Central/Northern Florida SCORE Offers Advice to Local Businesses on Avoiding Recession Pitfalls

ORLANDO, Fla., Feb. 11 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Entrepreneurs face challenges on many fronts, including lower consumer spending, rising unemployment and tightening credit.

SCORE in Central/Northern Florida has local offices in Daytona Beach, Eustis, Gainesville, Lake City, Lecanto, Jacksonville, Ocala, Orlando and Tallahassee to provide confidential mentoring to small businesses free-of-charge. Experts at Central/Northern Florida SCORE offices have experience in: finance, accounting, general management, marketing, sales prospecting and scenario planning.

SCORE CEO Ken Yancey says, "Be quick to retrench expenses, quick to adapt products & services to changing market needs and quick to build a network of advisors to help you make it through this recession in business and poised for growth." Yancey adds, "Now is the time to meet with a SCORE mentor on how to tighten credit policies, cut expenses and look at holding cash in your accounts. Experienced SCORE mentors are here to help plan actions to help you survive the recession and thrive when the economy turns around."

Central/Northern Florida SCORE office offers tips on Five Recession Pitfalls to Avoid:

1. Cutting expenses too slowly. Don't cut expenses a little bit at a time. Now is the time to look at expenses and decide whether your company needs to cut expenses five, 10 or up to 20 percent. Do what it takes early in the year and bring costs down.
2. Maintaining the same product and service mix. Your needs are changing. You can bet your clients needs have changed too. Call your existing clients and ask them what they need. Then, design your product service mix around those needs.
3. Reducing marketing instead of focusing on marketing. The company that stands tall, strong and visible in the marketplace has stature and status. Differentiate with strong marketing to drive leads and sales.
4. Lacking systems to free up your time. Streamline your business and become more efficient. Use a handheld organizer to keep track of phone numbers, dates, appointments and meetings. Set a time each week to handle routine tasks, bills and paperwork.
5. Keeping everything to yourself. Your team knows the economy is tough and wants to understand what the company is facing and how, together, you can make it through. Lead toward a brighter future by focusing your efforts on today.

Since 1964, SCORE "Counselors to America's Small Business" has helped more than 8 million aspiring entrepreneurs and small business owners through counseling and business workshops. More than 10,500 volunteer business counselors in 389 chapters serve their communities through entrepreneurial education dedicated to the formation, growth and success of small businesses.

For more information about starting or operating a small business, visit SCORE Central/Northern Florida online at www.scoreflorida.org to find a location near you.