Revised Edition Now Available!

I am pleased to announce that the 2nd edition of "Creating Wealth..." is now available. It has been completely revised and updated in the aftermath of the Great Recession and focuses on opportunities available to entrepreneurs in the "New Normal" economy of the 2010s.

Topics covered include:

- why businesses fail
- ten management skills found in successful small business owners
- strategies to transition from self-employment to entrepreneurship
- advantages that small businesses have over larger competitors
- tips to develop profitable pricing strategies
- innovative ideas to help develop a sound business model

Both hard cover and paperback versions can be ordered from any local book store or from Amazon.com, barnesandnoble.com and most other on-line book sellers. Both Amazon and Barnes and Noble offer free shipping for paperback and hard cover versions. E-versions are available for the Amazon Kindle and the Barnes and Noble Nook. The ePub format is also available for PCs, mobile devices and the SONY reader. The price of electronic versions starts at $7.99. Any of these formats will work with the Apple iPad using the appropriate reader apps which are available as a free download. You can read short sections at no charge on both the Amazon and Barnes and Noble web sites.

Second Edition Available Mid-2011

Although I had always planned to update the 2009 edition of Creating Wealth with a Small Business, I had no idea that a major revision would be needed so soon. But from early 2009 (when the book was first released) to mid-2011 (when I am completing work on the 2010’s edition) the economy has undergone a series of wrenching changes that have impacted businesses of all sizes, destroying vast amounts of personal wealth in the process. This has not been limited to the United States; the crisis is global. Moreover, the end is not yet in sight. Federal, state and local governments in the U.S., the U.K. and the Euro zone are only just now beginning to feel the full effects of the economic decline. Austere public budgets and sharp reductions in government spending are expected to exert further downward pressure on the global economy. The next few years could be every bit as volatile as the last two. The small business owner/entrepreneur caught up in this cascading chain of economic disasters is under stress in ways unimaginable just a couple of years ago. The economic boom years are over; entrepreneurs are going to have to make adjustments if they are to thrive in an extremely unpredictable economy.

In mid-2011 a completely revised, post-recession edition will be available both in hard copy and Kindle/Nook/SONY Reader formats on all major book websites. Order online or through your local bookseller.

Now Available on Amazon's Kindle E-book Reader

If you prefer e-books to dead trees, I am pleased to announce that Creating Wealth... is now available for your Kindle reader. Click here.

Great Reviews on Amazon!

A Blueprint to Small Business Success, January 30, 2010 By Edgar Ortiz "President & CEO - Strategic Analalytics, Atlanta, GA, USA) - A 'must read' book for anyone thinking about starting a small business Ralph Blanchard has written a comprehensive, clear and pragmatic book in "Creating Wealth with a Small Business". It is a must read book filled with practical information and numerous case studies on what aspiring entrepreneurs and business owners need to know to run a profitable business. In a direct style, the author reminds the reader not to confuse the excitement and enthusiasm of starting a business and being a business owner with the skills required to be successful and avoid becoming one of the 80% of businesses that will eventually fail. The book is targeted at two major audiences: * The aspiring entrepreneur, and * Current business owners The book provides a comprehensive introduction to Pricing and reminds business owners of the many pitfalls from leveraging price as a competitive weapon. The author reiterates the importance of deploying a balanced and flexible 'value-driven' pricing strategy to successfully compete in the market place. A major contribution of this book is its continuous emphasis on the importance of having a Business Model as a critical requirement to start and manage a profitable business. Unfortunately, as the author reminds us, the concept of Business Model is foreign to most aspiring entrepreneurs and business owners who rely mostly on `enthusiasm' and the generally unverified assumptions in the typical Business Plan. A hidden bonus in this book is its appendix that provides one of the most comprehensive and detailed tutorials on cash flow management and accounting for small business owners. This section alone justifies buying this book. I highly recommend it to anyone planning on starting a business or current business owners who can benefit by avoiding the many pitfalls and mistakes described in the numerous case studies.

A How-To Guide For Small Businesses, November 18, 2009 By K. Carey This very readable book is a how-to guide for anyone interested in starting a business, or anyone interested in general business practices. With a focus on the small business in particular, the book drills down to the basics and, as Mr. Blanchard explains, attempts to fill an information void in a world of business literature that tends to focus on large firms. Pushing back against what seems to be conventional wisdom from so-called business gurus, Mr. Blanchard explains that merely possessing a positive, can-do attitude is insufficient for success, and a substantial portion of the early part of the book is spent discussing the psychological profile common, and perhaps necessary, to successful business owners. The book also contains some discussions that were surprising for their seemingly counterintuitive nature, such as why an entrepreneur should enter the market in a low-profile manner that may cause competitors to ignore the new business. Mr. Blanchard also explains why an innovative product idea may actually hinder one's ability to build a successful business and attract customers while an innovative service idea could be the difference between success and failure. While this argument seems, on its face, to be misplaced in an age of rapid-fire innovation and high-profile celebration of new inventions, his argument is compelling. Mr. Blanchard includes a thorough discussion of pricing, explaining the basic how-tos, and describing why competing on the basis of price may be a mistake, while regularly increasing prices, particularly in advance of an economic downturn, is a good idea. There also is a thorough sample business valuation process that is very detailed and has a "you are there" feel to it. One of the stronger aspects of the book is that it doesn't sugar-coat the hard work needed to be an entrepreneur. While reading the book, I frequently found myself marveling that anyone could have enough energy, or even the level of awareness required, to stay on top of the many issues that invariably crop up while running a small business. This book doesn't gloss over the tough stuff; the good and the difficult are included. This book is rich in detail and chock full of anecdotes. Its length prevents it from being a quick read, but it is an enjoyable and informative one, and I recommend it to anyone with even a passing interest in small business ownership.

Improve Your Small Business Success, August 16, 2009 By James W. Pearce Jr. "James Pearce" (Columbia, Maryland) - You can tell right away that this author really enjoys small businesses with all their challenges and uncertainty. He writes with the authority of someone who has taken the daunting step of becoming an entrepreneur and the understanding brought to bear by an enquiring mind. The chapter on Business Models explains the value and importnce of developing a clear written Business Model which can help explain the business to outsiders but mere importantly forces the new entrepreneur to understand the key elements he will need for success. As a smal business consultant for over 10 years, I wish my clients had been required to read that chapter and follow Blanchard's advice before they started their businesses. The author provides a process to follow to help his readers develop a concise model of their own. If you have ever thought about starting a small business or if you have been running a small business for many years, you will find this book extremely useful. I followed that author's advice in the Preface and went directly to the chapters I was most interested in. Then I went back and started from page one.

Small Business Guide, October 2, 2009 By R. Schaub (Tampa, FL) - Having owned a couple businesses over the last 20 years, I can really appreciate the insight presented in this book. The chapters on Business Models and Pricing Strategies are excellent. Every existing and potential business owner should read these two chapters to really evaluate their business model. The remainder of the book is also very good, although I am inclined to value my business a little differently when it is time to sell.

Where is America's entrepreneurial spirit?

Is entrepreneurism dead? It might look that way right now as we see the economy collapsing around us. Risk-taking is "out." Hiding money in the mattress is "in." But we have to remember that this has happened before (and will probably happen again). It always ends the same way - with a burst of entrepreneurial energy that takes the economy and the country in new directions (and makes some tidy fortunes for those who come out on the leading edge of the revival.)

David Brooks captures this perfectly in an Op-Ed piece in the NY Times:

"...the United States will never be Europe. It was born as a commercial republic. It’s addicted to the pace of commercial enterprise. After periodic pauses, the country inevitably returns to its elemental nature.

The U.S. is in one of those pauses today. It has been odd, over the past six months, not to have the gospel of success as part of the normal background music of life. You go about your day, taking in the news and the new movies, books and songs, and only gradually do you become aware that there is an absence. There are no aspirational stories of rags-to-riches success floating around. There are no new how-to-get-rich enthusiasms. There are few magazine covers breathlessly telling readers that some new possibility — biotechnology, nanotechnology — is about to change everything. That part of American culture that stokes ambition and encourages risk has gone silent.

We are now in an astonishingly noncommercial moment. Risk is out of favor. The financial world is abashed. Enterprise is suspended. The public culture is dominated by one downbeat story after another as members of the educated class explore and enjoy the humiliation of the capitalist vulgarians.

But if there is one thing we can be sure of, this pause will not last. The cultural DNA of the past 400 years will not be erased. The pendulum will swing hard. The gospel of success will recapture the imagination."

Think about this as you sit around the kitchen table or coffee bar pondering your own future. Maybe you should be considering starting or buying a small business of your own.

First Review!

From Kirkus Discoveries, March 2009:

"Entrepreneur Blanchard presents a manual for planning, nurturing, maintaining and selling a small business, with timely advice for the current recession.

Think local, consider your values and see the world from the customer's viewpoint when planning your business, Blanchard urges. He also advises to allow sufficient time - one to three years - for thorough planning. The author reviews the risks and benefits of business ownership while stressing the need for a strategic business plan and strong leadership. A brief entrepreneurship personality assessment follows a review of personality traits that may lead to success in business ownership - such as working with ideas and numbers, being customer-oriented and an ability to prioritize. Large business has been dominant in the united States for much of the past century, and Blanchard provides a great deal of information and advice to help workers make a transition. He explains ways to pursue success in this big-business world and how to proceed in the event of failure, with notes on debt and medical insurance. The author strongly cautions entrepreneurs that years may pass until they draw a salary from their venture. He also discusses protecting the informational assets of a business when working with suppliers and others outside the company, reminding that suppliers are neither friends nor customers. Blanchard recommends tech-savvy measures like a Web interface and notes that social networking can be a useful tool. Since pricing strategies have a major impact on success, the author discusses the concepts involved in successfully entering the market. He also reviews the endpoint - offering the carefully nurtured business up for sale - and recommends methods of pricing the business. While additional tables and charts may have been useful, the text is thoroughly footnoted and includes examples and case studies. The last section addresses special concerns of small businesses during times of recession, making the book relevant to today's financial climate.

Thorough, clear and valuable information for entrepreneurs."

Now Available!

Publication date Feb. 17, 2009 and now available through Amazon or from your local bookseller. Contains an Epilog "Can Small Business Start-ups Survive During a Financial Panic or Recession?" You can read a short excerpt using the Amazon "Look Inside" feature (http://www.amazon.com/Creating-Wealth-Small-Business-Entrepreneurs/dp/1439214581/ref=si3_rdr_bb_product).