Mike Miller, a director at Symbiocracy Inc., will be a panelist during the Swedish–American Entrepreneurial Days in Goteborg, Sweden from Nov. 8 – 10, 2010. His panel’s topic is “”How to Sell to Americans – U.S. Business Culture.” Mike will post his presentation before he leaves for Sweden November 2.

The Swedish–American Entrepreneurial Days has become the most important trade and networking event in Sweden, providing an effective platform for trade and commerce between the U.S. and Sweden. Since 1997, the Entrepreneurial Days has enabled small, medium, and large companies to connect and develop new business. For the past thirteen years the Entrepreneurial Days has not only grown larger, but has also become global in scope with American business leaders networking with their Swedish counterparts. What makes this business-to-business event so worthwhile and successful is that it brings together entrepreneurs and experts from a variety of fields – all sharing their expertise and knowledge of American and EU markets.

For more information, see: http://sacc-edays.org/goteborg/speakers/#9

Mike spent fourteen years in corporate America with Bendix and Allied Signal corporations. Positions he held included divisional chief marketing officer, new product development manager, marketing channel manager, national sales manager, marketing communications manager and acquisition manager, . Since 1989, he has been in the consulting industry. Of Mike’s current clients, three are start up firms. He holds a B.S., Industrial Engineering from Lehigh University (Bethlehem, PA), and a M.B.A. from Loyola Marymount University, (Los Angeles, CA), and is certified by the Center for Creative Leadership (Greensboro, North Carolina) to conduct 360º leader assessment and development programs.

Over the last 20 years, one observation I have gained from working with startup companies, or any company, is the failure of management to assign the right talent for the right roles. A serial entrepreneur told me once, “You can take my ideas, money, computers, equipment, buildings and people and if you only let me have one back, I’ll take my people. I will then restart my business and make better and stronger. You can have the rest.”

So, it cannot be emphasized too strongly the purpose of a business plan is to first and foremost demonstrate you and your management team, Board of Directors and Advisors have the skills, experience and capabilities to start, launch and grow your company.

Through your Business Plan, you demonstrate your business has:

• A robust management team.
• Sufficient demand for our product.
• Sustainable competitive advantage.
• Realistic goals & objectives.
• Well thought out financials.
• The Business Plan also shows investors it has:
• Focus. Too many Business Plans promise too much, too soon.
• A well thought out roadmap to an exit strategy.
• Realistic financial forecasts that show acceptable return to your investors.
• Funding needs that support the forecast.

Some resources:

• Angel Investor Network www.angel-investor-network.com
• Capital Vector (Venture Capital directory) www.capitalvector.com
• Keiretsu Forum SoCal www.keiretsusocal.com
• Los Angeles Venture Association www.lava.org
• Maverick Angels www.maverickangels.com
• Pasadena Angels www.pasadenaangels.com
• Tech Coast Angels www.techcoastangels.com

Mike spent fourteen years in corporate America with Bendix and Allied Signal corporations. Positions he held included divisional chief marketing officer, new product development manager, marketing channel manager, national sales manager, marketing communications manager and acquisition manager, . Since 1989, he has been in the consulting industry. Of Mike’s current clients, three are start up firms. He holds a B.S., Industrial Engineering from Lehigh University (Bethlehem, PA), and a M.B.A. from Loyola Marymount University, (Los Angeles, CA), and is certified by the Center for Creative Leadership (Greensboro, North Carolina) to conduct 360º leader assessment and development programs.

Just recently, I, along with some really good people, have started to push Symbiocracy forward to a new level, beyond my consulting, workshops and blog. I am really excited that I will now be able to help clients to get further along in their whole internet strategy. An integral component will be a partnership with a well-known and respected technology team, who can deliver the products that businesses need to compete with the global marketplace.

One of the first steps is an updated site that speaks more to our business direction and  capabilities. As a preview of things to come, once the partnerships are finalized our services will include all of the following:

• Strategic social enterprise business plans
• Website branding
• Website architecture
• Website user interface
• Website monetization strategies
• Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
• Basic and high-level website creation
• Social media strategy and development
• Social media application creation
• Social media implementation coaching
• Email marketing strategy, development and deployment
• Logos and corporate identity
• Display advertisement design
• Contextual advertisement strategy
• iPhone and iPad applications
• Cause marketing strategy
• Brainstorming

The first step in starting a relationship with a cause or charity is choosing the right one. What you probably want out of it is increased sales. So, the first question is, “Do you have enough potential customers out there, or do you need to create them?” If you need to create them, what charities are already creating customers for you? I, for example, run a nonprofit that creates musicians by putting musical instruments into music education programs. For a while, we were partnered up with a music instrument retailer, and now we are partnered up with a musical instrument manufacturer. They help to create more customers for themselves by supporting the charity I run, a win-win situation.

Once you have selected a charity that will help your business, think about how your company can make the biggest difference for that charity/cause, find a way to fit it into your company’s current operations, using your company’s assets (people, products, machines, operations, etc.) to benefit the charity/cause. Then, let your customers know that you are helping that charity or cause, and give them ways to also get involved. It will strengthen the relationship you have with your customers.

When you are ready to publicize your relationship and your efforts to help the cause or charity, you can choose to communicate the size of your contribution or the creative approach to your philanthropic effort. But, neither will get any attention unless they are impressive. The public expects you to help others already. In order to get notice from the media, you have to turn heads.

Who benefits?

The company – more customers, successful public relations, improved community relationships

The customer – they get to help others with the money they would have spent anyway.

The charity/cause – not only do they get the money or product, they gain you and your customers as advocates, and they get increased publicity, too.