We shall overcome: so you've got a weakness. We all do. Get over it. With our expert's help, you can follow these entrepreneurs' examples and turn your weak points into problems solved

Entrepreneur, Jan, 2003 by Chris Sandlund

Be honest with yourself. You're not perfect. Maybe you feel lost in the jumble of bookkeeping or the sales calls you make are garnering only a few new projects. Whatever. Every successful entrepreneur has a weak spot. It's your business's Achilles' heel.

This is not some terrible admission. Most entrepreneurs started their ventures based on several superior skills. Running a successful business requires you to learn more. But no matter how much you learn, you need to recognize your deficiencies and reach out for help.

Call it a case of watching too many makeover shows on The Learning Channel. We decided to help massage some tender Achilles' heels by pairing entrepreneurs with experts. Five business owners agreed to bare their souls. Five experts offered free consultations.

The results will educate you. Although the businesses run across a variety of industries, their problems will be familiar to any entrepreneur: growing your sales, improving your distribution, ramping up marketing, motivating employees and managing cash flow. The experts offered the entrepreneurs fresh ideas. Their insights should help you begin the process of addressing your own Achilles' heel.

The Entrepreneur: Stephanie Anne; Stephanie Anne; Dallas

The Expert: Arthur St. Onge; St. Onge Co.; York, Pennsylvania

The Problem: Distributing high-quality furniture

Stephanie Anne's eponymous company produces high-quality children's furniture--furniture a parent would want to pass on to a child. It's been a huge hit in Dallas and Houston, where she runs two stores--so much so that she's added a catalog and Web site to accommodate customers outside the area. Stephanie Anne, 34, now ships about $3 million in products each year from her warehouse.

That's where the problems begin. Stephanie Anne's customers are well-off mothers expecting their first child. Anyone who's had a child knows first-time parents want everything perfect. That means no scuff marks on the crib--especially when it costs $995 to $2,100. Locally, Stephanie Anne can count on people she trusts, but how can she guarantee someone unloading changing tables in a far-off city will treat the goods with kid gloves?

Stephanie Anne ships most of her goods with Bekins Van Lines, but it hasn't been willing to assume liability for delivery. Distribution expert Art St. Onge offers a few solutions.

First, he suggests partnering with a local firm that has comparable needs. The Container Store, also based in Dallas, has a similar business model and shipping situation. It may be willing to offer some transportation ideas or a partnership to share transportation and defray costs.

Another option is to find a way to reduce delivery damages. "Get a packaging consultant involved," St. Onge advises. "See if you can't come up with a packaging system Bekins agrees they'll take responsibility for."

Marketing can help, too. St. Onge recommends Stephanie Anne bombard one region--say, the Northeast--with catalogs so she can consolidate shipments and cut costs. She may even be able to handle shipping herself.

St. Onge also says Stephanie Anne should look up a local Council of Logistics Management chapter. "Make a presentation at their monthly meeting," he says. By providing good fodder, Stephanie Anne would get an opportunity to brainstorm with experts.

The Entrepreneur: Ken Hobbs; Jel Inc.; Sacramento, California

The Expert: Joseph Riggio; JS Riggio International; Mahwah, New Jersey

The Problem: Increasing sales

Jel Inc. is thriving. In seven years, it has grown to $3 million in sales providing Internet professional services to companies like Saturn and Genentech. But co-owners Ken Hobbs and Jon Lee recognize their scavenging approach to sales- acquiring competitors and sorting out their good clients--can't last.

"What's challenged us most is new business sales," says Hobbs, 33. "We don't have much of a marketing effort."

Hobbs admits Jel's Web site isn't the sharpest. That bothers sales consultant Joseph Riggio. "You have an integral relationship between your product and media," he says. A Web site is as important to a Net business as the services. Riggio recommends dedicating someone to keeping it fresh--immediately. (The site has been overhauled since the evaluation.)

Riggio also discerns problems with the firm's telemarketing. It gets Jel in the door just 5 percent of the time--a figure he says should be 20 to 25 percent. He wants the company to adopt a more aggressive script. ("Would you talk to us if I could save you 50 percent on your Web hosting?") When Hobbs is skeptical, Riggio points out the obvious: "You're already losing 95 percent of the calls you're making," he says. "How worse could it be?"

The script he describes is blunt yet subtle. Most important, however, it's the initial element in a sales barrage that includes follow-up letters, phone calls, brochures, and a capabilities CD-ROM to ensure Jel contacts prospects six times before giving up on them.

Riggio also wants the firm to brand itself. He urges Hobbs to find an industry niche. The Saturn account gives Jel credibility in the auto industry. Why not advertise in a trade magazine targeting dealerships? Trade ads cost as little as $1,000 per month and can put Jel's name in front of decision-makers.