When was the last time you took a step back to think about what you want to do to make your business more successful?
Here are are few simple, but essential, tips:
Define clear Goals
As far as possible, define the goals in terms that can be measured. Then, as changes are proposed (and they will be!), you have a set of well understood and defined criteria against which to measure the impact and relevance of changes. And there will be changes! More>>
Review your business plan
You do have a Business Plan, don’t you? A good business plan will save you time, money and possibly even your business. But you need to look at it regularly, and update it as business conditions change. If you haven’t reviewed it in the last year, take some time to do it now. More>
Innovate
Are you stuck for ideas to take your business forward? If you’ve got staff, they can be a fabulous source of new ideas to improve your business. Even a very small business can have a suggestion scheme e.g. a box people can put ideas into. Make sure you also assign an open minded person to review them regularly (once a week or once a month) and involve the person who suggested the idea in any action you take subsequently. You’ll be pleasantly surprised by the ideas you get, and how motivating it is for staff. More>>
Focus on your Customer needs
It’s very easy to get so enthusiastic about your products, services or even your ideas, that you forget about that very crucial person – the customer or buyer. Unless you understand fully what they need, what they want, how will you ever be able to persuade them that you have the right solution? This means doing research, asking open questions, truly listening to the answers and caring about what they want, what they really, really want. More>>
Improve your communications
Great Business Managers know that they must be able to articulate their vision clearly to all stakeholders. They understand their vison thoroughly, and they are able to communicate using the audiences own passion and interest. They know that communication is a two way process that requires giving a message in lots of different ways, and that they need need to constantly check that the message has been understood. More>>
Get to grips with your marketing
If your current/prospective customers don’t KNOW what you do, they won’t buy your products/services. Use social media if that’s where they go. Make a plan and write it down. Be consistent with your message. More>>
Nurture your team
Effective Business Managers seek to understand the motivation and skills of every individual in their team. They create teams that make the most of these individuals and create an atmosphere of mutual trust and understanding. People work faster and smarter if they feel that they are really part of a team. More>>
Manage your cash!
Make a cash-flow forecast that says what you expect to pay, what you realistically expect to get paid—and say when. Running out of cash is the main reason successful businesses go out of business. More>>
Consider collaborating or partnering with another business
Especially if you are a very small buisness, collaborating on an initiative can make a huge difference to progress, ideas, motivation and reach. There’s something about working with other people that helps you move so much faster. It could be exchanging business, joint projects, shared marketing amongst other things. More>>
Measure what works
Do you measure which customers come from which marketing routes? If not how will you know which routes work and which don’t? You could for example, keep a note in your CRM system of where the lead to that customer came from. If you then review these every quarter, you can then see whether your time and money is being well spent.
For more help and ideas:
- Business Healthcheck (Free)
- Innovatrix (are you ready to implement your idea?)
- Imanageitbetter programme (improve your management skills)
- Idepend dependency modelling programme (get to grips with your contingency planning)
- Innovation Management programme
Or call me for a chat about your specific problem on 01494680997
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Thank you for sharing this, Jacqui – what a great list! I particularly like: ‘Get to grips with your marketing’, and ‘Measure what works’. All the best, Nigel