It’s easy to look back at the history of any business and flatten the timeline of events down to just a few key moments, inflection points that decide the fate of the company. BizTimes Media has had its share of those moments.
Dan Meyer launched the business, originally known as Small Business Times, in January 1995, just a few months after he was fired from his job as director of advertising at the Milwaukee Business Journal. He saw an opening in the market to serve owner-managed companies in the region and sought to meet the need. There have been many challenges and transitions over the years, including a tough partner buyout in 2000, the start and later sale of an employment newspaper, a name change during the Great Recession, the launch and evolution of a website, the addition of events to the business and the navigation of a global pandemic.
That quick description of the BizTimes Media history leaves out the day-to-day ups and downs that have shaped the company over the past three decades. Over the years, many people have played their own role in helping the business grow and succeed but the one constant has been Dan Meyer, publisher and co-owner with his wife, Kate Meyer.
To help mark the company’s 30th anniversary, BizTimes managing editor Arthur Thomas spoke with Dan about some of the business lessons he’s learned on entrepreneurship, leadership, relationships and the media industry.
Arthur Thomas: How critical was the role of losing your previous job in starting what became BizTimes Media?
Dan Meyer: “Losing my previous job was the catalyst to starting BizTimes Media, formerly Small Business Times. When confronted with my job loss in June 1994, I’d been in the publishing industry for 10 years, thoroughly enjoyed it and I was not ready to leave it.”
Could you have started the business while working a steady job?
“I certainly could have written the business plan while working in my previous job. However, there would have been many distractions, and the actual startup would have been delayed. While I had been in publishing for 10 years, I had no idea of what it would take to start a regional business publication from scratch with a competitor in the market. From the time I obtained financing – in December 1994 – to the opening of the office – in January 1995 – to the publishing of our first print magazine – in April 1995 – and for the next 24 or more months, it was 16- or 18-hour days, six or seven days a week.”
Before that, had you thought about striking out on your own at some point?
“I did not. Based on the circumstances, the idea presented itself after losing my job. I was also extremely fortunate that my wife, Kate, had a great job and was able to support us.”
Whether it was at the start or at key points throughout the company’s history, how have you balanced having a specific plan for the business against having a vision of where to go and a bias toward action in figuring it out along the way?
“The business plan outlines ideas for where you want to be and how quickly you want to grow. However, at the start, when the rubber meets the road, we did whatever it took to just survive another month or quarter.
“There are, however, certain things that fit into a specific plan or objectives that are part of a vision like the importance and priority of being viewed as indispensable in all aspects of the business. It involves doing quality work in reporting and event programming, serving as a valued sales consultant, having quality production and graphics, delivering consistently good customer service, showing up every day and doing your best.
“It’s also been important to embrace and be open to change and to innovate. It’s inevitable that change will be forced upon you if you don’t change proactively. The saying ‘what got you here will not necessarily get you to where you want to go,’ holds true in our business. Technology and market forces evolve. Therefore, innovation and trying new products and approaches is critical to long-term success.”
You’ve said that the partner buyout in 2000 was the toughest part of the company’s history, particularly given the high level of debt and uncertain future. What advice would you have for other entrepreneurs navigating that kind of change in ownership?
“I would first point out the importance of surrounding yourself with friends and trusted advisors at every stage of business – and listen to them. They have knowledge and experiences to share and have already made the mistakes. One of the most important pieces of advice I received but did not apply was to ‘never go into business as a 50/50 partnership.’ At the time I said to myself, ‘Why not? Nothing bad will happen, we’re friends and we can always work it out.’ Well, speaking from experience, things change in a partnership, which might not only be a financial burden, it can also cause undue mental stress and anxiety.”
What is something about media and journalism that is underappreciated or misunderstood by other business owners and leaders?
“Not all media is the same. Many niche publishers – including regional business publishers such as BizTimes Media – are vibrant growing companies. While our readers/subscribers, advertisers, sources for our editorial content are typically the same, we have a team of independent journalists and are not pay-to-play in terms of coverage. Our priority is to provide our print and online readers and event attendees with news, information and trend analysis to help them navigate the challenges of growing their business and becoming better leaders.”
One of the things I enjoy about BizTimes is we continue to evolve. Our website, our magazine, our events, we continue to tweak and try to get a little better. We don’t always get it 100% right, but as an employee, I know that ideas can have a chance, which beats the alternative of not being able to try anything new. How intentional have you been over the years about enabling that? Has it become more of a focus as time has gone on?
“With the many changes in our industry over the past 30 years, for survival and to become the market leader, it’s been imperative to evolve with new products, technologies, events, website enhancements, etc. For years, we have been very intentional and will need to continue with this approach for the next 30 years. We are also fortunate to be a member of a national association where there are like-minded entrepreneurial publishers who are willing to share their ideas and best practices.”
Are you concerned or optimistic about what AI will mean for journalism?
“I’m very optimistic about what AI will mean for journalism, but it doesn’t really matter what I think. AI is here and we need to leverage the technology to our advantage to be more efficient and create value. AI will make some tasks we do easier and more efficient, which should allow for our editorial team to spend more time building relationships with the newsmakers in our community.”
In our 25th anniversary issue, Kate said fear of failure has served as a motivator for you. How do you find motivation from fear and not let it be paralyzing?
“After reaching our 30th anniversary, the fear of failure is much less of a fear. However, the more important fact in our highly competitive environment is that you can never rest on your laurels. You’re only as good as your last issue, event, sales call or interaction with a client or subject in a story. Although we are celebrating 30 years and we are not on trial, we need to prove our value and worth every day.”
How have you grown as a leader over the years? What have you had to change? Are there elements where you’ve needed to embrace your own particular style of leadership and not try to be something you’re not?
“I’m still learning how to be a leader and will likely never feel like I’ve ‘figured it out.’ For many years, my natural style in dealing with some of the critical issues that arise is to be more collaborative. I figured out many years ago that I needed to surround myself with people who are much smarter than me because I certainly do not have all the answers. With the massive changes in our industry over the past 30 years, it has been important to hear from others before deciding how to proceed.”
What have you learned about hiring and building a team over the past 30 years?
“Well, we had a rough start with building the team during the first several years, before I bought out my partner. Probably, the most important elements in building a strong team are to hire a team that is smart, motivated, selfless and team oriented. Over the years, we have grown in trusting each other, which has helped in our communication. I’m confident in saying everyone in our company cares about doing our best to create value for our readers, event attendees, advertisers and sponsors, story subjects and each other.”
Your wife, Kate, has become much more involved in the business over the past few years and your daughter Maredithe Meyer, an associate editor, has been part of the company for close to a decade as well. How do you think about navigating family relationships within the business?
“It’s been wonderful to have Maredithe on the BizTimes team and see her grow in her profession. I’m proud of her work and commitment to excellence. With my background in sales and marketing and her background on the editorial side, it’s been a healthy working environment.
“Although Kate has been more involved in the business since COVID, we would not be where we are without her support since the beginning. As co-owner and my business partner, she has done a wonderful job building relationships throughout the community – especially in education and the nonprofit sector. I’m also very appreciative of her overall judgment and her passion for our team building and internal communication.
“Running a family business certainly has its challenges because it can be all-consuming. However, it’s been working well for 30 years and as the only family — and locally owned business media company in the region — it’s a pretty unique situation. We do fairly well now in keeping family and business separate. We all have a vested interest in doing our part to make it work and to make BizTimes indispensable.”
Relationships mean a lot in our business. They are at the heart of how reporters get stories, how we find speakers for our events, and how our sales team brings in the revenue that supports our journalism. What have you learned about business relationships since starting BizTimes?
“Trust is the foundation of strong relationships, fostering honesty and connection while enabling open communication and mutual respect. The most important aspect in a relationship is to be yourself, have a sense of humility and respect for others.
“It is a lifelong journey but I’m the first to say that I can and should build more relationships and improve in my current relationships and communication with the team at BizTimes, our clients, the business community, friends and family.
“I’m incredibly grateful for the relationships that have allowed our business to grow and thrive over the past three decades.”
