In preparation of National Small Business Week (May 4-8, 2015) we recently reached out to a collection of people whose advice we really admire. We spoke to founders, CEOs, authors, entrepreneurs, and small business experts to ask one simple question: “What’s the best business advice you’ve ever received?” Here’s what they had to say.

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59 Responses to
“What’s the best business
advice you’ve ever
received?”

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you heard something that
really stuck with you.
Take a minute and think about the last time

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Something that made a
lasting impression
and changed your outlook.

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What was it?

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Where did it come from?

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How did it impact your life?

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How did it impact your business?

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We recently reached out to a collection
of people whose advice we really admire,
with one simple question.

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We spoke to founders, CEOs, authors,
entrepreneurs, and small business
experts to ask...

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What’s the best business
advice you’ve ever received?

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Here’s what they had to say...
#ctctsbw

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Denise Attwood
Founder, Ganesh Himal Trading
@ganeshhimal
Wake up every morning and
remember why you started your
business, not what you do but why
you do it.
If you remember every day why you started you
will stay focused on the bigger picture and make it
through all of the tough times, the times people
doubt you, and the times you feel you've made a
mistake.
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Matt Ward
President/CEO, inConcert Web Solutions
@webresults
Make quick decisions...
right or wrong.
Being agile is a requirement for small
business!
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Peg Fitzpatrick
Co-author of The Art of Social Media,
speaker, social media strategist
@PegFitzpatrick
Focus on your core.
Learn how to outsource the tasks that
you need to so you can do the things
that make you money. Hire talent to
do the things you can't, like email
marketing, design, or web work.

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You have two ears and
one mouth for a reason –
listen twice as much as you speak.
I've always kept this in mind when meeting new
prospects or dealing with clients, and it's helped
me grow BJC Branding to where it is today.
Bryan Caplan
Owner, BJC Branding
@bjcbranding

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When someone makes a mistake or if
you have a disagreement and the other
person is backed into a corner
try to give them an out.
Julie Niehoff
Constant Contact Director,
Education & Field Enablement
@julieniehoff
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Start where you are.
Use what you have.
Do what you can.
Heather Jackson
Constant Contact Regional Development Director
New England
@heatherkjackson
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Vanessa Cabrera
Founder, Your Social Media Mentor
@vanessacabrera
Work Less and Make More.
Most people have a tendency to work more
and make more, however this philosophy is
not good for family life and your mental or
physical health. Delegate your tasks and
responsibilities.
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Do what you do and do it well
... always follow your own vision of
what your business should be.
Dawn Noble
Owner, La Provence
@LaProv
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Chris Litster
SVP, Sales and Marketing, Constant Contact
@cmlitster
Success comes from running to,
not from, your next great challenge or
opportunity.

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Jennifer Smiga
Owner, inBLOOM Communications
@inBLOOMbuzz
Businesses focus on acquisition more than
customer retention, even though it can cost 7x
more to acquire new customers.
It's crucial to maintain good customer relations,
and even more important to exceed a customer's
expectations.
Referral marketing is gold.
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Maria Elena Duron
Constant Contact Authorized Local Expert
@mariaduron
Focus on your strengths.
It's a mistake to focus on your weak areas.
It distracts from your strengths and makes
you a mediocre person.
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Even when you’re starting out and are still very
small...give the appearance of mass.
If you pay attention to detail and look
big/professional, your business will grow into the
space you’ve created.
Ron Cates
Constant Contact Director,
New Market Development & Southwest Region
@roncates
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People do business with people
they know and trust.
Allen Smith,
IOM, CCE, President and CEO, Spartanburg Chamber of Commerce, SC
@spartanchamber
Know them.
Build their trust.
Win their business.

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The key to building relationships is:
25
Eric Groves
Founder and CEO, Alignable, Inc.
@E_Groves
Listen, Observe, Listen —
then Speak

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The only way to get
better and be the best
is through failures, lots
of failures.
Arlet Koseian
Owner, extendYoga
@extendYoga
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When Celia and I launched Dudley & Nunez
Communications, my mother advised us to always
under-promise and over-deliver.
We've helped dozens of clients since then, and I
attribute much of our success to that wise tip.
Maureen Dudley
Owner, Dudley & Nunez Communications
@MaureenDudley
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Fake it 'til you make it!
Barry Eichner
Owner, Barry Eichner Consulting
@BarryEichner

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I think about that often when I’m kind of tired and
thinking of skipping an event.
29
Marianne Virgili
IOM, CCE, President and CEO, Glenwood Springs Chamber, Colorado
@gwschamber
Tom Alee, former Director of Sales for Frontier
Airlines, once told me...
“Don’t ever miss a
cocktail party.
You never know who
you might meet.”

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Happy customers are the key to a
successful business. Be honest and fair, and
make sure the customer’s opinion is always
heard and honoured.
Cynthia Lee
Community Manager at Dominelli School of Music
@dominellimusic

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Gail Goodman
CEO, Constant Contact
@Gail_Goodman
Listen to your customers.
Feedback is a gift.

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Matt Pivarnik
Executive Vice President & COO, Tulsa Regional Chamber
@TulsaChamber
The unexamined life is not worth living,
the unexamined career is not worth having,
and the unexamined business is not worth running.

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I received advice early on to pick work I loved and
felt passionate about. With the amount of time
spent on a career or job, you’ll burn out and hate
your life if you don’t do something you care about.
Staying true to that and gaining the necessary skills
required to do what you love will guide you to the
right thing.
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Corissa St. Laurent
Regional Development Director - Pacific Northwest
@Corissastl

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Have a business plan and keep it updated, but
don’t obsess on making it perfect.
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Hal Shelton
Author The Secrets to Writing a Successful Business Plan
http://www.secretsofbusinessplans.com/
It is about direction
and not absolutes.
Your business continually changes and so will
your plans; seek advice and counsel from others.

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“Real courage is when you know
you’re licked before you begin
but you begin anyway and see
it through no matter what.”
Some of the most successful businesses
followed that model, ignored the naysayers, took
a leap of faith, and are all the better for it!
Jeremy Arthur
IOM, President and CEO, Business Council of Alabama
@bcatoday
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Small business owners and entrepreneurs are some of
the bravest folks I know. It takes courage to forge your
own path. It reminds me of a quote from To Kill A
Mockingbird...

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Never ask anyone to do
what you won’t do yourself.
Terri Schulz
President, Waupaca Area Chamber, WI
http://www.waupacaareachamber.org/

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Sue B Zimmerman
Founder, Insta-Results
@SueBZimmerman
“Be hyper-focused in your
market niche so you can
stand out and give value.”
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In your marketing strategy, it is
absolutely imperative that you forget about your
dreams, forget about your visions, forget about
your interests, forget about what you want… forget
about everything but your customer! It’s what
your customer wants that matters. And what your
customer wants is probably significantly different
from what you THINK they want.
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Danny Hearn
IOM, CCE, President and CEO, Catawba County Chamber, NC
@catawbachamber

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Do your homework and find out
where the gap in the marketplace is
and understand the unique selling proposition that
your business will bring to the table.
Dan Plouffe and Julie Card
Founders, SuiGeneris Marketing and mycollingwood.ca
@MYCOLLINGWOODca

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The key to success is to follow up.
Tate Hill
President and CEO, Fresno Metro Black Chamber of Commerce
@fresnometrobcc

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“Being good in business is the most
fascinating kind of art.
Making money is art and working is
art and good business is the best
art.” –Andy Warhol
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Kit Cramer
President & CEO, Asheville Chamber, NC
@kitcramer
This isn’t really advice, but I have it pinned up on
my cork board in front of my face at work and try
to remember it:

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Beth Kanter
Co-author The Networked Nonprofit and
Measuring the Networked Nonprofit
@kanter
“Follow your curiosity and
the money will follow.”
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A bit of old-style sales advice:
Never end your day before it is
completely over.
Marlene Panoyan
Director of Communications/Social Media, Hollywood Chamber
@hollywoodarea

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Pamela Wilson
Vice President of Educational Content
at Copyblogger Media, Owner Big
Brand System
@pamelaiwilson
"Patience, persistence, and
perspiration make an unbeatable
combination for success.” –Napoleon Hill
That boils down to: don’t
expect immediate results;
don’t give up; and be
willing to work hard for
what you want to achieve.
That approach has served
me well through many
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You can't be everything to
everyone - PRIORITIZE!
Ryan Evans,
VP of Business and Community Relations, Salt Lake Chamber, Utah
@ryan_t_evans

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The best business advice I received
is to invest in help before I thought I
could afford it. Hiring someone to
help me with my website and
newsletter freed me to create the
content that grew my business
rapidly.
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Alyson B Stanfield
Owner, ArtBizCoach.com
@abstanfield

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I was fortunate enough to have Jr. Cellucci,
Governor Cellucci's Dad, work in my office for 3
years. Two pieces of simple advice that he gave,
that I adhere to are:
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Sarah Cressy
President & CEO, Assabet Valley Chamber, MA
@AsVaCc
1. Always return phone calls and
emails within 48 hours.
2. Always be nice!

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I learned this from the Dale Carnegie course:
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Thomas Jennings
President, Barrow County Chamber, GA
@barrowcountycc
"The sweetest words to any person's
ears are the sounds of their own
name."
That has served me well.

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Sean D'Souza
Owner, PsychoTactics
@seandsouza
follow-up. follow-up.
follow-up. follow-up.
follow-up​ and follow-up.
The best business advice
I have got is this...
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Treat every person
like they are the first
call of the day!
Kimi Gobi
Administrative Assistant, Hardin County Chamber, TN
http://www.hardincountychamber.com/

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The best marketing advice I
ever received is simple:
Henry Florsheim
President/CEO, Wichita Falls Chamber of Commerce & Industry
@chamberWF
Don’t be boring.

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As business owners and entrepreneurs, you have a
lot of people tugging at you. Everyone has "just
one question" or needs "one minute of your time."
It's easy to get caught up in people pleasing mode
as you're building your business. But the reality is,
a yes person (someone who agrees to everything)
will never scale their business. Stop saying yes and
realize that "NO," when said in a polite manner, is
a complete sentence.
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Rebekah Radice
Digital Marketing | Social Media Business
Consultant, Rebekah Radice LLC
@RebekahRadice
"No.” is a complete sentence.

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John Paul Aguiar
Pro Blogger and Social Media Trainer,
JohnPaulAguiar.com
@JohnAguiar
“Just because you love it, doesn't
mean you should execute it.”
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Donna Moritz
Founder, Socially Sorted
@SociallySorted
The best business advice I ever received was
to start a blog and to blog consistently
(you don't need to blog every day as long as it's
consistent). I blog weekly, and it has changed
my business. In fact, my blog is no longer a
marketing tool for my business, it's the core of my
business - underpinning everything else I do.
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If something isn't being done, do it yourself!
Create your own career.
"Write your own part." - Mindy Kaling
Julia Campbell
Founder, J Campbell Social Marketing
@JuliaCSocial

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Tamsin Fox-Davies
Constant Contact Senior Manager UK Development
@tamsinfd
Be yourself, as the clients that want to
work with you will be attracted by your
personality and business brand – and those
that you won't like anyway will be dissuaded.

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It's okay to have too much fun.
Lani and Allen Voivod
Owners, Epiphanies, Inc. and Founders of A-Ha! Summit
@EpiphaniesInc

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Luke Brynley-Jones
Founder, Our Social Times
@lbrynleyjones
“The world won’t stop
turning if you take
a day off.”
When you’re super busy you
imagine your business will
collapse if you take a holiday. In
reality what you’ll find is nothing
much changes, people will wait for
replies to emails, and you can pick
up refreshed when you get back.
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Dean Montandon
Digital Marketing Manager for Red Website Design
@Red_Web_Design
Do something you love to do...
it makes the hard work and sacrifice worthwhile.

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Emma Davidson
Co-founder Gecko Clothing
@Emma_TheGecko
Be persistent!
It's not the same as nagging. If someone hasn't
told you they're not interested, they more than
likely just haven't heard your message yet. The
world is full of busy people and you have to be
tenacious to get your idea out there.

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Always agree on a price in advance.
Never do the work first and
then give a client the price.
Vee Smith
Constant Contact Authorized Local Expert
@biztechwiz

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Always provide value.
Rebecca Coleman
Owner, Rebecca Coleman, Marketing and Media Relations
@rebeccacoleman

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Know your numbers.
From your website metrics to your finances. But
more importantly do something with them.
Understand how your website is performing…
having large volumes of visitors doesn’t mean
anything unless they convert into leads and sales.
Equally the saying “turnover is vanity, profit is
sanity, cash is reality” is so true and the number
one reason why many businesses fail.
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Lilach Bullock
Co-founder of Comms Axis
@lilachbullock

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The best advice I was given was
to make sure that I was truly
passionate about my business and
to do what I love.
Evelyn Senyi
Owner, Recurve Marketing
@EvelynSenyi

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Clients that value your
expertise will ask you
what they need more
often than telling you
what they want.
Marc Gordon
Founder, Fourword Marketing
@MarcGordonDotCA

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Start as you mean to go, have boundaries in your
"work" times, it's too easy to work all hours when
you are an entrepreneur, you have to have stop
times when you won't take a call or answer email
so you can feed your soul and do something else.
Sherri-Lee Woycik
Facebook Marketing Expert, Trainer and Coach
@socialmediamndr

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Mari Smith
Facebook Marketing Expert Author & Trainer
@MariSmith
"If I were to buy everything you
offer, how much would it cost me
and what would I get for my
money?"
A mentor of mine once asked me about 15 years ago,
My answer to this question has helped to shape my entire
business and revenue model time and again.
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Set big, scary, challenging goals.
You'll never grow if you set goals that you are
guaranteed to achieve.
Heather Anderson
Director of Marketing, The Little Gym
@TheLittleGym

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Make business
decisions from the
point of view of the
owner of your business.
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Bonnie Sainsbury
Founder, Social Media Smarter
@bsainsbury
It should be able to
function without you.

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Running a business can be all consuming,
especially in the first few years. When we realised
that we could create the kind of business that we
could enjoy going into every day, everything
changed for the better. We still work hard but we
make sure we have fun along the way.
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Luke Hodson
Director, Awesome Merchandise
@AwesomeMerch

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Now it’s your turn!
Share your best piece of business advice with us.
Use the hashtag #ctctsbw, so we can follow your responses.
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