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• Change the color of your skin (i.e., the focus of your service or product offerings) in keeping with your surroundings, but don’t do so without understanding your target markets.

• Maximize your resources; some frogs can pull their eyes back into their head in order to aid swallowing. When big opportunities come your way, take advantage of the talent and manpower you already have.

• Learn to wait out the bad times whenever possible. Some frogs can survive in conditions well below freezing, then lay as many as 25,000 eggs when things heat up again.

• Use a variety of methods

I like frogs. At night I sit on my deck and listen to them harmonize with the crickets. Their serenade makes me feel less suburban and more like I’m living on Golden Pond. Then the hum of distant traffic washes over my little Wind In The Willows and I begin to worry.

Frog populations in the U.S. have showed increasing signs of stress in recent years. Some species have disappeared and others are no longer found where they used to be. An increase in deformities may also be a sign that something is wrong. Scientists are concerned because the health of frogs is closely linked to the health of the environment.

Lest you think this is a pitch for Frogwatch USA™, consider this: frogs and small businesses are both indicator species, creatures with such a narrow range of ecological tolerance that their presence or absence is a good indication of environmental conditions.

According to the U.S. Small Business Administration, there were 671,800 new businesses formed in 2006 and 544,800 business closures (findings do not differ greatly across industry sectors). That reveals a net gain, but the effects of the estimated 25.8 million small businesses in the United States on the economy underscore the importance of survival in greater numbers.

Small businesses:

• Employ 50 percent of the country’s private sector workforce.

• Generated 60 to 80 percent of net new jobs annually over the last decade.

• Represent 97 percent of all the exporters of goods.

• Represent 99.7 percent of all employer firms.

• Generate a majority of the innovations that come from U.S. companies.

Despite optimism by owners, many small businesses have showed signs of stress in recent years. Many have disappeared, are no longer where they used to be, or have changed so much that they no longer have a competitive edge. Of course, there are many good reasons why businesses fail. In this world, change is constant and flexibility is a requirement. But a frog with three legs will never win a hopping contest.

A comprehensive yet flexible marketing plan will help you make logical decisions about your business, even as conditions around you change. Frogs are naturals at this kind of thing and we could learn a thing or two from how they go about their business:

• Shed your skin as you grow, but not before you’re ready; overextending yourself can lead to your demise.

• Change the color of your skin (i.e., the focus of your service or product offerings) in keeping with your surroundings, but don’t do so without understanding your target markets.

• Maximize your resources; some frogs can pull their eyes back into their head in order to aid swallowing. When big opportunities come your way, take advantage of the talent and manpower you already have.

• Learn to wait out the bad times whenever possible. Some frogs can survive in conditions well below freezing, then lay as many as 25,000 eggs when things heat up again.

• Use a variety of methods t

environment.

Lest you think this is a pitch for Frogwatch USA™, consider this: frogs and small businesses are both indicator species, creatures with such a narrow range of ecological tolerance that their presence or absence is a good indication of environmental conditions.

According to the U.S. Small Business Administration, there were 671,800 new businesses formed in 2006 and 544,800 business closures (findings do not differ greatly across industry sectors). That reveals a net gain, but the effects of the estimated 25.8 million small businesses in the United States on the economy underscore the importance of survival in greater numbers.

Small businesses:

• Employ 50 percent of the country’s private sector workforce.

• Generated 60 to 80 percent of net new jobs annually over the last decade.

• Represent 97 percent of all the exporters of goods.

• Represent 99.7 percent of all employer firms.

• Generate a majority of the innovations that come from U.S. companies.

Despite optimism by owners, many small businesses have showed signs of stress in recent years. Many have disappeared, are no longer where they used to be, or have changed so much that they no longer have a competitive edge. Of course, there are many good reasons why businesses fail. In this world, change is constant and flexibility is a requirement. But a frog with three legs will never win a hopping contest.

A comprehensive yet flexible marketing plan will help you make logical decisions about your business, even as conditions around you change. Frogs are naturals at this kind of thing and we could learn a thing or two from how they go about their business:

• Shed your skin as you grow, but not before you’re ready; overextending yourself can lead to your demise.

• Change the color of your skin (i.e., the focus of your service or product offerings) in keeping with your surroundings, but don’t do so without understanding your target markets.

• Maximize your resources; some frogs can pull their eyes back into their head in order to aid swallowing. When big opportunities come your way, take advantage of the talent and manpower you already have.

• Learn to wait out the bad times whenever possible. Some frogs can survive in conditions well below freezing, then lay as many as 25,000 eggs when things heat up again.

• Use a variety of methods

core the importance of survival in greater numbers.

Small businesses:

• Employ 50 percent of the country’s private sector workforce.

• Generated 60 to 80 percent of net new jobs annually over the last decade.

• Represent 97 percent of all the exporters of goods.

• Represent 99.7 percent of all employer firms.

• Generate a majority of the innovations that come from U.S. companies.

Despite optimism by owners, many small businesses have showed signs of stress in recent years. Many have disappeared, are no longer where they used to be, or have changed so much that they no longer have a competitive edge. Of course, there are many good reasons why businesses fail. In this world, change is constant and flexibility is a requirement. But a frog with three legs will never win a hopping contest.

A comprehensive yet flexible marketing plan will help you make logical decisions about your business, even as conditions around you change. Frogs are naturals at this kind of thing and we could learn a thing or two from how they go about their business:

• Shed your skin as you grow, but not before you’re ready; overextending yourself can lead to your demise.

• Change the color of your skin (i.e., the focus of your service or product offerings) in keeping with your surroundings, but don’t do so without understanding your target markets.

• Maximize your resources; some frogs can pull their eyes back into their head in order to aid swallowing. When big opportunities come your way, take advantage of the talent and manpower you already have.

• Learn to wait out the bad times whenever possible. Some frogs can survive in conditions well below freezing, then lay as many as 25,000 eggs when things heat up again.

• Use a variety of methods

at they no longer have a competitive edge. Of course, there are many good reasons why businesses fail. In this world, change is constant and flexibility is a requirement. But a frog with three legs will never win a hopping contest.

A comprehensive yet flexible marketing plan will help you make logical decisions about your business, even as conditions around you change. Frogs are naturals at this kind of thing and we could learn a thing or two from how they go about their business:

• Shed your skin as you grow, but not before you’re ready; overextending yourself can lead to your demise.

• Change the color of your skin (i.e., the focus of your service or product offerings) in keeping with your surroundings, but don’t do so without understanding your target markets.

• Maximize your resources; some frogs can pull their eyes back into their head in order to aid swallowing. When big opportunities come your way, take advantage of the talent and manpower you already have.

• Learn to wait out the bad times whenever possible. Some frogs can survive in conditions well below freezing, then lay as many as 25,000 eggs when things heat up again.

• Use a variety of methods

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• Change the color of your skin (i.e., the focus of your service or product offerings) in keeping with your surroundings, but don’t do so without understanding your target markets.

• Maximize your resources; some frogs can pull their eyes back into their head in order to aid swallowing. When big opportunities come your way, take advantage of the talent and manpower you already have.

• Learn to wait out the bad times whenever possible. Some frogs can survive in conditions well below freezing, then lay as many as 25,000 eggs when things heat up again.

• Use a variety of methods to attract new customers. Frogs may sing, change color, or even dance in their efforts to attract a mate.

• Watch out for the competition; learn who they are and as much about how they do business as possible, then respond appropriately. The African clawed frog can excrete a compound through its skin that causes uncontrollable yawning and gaping in snakes that try to eat them.

Above all else, remember that business people—like frogs—are tough. The golden poison arrow frog of Columbia has a skin secretion that is so deadly it cannot be handled by bare hands. Native Americans used the poison to coat their hunting arrows. Just 0.2 micrograms of this poison in your bloodstream would kill you—or your competition. Your business would probably survive.