What’s It Like to Work with MicroEnterprise Works?

There is no fee to clients who work with MEW.

If you are interested in working with us, give us a call.  We will usually suggest an initial meeting where we will ask a number of questions about your background, your work experience, your education, and the vision you have for your business. Our purpose is to understand “where you come from,” so we can have a better idea of “where you want to go.”

At this first meeting, we also look realistically at whether your idea has the potential to be successful.  ”Sometimes just hearing someone say, ‘it’s not realistic,’ can be helpful to someone thinking about investing time, money, and energy into something that won’t work,” program manager Rick Weir says.

At the end of the first meeting, we will work with you to prepare a “TO-DO” list.  These are things that you must do to research the feasibility of your business idea.

We encourage all budding entrepreneurs to focus most on one question:  ”Who will my potential customers be?”

Finding good, paying customers is one of the most difficult parts of starting a business.  We encourage very careful research in this area.

• Who are your target customers?
• How many are there?
• Who are they buying from now?
• Why are these potential competitors successful?
• Why will you be successful in competing with them?

Additionally, we will suggest careful research into the financial needs your business will have:

• How much cash do you need to purchase needed assets and supplies?
• How much cash and ability to borrow do you have?
• What will you have to purchase before you start?
• What will your monthly fixed expenses be?
• How much money do you need to earn each month?

Our goal is for you to do as much research as possible before preparing your business plan. You need to “own” the business planning process.  As you do this research, you will find answers to hard questions about your competition, pricing, and financial requirements.

If you continue to believe that your business idea is feasible, this research will become the foundation for writing your business plan and financial forecasts.

If your business idea looks feasible, over the course of three weeks to three months, we work with individuals to develop business plans that work.  We have developed a business plan format that is relatively short, but contains all the essential information.  We have extensive experience writing business plans and preparing financial information and we will guide and support you all the way, but the more you do, the more prepared you will be.

Our consulting philosophy is this: You are the potential business owner and we are here to help you.

After a business plan is prepared, MEW staff guide individuals through the launch of the business and follow up with consultation services.  We also work with individuals on disability-related challenges and help people develop creative solutions and accommodations.  By the end of our process, many individuals are ready to launch their dreams into reality!