| |
| |
|
Small Business Information |
|
|
|
Seven Common Mistakes Made By Small Business Owners
Most new small businesses won't be in business this time next year. That's the cold hard facts. Though it is easy to start your own business, it takes a lot more to succeed in business. There are seven common mistakes made by small business owners. Let's explore them so you can avoid them. Mistake #1: Neglecting Your Continuing Education You are the only renewable resource, besides your employees, your business has. You may be a master at getting the most out of your other resources, but how are you doing with you? Today's world is characterized by rapid change. Keeping up on innovations in your business and new business strategies is crucial for long-term success. However, most small business owners do not invest any time or money into developing themselves. The less you know, the more time, money and energy you will waste in the future. Do not be satisfied to be "functional" in the software programs you use to run your business. There may be many time saving options in those programs if you take time to find them. Here's an easy strategy that will take about fifteen minutes a day. Take your favorite software program (accounting, planning, contact manager, or marketing) and access the "help" menu. Now learn one new function of that software program per day. Fifteen minutes of your time may yield big returns in the future! Mistake #2: Failing To Plan Is Planning To Fail Many small business owners avoid planning at all costs. The old adage, "Failing to plan is planning to fail", is true. Without a well-thought out plan for establishing your business, running your business, and marketing your business, you will waste a lot of time. Time you don't have. So, how do we find time to plan while we're trying to run a business? Do the work in small increments. Keep a notebook handy throughout your day. Have sections designated for "Operations", "Finance", and "Marketing". Make notes as random thoughts appear to you during a day. At the end of each week, take an hour or so and summarize the ideas into a plan. Place the actions that will yield the highest potential return at the top of the list. Start Monday of the next week by tackling the items at the top of your list. Mistake #3: All Work and No Play Running your own business is hard work. There is no doubt about that. However, without proper relaxation, you will become increasingly less productive. It isn't the hours you spend at work but the productivity of the hours you spend there. Become a student of your own business. When do most customers access your business? When is the slow time of the day or week? If you are available for an entire hour that may only yield one small sale, you would be better off out of the office. Take a walk. Talk to people along the way. They could be future customers. Join a gym and work out during a half of that slow hour. This kills two birds with one stone. You get healthier with better endurance and again, you can network with people who might be future customers. Join that Chamber of Commerce and attend those meetings! Join the Rotary or Lion's Club! Not everything you do to successfully advance your business will occur at your business. Mistake #4: Take Your Existing Customers For Granted Remember the first customer you ever had? Remember the appreciation you had for them? Remember the little things you did for them? When did you stop and WHY? Avoid looking after your existing customers and they will go elsewhere. Customers have more options today then they ever had before. If they don't find your competitor locally, they will find him/her on the Internet. Ignore customers at your own peril. The fact is without them you wouldn't be in business. It's time to make certain they understand how much you really appreciate them. How about having a special reception or buffet on site for your customers? What about a special appreciation day? When was the last time you contacted customers just to tell them how much you appreciate their business? A happy customer is a valuable business asset, now and in the future. Mistake #5: Never Ask For Referrals As stated above, your existing, happy customers are a major business asset. That asset can yield benefits in many ways. But you have to ask. Instead of spending a lot of money on your advertising, why not ask customers for referrals? Referral sales are the cheapest and easiest way to grow your business. "Two Men and a Truck", a moving business, generated $150 million dollars in revenue from 95% referrals sales. That is a target we should all shoot to match! Mistake #6: One-Stop Shop Mentality Many business owners fail to achieve their true potential because they try to be all things to all people. You need to target your ideal customers. Look at your product. Ask yourself who would benefit most from your product. Once you have selected a targeted group, learn everything you can about them. Change your store or website to reflect that targeted customer's needs or desires. Speak their language. Find out where they hang out and what they read or listen to. Understand their concerns. Sell them solutions, not products, and you will excel! Mistake #7: Neglecting Marketing It is so easy for a business owner to get caught up in the daily operations of a business. The inventory ordering, order processing, data input, and more, can become all consuming. Then one day you look up and wonder what happened to the business. Marketing is all about future sales. You plant the seed today to reap the benefits tomorrow. If you want a long-term successful business you can hand off to the children, don't neglect marketing. Every month, set aside at least 20% of your time dedicated to marketing activities. Marketing activities include deciding to expand an existing product line, dumping unprofitable products or adding new products, determining where your advertising can generate the biggest return for the investment, and planning your marketing materials. These are crucial functions for your success. Neglect them at your own peril! In summary, staying focused upon these seven common business mistakes can save you a lot of time and money. They are also crucial to the ongoing success of your business. Stay focused on the future while you work in the present. Don't develop work habits counterproductive to a successful outcome. Michele Schermerhorn calls herself a "Corporate Freedom Fighter" dedicated to freeing cubicle prisoners to experience their own successful online business. She has over 30 years experience in the business world and over 12 years running her own successful online businesses. She is President of Online Business Institute Inc. (http://www.obinstitute.com), authors a sassy marketing blog (http://www.imarketblog.com), and regularly conducts free online seminars. Online Business Institute Inc. exists to "Create Successful Online Business Owners One Person At A Time".
MORE RESOURCES:
Small-Business - Google News |
|
|
|
RELATED ARTICLES
Local Government Relations for Small Business Most small businesses simply go about their daily business and serving customers without ever worrying about local government relations. For some it turns out okay but for others it can become a disaster. Creative Business Card Marketing Announcements can be handed out as a business cardAnnouncements can be more than just a press release that lets the world know that something special has occurred at your place of business or to you personally. You can make announcements for almost anything. Accounting Methods - Cash and Accrual When starting a business, you have to determine the method you are going to use for accounting and paying taxes. The two choices are the cash method and the accrual method. Community Relations Strategy for Small Business Does your company have a community relation strategy? Have you even considered it? It is essential to have policies in place. Having run a small business for years which eventually turned into a multi-state franchise system, I realized early on that a business who is part of the community it serves can survive the ups and downs of the business cycles, making it somewhat recession proof. To Buy Or Not To Buy: Lawn Mowing Business TRUTH IN THE LAWN MOWING INDUSTRYWe do not wish to slander any company or person but instead share information that is of value to each and every one! Most people who enter this industry will be effected by one of the following and we see fit to share with you what we know and have seen.Buying Into A FranchiseOk buy into a franchise, spend 25 thousand. Patient Records - Your Responsibilities As a practise gets larger & larger the associated problems that you inherit increase with that growth. The Practise Manager finds it increasingly difficult to tend to his duties and look after the administration of the Practise. What Is YOUR Value Proposition? Every company has a value proposition. That is a statement of their perceived value to their clients. Tips on Setting Up Your Small Business Bank Account One of the first things you will need to set up is a bank account. We recommend a large bank because:They have locations everywhereThey have longer hoursThey will probably buy out your local community bank anywayIf you are an owner/operator of a small business, you will appreciate having a Debit or ATM card for your business. How to Get Started As A Government Contractor Becoming a contractor or sub-contractor for the U.S. What Your Small Business Can Learn From The Doctor Most doctors never distinguish the difference between customers and patients. That's why they have waiting rooms instead of reception areas. Franchise Buyers from Hell I ran a franchise company for many years, a car wash franchise, and we use to get the most ridiculous franchise buyers who thought they wanted a franchise. It seems we had to deal with these Kookoo birds because they have consumer rights and the Federal Trade Commission, which looks over franchising goes out of their way to let these consumers get away with these tall tales. QSR Quick Service - Fast Food Restaurants Labor Situation in United States One of the major complaints in the QSR Quick Service-Fast Food Restaurants Industry is the deplorable Labor Situation. In United States teen labor has become somewhat slim on ethical standards, showing up on time, drug use (both recreational and problematic), work ethic and trainability. Mobile Car Wash Market Opportunities in California The current lack of industry leaders represents an exceptional opportunity for a large and organized mobile car wash company to achieve regional domination and eventually dominate the Southern California carwash market. The best place to start a regional assault on this market would be to concentrate North and West of Los Angeles; Chatsworth and Simi Valley to Malibu and Tarzana to Santa Barbara. Perfecting Your Pitch Why should you describe your business to others in 5 to 10 seconds?How long do you think you have to get anyone's attention? 5 minutes? 2 minutes? 30 seconds? It is actually 10 seconds. I know it does not seem like a long period of time but you will be amazed what you can say in 10 seconds. 11 Things Small Business Owners Can Learn From Rudy Giuliani 1. Leadership Is Learned - While many people appear to have an innate ability to lead, most learn from their life and business experiences, then put these lessons into practice. Small Business Pricing Strategies TACTIC #1 -- Never simply slash your prices, unless you're trying to empty obsolete inventory. Instead, try repackaging your prices so they're more affordable in the short-run so more prospects can afford them. Employee Induction - Are you Inducting your People - A Practical How To In today's fast paced marketplace it is easy to neglect the small important things!Recently we assisted an organisation prove they had complied with their obligations in inducting their employee. The employee tried to bring a claim for severe stress against the business. Todays Chef, Tomorrows Restaurateur -- Startup Tips by Restaurant Consultants Inc Researching information for a recent business plan, I came across an interesting number of 54,000. What is the big deal about that? Over 54,000 new restaurant business licenses were applied for in the last twelve months nationally. Leverage The Power of Publicity For Your Small Business Your business is only as good as the number of people who knows about it. For your venture to grow, you need to start spreading the word about your business. Creative Metrification - A Technique to Improve Some things in business are relatively easy to measure - these are the "hard" metrics such as sales volume and profit, production per man-hour, time without an accident, shipments without error, number of customers served, on-time delivery, etc. Other, "soft" metrics, are more difficult to quantify, but with a little creativity, measurement can be made of just about anything.
|
|
|
|
|
