Should You Bring Family Into Your Business

<p>Should you involve family in your business?</p><p>You have a business and family members want to get involved or you want to give them an opportunity to use their skills with your customers</p><p>Key decisions and things you must do before allowing family members to work with you in your business.</p><ol><li>Know what it is they have the skillset to do</li><li>clearly define the role and make it legal</li></ol><p>What to do to ensure your business success</p><ol><li><p>always make a contract and make sure you keep control of your business<br />Implied contracts count too </p></li><li><p>does this person have skills that complement your business or add value to your customers?</p></li><li><p>what do you want them to do in your business (you must keep control).</p></li><li><p>are they an employee or consultant/contractor? Figure in tax costs too as an employee you pay their taxes</p></li><li><p>do you get along with them enough to have them in your business? Key question: do you trust them, how far, and with what</p></li></ol><p>What to avoid</p><ol><li><p>let family members practice on your customers<br /> Hear about my former admin who let her 16 year old son practice making websites with her customers (including me), with a terrible outcome and cost me 2 weeks of time (and it's why I fired her and refused to pay the invoice)</p></li><li><p>involve your young children in your business especially when it's not a fit and does not make sense<br /> Unless you have a family focused business or you are marketing to families, don't call your 5 year old your 'co-ceo'<br /> Hear about the 'business coach' who allows her 5 year old to disrupt marketing calls and </p></li><li><p>allow family members to join your business and become substitutes for you just because they are ‘family’<br /> Make sure your family members who are involved in your business understand your customer service practices and </p></li><li><p>allow them to ‘give advice’ that dictates your message, shifts your business and alters your business strategy