Business Archives - Page 8 of 9

Why Hire a Message Taking Service?

June 27, 2016

Photo by CC user Vera Kratochvil on http://www.publicdomainpictures.net/

Competition has risen drastically in almost every industry over the past few years. After the market crash of 2008, millions of people found themselves out of a job. In order to get back on their feet, many people instead decided to launch their own businesses. The government began to offer a series of incentives and offers to entrepreneurs in the form of tax incentives and subsidies. As a result, over the past five or six years, hundreds of new businesses have been launched throughout the United Kingdom.

Many markets have already become saturated. There are viable alternatives available for virtually every product you might want. As a result, perhaps the only way by which a small business can distinguish its service is by offering superior customer support. Customers want to feel valued. They want to know that the money they are paying was worth it, which is why it is important for you to provide quality support and after-sales service.

However, setting up a customer support department is not as easy as it looks. Most small business owners do not have the capital or the resources to allocate space in their office to set up a separate customer support department. A vast majority of small businesses only operate with a handful of employees. Your customers will obviously expect support around the clock. You will need to purchase telephones, set up a live chat option on your website and reply to customers’ emails regularly. But it’s unlikely that one of your employees will be available via phone at all times. In many cases, you might end up missing calls just because employees were busy or not in the office.

Hiring a Message Taking Service

There are companies that can take messages on your behalf whilst you are busy working. If you want to offer prompt service to your customers, hiring a message taking service is an excellent idea. A message taking service can ensure that no calls are ever missed. The company will answer all telephone calls and take down any messages from consumers. Obviously, it’s important not to show that the services were outsourced. That’s why the message taking service will make it seem as if the call is being handled by a member of the company only. There are certain customer queries that just can’t wait, which is why the company will deliver all messages to your email, fax or SMS.

The Benefits

Even though you may not realise it at first, hiring a message taking service is an excellent option. For small business owners, the benefits will become clear in the long run. Customers will begin to rely on the after-sales support and service offered by your company. It will also free you from the hassle of having an employee sit by the phone at all times, allowing you to work on improving your services and products to make your company grow.

Building Productivity in Your Business, Five Steps to Success

Home Business Wiz

June 27, 2016

If you had to ask people what contributed most to the success of a business, what do you think they would say? People would probably list things like reputation, quality of service, workplace culture, advertising spend and word of mouth referrals as key indicators of a business’ success. If we had to list any one thing that contributes to the success of a business we would say one thing: productivity.

After all, if you look at traits such as reputation or quality, they all rely on people being productive in order for them to happen.

You don’t get anywhere when you don’t do anything, and so we believe that a huge part of your success comes down to how productive you are. In order to get your business thriving we have outlined three key tips to get your business to a state of higher productivity.

Step One – Get the most important (or nasty) tasks done first

We all know what it feels like when you get to work in the morning, and staring you in the face is that task that you put off yesterday because you really didn’t feel like doing it. Don’t you wish you had just gotten it out of the way?

A key thing to know about getting work done is that if it’s unpleasant or important (or unpleasant AND important) you need to get it done, pronto. That way you will have attacked the task when you’re fresh and ready to go in the morning and you’ll have more time to spend on other tasks during the day. Plus, you won’t have the weight of an important task hanging over you like a guillotine.

Win win, really.

Step Two – Manage time like a boss

When you are a business owner you need to manage your time well, which includes managing the time of your employees as well, so make sure you can prioritise it. Strong time management will trickle down into other areas of your business, which will be sure to help your business and employees to be more productive.

Step Three – Don’t multitask

While you might think you’re working like a pro checking your emails and balancing out a couple of editing documents, all the while chatting online to a prospective client, the fact is that you’re not spending enough time on any of these tasks. An unwavering focus on one task at a time (with proper time management) will be the best way to manage your workload, and make sure that each task is getting the attention it needs..

Step Four – Get it done

Sometimes you won’t want to do certain things, and this is just part of being employed. While procrastination is an easy pitfall and it can be difficult to stay focussed on an unpleasant project, allowing things to build up will be much worse in the long term.

Step Five – Keep your eye on the prize

Make sure you always having something to work towards. If you are a Melbourne business with the aim to expand into other states or territories, then you need to be looking ahead and investigating your options. Take a look at http://www.servcorp.com.au/en/virtual-offices/prices-locations/brisbane/ to see the various virtual offices on offer. If you become overwhelmed, hiring a business coach who can help you to grow can pay for itself in the long term, so don’t be scared to look for help in boosting your business potential.

Don’t forget to work on building a strong work culture and focus on developing a plan that you can adjust and change to suit your business as it grows. A company’s strength is in the productivity of its employees, and making sure they have the structure and ease to work effectively will quickly boost your business’ potential.

Color Yourself a Better Business Owner with the Right Software

Business

June 15, 2016

Photo by CC user Joonspoon via Wikimedia Commons

What sets your tanning salon apart from competitors?

In many cases, you have better facilities, top-notch customer service, reasonable prices, and the ability to get customers in-and-out in an orderly manner.

If that last trait mentioned is a bit of an issue for your business, are you doing something about it?

When the assembly line if you will begins to slow down, you will not only get upset customers, but your financial well-being as a business owner can be hampered.

In order to avoid having that happen, having the right technology in place to move things along proves critical.

Keep Your Business Moving Forward

No matter what type of small business you run, production is the name of the game.

For example, if you running a tanning salon, you can’t have customers waiting endless times to use the booths. Customers must not be allowed to paying whenever they get around to it at their convenience. Lastly, you need to make sure all of your equipment is in tip-top shape.

So, how do you go about all these requirements, plus many more that come with being a small business head?

For the tanning salon owner in particular, he or she must make sure that the business is clicking on all cylinders. Disruptions in the normal everyday process can hamper business, perhaps even turn off customers.

If you decide to look into using tanning salon software, you want a program that offers the following:

Scheduling – About as important as anything else you will do in running your salon, keeping clients scheduled on-time is important. As mentioned a moment ago, disruptions in the normal daily slate can lead to a backlog, one that can ultimately end up costing you dollars. With the right software in place, you are able to allow clientele to schedule the best time for them to come in for a session. Your software should also allow you to remind them via text or email of their pending visit, thereby greatly reducing the chances they will miss out on a slated appointment;

Convenience from afar – The ease with which both you and the clientele can coordinate schedules goes beyond just a regular computer. The right software will give you the ability to use a mobile device to check-in. Whether you are down the street from the salon or miles away, you can know exactly what the daily slate of appointments looks like. This eliminates unnecessary calls and emails going back-and-forth between the different parties;

Handling payments – The right software also helps you when it comes time for customers to pay their bills. Whether they pay by cash, credit card or check, making the checkout process easy is something every business owner wants for his or her company. When customers have a hard time paying (in terms of delays in sales being brought up etc.) they can be turned off by your business. If it happens one too many times, you may not see them again;

Overseeing your supply needs – Whether running a tanning salon or any kind of business that involves customers, services and products, ordering supplies on a regular basis is a necessity. As a result, you want to make sure your inventory needs are never cut short. If they are, you could once again have some unhappy clientele on your hands. By having software to automatically place and follow up on supply orders for you, you’ve removed yet one more obstacle to overseeing your business on a daily basis.

As you search for the best software out there, remember to review each and every provider, checking to see which one likely best fits your needs and financial means.

While you can do this via Internet searches, also check with those in the business (you may even be friends with some competitors) to see what line of software works best for them in their day-to-day business operations.

Running one’s own business is something countless people dream of over and over again.

When you have the right technology in place for your business dreams, those dreams can soon become a reality.

Is it time to color yourself a better business owner?

Does Your Business Need Some Healthcare 101?

Business

June 15, 2016

Photo by CC user 115089924@N02 on Flickr

With Obamacare having grabbed the headlines in recent years, many businesses (and individuals for that matter) have had to adjust how they go about doing things when it comes to healthcare.

The days of turning a blind eye to having health insurance are all but gone, especially given the fines now in place for those opting not to be covered.

With that being the case, both businesses and individuals need to be cognizant of the latest in healthcare rules and regulations, knowing how they are impacted with and without health insurance in 2016 and beyond.

One of the ways to better familiarize yourself with all the latest in healthcare initiatives is by turning to experts in the industry.

Learn from Those Who Truly Know

So that you can have a better grasp of what is going on in the healthcare world, turning to people with the necessary knowledge on health care topics at LeadingAuthorities.com or other such experts, you will be able to be more educated on this important part of life.

Such experts can brief both businesses and individuals on the healthcare field in general, where attention is still desperately needed to improve matters, what lawmakers and others are looking at in terms of potential rule changes, and how Obamacare is and isn’t assisting both patients and medical professionals now and potentially in the future.

Whether one turns to experts or not; business owners, medical professionals and consumers can all learn more about the importance of healthcare reform these last several years.

Breaking it down, here’s how the following can gain more knowledge:

Business owners – When it was announced several years ago that Obamacare was a done deal, many in the business community (especially smaller businesses) began to fret. What would they be responsible for as far as making sure their employees were covered? Would mandatory coverage perhaps lead to laying off employees or asking some of them to go from full-time to part-time? Would exorbitant costs ultimately lead to businesses going under? To this day, many business owners remain concerned about where health insurance is headed. For those who run businesses, having experts in the field come in and give a talk about the current state of affairs can certainly be beneficial;

Consumers – Even though many consumers (in the millions) lost their health insurance several years ago due to the beginning of Obamacare, millions of others gained healthcare coverage for the first time. That said many consumers still to this day struggle with affording their health insurance costs. If you’re one of those individuals (especially if you have a family to cover), it is important to learn about the different options on the table for you. If you decided to forgo health insurance, keep in mind that you will be find on a yearly basis. What started out as a fine of less than $100 just a few years ago is now several hundred dollars and growing yearly. Hearing from experts in the healthcare industry, especially as it relates to where costs and coverages may be headed, can assist individuals in what is best for them to do moving forward;

Medical professionals – For those in the medical profession, they are just as impacted as anyone else by the recent changes in health insurance. It is important to note that some (mostly doctors) have stated they might have to give up their practices to either retire early or go into other areas of the medical profession. Once again, doctors, nurses and others in the medical field are well-served by knowing as much about the current state of health insurance nationwide as anyone.

As the healthcare industry (especially as it pertains to health insurance) continues to evolve, millions of people would be wise to learn as much as possible about what is going on.

If they choose not to, they could be blindsided by higher costs and more regulations as time moves on.

With professionals out there who are well-versed in what is going on in the medical field, look to them today to see how they can help you individually or as a professional better understand the complicated world that is healthcare 101.

What Makes Your Home Business Attractive?

Business

June 9, 2016

So that your home business can thrive, what are you doing to attractive new customers?

Some home business owners will turn to as much advertising and marketing as their budgets will allow. In doing so, they can demonstrate the lure of their products and/or services.

Others, meantime, opt for a heavy dose of stellar customer service to win new customers. Show a new customer how much better your service is than the competition’s, allowing you to win them over for years to come.

Knowing what makes your home business attractive is not something you can sleep on. In fact, it should be something you make a priority of.

That said take some time to re-evaluate what truly makes your home business attractive, allowing you to capitalize on that now and in the years to come.

Truly Understanding Success

So that you can better understand what makes your home business tick, start by re-evaluating the entire process.

Okay, you may think that you do not have the time for such actions, but wouldn’t your business be better off if you did take the time and effort?

To start with, compare you revenue numbers from a year ago at this time.

Are they ahead of where they were last year? Are you essentially about where you were ago? The last and worst scenario, are you behind now from where you were a year ago at this time? Even if you are ahead of where you were at this point in 2015, don’t rest on your laurels. Complacency for any business, especially one that is typically a one-person show and operating with less financial capital than the big boys, can be a recipe for trouble.

In the event your numbers are down from a year ago, determining the reason or reasons for this is not a choice, it is a necessity.

While it could be any number of reasons, one could be your company’s overall organizational skills (or lack thereof them).

Don’t Lack for Website Skills

One area where you do not want to be lacking in organization is your website.

As a home business owner, stop and think for a moment where you would be without a top-notch website.

A solid website should be organized, informative, authoritative, well-promoted, and something that allows you to distance yourself from the immediate competition.

When it comes to organizing the site, how much of your time and effort goes into making sure it looks clean and gives customers (present or potential ones) everything they need at their fingertips.

Some customers may want to use your site to download and order purchase items, something a tradebit or other similar sites can easily provide.

Others may simply want to come to your site to gain more information on the industry with which you are a part of.

No matter the reason, you and your website can’t afford to drop the ball.

Another area of importance is properly promoting your site, especially on social networks.

If you do not already, make sure you display your respective social media icons (the sites you have accounts for) somewhere on the front page of your site. This allows you to demonstrate that you not only have a social media footprint as a home business owner, but that it is also important to you.

Also keep in mind that your website is essentially the best mouthpiece you have as a home business owner.

That said you should always look at your site as a money-making vehicle, along with being informative for consumers.

There are countless home businesses operating nationwide these days, so the opportunities are literally endless for the millions of people involved in these.

Taking the time to really get to know what separates your home business from the competition is more important than you might think.

Always devote some time and energy to making sure your business is not taking anything for granted, along with always looking to improve things.

As any smart home business owner can tell you, he or she didn’t strike it rich overnight.

In many cases, it takes hours and hours of hard work and dedication to turn a decent profit.

Will you be one of those successful home business stories?

Boost Your Business Power with Better Software

Business

June 9, 2016

Making your business as productive as can be might seem sometimes like it takes all of your will power and then some.

From promoting your brand to making sure all your bills are up to speed, running a business is no easy matter.

That said what if you could expedite the way you go about handling all your billing and scheduling needs? Would that make life easier on you and your employees (for those who are not running one-person businesses)?

Well, there are options out there to do just that if you know where to look.

Bring More Efficiency to Your Operation

In order for you to stay on par or even surpass the competition, your customer service efforts must always be top-notch.

For example, if you run a medical practice, you know how chaotic matters can get in a short amount of time. Products from brands like Revenuexl.com and others can give your medical practice the extra push it needs to meet patient demands.

Among the ways to better improve your office efficiency:

Listen – First and foremost, listen to what your patients are saying to you. One of the greatest frustrations patients can have is they feel like they’re talking to the wall, essentially meaning they are getting nowhere with medical questions, billing inquiries etc. In order to do your best to remove this frustration, keep an open dialogue with each and every patient, doing your best to answer their questions and solve any issues they are having;

Software – Are you one of those medical offices that will still rely on folders and folders of paperwork instead of going to the Internet for the information you need? As more medical practices have learned in recent years, transferring those mounds and mounds of data to computers typically makes for faster and better patient quality. The key to finding the right software provider is making sure they have a credible history of serving their customers. You are likely not an I.T. expert by trade, so any software provider you opt for should be able to answer any and all questions you have regarding your online needs with their product or products. The software will not only allow you to transition away from all that paperwork in those folders, but it will also speed up the process of getting patients scheduled, checked-in and more. Lastly, think about what might happen if your office was hit by a fire, flood, earthquake etc. Would all those paper files be gone before you know it? If so, do you have backup information on each and every patient that you serve? In all likelihood, you would have a serious problem on your hands. By doing all your patient information and billing etc. online, you simply need to back-up the data, meaning you have Plan B in place if you suffer a major computer data breach and/or loss of information;

Billing – Those who run home businesses know all too well how important regular billing is. If home business owners did not bill their clients on time, they’d have trouble getting the payments due them. If that happens, the home business can run into financial issues, including paying its own bills. Medical practices are no different; staff needs to get paid as a result of the care and services they provide the general public. When you have your efforts trained on online software instead of doing billing the old-fashioned way, the process generally moves much quicker. Being able to go into the computer at a moment’s notice and see what level of health insurance a patient has, along with the co-pay charge at the time of an office visit etc. makes for a more expedient process for all involved. Finally, some patients will delay making their required payments for one reason or another. As a result, your office is tasked with sending out payment reminders so that your finances do not take a hit. With the proper software in place, you can send out automatic reminders to nudge patients along in paying you. No phone calls are needed when a software program can do all the work.

When you consider going electronic with all your data needs, you boost your business power in many ways.

Most importantly, you and your customers will benefit from all that software has to offer.

Don’t Leave Your Business Financially Strapped

Business

May 25, 2016

When running a home business, you’ve typically got much on your mind.

From lining up enough clients to make the business affordable to making sure said clients pay you on time, those are just two of the many tasks you’ve got going for you.

Before that home business ever literally opened its front doors, it needed some form of financial capital to help it get off the ground.

Whether you had money stored up previously, had assistance from family and/or friends, or even took out a loan recently, making sure your financial affairs are in order is critical.

So, how do you go about making sure to not leave your home business financially strapped?

Learn as Your Home Business Grows

Part of being a good home business owner is learning as you grow.

From knowing when your business is in need of a capital infusion to understanding how to obtain secure credit card processing, you must always be on your toes when it comes to finances.

Whether you are looked at as a high-risk merchant or someone who is hoping to have an Ecommerce business take flight alongside your other business ventures, you must make sure you and money are on the same page.

Ways to go about doing this include:

Not getting in over your head – First and foremost, always have a financial plan in place whether you’ve owned a home business for years or are just getting your feet wet in the arena. Some home business owners are great with ordering needed supplies, meeting customer deadlines, even managing the help under them that they may need along the way. So what could be their one fault? If you guessed managing money, you’re right. It is super important to not only know how to manage your company’s money, but to be able to sense the warning signs when things are not going well. Instead of burying you and your business in still more debt, recognize the signs when it is time to get assistance;

Getting paid on time – As a home business owner, you don’t get a paycheck every two weeks nor typically healthcare benefits managed for you as such in a “normal” corporate job. As the person in charge, it is up to you to make sure clients are paying you the money they owe on time. If they’re not, you can easily fall behind on your own bills, starting a dangerous precedent for your home business and your overall finances. Keep clients to a regular schedule when it comes to payments. In the event they are late with them, send out reminders, along with charging interest. If they totally remove themselves from paying their bills, look to a collection agency as a possibility, though you will end up paying a portion of the money you receive from the client to the agency in return for their assistance. For those customers paying by credit card, you need to always make sure their card info is up to date so there are no problems having a payment go through. If they pay by check, don’t excuse them if they get in the habit of bouncing checks here and there. Lastly, if you have friends or even family purchasing goods or services from your home business, avoid the old IOU policy. Yes, they’re your friends and/or family, but they should treat you as a respected business owner, knowing getting your payments on time is critical to you continuing to operate;

Keep business and home money separate – It can be tempting at times to borrow a little money here or there from your personal account or accounts in order to prop up your home business. You probably figure that both are tied together, so why not do it, right? There are a number of dangers if you decide to go down that road, so avoid it at all costs. The most inherent risk is that you will eat into your personal expenses for the sake of your business needs. When that happens, those dollars you had put away for personal needs and/or a rainy day fund can take quite a beating in just a short period of time. Always make sure that your personal expenses come first. No, you don’t want your home business regularly in the red or even potentially going under, but having a roof over your head, health insurance, food on the table etc. should always be your number one priority.

Having a home business under your direction can be one of your lifetime dreams.

The key is to managing it properly, knowing the warning signs of cash issues, and making sure you are doing everything possible under your power to be a financially smart business owner.

When you do those three things, you are less likely to leave your home business financially strapped.

How Consultancies Can Protect Themselves from Litigation

Business

May 21, 2016

Photo by CC user Statmanharris on wikimedia commons

Consultancy businesses face challenges at every growing stage of their lifespan. They are prone to litigation at every turn as the regulatory environment increasingly becomes complex. No one can entirely predict when a problem necessitating litigation might arise. That is why any serious business must make sure that their compliance plans adhere to nationally recognized standards and practices.

As the business industry grows, understandably they often turn to consultants for expert advice in dealing with legal issues. While that is commendable, those very consultants create potential problems of their in respect to government regulations and practices. There have been plenty of legal mistakes made by consultancy firms, with most being avoidable. There are numerous ways on how a consultancy firm can protect itself from litigation.

The first step is the most obvious; make sure the company complies with the necessary regulations and policy standards available. Businesses should have a compliance department is adequately trained to investigate and handle competently issues pertaining compliance requirements. Unfortunately, compliance requirements have not been fully standardized which leaves businesses to grapple with regulatory vagueness. But regardless of this, ensure that compliance plans are monitored and regularly updated to conform to the changing rules.

Every consultancy company should have a standard contract when dealing with its clients. There is no set standard way of writing a contract. Most companies have contracts that have been customized to suit their needs. The most important step for any consultancy company is to make sure they have a contract that passes the scrutiny from an experienced lawyer. The contract should be detailed, clearly spelling out terms of engagement including prices, when they are due, penalties and interest rates owed if payment is not done as agreed. Include clauses that cover liabilities or those that mitigate you from a breach in the occurrence of such events. Always have a clause that clearly stipulates how disputes will be solved.

Most consultancy firms are in the business of providing services to their clients which pave the way for long-term working relationships. It is, therefore, mandatory for them to have good terms of an agreement that outlines the conditions of engagement between the company and the client.

In an ill-advised effort to save on expenses, businesses often tend to hire inexperienced legal counsel or lawyers who are friends or relatives who will offer them a discounted fee instead of spending the money necessary to hire competent lawyers. In doing so, consultancy companies deny themselves the advice of experienced legal counsel who can help them in avoiding future legal problems.

Finally, consultancy firms should be aware of their jurisdiction and the laws applicable to search companies. These rules differ from one state to another, and they form the basis of an agreement with clients or negotiation with the arbitrators. Businesses should constantly keep updating their database with regards to legal issues to avoid being caught on the wrong side of the law unknowingly. By learning how consultancies can protect themselves from litigation, you can avoid falling victim to sue-happy individuals.

Safety Supplies that Are Essential to Most Workplaces

Business

May 18, 2016

Photo by CC user Anna Frodesiak via Wikimedia Commons

When you own or operate a business of any type, certain equipment and supplies are necessary if you want your business to grow. All businesses need certain items, such as computer and printing equipment, furniture and numerous other supplies essential to making the business a success. Some of the most important types of supplies are those related to making the business’s workplace safer, which includes a variety of products and supplies that are invaluable and usually very reasonably priced. Companies such as UK Commercial Group offer many safety supplies, and items that businesses are required by law to have around are included.

Types of Safety Supplies Offered by These Companies

UK Commercial Supplies, a sub-group of the UK Commercial Group, and companies like it offer safety supplies that include:

Restraint lanyards
Disposable overshoes
First aid kits
Accident books
Comfort masks
Gloves of all types, including household and examination gloves
Constructor jackets, sweatshirts, vests and polo shirts
Comfort harnesses
Boiler suits
Ear defenders
Eyewash stations of all types
Hairnets
Goggles for a variety of uses
Knee pads
Face guards
Posters detailing health and safety law
Steel carabiners
Asbestos coveralls
Hard hats

No business wants to have a potential lawsuit on its hands, so keeping your employees safe from harm is of utmost importance. Items like those listed above protect workers in a wide variety of industries and provide a safe place for them to work. Keeping employees safe is not only important to avoid lawsuits, but also because it is simply the humane thing to do. Workers should not have to go to work fearing for their safety or their lives, and safety products help protect them so that they don’t have to think about things such as this while they are working.

Safety Is Not Just About Products and Supplies

Naturally, there are things a business should do to keep its employees safe, including, but not limited to, the purchase of a variety of safety supplies. Most businesses, however, do whatever is required by law, and often more, in order to keep their employees safe while at work. Companies such as UK Commercial Supplies also offer a variety of safety supplies that can assist businesses that care about their employees, and that also want to make sure they comply with all national laws regarding employee safety.

As many people are already aware, safety supplies are usually very reasonably priced. Companies such as UK Commercial Supplies even have a way to order the supplies you need online, which is fast, simple and convenient. In addition to basic safety supplies, companies like this also offer supplies for winter safety, including rock salt, snow scoops, rock salt spreaders, and insulated gloves and hats. Whatever your business needs, companies such as these offer high-quality items that are simple and quick to order, inexpensive and effective. They do their jobs well, so that you can do yours even better and protect yourself in the meantime.

Tips on How to Make Your Own Business a Reality

Business

May 13, 2016

Many people throughout their lives will have that light-bulb moment, you know the one, when an idea hits you for an innovation or an enterprise that you think could work. The sad truth is that far too many people don’t follow through with their ideas which can lead to regrets later in life or the possibility that someone else will come along with your idea and make it a success. There are many reasons why people won’t indulge their ideas and turn their dream into reality, whether it is fear, a lack of confidence or simply a defeatist attitude that stops them from doing this. If you fall into the bracket of having a fantastic idea and you’re not sure how to follow it through, then here are some tips on how to make your own business a reality.

Don’t Fear Failure

Almost every business or product that has been taken to the market has suffered setbacks along the way, these set backs are not failures, far from it. In fact, set backs are exactly what you need in order to perfect your craft, business or product and in a way, they should be welcomed. The notion of not trying something out in case you fail is one that should be dispelled from your mind, just go for it.

Research and Plan

65% of start-up business’ fail in their first year, the reasons for this are usually a failure to understand the market and the competition and an overly optimistic financial forecast. Before you even consider heading into the marketplace, it is imperative that you understand your target customers and the competition that you may face. Spending time on this in the beginning is the difference between failure and success. From a financial standpoint, you should always have a full and realistic plan for income and expenditure in the first year, the best approach in year 1 is to be frugal and sensible with how and where you spend your money. Small business loans are a great idea when you are starting out but make sure that you borrow within your means as if you fail to do so then this will bring added pressure to your business.

Make Friends

Creating a community of support around you is one of the most important things you can do for your business, regardless of what field you are entering in to. Whether it be making contacts within advertising or people higher up the food chain than you, if you create these contacts in then beginning then they will pay you dividends in the future. Remember to offer help and support to others if you wish to receive the same thing in return.

Take Advice

You may well think that your idea is the best thing since sliced bread, while this may be true it is important that you never become arrogant in your decision-making. Always seek help and advice from others who either know you well or know the marketplace well. The wisest businessmen and entrepreneurs out there make the best decisions because they seek counsel and you should be no different, even if you are convinced of a certain path or strategy, you should always bounce it off someone first to see if they can see any cracks or holes in your plan.

« Previous 1 … 6 7 8 9 Next »

Tag: Business