1. Chicago eLearning &
Technology Showcase
August 11, 2010
Starting Your Own
eLearning Business
Mark Steiner
http://www.marksteinerinc.com
Agenda
Introductions
Why should you?
Who should?
What does it take?
How to attract and retain clients?
What to charge, how to bid?
How to get the work done?
How to stay current?
What will you miss/not miss?
Debunking some myths . . .
How could you possibly fail?
Future considerations
Q&A
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Speaker Background
BS Industrial Tech. ‘88
MS Instructional Design ‘92
15+ years eLearning & interactive media
des./dev. experience
Successfully competed 100+
eLearning/interactive media projects
Presenter - eLearning Confs. US & Europe
Started mark steiner, inc. in March 2001
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2. Audience Background
Project Manager/ID/Developer mix?
eLearning experience?
What are some expectations from this
session?
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Why should you start your own business?
Ability is what you’re capable of doing. Motivation
determines what you do. Attitude determines how well you
do it.
–Lou Holts
Freedom
Being able to choose what you do when you
get up in the morning
Flexibility
Ambition to succeed
Tired of your Boss, or a boss
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Who should start their own business?
Luck is not chance, it’s toil. Fortune’s expensive
smile is earned.
–Emily Dickenson
Traits
• Self-starter
• Plenty of determination and perseverance
• Enjoy challenges
• Dedication and structure
• Niche of knowledge/skills
• Project management skills
• Selling yourself
• Know when/how to say “Yes” and
when/how to say “No”
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3. Who should start their own business?
If you believe in yourself and have dedication and pride - and
never quit, you'll be a winner. The price of victory is high but
so are the rewards.
–Paul Bryant
Ten Abilities of Winners
• An eye for opportunity
• Independence
• An appetite for hard work
• Self-confidence
• Discipline
• Judgment
• Ability to accept change
• Make stress work for you
• Need to achieve
7 • Focus on profits
What does it take to get up and running?
To accomplish great things, we must not only act
but also dream, not only plan but also believe.
–Anatole France
A business plan
• A reality check
• A performance tool
• A message sender
• A motivation tool
• A management development tool
• A road map
• Evidence of focus
• Understanding of who your target customers are
• An appreciation of investor or lender needs
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What does it take to get up and running?
In the successful organization, no detail is too
small to escape close attention.
–Lou Holtz
Get a good lawyer and accountant
Determine business type (For example: Sole
Proprietor, Partnership, LLC, C Corp, S Corp.)
Acquire corporation status and any relevant
business licenses
Cash Reserve
Equipment
Software
Taxes
Insurance
9 Subcontractors

4. What does it take to get up and running?
We think in generalities, but we live in detail.
–Alfred North Whitehead
Processes and Documents
• Methodologies
• White Papers
• Contracts
• Proposals
• Statements of Work
• Design Document
• Storyboards
• Sign-off Forms
• Marketing Plans and Materials
• Elevator speech
Website, demos
Clients!!!!!!
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How do you find and attract clients?
You can’t build a reputation on what you are going
to do.
–Henry Ford
Think of all of the people that you know . . .
Your previous employer
Your previous clients
Professional organizations and communities
Local organizations
Professional orgs not directly related to training
Job websites
Speak at conferences
LinkedIn and other social tools
Write your own blog / newsletter or even a book
Network, network, network!!!
A modest man is usually admired, if people ever
11 hear of him. –Ed Howe
How do you retain clients?
Honesty is one thing you can’t wear out.
–Waylon Jennings
Say What You Do - Do What You Say
Underpromise and overdeliver, don’t be too
optimistic with estimates
Manage expectations
Successfully manage all essential project
details
Make your clients’ problems your problems
Document and follow-up on everything
Easiest clients to get are the ones you
already have. KEEP THEM HAPPY!!!
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5. How much do you charge ?
Price is what you pay. Value is what you get.
–Warren Buffett
You’re covering everything now: insurance,
taxes, benefits, equipment, facilities, risk,
downtime, continuing education, contracts,
hiring/firing, sales/marketing
Charge what you’re worth, what the project
requirements dictate, and what the prevailing
market rate is
Don’t lowball
Fixed Bid, or Time and Materials?
Responding to RFP’s
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How do you bid work?
You don't get paid for the hour. You get paid for
the value you bring to the hour.
–Jim Rohn
Cover all activities across all phases (ADDIE)
Clearly define roles on development and
client teams
Clearly define all deliverables
Are there new tools / technologies /
techniques being used?
Document all that you can, cover the rest
with assumptions and constraints
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How will you execute the projects?
Lots of folks confuse bad management with
destiny.
–Kin Hubbard
Just you? You and some employees? You and a host of
subcontractors?
Initiate appropriate review and sign-off’s throughout the
project life cycle. Don’t move forward without sign-off’s.
Get an accurate and complete scope of work and contract.
What is in the scope and what is not in scope?
A fixed bid doesn’t mean the price is fixed and can’t move; it
means the price is fixed to a scope. 1) You can define scope
2) If scope moves, so does price
Other documents: Non-disclosure form, sign-off forms,
storyboards, scripts, etc.
What is the payment schedule?
What about warranty and support?
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6. What will you miss?
Know yourself. Don’t accept your dog’s
admiration as conclusive evidence that you are
wonderful.
–Ann Landers
All of the support functions of a mid/large
company:
• HR, IT, Accounting, Law, Sales, Marketing
Praise from co-workers and boss
General social interaction
Interaction professionally with a wide array of
individuals
Predictability
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What won’t you miss?
If the individual is a unit in a corporate mass, his
life is not merely brutish and short, but dull and
mechanical.
–Herbert Read
A regimented schedule
Forms, paperwork, etc.
Attending meetings that you don’t need/want
to be at
Being nice to your boss (though everyone
but God has a boss ;)
All things “corporate”
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How will you stay current?
It is an all-too-human frailty to suppose that a
favorable wind will blow forever.
–Rick Bode
Conferences
Local events
User Groups
Books
Websites
News Groups and Lists
Blogs
Social networking sites
Beta testing
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7. Any suggestions?
Smooth seas do not make skillful sailors.
–African proverb
Success is getting what you want. Happiness is
liking what you get.
–H. Jackson Brown
Don’t lie/cheat/steal
Don’t take work you can’t deliver
Treat everyone with respect
Strive for a work/life balance
Happiness is a personal daily choice
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What are some myths?
A professional is someone who can do
their best work when he doesn’t feel like it.
–Alistair Cooke
Woo Hoo! I’m gonna be rich!!!!!!!!
It’s going to be really, really easy!
Let’s get as big as we can as soon as
we can!
The work and projects are just going
to roll in.
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How could you possibly fail?
I didn't fail the test, I just found 100 ways to do it wrong.
–Benjamin Franklin
Failure is not a single, cataclysmic event. You don't fail
overnight. Instead, failure is a few errors in judgment, repeated
every day.
–Jim Rohn
Inadequate cash reserves
Failure to clearly define and understand your market
Failure to price your product or service correctly
Failure to anticipate or react to competition,
technology, or other changes in the marketplace
Overgeneralization
Overdependence on a single customer
Uncontrolled growth
Believing you can do everything yourself
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8. What are key future considerations?
The future is something which everyone reaches
at the rate of 60 minutes an hour, whatever he
does, whoever he is.
–C. S. Lewis
When to get office space?
When to try to grow?
How to ramp up sales?
How to stay current with knowledge, tool,
technologies?
When to update/change service offerings?
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Questions?
He who is afraid to ask is afraid of learning.
–Danish proverb
Questions and Answers
Contact Info
Mark Steiner
3036 N. Leavitt
Chicago, IL 60618
mark@marksteinerinc.com
(773) 392-7967
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