Ask an Expert

Ask An Expert
Dealing With Expansion, Marketing and More
Chris Greendale 08.19.08, 3:10 PM ET

Question: I have an 11-year-old, one-location, profitable retail business that I would like expand faster than my private equity will allow. I think it is a very good franchise model. Your advice on using franchising as a growth vehicle and how to proceed?

Answer: Congratulations on your success thus far. My suggestion would be to open another one or two stores to see how successful they are before seeking outside financing to accelerate expansion. You have no doubt been successful as you have been hands-on in your store. With new stores, you depend on store managers--this will be a big change for you. Good luck!
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Question: How do I market my company online, for free?
Answer: Use the power of your network. Get all your connections--partners, investors, friends, family--to link to your Web site. Have them include a description of your company using the most important keywords on the linking page. Most search engines count the number of links pointing to a Web site to score the relevance of a result. Thus, if many other Web sites point to yours, you'll be high up on Google (nasdaq: GOOG - news - people ), MSN, Yahoo! (nasdaq: YHOO - news - people ), etc.

If you have specific products to advertise, then paying someone, like Google or a few comparison-shopping engines, is cheaper than free--in that the paid services have significantly higher NPV [net present value] than any revenue that can be derived through free methods.
Question: I have a few friends who are willing to sell ads for my Web site. It will be a commission-only basis, but how do I set up a tax system for them?

Answer: Please consult a tax attorney. This is potentially complex, and it varies from state to state.

Question: My wife and I started a telecom reseller's business three years ago. We are profitable and this year we are looking at $1.2 million in revenue with a 35% profit margin. We need more funding to expand or acquire a company. What should be the best approach for getting financial help?

Answer: You might be a candidate for an early stage venture capital firm. If you don't know of any such firms, there are boutique investment bankers around who could introduce you to a couple of firms to see if this is indeed true. The banker will of course extract a small fee on successful completion of funding.

Chris Greendale has 25 years of experience in the software and technology services industry. Co-founder of Cambridge Technology Partners; early stage investor in Siebel Systems; former managing director at Internet Capital Group (nasdaq: ICGE - news - people ); former chairman of Breakaway Solutions, where he oversaw the company's initial public offering. Now on the boards of Kodiak portfolio companies, including Astadia, GlassHouse Technologies, HiWired, Kadient, Recordant, uLocate and Vettro.