closure for businesses that are community and regionally based? Why do we hear so much political rhetoric regarding small businesses, but seldom see any action? Why is this not the social imperative of our times? Most importantly, why is there so little help? In all of my research, I have come up with a few viable programs and institutions that offer substantive advice and services for small businesses, which is inadequate help relative to the sheer numbers of businesses in survival mode.¹

Small Businesses are the Majority

The U.S. became the number one powerhouse in the world–and developed a strong consuming middle-class, an ethical productive workforce, and innovative energized entrepreneurs–because of its growth of small businesses. A small business is defined as any corporation or entity that employs 500 people or less. Based on the statistics from the U.S. Department of Commerce, Census Bureau, and trends from the U.S. Department of Labor, there are approximately 28 million registered businesses in the United States. Of those, 99.9 percent of all employing firms are considered small businesses.² I call these the 99 percenters. Consider the following statistics taken directly from the Small Business Administration’s (SBA) website: ³

How Important Are Small Businesses to The U.S. Economy?

Small firms:

Represent 99.9 percent of all employer firms
Employ about half of all private sector employees
Pay 43 percent of total U.S. private payroll
Have generated 65 percent of the net new jobs over the past 17 years
Create more than half of the nonfarm private GDP
Hire 43 percent of high-tech workers
Are 52 percent home-based and 2 percent franchises
Made up 97.5 percent of all identified exporters and produced 31 percent of export value in FY 2020
Produce 16.5 times more patents per employee than large patenting firms

Small businesses are the job creators. They currently employ around 54.7 percent of the U.S. workforce and account for 65 percent of new jobs created between 20010 and 2020. Right now, we are struggling with a massive need for jobs. The latest release (January 15th 2021) from the U.S. Department of Labor reports an unemployment rate of 6.7 percent; however, this figure does not take into account individuals who are underemployed which is running at 15.1percent in 2021, those that were forced into early retirement and are now counted on the SS and Medicare figures, or have dropped out of the labor force because they simply cannot find jobs and an additional 17 million college graduates who cannot find work or jobs related to their degree. Taking all these figures into consideration, we can calculate an astounding underemployment rate of 21 percent. That means that there are 28.5 million unemployed and underemployed Americans. It is also reported that only 58.8% of all able-bodied adults are unemployed in the US as of 2020. Shocking figures for the number one advanced economy in the world. ⁴

The Solution

Small businesses are the engine that drives employment, innovation, stability, and growth. The lack of focus on small business is a missed opportunity. The figures shown in the previous section indicate that one solution to our unacceptable unemployment lies within this large body of motivated companies. Right now, government needs more revenue to address the already record national debt. Much of our political discourse about small businesses is about tax reduction. Many businesses are not profitable enough during these tumultuous times to be worried about taxes; they would be better served with a redirected government effort. The taxes small businesses have paid historically support our city, county, state, and federal systems, and now all of these systems are in distress. Hence, we hear the call for cutbacks in governmental spending. Yet, the size of government continues to increase. The complete story is what makes our political environment toxic and ever more confusing to the average individual. This idle engine, the small business, could provide the catalyst for recovery. It is simple arithmetic based on the research that if small businesses provide 65 percent of new jobs, then they will generate the supporting revenues for city, state, and federal projects as well. One plus one does equal two key components for decreased unemployment and increased GDP.⁵

The Invisible 99 Percenters

I think we are all aware of the complexity in the political discourse today. It is well documented that there is more divisiveness in Washington than ever before in our history. I believe the assumption that the Occupy Wall Street or Black Lives Matter movement is a group of leaderless individuals who want a short cut in life is a falsehood. We have all witnessed the argument that they are disenfranchised groups economically and racially that are not willing to work and do their fair share, but want government programs and subsidies to help them through the tough times. Yet, after reading and seeing many interviews with individuals who are considered occupiers–such as Alexis Goldstein, former vice president of Merrill Lynch and extensive writer on the “Volker Rule,” which would ban speculative “property trading” –by our big banks. We also know the founders of the Black Lives Matter organization want economic opportunity and jobs along with social justice and safety. I believe most Americans are concerned with the same issues: social and economic inequality, greed, corruption, and undue influence of corporations on government. Many of their comments and concerns were similar to 63 percent of the country that thinks banks should be regulated and there should be more fairness. Banks and monopolies should not be allowed to be so large that they could again bring down the entire financial system. The “occupiers” and the Black Lives Matter Coalition where other groups that saw and addressed the disparity between 99% of us and the top 1%. ⁶

Many of this type of organizations had a profound effect on bringing the frustration we have all been feeling to the national forefront. Having gone down the rabbit-hole myself, the single-most potent issue is this: we no longer share a fair country–a break from the ideal we have all been taught in school. Instead, so much of the economic power of our nation is in the grips of financial institutions, Wall Street and large Corporations.

“Bank loans are the only way most people can dream of starting a business or buying a home. Our biggest banks, drunk on leveraged profits, abused government guarantees to bet against our houses for their own gain, then picked our pockets when it went bad, breaking that bond of trust in our banking system.” Says Alexis Goldstein.

This summarizes something that many of us have already thought or experienced.⁷

I believe one of the simplest assumptions in this article is also the most eye opening: most of us are part of these 99 percenters. Whether we call ourselves Coalition for a Fairer America, or Tea Party members many of us agree on some pretty basic issues. If one ventures to be informed, then one would believe, as I do, that this country has stopped being about and for the people. We need to rebalance our political system. We need to invert the hierarchy of power and make some hard choices. The power to make big changes in our economy lies within the focus of this large, highly productive enfranchised group, small businesses.

Shrinking Sales, Shrinking Salaries

In the Great Recession, I saw my company’s revenues drop from $20 million to $2, not overnight, but in a drip-drip-drip fashion. I had to reduce salaries paid by my own business, and I witnessed their ultimate effects on families and communities throughout the last ten years. I had to pay less to my highly skilled “creatives” simply because my margins were shrinking. As I had to decrease salaries, my own workforce began to do less and less. With less productivity and a reducing demand for my services, I began to see my once thriving, productive business begin to decline. At the same time, without a complete understanding of all the forces at play, it was impossible to evaluate and correct the situation. I can honestly say that after a twenty-year run with very healthy margins, I was clouded by my own success to see that I was in economic denial–the inability or unwillingness to acknowledge the real situation quick enough to prevent or change the inevitable.

Such denial—that once existed is a raw reality after the impact of Covid-19. The media adds to this confusion through their emotional discussions, “opinionations,” and exposés, making it impossible for the average business owner to extrapolate needed information that could help in their everyday decision-making.

For example, we used to rely on the stock market to give us an indication of consumer confidence. Now, because there is little correlation between the health of our markets and the cash flow on Main Street, I believe the stock market is what has most of us paralyzed and confused. Many of my colleagues still want to believe that they are part of the top 1 percent. This is delusional when you look at the fact that businesses with 500 employees or fewer are considered small and that over half of those businesses are based in the home.⁸

Once the majority of us face the fact that we are the invisible 99 percenters, we can work together to resolve and correct what has happened too many of us.

The U.S. is Functioning with Two Totally Different Economies

In a recent article in The American Interest, Tyler Cowen identifies two interrelated, but very different American economies. There is a Globalized Trade Economy in which companies must compete with everyone, everywhere. These multinational corporations have become relentlessly dynamic and brutally efficient. The other Non-Global Trade Economy encompasses a slower pace of change and growth due to a lack of capital, innovation, and a smaller and less competitive trading area with much less growth in consumer demand. This second economy has the capability of producing more jobs, but does not have the productivity gains because of this lack of demand. This is, also, where most Americans actually live and trade.⁹In general, this is how the two economies compare:¹⁰

Globalized Trade Economy	Non-Global Trade Economy
The GTE is producing the majority of productivity gains, but it is not producing jobs in the U.S.	The NGTE is creating some job growth in the U.S., but very little revenue gains
The GTE has access to an almost inexhaustible source of capital with trillions of dollars in reserves	The NGTE has access to only limited or no capital
The GTE has a larger, faster growing Global Middle Class	The NGTE faces declining numbers of consumers whose incomes are declining as well
For the GTE, life is good and has a relatively promising future	For the NGTE, their mantra seems to be “We’re all on our own”

Large, multinational corporations have large capital reserves, smart technologies, and a growing global middle-class to whom they may sell their products or services. Of course, along with all this money, power, and influence, they get to lobby for the most lucrative contracts and policies.

Professor Joseph Stiglitz, winner of the 2001 Nobel Prize in Economics, is a global expert on inequality. He has focused on the U.S. economy in his book, The Price of Inequality. In it, he notes “rent seeking” activities, such as the involvement of the political process to extract “gifts” from the government at the expense of the rest of society.¹¹

Rent seeking takes many forms: (1) hidden and open transfers of subsidies from the government, (2) laws that make the market place less competitive, (3) lax enforcement of existing competition laws, and (4) statutes that allow corporations to take advantage of others or to pass the costs on to the rest of society. The term rent was originally used to describe the return on land, since the owner of the land receives these payments or resources by virtue of his ownership and not because of anything he does. Countries rich in natural resources like the US are famous for their rent seeking activity.¹²

We are now subject to a variety of rent seeking activities that are seriously affecting the health of our small businesses while perpetuating and enhancing large corporations is at an all-time high. The media adds to this confusion through their emotional discussions, “opinionating,” and exposés, making it impossible for the average business owner to extrapolate needed information that could help in their everyday decision-making.

Once the majority of us face the fact that we are the invisible 99 percenters, we can work together to resolve and correct what has happened too many of us.

The U.S. is Functioning with Two Totally Different Economies

In general, this is how the two economies compare:¹⁰

Globalized Trade Economy	Non-Global Trade Economy
The GTE is producing the majority of productivity gains, but it is not producing jobs in the U.S.	The NGTE is creating some job growth in the U.S., but very little revenue gains
The GTE has access to an almost inexhaustible source of capital with trillions of dollars in reserves	The NGTE has access to only limited or no capital
The GTE has a larger, faster growing Global Middle Class	The NGTE faces declining numbers of consumers whose incomes are declining as well
For the GTE, life is good and has a relatively promising future	For the NGTE, their mantra seems to be “We’re all on our own”

Professor Joseph Stiglitz, winner of the 2001 Nobel Prize in Economics, is a global expert on inequality. He has focused on the U.S. economy in his new book, The Price of Inequality. In it, he notes “rent seeking” activities, such as the involvement of the political process to extract “gifts” from the government at the expense of the rest of society.¹¹

We are now subject to a variety of rent seeking activities that are seriously affecting the health of our small businesses while perpetuating and enhancing the economies of globalized businesses. For example:

Fluctuating interest rates, trading fees

we all suffer from through credit card services

The inordinate amount of fees charged for

banking services

Energy companies gaining total ownership

of our natural resources like coal, oil, and gas (and we even provide tax payer subsidies on top of this), all the while our own resources are priced according to and sold in the global markets

Public and private companies running us

prisons and, now, opening and purchasing schools at lower than market value and then we pay top dollar for their services they provide to our criminal, court and educational systems;

Defense contractors are probably the most

egregious as they have little or no competition or oversight in order for the citizenry to even evaluate these high costs.

All of these factors are what has initiated the “too big to fail” paradigm that nearly brought our country to the brink of a depression, and keeps our markets fragile and our growth stagnant. It used to be un-American to be a monopoly; now it is de rigueur. Any consultant or business school teaches in basic economics that, anytime there is only one large client or supplier, the system is at high risk should that large entity falter or become insolvent. Further, control of a market from a single firm allows for an unfair allocation of resources. Either way, the results of monopolistic firms bring consumers to their knees. Amazon has rendered our retail sector obsolete. Corporate oversight and antitrust laws were enacted to protect us from these ills. What happened to their enforcement? Small businesses have been seriously injured in this unfair playing field.

The complexity of our current markets without the education, knowledge, and collaboration of all small businesses will be our biggest obstacle unless we act in a strategic manner.

Small Business Could Ignite a New Era of Economic Nationalism

The U.S. is in dire need of small business revitalization. Part of this is a call for all employees to have a newfound commitment for their small business owners and the need to work harder than ever, but for a fair wage. Employers of these small businesses need to dig themselves out of this mess.

American pride and our drive to win have faltered. Yet perhaps it is our pride that has kept us from being adaptive and resourceful. We are thinking that what worked in the past should work in the future. We need to work differently at all levels in order to fight for our country’s survival after covid-19.

Let’s put two ideas together. Small businesses, we said, are 99 percent of all businesses in the U.S. and the Main Street economy. In contrast, Globalized Trade corporations are the other 1 percent and have all the growth (think stock markets) and benefits of our economic system. One cylinder of our economy is firing; the other is just barely pumping along.

Now, let’s just focus on the 99 percenters and what we, as a group, are willing to do to save our country and ourselves. I believe there is a strong willingness among Americans to suffer the pains of economic restructuring in order to right this economy for the good of our society. It will be daunting, but when aspiring toward a noble cause, Americans have shown we stand up for what is necessary and right.

Actor Jeff Daniels on the HBO series, Newsroom, addresses this national tragedy through the writing of Aaron Sorkin when asked, “Why is America the greatest country in the world?” When pushed, he replies, “We are not the greatest country…we lead the world in only three categories. One, we have the highest rate of incarceration per capita.” In fact, we have 5 percent of the world’s population, yet we boast 25 percent of the world’s prisoners.¹³ “Two, we have adults who believe in angels.” He does not mention how many U.S. citizens do not believe the data on global warming and a myriad of other scientific facts including the scientific evidence to wear a mask to protect yourself and others during Covid-19, and keep themselves inadequately informed or biased towards others’ opinions rather than the facts. “Three, we lead in defense. We out-spend 26 leading countries, of which 25 are our allies.” We spend more time “nation building” in Iraq and Afghanistan than we do fixing our own infrastructure. Then, he goes on to say, “We used to be great! We always stood up for what was right. We fought for moral reasons. We waged war on poverty, not the poor. We aspired to intelligence not belittle it. We explored the universe and nurtured the greatest artists and innovators and the greatest economy… In order to solve a problem, we need to first recognize we have one, and then we could be great again.”¹⁴

I believe in the body of the 99 percenters, we have the same stuff that made us great in decades past–a will and a drive to do whatever it takes. We need to do what is necessary before it is too late. The strains of an economic restructuring will be painful, but educating and training our workforce, and retooling our businesses simply must occur for future sustained growth. The small business owners, with the help of their employees, have the grit to make it work once again.

Small business owners do not want a hand out, but we would like an even playing field. Many of us cannot collect unemployment even when our businesses fail or cannot support our salary. That is why unemployment is down. Many are singular proprietors. We are willing to work 10-, 12-, or even 16-hour days to figure out how to retool and revitalize ourselves. But, we need to do this together. We need to network and pool our resources so that we can neutralize forces that hold many of us back. Our creative, natural resource is our pride in American ingenuity. Through technology, we can achieve the connectivity we need to communicate–and by instituting a rethinking about how we approach each other as businesses–we can integrate and effect real progress. Business S.O.S.^TM is not just a resume sharing social media network but a place across channels that provides the pro-active tools to fix each and every small business that is in need of resuscitation.

Twelve Years After the Great Recession and We Are Still in Survival Mode and We Get Hit with a Pandemic!

I know we all feel it, those of us in survival mode or even desperation. Many times, each day, it seems, I get phone calls to buy things. I contact firms to make overtures about my business services but companies do not want to be sold, “In Google They Trust”; they want to find you and buy you, a complete change from a traditional sales offering. Potential clients or customers are treated like a numbers game. For every quick contact, they can get 1 or 2 percent sales. Technology is great, but such human robo-calling also creates walls. It is more difficult than ever to break through.

Business S.O.S.^TM makes an appeal to all companies large or small to stop this lack of sensitivity to what is a pervasive business climate of disconnect in a fluid, horizontal world, network with Business S.O.S.^TM, and pool our talents and resources to help other companies get out of this pervasive lack of profitability.

Our workforce needs to rethink their approach to ownership and management. When my business began to bleed, I had employees who had worked for me for over 16 years. Cutting their salaries and benefits was emotionally difficult and, as I referenced before, it did not help; all it did was build resentment. I was literally spending my savings to keep the company afloat. When I tried to explain these financial realities, there appeared to be a disconnect or they simply did not believe me. It was a critical moment for the company. Restructuring will be painful, but educating and training our workforce, and retooling our businesses simply must occur for future sustained growth. The small business owners, with the help of their employees, have the grit to make it work once again.

Small business owners do not want a hand out, but we would like an even playing field. Many of us do not collect unemployment even when our businesses fail or cannot support our salary. We are willing to work 10-, 12-, or even 16-hour days to figure out how to retool and revitalize ourselves. But, we need to do this together. We need to network and pool our resources so that we can neutralize forces that hold many of us back. Our creative, natural resource is our pride in American ingenuity. Through technology, we can achieve the connectivity we need to communicate–and by instituting a rethinking about how we approach each other as businesses–we can integrate and effect real progress. Business S.O.S.^TM is not just a resume sharing social media network but a place across channels that provides the pro-active tools to fix each and every small business that is in need of resuscitation.

Twelve Years After the Great Recession and The Added Challenge of Covid-19 Shut Downs!

I know we all feel it, those of us in survival mode. Many times, each day, it seems, I get phone calls to buy things. I call large firms requesting information. These companies are also in survival mode, and the moment I ask to get help, or at least some direction, my calls are shortened. Potential clients or customers are treated like a numbers game. For every quick contact, they can get 1 or 2 percent sales. Technology is great, but such human robo-calling also creates walls. It is more difficult than ever to break through.

In this book, I am making an appeal to all companies to stop this, network with Business S.O.S.^TM, and pool our talents to help other companies–all of us–get out of this mess.

I am also beseeching workers to rethink their approach to ownership. When my business began to bleed, I had employees who had worked for me for over 16 years. Cutting their salaries and benefits was emotionally difficult and, as I referenced before, it did not help; all it did was build resentment. I was literally spending my savings to keep the company afloat. When I tried to explain these financial realities, there appeared to be a disconnect or they simply did not believe me. It was a critical moment for the company. I was disappointed when I found that employees simply did not understand how each small business owner has his or her life in their hands.

Employees are the heart of any business success, and I needed them to outperform during this time. Believe me, I made many mistakes. Surely, one of them was that I did not level with my people and tells them the true state of my own economy. Perhaps I feared a show of weakness in a very competitive market would not be helpful to my business. My competitors could use it to sell against me. Clients need to feel your solvency is assured before they initiate jobs and production.

Small businesses need to realize that it is too late for pretense–the situation is that dire. We need to stop such opaque business practices, face the facts about our own businesses and the economy, and bring back our workforce work ethic and our true American values of helping our neighbors, thereby aiding our country in order to circumvent the fiscal cliff we are facing.

It is painful to accept responsibility. Perhaps your business is doing well. Perhaps you were very conservative with your capital and can weather the storm presented by covid-19. Could you then be a sponsor or volunteer to help another business do the same thing? The networked revitalization of small businesses across the U.S. will reduce unemployment, develop growth in our GDP, and ultimately benefit both those small businesses that are currently struggling as well as the few success stories. This type of social consciousness is the social imperative of our time. Become an activist but this time not for the myriad of great causes but for your country and its basic survival.

The Stats: Five Charts That Need To Be Viewed Together

Part of my expertise is working with media and communication. With mainstream media’s deregulation and its fractured, entertainment-based 24/7 news channels, media conglomerates have a platform to communicate any information that draws the highest ratings, produces the highest advertising income, or helps to consolidate their political agendas. With lax FCC regulations, reporting the issues in a fair and balanced manner for the public good is simply passé because it’s not profitable. For most small businesses, it is a good part of our continuing education both as consumers and as story ideas. The internet and information technology has added to the disinformation network.

Hence, these distortions of information from both political parties are impeding a higher level of knowledge and public discourse on all of the issues. It is imperative that, as this level of dysfunction in our markets continues, we get the facts right and sift through the information – not to release our frustrations, but to resolve and recast this entire moment in our country’s history and see that our health and the health of our small businesses as the catalyst to making our country grow and regain the status of the greatest country in the world.

When viewing these charts, graphs, and information, we see that by working together small businesses are the majority, the job creators, and the important coalition to change how business is conducted in America. Overwhelming media silence about or distortions of the facts has kept small business owners from seeing themselves and their customers–or even their trading area–as part of the big picture of economic events. Stocks are up, and everything is fine–no, really. Meanwhile, small business owners remain unaware of the vortex of forces eating away at the foundations of their businesses. As a result, they cannot react to this gnawing damage. The vast majority of us are considered the minions who need to be fed information in a half-baked format, but this does not need to be the panacea. We can work together to inform and assist each other in order for us to effect the big changes that are needed. Here are several things we need to know.

Small businesses are dying and new ones are not on the rise

The chart below shows that the belief in the American Dream is dying. The land of opportunity is no longer inspiring individuals to take risks and start something new. According to the U.S. Department of Commerce, U.S. Department of Labor Statistics, BED Business Dynamics, with estimates based on 2020 Census Bureau Data, the smallest number of new businesses were created in 100 years of recording.

In 2009, we begin to see a sharp decrease in births of new businesses. With nearly half the number of Americans even attempting to start a new business in the years following the Great Recession, the tripling of closures and bankruptcies is an even more disturbing figure. Each political party will utilize these figures to suit their purposes. It is evident that no matter whom you vote for these trends will continue.

Even though small businesses comprise 99 percent, our contribution to the GDP is dwarfed by the massive corporations controlling the financial, health care, and energy sectors. Look at this from a pragmatic standpoint, and you will understand why it is imperative to send out this call-to-action. It is not only important to network our resources in order to pull ourselves out of survival mode; we need to merge these assets to level the playing field, once, and for all.

The next graphs show the drastic increase in bankruptcies in 2012 for individuals and businesses.¹⁶As I know I am speaking to a group of concerned business owners; this should put the proverbial “Fear of God” in you to see how many of our colleagues have lost the fight. I do not think there is anything more painful or shocking than losing your business. The psychological pain of failure and the shock at the speed these bankruptcies are occurring has ramifications on so many aspects of our nation’s economic and psychological health.

We will talk about it in another article, but there is a specific, psychological syndrome that has been identified when someone experiences failure at this level. Not only is this rate of bankruptcies and closures affecting each individual company, it is a trend that is on the rise and has far-reaching implications for our country. If the American ideal of owning your own business is in jeopardy, does this mean there will only be growth in localized service providers such as doctors, lawyers, restaurants, and so forth? Or does this indicate that innovation can only be capitalized by large, global, corporations and 99 percent of us eventually become employees? Is this the start of “corporatization” and the decline of our democracy? A concept the economist Schumpeter discussed in his book Capitalism, Socialism and Democracy when elaborating on his theory that democracies would remain fragile when the vigilance surrounding the balance of power between large and small companies is no longer monitored.

The concerns that we are becoming Greece–founded on the amount of our budget spent on pensions and public services–are real. Labor needs to come to terms with this; the pie is being financed and cannot sustain these costs unless there is consensus. We can see that 22 percent of federal spending is on pensions.¹⁷

We simply need the 21st Century methods to restructure these forebodings. It is one of the most stressful experiences to go bankrupt, and, given legislation concerning individual bankruptcies; it can turn a free individual into an indentured slave of his creditors. For most of us, it is not an option, so I offer Business S.O.S.^TM as a viable opportunity to these companies.

The decline in average U.S. incomes

Our consuming middle-class is also dying. With over 46 million Americans living below the poverty line, unemployment high, and our baby boomers moving into retirement, there is simply a shrinking population with the money or the propensity to buy our products or services. As our businesses downsize and lose capital, employees and our own wages, have decreased significantly. I used to make seven figures and had the arrogance that came with all of that buying power. But, like many of you will notice viewing the following chart, I am surely no longer making a million dollars a year as does our top one percent. Further, our top one percent of the top percent is making over $30 million.¹⁸

Here is a clear picture of the disparity between the top 1 percent and the rest of us.¹⁹

Year

Top 1% Average Income

Top 1% Average Income Including Capital Gains

Top .01% Average Income

Top .01% Average Income Including Capital Gains

2000

2001

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

886,975

807,323

757,287

758,111

836,119

924,661

961,856

1,003,791

928,777

814,791

857,477

1,282,163

1,010,251

886,947

916,495

1,085,659

1,257,402

1,343,876

1,435,002

1,152,231

913,451

1,019,089

15,275,981

12,606,207

11,625,308

12,148,516

14,688,500

17,195,213

17,698,914

19,328,745

17,509,297

14,972,931

16,267,243

30,223,559

20,515,521

16,524,086

18,258,783

23,864375

29,421,236

32,149,872

36,853,470

27,691,827

19,631,207

23,846,950

I believe many of us have found ourselves in a completely new category. If you are still a member of the top 1 or 2 percent then hopefully, you will see there is something your firm could do to actively assist in the revitalization of small businesses. But if you have seen your wages reduced, or, perhaps, become nonexistent, then I will assume this offer, as a proactive way forward, will interest you.

In Conclusion: Revitalize our Small Businesses and True American Economic Nationalism and We Will be a Great Nation Again.

I have wrapped the story of my own business around current economic times. I have lived through some very painful hardships as a result of this decline in my own success. I had to understand after the shock of the changes in my own microcosm how and why this happened to me. Then, I discovered that it was happening to millions of businesses at the same time across the country. After years of earning and living in the top 1 percent, I found myself in a completely new category. I had to face the reality that I had to identify what went wrong and how I could change it. When I knew I was part of a much larger group, suddenly, I realized the solution. Business S.O.S.^TM was born out of this new knowledge and truth.

We can turn all of this around if we broaden our reason for being entrepreneurs as a means to making money and more about how we fit into the new global reordering of power. When it is only about money, then clearly our economy cannot sustain itself. We need to have a greater and nobler set of goals so that we can assure our country’s success as well as our own.

The goal of Business S.O.S.^TM is to correct this self-centeredness by means of honest collaboration through up-to-date technology. This garners instant connectivity, flattening the globe and gives rise to an era of activism, social consciousness, broader awareness, and a collective big thinking. Things need to change when they brake and the situation with our two dysfunctional economies and the global economy in general is one of breakage. There are vast opportunities to rewrite the rules. Business S.O.S.^TM is a disruptive concept that gives hope, optimism, and empathy toward our small business colleagues. We need to combat apathy with more elevated goals, and not just the ruthless acquisition of money or value to shareholders. This moment has given rise to activist trends in order to make broad and swiping changes to the way things have been done within corporations. Businesses need a way to pay forward to society in order to shape the kind of society we want. One that is not just consumptive but productive and that is not wasteful but is sustainable.

No longer can I just place a product on the middle of an ad and hope consumers covet it as I did in the 1990’s. They have to like you. Liking requires way more than just building a product or service; it requires a connection between you and that customer. It is so important that an authentic overture is developed to the consumer you are targeting. I make it a part of all my client’s current campaigns.

Business S.O.S.^TM is developed out of this new desire to pay forward and the need to be disruptive in an effort to make swiping changes at a faster pace than what was conceivable in the past. It is for the social good of our nation and is part of a new business model of integration through technology and the social networks that will allow small businesses the opportunities and the competitive edge of larger corporations. We must fix our ailing entrepreneurship economy so that we can bring back the American Dream not just for a select few but anyone who has the talent, innovation, work ethic and skill to lead others toward a better more sustainable future.

Notes

Introduction

1. Joseph Stiglitz, The Price of Inequality: How Today’s Divided Society Endangers Our Future (W.W. Norton, 2013).

Article

Tyler Cowen, “What Export-Orientated Means,” The American Interest Magazine, May 2012. “The Lost Decade of the Middle Class,” Pew Research Center. August 22, 2012. Retrieved October 15, 2012 from http://www.pewsocialtrends.org/2012/08/22/the-lost-decade-of-the-middle-class/.
“What is SBA’s definition of a small business concern?” United States Small Business Administration. Nd. Retrieved October 14, 2012 from http://www.sba.gov/content/what-sbas-definition-small-business-concern.
“Statistics about business size.” United States Census Bureau, August 22, 2012. Retrieved October 15, 2012 from http://www.census.gov/econ/smallbus.html.

U.S. Small Business Administration (2009). “Frequently Asked Questions,” Retrieved from http://www.sba.gov/sites/default/files/sbfaq.pdf.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics (2012), “Labor Force Statistics from the Current Population Survey (CPS) – July 2012,” Retrieved from http://www.bls.gov/cps/.

Bureau of Labor Statistics, Department of Labor. October 5, 2012. Retrieved October 14, 2012 from http://www.bls.gov/news.release/pdf/empsit.pdf

The US Census Bureau reports that, as of October 2012, the Unites States homes a population of 314,587,391 people. Bureau of Labor Statistics most recent release on employment of September 2012 reports that the United States has a civilian non-institutional population of 243,772,000 people, which includes all persons 16 years of age and older who reside in the fifty states + the District of Columbia who are not inmates of institutions or on active duty in the Armed Forces. Of these, 155,063,000 are considered part of the labor force while 88,710,000 are not. This gives us a 63.6 percent civilian labor force participation rate. Of our labor force, 142,974,000 are reported as employed with 12,088,000 as unemployed, giving us a 58.7 percent employment-to-population ratio and a 7.8 percent unemployment rate. Of the 142,974,000 people reported as employed, 8,613,000 persons are involuntary part-time workers due to economic reasons. If we readjust the calculations, we conclude that there are 21,701,000 unemployed or underemployed workers in the force giving us an un-/underemployment rate of 13.99 percent. Now, if we consider the marginally attached workers, which included discouraged workers, we end up with 24,218,000 as the figure of unemployed and underemployed individuals and an unemployment rate of 15.61 percent.

“Everything to Play For,” The Economist, October 6, 2012. 15.
U.S. FDIC (2012). Selections from the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act. Retrieved from http://www.fdic.gov/regulations/reform/dfa_selections.html.

Alexis Goldstein (2012). Comment Letter to the Financial Regulators Urging Them Towards a Strong Volcker Rule. Retrieved from http://alexisgo.com/book.html.

Frank Newport (2012). “Americans Anti-Big Business, Big Government,”

Retrieved from http://www.gallup.com/poll/152096/Americans-Anti-Big-Business-Big-Gov.aspx.

Carne Ross, The Leaderless Revolution: How Ordinary People Will Take Power and Change Politics in the Twenty First Century (New York, NY: Blue Rider Press, 2011).
Census Bureau, Bureau of Labor and Statistics, and the U.S. Small Business Administration (2012), Retrieved from http://www.sba.gov/sites/default/files/sbafq.pdf.
Tyler Cowen, “What Export Orientated Means,” The American Interest Magazine, May 2012.
Charles Murray, “The New American Divide,” Wall Street Journal, 01-21-12.
Joseph Stiglitz, The Price of Inequality: How Today’s Divided Society Endangers Our Future (New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 2012).
Ibid.
Adam Liptak (2008). “U.S. Prison Population Dwarfs that of Other Nations,” Retrieved from http//www.nytimes.com/2008/04/23/world/Americas/23ht-23prison.12253738.html.
“We Just Decided To,” Newsroom. HBO. (2012).
Summary of data reported by the Office of Advocacy including estimates based on data from the U.S. Department of Commerce and The Census Bureau (2009), and trends from the U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Business Employment Dynamics (BED).
Summary of data collected and available from http://www.uscourts.gov/Statistics/BankruptcyStatistics.aspx.
Christopher Chantrill, 2012 and 2011. Data compiled by author. Retrieved from http://www.usfederalbudget.us/federal_budget_detail_fy11bs12012n and http://www.usfederalbudget.us/federal_budget_detail_fy11bs12011n.
United States Census. September 12, 2012. Retrieved October 16, 2012 from https://www.census.gov/hhes/www/poverty/about/overview/index.html.

Troy Oxford and Lauren Feeney, 2012. “The Triggers of Economic Inequality,” based on information from “Winner-Take-All Politics,” by J. Hacker and P. Pierson. Retrieved from http://billmoyers.com/content/the-triggers-of-economic-inequality/.

19. Summary of data reported by Catherine Misbranding and retrieved from http://visualizingeconomics.com/illustratedguide/#.UC1mmkTJIbI.

MISSION

Renew a Sense of Hope

Eckhart Tolle notes our need for radical change: “The more that the dysfunction of the human mind plays itself out on the world stage, clearly visible to everyone in the daily television news reports, the greater the number of people who realize the urgent need for a radical change in human consciousness if humanity is not to destroy both itself and the planet.”¹

Just as this spiritual guru feels compelled to share his enlightened teachings, I find it imperative to expose the true state of America’s small businesses. Specifically, Tolle finds resistance to what he calls the “suchness” of the present moment. Now is the fullness of life. At times, I am certain the information I have shared seems harsh, cynical, or much too complicated or even difficult to face. Unfortunately, it is the only way toward creating understanding, knowledge, and a consciousness that fits the reality of our times. We need to acknowledge the dissatisfaction right now in critical mass openly. This is what can bring about the kind of change significant enough to matter to such a large body of businesses right now.

This Collective Gestalt could foster the dynamic thinking transformative enough to move many millions of businesses forward at the same time. If we all jumped in together as a proactive network, and if we together open-sourced all of our resources and tools, creative thinking and a willingness to work together, utilizing all of the benefits of the digital age and the opportunity to work all across the globe, then we can be successful. If we all surrender (as Tolle discusses) to the possibilities that are now that our mutual efforts would achieve together, then it could be a renaissance of sorts for a new kind of entrepreneurship. It is very exciting, uplifting, and offers hope to so many.

Human consciousness, whether spiritual or societal, is the same transformative process that Tolle offers in our desire to evolve into something or someone better. It is the same passion and excitement, which manifested in the enlightened thinkers who fought for our liberty or wrote our constitution to create the greatest republic on earth. It is what galvanized the abolitionist, suffragettes, freedom riders, and gay activists who were successful in their movements for change. The vast inequality of our system as it stands now must go. It is the social imperative of our time. I focus here in this manuscript on small businesses.

True knowledge or consciousness about the dysfunctional economy that many of us are now suffering allows one to recognize what is false or faulty with clarity. This awaking to bring us to a collective “big thinking and collaboration” is part of our culture and history as a country that responds to the needs of its people.

This transformation in the way we compete, collaborate, and communicate is not in the distant future as Tolle reiterates about spiritualism. It is available now–no matter who or where you are. Being proud of what you are doing as an individual business and how you are affecting others can create a new American patriotism, if enough businesses speak out, help, and participate.

Change is difficult and frightening. It connotes in some instances defeat, giving up, even failing to rise to the challenges of life or the times. It is so difficult that it sometimes does not occur unless there is a major catastrophe or grave injustice. In my instance it was the death of my business that had been successful for so long that it became a part of my identity, power, and social standing.

It has been a difficult process to reveal openly my failures and the true state of my once successful business. Then I realized it was not just I but millions of small businesses across the country. These power and identity issues happen to many entrepreneurs who passionately built their businesses from nothing. It is also a part of our antiquated corporate culture of secrecy not to share the reality but to keep our suffering close to the vest and it will eventually all go away but this time it just won’t happen. The changes are to extreme and the environment too complex and difficult to navigate.

I utilized all of the concepts discussed in these pages, such as partnerships and teaming, marketing on all three screens, and expanding my operation globally. It was also very important I give my new retooled venture an activist component. Business S.O.S.^TM is my way to pay forward. It allows me to utilize the skills I have developed to empower all small businesses. You are not in it alone. I found so many who already know what is going on, but have no tools to help mend our neighbors or ourselves. Helping others re-cycles and helps the stability of our own business. This is why I am developing the proprietary software capable of bringing struggling businesses, sponsors, volunteers, experts, and other guru’s together, along with the assets, strengths, expertise, and potential to help each other out of this pervasive mess.

The goal is that Business S.O.S.^TM will provide the assistance, knowledge, and tooling to compete in a larger business arena against all the new and unforeseen mitigating forces currently affecting our economy. Business S.O.S.^TM will help small businesses level the playing field. Each such business will achieve integration and will be allowed into the opportunities of the 21st Century through the help of their neighbor and community. These original American values are as old as the very first settlers who conquered the challenges of prior centuries. By helping each other, we help ourselves as well as take on big challenges together. Business S.O.S.^TM is only the vehicle, the “power of now” is what will ignite the momentum.

Our business leaders and policy makers seem to ignore, completely, all of the credible research, data, and statistics that are readily available to everyone. Chapter 1 gives a complete rundown of the reasons we find ourselves in survival mode after five long years after the Great Recession instead of thriving like our large business counterparts and Wall Street. It shows the reasons that the greatest country on earth is destroying the American dream one business and community at a time–and, thus, the country as a whole. Business S.O.S.^TM creates a sound argument for^“thinking big” and joining in a collaborative effort, focusing on our small businesses. It will help facilitate a transformation in the way we compete, collaborate, and communicate. It will invert the hierarchy of power and make changes from the bottom up. What Washington and Wall Street can’t, or won’t, do for us, we will have to do ourselves.

Since 2008, more than two thirds of U.S. small businesses have suffered tremendous losses: 5.8 million have gone bankrupt and scores have been closed. I am not the only one alarmed by these figures. Even with enormous willpower, we simply cannot pull ourselves out of this survival mode and back into growth.

I have outlined how globalization and information technology have changed and overwhelmed small businesses across the country, and how we need to harness these two unique economic factors like our large business counterparts have, collectively to help restore the American dream. We need to allow America once more to lead in our capital markets. The implication of the research presented in this book is that by ignoring the true job creators and the soul of America–the middle class and small business engine–we will lose our power and stature in the world. The American brand as the land of opportunity will vanish.

It is always difficult to explain and launch a concept. But, the audience is there: over 40,000 people per month Google the term Business S.O.S.^TM; its cognates garner 3.4 million searches. From these searches, it revivifies the needs of our entrepreneurial colleagues. It is easier to connect on line than it is to face your neighbor with questions that suggest you have a failing business. It is America’s hidden secret. If we continue with this ridiculous cover up, then our small business entrepreneurs are in jeopardy of extinction. Someday, it will be too late to administer the cure.

Business S.O.S.^TM is a place–digital or otherwise–where struggling small businesses can go without recourse, fear, or shame, to completely or partially redesign their business for the 21st Century. It is not an advice corner offering suggestions or consultation for a fee; it is not a switch-and-bate operation, but an open source collaboration of resources through proprietary software for businesses in SOS.

It takes the disadvantages of facing less consumer demand, lack of capital, need to retool and enhance IT, modern effective marketing, and a variety of other critical components. It makes their acquisition and implementation obtainable–even while our economy continues to be dysfunctional and devoid of growth.

These complicated structural changes need our community response. Thinking big and formulating a collaborative effort from the bottom-up to redesign our small businesses–one company and community at a time–will enable the small business owner to compete with our large business counter-parts on the global stage and grow our GDP. Rather than outsource one minute, then call for in-sourcing another, Business S.O.S.^TM stops the merry-go-round and evaluates if these businesses can restructure to partake in the global market or perhaps retool to manufacture quality American made goods and restore manufacturing jobs here, when appropriate. Instead of guessing, we will solicit sponsors, experts, volunteers, and staff who will coordinate these redesigns on a local, regional, and national basis.

You will be able to interface with appropriate colleagues for partnerships to produce or sell in expanded markets. How? Through technology across the channels as many businesses are awakened to an economic nationalism, restoring true corporate governance and trust in our fellow colleagues.

If we are to grow, then we need to work together and trust each other once more. That is the reason when you sign a membership agreement; it is not just riddle with indemnifications and protections on our behalf, but a two-sided real commitment to adhere to all of the rules of corporate governance and ethics–values that were offered on a handshake in decades past. This is a mandatory part of membership, and this will be subject to the necessary review ratings that digital data make so easy. You will know if his membership agreement and his score, reviews and history can trust the business offering service to you in advance. This will enable us to work faster in our quest to make these big changes rapidly before it is too late.

Small business needs more from Washington than a call for tax breaks. It is absurd when so many businesses are in survival mode for a long five years. Small businesses need to be the priority. We all admire Face Book, Microsoft, Apple, and more. Small businesses that can retool and grow against all odds should be admired just as much.

Small business needs enactment and enforcement of policies and laws that will once again level the playing field for growth among all sectors, not just large corporations. Anti-trust laws are almost completely ignored. Intellectual property is stolen with no recourse. Regulations interfere with productivity. More individuals produce patents, but how can they afford to sue a large company with an army of legal advisers and lobbyists in Washington? The small business without significant help will not survive these unfair practices.

Small businesses are pressured by these large structural changes that have taken place–IT, globalization, and continued dysfunction of the capital and financial markets. The world is flat, and we must help each business view these changes as opportunities, not as recipes for obsolescence.

There are many businesses that know they are already in SOS. Yet facing this may be the biggest hurdle for so many. I know it was for me. Now there is a chance to do something about it. Here are some questions to consider:

What is the state of your company?
Do you have the capital to hold on through this continued decrease and lack of confidence in consumer spending?
What is your sales-to-debt ratio?
How advanced is the hardware and software you are using?
How are your sales? (Sales and margins are the fuel to staying alive and your very reason for being.)
Is your staff trained in management and operation of all digital offerings?
How are your margins verses overhead and investment capital?
How tech savvy is you as the owner?
Can you maintain a 24/7 optimal customer service operation?
How service-oriented is your accounting division?
And how good is your product, service, and marketing?
Can you keep up when the watchword is speed, speed, and speed?
Can you maintain that “can do” attitude you had when you started you’re firm, or are you depressed and have the business blahs?
Are you overwhelmed with all of the above?

These are some of the critical questions you need to ask to decide if you are in SOS and need an open source of resources to help.

There is a flurry of new books addressing the financial and psychological stress on small business, the dysfunction of our economy, unmanaged globalization, and poorly resourced IT. Yet, there are few positioned to take action within the confines of the challenges presented. The key to moving from survival mode to growth will be a direct result of the network or partnerships companies are able to forge and their ability to communicate these goods or services through technology to consumers locally to globally. As a network, we can offer the resources and capability to begin the process of action steps to redesign businesses for the 21st Century.

Business S.O.S.^TM has just launched this progressive business model to reorganize. Retool, rehire, train, and get the zeal back. This will need time to grow organically. During this time, we are committed to helping one company at a time to redesign their business for the 21st Century. We offer an open source of resources so that companies can advance their growth on their own.

The 21st Century will be the century of partnerships. Most companies are unable to house all of the disciplines and resources under one roof for a variety of reasons. Through smart equipment and technology, we can forge partnerships with many companies to deliver high quality production and services without suffering the costs and time to retool. Building and developing partnerships are complicated and rout with legal consequences. Business S.O.S.^TM is going to streamline this process. For example, you can partner or collaborate with firms on one or many projects and need not be concerned about the backlash of doing business with someone you do not know. The positive effect of quick, uncomplicated business partnerships set up with limited complication and liability will have a profound effect on growth.

Business S.O.S.^TM is one of many network resources available. We feel our point of difference is that we are not an advice corner, but a way to actually implement the variety of changes a company would need to get out of SOS and back into a growth mode of operation. We expect others to develop and we will create a website to house all of these resources. We are an inclusive business model, not an exclusive club. Everyone is invited to the party of reshaping America’s small businesses.

There is only one word that describes many small businesses’ understanding, adaptation, and knowledge surrounding the information technology revolution– overwhelmed. I have presented a variety of comprehensive branding campaigns under my digital arm DJS 3SOP (three screens, zero paper). Most firms were aware of marketing online and through digital devices, but few had adequate knowledge as to how to optimize these resources to meet their sales and marketing goals and objectives. They equated it to balls bouncing. They pick up one up, and ten more are thrown their way. Which ones are right for them is anyone’s guess. From the analysis of most media plans for the average small business, the depth and results fall short. Seasoned CTOs with real knowledge are few and far between. I have tried to address what components are essential for establishing optimal digital marketing resources. The Business S.O.S.^TM website will categorize thousands of marketing firms and how to set up partnerships with them. We will establish guidelines to develop a first-class multimedia program and produce creative through this network of resources for various categories of industry and service.

Never before in the history of small business is there a more cost effective way to communicate and seek new customers from all over the world. Marketing is the most important tool to let people know you are out there. It has radically changed since 2008. We discussed in Chapter 5 the relevance of Three Screens – Zero Paper (3S0P) marketing. It explains all aspects of the Internet and mobile devices as well as the use of the Internet and social media on sales, growth, and branding. We intend to develop an online training center so that our network is up to date on all the new trends in media. Staying in front of your customer through these new media offerings is imperative. Mobile first is the imperative, but all three screens are important for small businesses to harness inbound customer communication and sales.

Video is the fastest growing tool to reach consumers. It is a compelling medium suited for dissemination across all channels. Everyone is enticed to watch video on smart phones and tablets. The small business needs to have resources to produce their own video on-demand and cost effectively. Business S.O.S.^TM will provide the best resources in your area or across the globe that will help produce and distribute this new powerful marketing tool. Video is not just for large companies. It is now important to stream messages in this format if we are to keep up with viewer trends.

There are many reasons small businesses are in survival mode. In the sphere of a small business’s corporate control, one of the reasons the U.S. finds itself in 1.2 percent growth is the lack of preparedness, education, and training for the quantum changes that have occurred recently to just about every business model that exists. There are profound changes in software and hardware, communication, finance, production, and more. Is your firm up to date on these changes? Can you afford to re-tool? Are your marketing efforts capable of netting the consumer that will meet your growth goals? Is your physical plant capable of enhancing productivity? Just about every aspect of every business needs an overhaul in order to face the growth and competition challenges of 21st Century business. How do we compare with operations in China, India, or Brazil? Our cultural thinking could be holding us back rather than economic circumstances. We need to borrow from the Olympic spirit of our American athletes, and get back to competing and winning and leading on the global stage.

Globalization assisted in removing barriers between nations through technology. However, it also resulted in competition for American jobs and manufacturing capability empowering countries such as China, India, and Brazil. Globalization is moving very quickly and has changed the U.S. competitive edge. It has flattened the playing field putting pressure on all businesses. Without formidable knowledge and pro-active, reliable methodologies, American small businesses cannot take advantage of the tremendous opportunities globalization could afford many companies. It is obvious that American small businesses do not fully grasp this unique opportunity to lead in free trade. This quantum change will require a whole new public awaking; simplistic methodologies will assist small businesses in the repositioning of their businesses as not just local or national, but “glocal.” This, for some, may be the only way they can escape survival mode.

This is appropriate for our suburban and rural businesses instead of geographic isolationism. We need to get in the game of globalization before it is too late. We should be providing leadership to the world in global integration of our industries and services. Business S.O.S.^TM will assist all companies in their effort to understand how to transition their firms for this kind of growth opportunity. This will eliminate the time it will take to find the right partnerships to expand your firm globally. Whether it is production service or distribution, our network intends to connect our businesses so that we can take advantage of the tremendous opportunity to go global, but avoid the pitfalls logistically and legally.

Business S.O.S.^TM is one of many network resources available. We feel our point of difference is that we are not an advice corner but a way to actually implement the variety of changes a company would need to get out of SOS and back into a growth mode of operation. We expect other networks to develop, and we will create a website to house all of these resources. We are an inclusive business model, not an exclusive club. Everyone is invited to the party of reshaping America’s small businesses.

A love of country is the glue that binds us all together. We need to solve big, hard problems together and return to the ideals set forth by our forbearers that we are free individuals with a sense of community. If the top 1 percent is so adamant to keep their tax breaks let the remaining 99 percent do the hard work and sacrifice it will take to correct this horrible economic slide that has damaged the most advanced overachieving nation in the world. We need to redefine the brand that is truly American as the land of opportunity for all and not just for a few. We must work together as a nation to advance progress.

By igniting a newfound inspiration of nationalism and service to our country, we will affect change one business and one community at a time. We will not let ourselves or our neighbors fail around us. We get it done, but everyone needs to pull together giving and doing whatever it takes. We will make it! We did it before, and we will do it again, as the greatest nation on earth. This is a result of love for our country and true nationalism. Washington is broken, but not the spirit of everyday Americans.

Paying It Forward

We can only solve our problems with a collective response. They are too big to be addressed alone. We propose that small businesses network together, reignite our nationalism, and provide the catalyst to change the forces that are impeding our progress. Business S.O.S.^TM can only provide the service of redesigning businesses by and through the help of other businesses. Their rewards for this help are knowing that they have done the right thing. We will ask all of our businesses from sponsors, resources, networks–and especially those that we assist–to payforward. This can be done either through their product or service development, or their own activism/volunteerism after they return to growth. We must change individual behavior as well as corporate largess to be based on collaboration and connectivity instead of secrecy, suspicion, and divisiveness. I believe all Americans understand the concept of freedom, capitalism, and its effect on corporate growth, progress, and prosperity. The sharing of that prosperity in ways of assisting our colleagues to learn, change, and grow nets tremendous fulfillment for us all as a nation. This fulfillment to help each other will result in growth of our own GDP that should rewards us all across the board fairly.

Power and influence in the world will be maintained for future generations. The possibility for a better life for all who participate in achieving these goals will be the results of this untold generosity. This is a large, ambitious task. But we, as a community, have faced much worse in our history and have worked together in our quest for resolution. We need the commitment and the good will of all small businesses to help. Paying forward from our volunteers, sponsors, networked businesses, and organizations that jumped in to help each redesigned small business sets the tone of 21st Century methodologies for growth.

In Conclusion

We have outlined in this book the true state of small businesses today. We have exposed why this dysfunction continues and will continue and how we need to develop new methodologies to take many small businesses out of survival mode and back into growth. Identified are the key challenges for small businesses. First, we need to manage globalization so that we lead, and not follow, these trends. Second, we need to adjust to the information technology revolution so that it enhances our businesses and avoids driving the small business to obsolescence.

How to work collaboratively so that we capitalize on this unique historical moment within the constraints of our national financial limitations

The substance of our network will measure us all. Business S.O.S.^TM offers a vehicle to begin this process. It is driven to redesign businesses within a framework that respects the intellectual property of that business and the individual owner. It will work to regain all of the business and corporate governess that propelled our great nation in the 19th and 20th century, such as honesty, integrity, fairness, good work ethic, and quality of products and services. It will place these high ideals in the new context of 21st Century horizontal collaborative modalities and share with the world what truly makes America the greatest nation in the world. We need to stop being overwhelmed by these quantum shifts in our marketplace and get back to meeting these challenges with big ideas and methods that will keep us competitive and in a position of leadership. We have an incredible track record of building the world’s most vibrant economy. We can, and we must, succeed again at these endeavors. We offer our solution–Business S.O.S.^TM