NORTH ANDOVER — A panel of local business experts said yesterday that as bad as the economic storm has been over the last six months to a year, sunnier skies are ahead.
The Eagle-Tribune launched its second Weathering the Storm breakfast series yesterday morning with a session that addressed one key question — "Has the Rain Stopped?"
About 40 people gathered at the newspaper's office on Route 114 to listen to five men involved in marketing, banking, consulting, accounting and technology discuss what they have learned throughout the recession and how they think businesses can do better in the future.
"The rain hasn't stopped," said Carter Welch, founder and president of the Fig Tree Group, a marketing and advertising services firm in Andover. "But the basement is dry."
He said he is seeing mixed signals in the marketplace.
One client wanted to start a direct-mail campaign a week ago but was told by the direct mail company that it was backed up with orders and couldn't start the job right away.
Other clients, however, are complaining that they aren't getting paid in a timely manner, making it difficult for them to make their own payments.
Bill Coyne, assistant vice president of business banking with Citizens Bank, said the "rain is slowing." For months, lending requests were coming from companies "looking to survive."
Today, however, more lending requests are coming from customers looking to expand their businesses.
In this difficult economic climate, it is not time to sit back and "look out the window," said one panelist, Bob DiRosa, founder and president of Market-Edge Services Inc.
"It's time to be proactive," he said. "The best time to grow a company is during a recession, because that's when your competition is weak."
Andy Hackett, vice president of TeamLogicIT, which has offices in Woburn and Andover, said he encourages his sales force to "bang on doors" to pick up new clients while also taking care of existing customers.
"We call them monthly," he said of his existing clients, "and we try to bring them business. We try to bring value to the relationship."
DiRosa said business sales forces need to make more calls than ever before.
"From 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. they should be going belly-to-belly with someone," he said, noting that he audited one company that encouraged its salespeople to make 50 calls a day.
His audit found they were making less than four calls a day.
"Their business was off 18 percent and they were wondering why," DiRosa said.
All agreed, however, that it is important to be cautious when entering business partnerships of any kind.
"Look under the hood," said Greg Eliasen, founder and president of Eliasen CPA, based in Stoneham. "Make sure you are going to get paid."
DiRosa and others noted that many businesses are on razor-thin margins.
"Sixty percent of American businesses are at or near break-even," DiRosa said.
The banker, Coyne, said that is one reason banks have been so reluctant to lend.
"We will ask if they have the ability to repay us," said Coyne. "We need to make sure the deal works, but we are being cautious."
Weathering the Storm, Part II: Has the rain stopped?
The next Weathering the Storm breakfast seminar will be Oct. 1, from 8 to 9:30 a.m. and will feature Tom Kinton, CEO of MassPort, whose talk is titled: "A View from 40,000 Feet." For information or to reserve a space call Lil Toohey, 978-946-2111.
