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Archive for the ‘Small Business’ Category

Getting a small business off the ground is challenging to say the least. Here are some tips which will prepare the ground for running a successful small business.

Have Goals

This is where it all starts – the foundation for success. Know exactly where you are heading. What will the business ‘look’ like in the future? How will you know when your business is a success? When you wake up in the morning, do you know what actions you have to take to get you on the road to success?

Take Action

The difference between success and failure is down to the actions you take. The failures in life are the people who know what they have to do but never do it. The successful small business owners are people who take action on their ideas, ones who never say, “I wish I had done …”

Seek Feedback

There is a saying that feedback is the breakfast of champions. During the early days of your business you must continually seek feedback about all aspects of your business. What works? What doesn’t work? What needs changing slightly? Speak to customers, suppliers, your bank manager, your accountant – anyone who can provide you with a fresh perspective.
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For most folks, owning your own business is a dream come true. The freedom of being your own boss and succeeding to the best of your ability are facts of life for the small business owner. Sure, there’s more stress than what you probably imagined when you were creating your grand plans, but with a little strategy and planning you can overcome any tough spot you get in. There are 7 tactics developed by successful marketers that are sure to make your business as successful as theirs.

1. Create A One of a Kind Selling Point
If you want to stand out from the crowd, create a unique selling proposition that stresses the benefits the customers will receive from doing business with you. Will they get faster service? Go ahead and dramatize it, but keep the customer at the focus…”Get free overnight delivery!” Hey, it tells the customer…you get quick service and a discount on shipping. Two definite benefits in one statement.

Why should someone buy from you and not your competitor? I hate to deal a blow to your ego, but it really has nothing to do with you , your product, or your service. Yeah, its a little self-centered, but customers are attracted by offers that point out the things that benefit THEM.

Don’t go out on a limb to create new products and services to get attention. Just, add a special benefit to the ones you already have… maybe it’s quicker service. The most effective things to emphasize are benefits that your competition cannot or is not willing to give.

2. Use Testimonials
Hey, we all know that business owners think their product or services are the best thing going, but it’s what the current customers think about it that really matters to your prospective customers. They’re the ones who see things from their point of view… what they have to say about the business has an impact.

Testimonials play an important part in advertising – especially for small businesses. Yeah, big businesses with well-known names don’t have to worry about it, but small companies can use testimonials as marketing tools to build credibility.

Think about it…how else can we gain credibility than by creating a group of satisfied customers and shouting what they have to say? Let’s look at some ways we can make testimonials an effective part of our marketing campaigns.

3. Upsell
Upselling is one of the most successful marketing trends today. Everywhere you go, someone is trying to get you to buy more. From McDonalds with its supersize options to clothing stores that try to sell you shoes to match your outfit, everyone’s jumping on the band wagon. Why? It works!
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Becoming a wedding planner involves more than just planning a wedding. You must understand the business aspect of your service and learn to manage your time to earn the most profits. You will be the face of your business and your own public relations representative. Every day you will have the opportunity to build — or damage — your reputation as a businessperson.

As your business and your expertise grow, you will probably begin planning multiple weddings at once. It is essential that you strive to provide the best, personalized attention to each couple when planning their big day, without losing your sanity.

The 7 Key Skills

No one said that becoming a wedding planner was a job for the faint of heart. Not everyone can succeed as a wedding consultant. A good wedding planner is:

- Calm. You will be the bride’s (and the groom’s!) rock. From miscommunications with vendors to major meltdowns at the ceremony, you must be able to keep your cool in the wake of a calamity. A wedding planner should always have a Plan B ready for action in case of an emergency.
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We are living in a world of change. Shift happens! Competition comes from all over the world, which means that many American businesses are in trouble.

Many decisions are being made that are contrary to both good business sense and building customer loyalty.

Most organizations’ marketing is usually an exercise in figuring out what to do to get current or potential customers to spend more dollars with them.

I’m suggesting that instead of thinking about what to do, figure out what to stop doing. In other words, stop doing the “stupid stuff.”

Not doing the stupid stuff means finding out what prevents customers from spending money with you and making sure that that action or reaction never happens again.

Here’s an example of what I call “stupid stuff.” Some airlines now want to charge customers who want to speak to a live agent.

That’s stupid stuff in two ways. First, they’ve chosen to penalize customers who want to continue getting what they’ve always gotten – one-on-one attention. Worse, they’ve done it by saying they will charge more for this previously standard level of service. How many customers will they lose because of this decision? I know of at least one.

There are more subtle, but no less damaging, stupid things businesses need to stop doing.

Take, for example, the new Wheaties boxes. General Mills recently introduced Wheaties boxes with photos of the U.S. Olympic gold medalists. One was missing: Paul Hamm. Why?

This was General Mills’ response to my inquiry:

“Selecting a Wheaties Champion has never been an easy task, especially when we have witnessed so many outstanding performances by so many championship athletes. But it simply isn’t possible to honor every champion on the Wheaties box.”
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