At the beginning of last year, a friend, who is a successful business person, said that his theme for 2014 would be “mindfulness”. It was important, he said to live and act in the present. Mindfulness was also a source of opportunity because it enables one to discover opportunities that you may otherwise have missed. It seems that my friend got it right last year in saying that it would be the year of “mindfulness” because in about June 2014 Time magazine came out with a cover story titled “Mindfulness”. Inside the magazine was feature article discussing the concept of mindfulness, its advantages and the ground swell of proponents. Continue reading “Is this your year of action, action, action?”
Can you sell without selling?
We hear a lot about techniques and systems to sell without selling. Some so-called sales gurus will lead you to believe that you don’t have to sell. Selling has always been seen as something almost distasteful especially to those who don’t want to sell. Perhaps it’s because of early experiences people have had with “pushy” salespeople.
Cold calling or prospecting is also something that most people find it difficult to do. Perhaps it’s not so much the difficulty but not having the right mindset for cold calling. I have come across two small business owners recently whose sales need a boost and have taken to cold calling. The one is a person it in his early 30s who has moved his computer business from a small town in the Free State to Johannesburg. He has to begin his computer consulting and repair business from scratch in the city. So he has begun a programme of cold calling in person, which is actually door-to-door selling, starting with industrial areas such as Strydom Park. He tells me he can’t venture out too far to other industrial parks because he needs customers to be relatively close so that he can serve them quickly and also keep his fuel bill down. Continue reading “Can you sell without selling?”
Late payments culture damages small businesses
Since the crash it’s shocking to read about the late payments culture among the larger businesses and institutions who refuse to pay small firms on time. Companies and institutions preach the importance of small businesses as job creators but their accounting policies and departments don’t support this approach.
What is your experience with late payments by larger companies? How long do you wait for payment when your small business has delivered products and services in good faith? What are you doing about late payments before they crush the lifeblood from your small business? Continue reading “Late payments culture damages small businesses”
Ready for new marketing ideas? Here’s how to do it
The other day entrepreneurs were talking about what they wanted to do in 2015 that was different from the previous year. I was surprised that many of them spoke about wanting to try out new marketing ideas, tools and methods above things like cash flow, staffing issues and cost control. It just goes to show how important marketing is in any economy but particularly so with the uncertainty in the local economy.
Is marketing one of the areas that you will focus on in 2015? If it isn’t don’t dismiss reading further because you may need to market harder in this economy should this uncertainty and low growth continue.
When you look at marketing you can approach it from changing the media you use, using different tools or methods and changing who does your marketing for you. Let’s quickly look at the different media. Many small businesses now rely on social media such as Facebook for an online presence but they also need to advertise in local print and even city magazines. But not enough small business owners try out radio. In one coastal area I know of radio is used to its full effect which helps bring in more customers for these businesses. Social media is fine for keeping prospective customers up to date with what you are doing in your business but you will still need to drive traffic to your Facebook site. Continue reading “Ready for new marketing ideas? Here’s how to do it”
Are you afraid to say no to a promising business idea?
The other day I saw a quote from Steve Jobs that got me thinking about how it is just as important to say no to some business ideas as it is to say yes to others. The quote:
“I am just as part of the 1,000 things we didn’t do, as I am of the things we did.” – Steve Jobs
In today’s new economy flooded with freelancers, part timers and consultants, there are many more ways to make an income than in the past. Technology, especially the Internet, has paved the way or open up the way to business opportunities that weren’t available just a few years ago. In this marketplace, you have a growth of marketing Wolverines who will incessantly try to push their business ideas your way. I’m not just talking about, artists and shysters here but also the well-meaning who believe that what they are offering is in your genuine interest. You only need to think of the diet supplements and the income-making claims associated with them to recognise how forcibly these schemes are pitched and promoted. Continue reading “Are you afraid to say no to a promising business idea?”
Is there such a thing as a perfect business?
A few weeks ago I had breakfast with an old friend and asked him about a friend of his who had for many years searched for the “perfect business”. I was curious whether this business person had found the “perfect” business. My friend said that his friend had been successful at a small manufacturing business for several years until he went to live elsewhere and left the business to be run by a manager. Trouble happened with the manager and eventually the business had to close down. His friend is now trying to restart the business. Continue reading “Is there such a thing as a perfect business?”
What else can you do in your start-up or small business this month to improve performance and profitability
I was with an entrepreneur recently discussing ways in which he could improve his business in 2015. One of the ideas that I had suggested for 2014 had worked well for him. It involved a method to help reduce his inexperienced staff from making errors. This one idea alone has helped save him time, money and frustration.
But you don’t need to have goals only for the whole year. You can also have goals for the month ahead in which you try to increase performance, better manage your finances and attract new customers. Continue reading “What else can you do in your start-up or small business this month to improve performance and profitability”
Don’t become a horror statistic by choosing the wrong business adviser
An accountant who worked in large companies has started an advisory service for small businesses in her home town. The accountant is focusing on smaller businesses who often receive poor business advice which leads to horror stories.
The service for small business is mainly about financial advice, money transactions and dealing with tax. In this area, according to the accountant, businesses often close because of bad advice. Continue reading “Don’t become a horror statistic by choosing the wrong business adviser”
Is creativity enough?
Have you ever participated in a so-called “brainstorming session”? What has been your experience? If you have walked away from a brainstorming session feeling that there were some good ideas put forward but you sincerely doubt that they can be implemented, you are not alone.
The problem with brainstorming sessions is that many ideas are generated but how many of them are implemented. You see, often people who attend these kind of meetings come up with ideas as a sort of “public relations”. They wish to get noticed. But have they thought through their ideas and will they implement them?
An often ignored way to ignite creative sparks
A young entrepreneur with a start up came to me recently to discuss how he could improve and grow his business. Like many other start-up entrepreneurs, he had been struggling to come up with new ideas and new approaches to solving problems and challenges in improving his value proposition to potential customers.
We spoke about many areas of his business, his customers and the market for about two hours. When we finished we had drawn up a brief checklist of actions he needed to follow up.
Continue reading “An often ignored way to ignite creative sparks”
