Mail

If I were running the company, I would still pursue new clients but would work twice as hard to retain the ones I already had. I would reconnect with the big guns and agree to offer them the services they requested.

Frank Settineri
President
Veracorp
Sparta, New Jersey

Russell Straub's idea to include his top-level managers in the decision-making process was a great management strategy that should pay off in the long run. Brainstorming is a great way to get all of the problems, ideas, and solutions out in the open. It also allows everyone to see the business from Straub's point of view.

I agree with what one of the experts, Don Peppers, said about automation. If Loan Bright is going after smaller clients, perhaps it could automate the initial sale and then follow up with a call from a salesperson. Loan Bright could also add a chat service to its website that would let clients talk directly to customer service or the sales team.

Darrin Brillhart
IT director
MMC Corp.
Lee's Summit, Missouri

Corrections

In a profile of iCIMS in this year's Inc. 500 issue, we misstated the nature of the Electronic Recruiting Exchange's evaluation of the iCIMS applicant tracking system. Though the iCIMS system was listed in that organization's buyers guide, the guide does not rank any of the systems it assesses. In "Rating the Governors" (October), we misidentified the company that downgraded South Carolina's credit rating in 2005. It was Standard & Poor's.

To alert us to an error, send an e-mail to corrections@inc.com. To submit a letter, write to mail@inc.com or Inc. Letters, 375 Lexington Avenue, New York, NY 10017. Letters may be edited for space and style. Submission constitutes permission to use.

Rehashing the Numbers

Without knowing the value of the company's property, it is hard to tell if $2 million is a solid price for the company that makes sound isolation booths [Business for Sale, September]. The price appears to be high, since there would be little to no cash flow left after servicing debt. That said, the company's extensive process manuals do add significant value. If done properly, they will be invaluable to any new owner.

I would caution the seller against building while selling. It typically takes three to five years for cash flow to catch up after an expansion. By building a new facility, you may actually be hurting the value of the business because initial cash flow is actually lower. This is a great example of why business owners should create an exit strategy long before selling.

Chris Kapenga
Partner
Acquisition Business Advisors
Milwaukee

That's a lot of risk for $92,216 in EBITDA and $80,000 of owners' compensation. At a $2 million price tag, that's only an 8.6 percent return on investment. To create value, a buyer would have to increase revenue very quickly, which would likely require a highly skilled management team, and possibly plunk down even more money to fund that growth.

Michael Gilburd
President
ValuCorp International
Phoenix

Keep the Customers

Loan Bright worked tenaciously to attract the likes of Wells Fargo (NYSE:WFC), Bank of America (NYSE:BAC), and Chase Manhattan Mortgages (NYSE:JPM), only to neglect them when it felt it could not generate enough Web traffic to service them properly [Case Study, September]. As every salesperson knows, it's much more profitable to retain existing clients than to prospect for new ones. Instead of pursuing a lot of smaller lower-margin clients that require customer service, Loan Bright should have added customer service reps for its existing clients.

If I were running the company, I would still pursue new clients but would work twice as hard to retain the ones I already had. I would reconnect with the big guns and agree to offer them the services they requested.

Frank Settineri
President
Veracorp
Sparta, New Jersey

Russell Straub's idea to include his top-level managers in the decision-making process was a great management strategy that should pay off in the long run. Brainstorming is a great way to get all of the problems, ideas, and solutions out in the open. It also allows everyone to see the business from Straub's point of view.

I agree with what one of the experts, Don Peppers, said about automation. If Loan Bright is going after smaller clients, perhaps it could automate the initial sale and then follow up with a call from a salesperson. Loan Bright could also add a chat service to its website that would let clients talk directly to customer service or the sales team.

Darrin Brillhart
IT director
MMC Corp.
Lee's Summit, Missouri

Corrections

In a profile of iCIMS in this year's Inc. 500 issue, we misstated the nature of the Electronic Recruiting Exchange's evaluation of the iCIMS applicant tracking system. Though the iCIMS system was listed in that organization's buyers guide, the guide does not rank any of the systems it assesses. In "Rating the Governors" (October), we misidentified the company that downgraded South Carolina's credit rating in 2005. It was Standard & Poor's.

To alert us to an error, send an e-mail to corrections@inc.com. To submit a letter, write to mail@inc.com or Inc. Letters, 375 Lexington Avenue, New York, NY 10017. Letters may be edited for space and style. Submission constitutes permission to use.