Krisha's Biztalk posts

Can you recommend a contractor?

I have been told (or rather, warned) that hiring a contractor I don't know is risky and that I should only hire one that comes with a personal recommendation from some one that has used them or knows them. I'm moving my dance studio and the new location may need a wall taken out. There is also the possibility of needing to extend another wall. Has anyone used a contractor in the past they can recommend or do you know one personally that you trust? Thank you!

Mortgage broker for small business owners?

I'm looking for a mortgage person that specializes in approval based on good credit and current business income rather than past income.

There are 8 pages of mortgage folks on Biznik (that's over 150!) and rather than go through 150 profiles one at a time, I was hoping it's okay to ask here for a referral. My income in 2007 and my current income and my good credit may qualify me for a mortgage. But most brokers have to take into account my 2006 income...which was less than half my 2007 income and would prevent me from qualifying. Once source told me that only banks will lend to small business owners based on current income and credit. But another source tells me there are just a few brokers out there who will handle small business owners and base loan approval on current income and good credit. Does anyone know where to find one of these brokers that specializes in loans based on only current income and credit?

How much do I pay my employees?

Are there any workshops on how to know what your employees are worth? I don't have the time or concentration level to learn from articles and books, so I'm really hoping for some coaching or a workshop.

Hiring people to help me is VERY new to me. As I fumble around and try to figure it out for myself, I have discovered that I pay my instructors much more than the average fitness instructor makes. But on the other hand, I wouldn't feel right if I paid them less than 1/3 of the tuition their classes bring in.

I also have an admin come in and help me about 3 hours a week (filing and date entry). I'm paying her $10 an hour and I wonder if I'm underpaying her.

Need to hire some one to resolve e-mail blocking problem

Hotmail will no longer let my e-mails through to any hotmail users. I have never spammed but I have in the past used a few words in my e-mails to describe my dance classes (such as "sensual" and "exotic") that may have led their filters to believe I was some kind of porn spam. They have blocked both my marketing e-mails that are sent only to people that signed up to receive them AND my individual e-mails to clients. So far this has resulted in a $1,600 loss this month. With this kind of loss every month, I don't think I can continue to support myself and my business if Hotmail does not remove this block.

I would gladly pay to have this problem resolved. Is there a company or individual out there that can communicate with the department at hotmail or microsoft that handles blocking so I can be removed from the list of blocked e-mail addresses?

My clients are already instructed to add my e-mail address to their e-mail contacts list. This helps a little bit, but definitely does not solve the problem. Who can I hire to fix this?

Seeking space for lease or agent that handles them

I could probably find this online if I knew what they were called. I need a larger dance studio space than my current one (at least two rooms with a minimum of 700 square feet each). What do you call agents who represent people that are leasing out their commercial spaces? When I look up "commercial real estate agents" I get listings for agents handling spaces that are for big businesses or retail businesses that are thousands of dollars out of my price range (so that's not what I should be looking up online). How would I find a list of agents in Seattle that caters to smaller businesses? Thank you.

Feeling excluded from all the networking events and workshops

I'm feeling left out because almost all of the workshops and networking events advertised here are hosted in the evenings. 99% of my clients have 9 to 5 type day jobs. That means they're looking for my services after work and only available to work with me in the evenings.

If I take even one night off to attend one of these events, I'm looking at a loss of an entire day's pay. Am I the only one who has to work evenings because their clients work during the day? Does anyone else feel excluded or have a desire to see more marketing workshops and networking events offered during the day?