Exploit Your Competitors Vulnerability For Beating This Recession
By | February 12, 2009
During this recession, if you are looking for ways to increase sales by gaining more of the market share, now is the time to put on your super sleuth cap and go out for an investigational field trip to see how the area competitors are doing things.
There are many advantages to keeping tabs on the competition. In this piece, you will find a few helpful tips to aid you in your quest for more of the market’s spending dollars. The retail market is getting tight as I am sure you have already noticed and it is quickly becoming a dog eat dog environment on the sales front.
With so much competition and so many businesses scraping and vying for spending customers, you, the savvy business owner must have your fingertips on the pulse of your competition and be willing and prepared to stay one step ahead, using all of the tools in your arsenal to capture any opportunity to acquire new business.
To start the process, it will be important for you to first know who your competition is. Take a good look around to see what other businesses cater to your particular niche. Some of your loyal customers may be knowledgeable on this subject as well and worthy of spending some time talking to them. Once you know who they are, you are one step closer to capitalizing on the chance to obtain some of their revenue. Competition is rivalry. Rivalry means challenge and in economic distress, your challenge is to rival for a larger piece of the market share pie.
To do this, you need to know as much as you can about your competition and their vulnerabilities in order to capitalize on their weaknesses. Start doing some research into your competitors and aim to know more about their business than they do themselves. Perhaps they are severely lacking in customer service. You, on the other hand have beefed up your customer care policies and are prepared to take up the slack where your competition has fallen short.
Maybe they have no follow up procedures or the staff is indifferent to its customers. This is a prime opportunity to shine the light on the customer service skills that make your business a place where customers can come to feel appreciated and respected. Now it is time to take advantage of the competition’s error and woo these neglected souls by means of your caring, attentive staff. Ensure that this strength oin your business is highlighted in any marketing, advertising or promotions that you do.
Products or services your competition may have cut out may be just the things prospective customers are looking for to drive them through your doors. Once in and they can see the vast difference between you and the competition, you very well may have a customer for life as well as an advocate for your business.
It is important to keep your eyes peeled and your ears to the ground in regard to the competition. Business is like a chess game and you should be prepared to win by staying several moves ahead of your opponent. Make the wrong moves and it may be game over. Put your business in a strong position on the board and you will come out the winner every time.
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Beat The Recession By Prioritizing Your Time And Efforts Towards Building Revenue
By | February 9, 2009
To keep your business ahead during this recession, focusing on increasing revenue is critical. As a business owner, you are aware of the old adage time is money. Long after business hours, you are still, no doubt, with your nose to the grindstone, working fervently on one thing or another. Owning a business is a time consuming adventure and it can take blood, sweat and tears to turn a profit, particularly in these times. The recession, for most business owners, is a new and unique experience. Even though times have changed, one thing is still the same and that is the need to create revenue.
With so much to do and little time in which to get it done, some business owners have a constant struggle on their hands trying to get everything done in a timely manner. Too often, priorities are not clearly defined and some find themselves procrastinating, spinning their wheels or completely off task. When this happens, it is easy to lose sight of goals and objectives. For this reason, it is important to find ways to prioritize.
Most will agree that at any time, revenue is important however, generating revenue in the recession needs to be on the top of your list. To avoid getting sidetracked by trivial, not so important tasks, consider making a “to do” list. Making a list for each day of the week, helps to evaluate and prioritize, thus eliminating the time wasters that seem to get in the way of real progress.
At the end of each week, start a list for each day so that you are prepared for the upcoming business week. By preparing your list in this way, you will be able to see more of what needs to be done, when things need to get done and can adjust your time accordingly to achieve more productivity. Having a few things to do on each day simplifies the process as you will be able to see at a glance which days are going to be light days, which days are busy. This gives you the opportunity to modify your schedule to achieve more balance in your week and keep down on stress from overdoing it.
There is also a great sense of accomplishment in being able to check off the projects as they are completed. For those of you who feel like you never get anything done or don’t have enough time to do everything you need to do, this strategy provides a way to accomplish the smaller feats of running your business while giving you the opportunity to plan time for increasing revenue.
Another added bonus to this prioritizing method enables you to look back over previous lists that you have completed in order to see where you have focused your attention. You will be in a better position to see what areas are lacking your attention.
Any task, from the most daunting to the most enjoyable can easily be written down on this list. Make sure you include anything that has to do with you increasing revenue, put these things at the top of your list and make sure they are completed daily. Mental notes are not enough for the busy entrepreneur and you need to take advantage of every opportunity to make the best use of your time.
Topics: Recession | 1 Comment »
Develop A Strategy For Beating The Recession
By | January 26, 2009
Do you want to beat the recession? Then one thing is for sure. If you intend on getting from point A to point B… from the Grand Canyon to the Great Wall or from recession to prosperity, you have got to have a strategy or a roadmap to get there. Any successful person will tell you that they became triumphant because they had a plan for success and prepared for their journey before setting out blindly and leaving their futures to chance.
The same applies to the business man faced with the detour of a recession. In your wildest dreams, you probably never considered that you would face the struggles brought on by the current state of economic affairs. You may have anticipated some hardship when deciding to go into business for yourself but you never thought that a staggering, sluggish economy would threaten your livelihood, did you?
In order to get back on the path to success you are going to need to change the direction in which you may be traveling. If you are traveling in the wrong direction and away from your destination, you don’t simple say, oh well; I guess I wasn’t meant to go there. You turn your auto around and get back on course.
Developing a strategy to beat the recession is much like planning a trip. You must first determine where you are going, what it will take to get there and prepare for any setbacks that may impede your progress to your destination. By planning in advance and mapping out a strategy to achieve your goals, you are setting yourself up for successfully attaining your objective.
The first step in this process is to figure out where you are going. If you are like every other person alive, your planned destination is Successville.
Knowing your financials gives you an indication of where you stand and what you need to do to finance your trip. In other words, knowing your gross margins allows you to see at a glance how much profit you are making, how much your are spending and if you have been tracking the numbers monthly, you should be able to see where you were this time last year to spot trends in your business. Knowing your numbers enables you to see what areas of your business could stand some improvement and allows you to budget for projects or the upcoming year.
Consistently strive to improve employee relations. Happy employees are productive, upbeat, positive employees who in turn are helpful, friendly people when relating to each other. Find creative ways to keep the work atmosphere light, stress free and enjoyable. Keep your staff informed of your objectives for increasing business to provide stability. Give them the product and service knowledge they need to do their jobs effectively and continuously monitor and guide their customer service skills.
Even if your customer service is exceeding expectations, it is essential to build on these techniques to stay ahead of the pack. Your competition offers the same types of products and services and the main thing that sets you apart is your ability to provide a pleasant experience for your patrons. By establishing good relationships with your customers, you, in a sense are sealing the deal for customer loyalty. It is much easier to maintain and keep existing customers rather than fighting to acquire new ones. It is also less expensive to simply keep the patrons you already have satisfied.
Find creative ways to market your products and services. Keeping your company name in the public eye insures visitors and steadies your place in the market. Utilize advertising dollars effectively and get the most from them. Offer deals, incentive and bonuses to keep patrons coming through your door. Make the most of your website if you have one by establishing a forum for feedback and suggestions from your patrons. Show them that you take an interest in their opinions and make them feel valued by doing so.
These are but a few ideas to keep you in the road and on the path to successfully reaching your destination. Fill up your tank with strength and resolve, buckle up and enjoy the trip.
Topics: Recession | No Comments »
A Strategy For Retaining Current Clients In This Recession
By | January 21, 2009
In the world of small business, loyal customers are essential in maintaining cash flow and stability. Repeat business is an important aspect when considering making any type of changes in your business that may affect visitor flow. Existing customers are easy to retain and less expensive to keep as opposed to cultivating new clientele.
That is not to say that new patrons are unimportant. The goal when building business is always to maximize profits and to increase market share however, during tough times like the ones imposed by the current economic stagnation, maintaining the status quo is imperative. For some, the risk of spending valuable profits on marketing to gain market share may be too great. It is for this reason that a savvy business person needs to make every effort to satisfy the needs of existing customers. It is advisable to have a great customer service policy and train your staff in the importance of building and maintaining relationships.
Making your customers friends has a two-fold benefit. Not only will your customers feel valued and appreciated but they will also be a valuable asset to you. As a friend/customer, your patrons take on a personal interest in your success and are more than willing, for the most part, to contribute in their own way. This contribution will be achieved by their continued feedback and suggestions for improving product line and services, customer issues, and by bringing in new business by way of referrals. You can never go wrong by establishing lasting relationships with them.
An ideal way to show your appreciation and respect for your existing customers is to establish a mailing list so that you are able to contact them with information about upcoming sales, incentives, bonuses and referral programs that you initiate to increase sales. It will be advantageous for you to make notes in your file of your customer’s favorite colors, sizes, ongoing projects they are involved in, regular services they receive from your company, preferences or anything else that you will be able to refer to that lets each patron know that you take an interest in them personally. As silly as it may seem, you can even make notes of their grandchildren’s names or the type of dog they have, etc. so that you will be able to talk to them about things that mean a lot to them. This simple touch will go along way in securing the loyalty you are seeking from them.
Another added point to consider… who knows better about the needs and desires of your customers than your customers themselves? There is nothing wrong with catering to your prized patrons or accommodating their whims. If there are products or services that your customers are requesting and it is feasible to oblige them… do so. Offering what is needed keeps your customers from going elsewhere in search of a particular item or service and running the risk of losing them altogether to your competition.
Spend time on the floor where your purchasers are and get to know them yourself. In this way, you will be able to personally keep tabs on how well your customer service techniques are being applied by your staff as well as having your fingers on the pulse of the front line operations. Building relationships keeps your customers close and keeps them from straying thus, aiding you in surviving these tough times.
Topics: Recession | 11 Comments »
Beat The Recession: 2 Ways To Increase Sales
By | January 19, 2009
The recession can be hard on small businesses and large ones alike. While it is important to maintain stability, it is equally essential to increase sales to offset the rising costs of overhead. As a small business owner, you have two opportunities to increase sales and improve profits. These opportunities are created by existing customers as well as new customers.
Existing customers are those that have traded with you for some time and supply your company with consistent business due to regular purchases. These customers are easy to retain as they are familiar with your operation, your employees and your products or services. These regular customers provide a sense of stability to your operation and help to maintain the bottom line.
It is important to maintain and cultivate relationships with your regular customers to insure continued support of your business. This can be done easily by treating your customers as you would your friends. Interact with them in the way that you wish for others to treat you. Show them respect and courtesy to keep them loyal and to keep them coming back.
Take notice of their needs and desires and try to accommodate them whenever feasible. If you don’t, your competition will. To show your appreciation for their continued faithfulness and to promote increased spending, use promotions and sales geared to benefit them with discounts or bonuses. Provide incentives for larger purchase by means of coupons, rebates, etc.
Existing customers are also your best source of free advertising. When you provide unprecedented customer service, an enjoyable atmosphere, and deals that a patron can’t turn down, people are bound to talk. This talk results in your company name being on the lips of those who will bring new business to your door.
Bottom line, your existing, long term, loyal customers are the foundation that keeps your company stable. Without their regular spending, you might find yourself on shaky ground particularly during these unpredictable times.
Acquiring new customers, on the other hand, is also a vital part of increasing sales and profits. As a rule, new customers are generally more expensive and more difficult to get without a great deal of marketing. Obtaining a larger share of the market is also more time consuming. However, to fully maximize all around profits… finding inexpensive, creative ways to achieve this goal, careful planning of marketing strategies coupled with coupons, bonuses and discounts can do the trick.
Your goal here is to get them in the door by presenting an irresistible offer to draw them in, wow them with an inviting, fun atmosphere, dazzle them with exciting products or services at reasonable prices and exceed their expectations with superior customer service. Once your have reeled them in, and do these same things to keep them, they, too, become valued regular customers who bring more people in for the first time.
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Find Creative Ways To Get More Business During The Recession
By | January 15, 2009
Ok, the holidays are over and if you’re like the millions of people who observe tradition and customs, you have made a handful of resolutions for the upcoming year. Being a business owner, you no doubt have made a few concerning your operation and have vowed to have a great year and to see more profit than you have in the past.
In order to do this, you have to go beyond merely talking about it. To have a great year in business means you have to have a great business plan. One of your goals probably has to do with acquiring more business and one sure way to do that is to get creative with your marketing, customer service and promotional strategies.
It is time to put on your thinking cap and get your creative juices flowing. Two heads are generally better than one and it is easy to get excited and enthusiastic when you combine your creative energies with other people’s imaginations. Gather your employees together for a brainstorming session and see what happens. In this forum you will be able to bounce ideas off of each other and come up with some unique ideas to drive sales and increase traffic. Your employees are the people who interact with customers on a daily basis and have their fingers on the pulse of your patrons. Your needs and desires of your clientele are key when considering the types of changes that need to be made to keep them coming through the door.
These brainstorming sessions should divulge enough information to devise a plan of action to maximize profits. Consider unique incentives for purchases. For example, for every $20.00 that a customer spends, he/she has the opportunity to put their name in a monthly drawing to receive their next $20.00 purchase for free. Customers that spend $15.00 will spend an additional $5.00 bucks to have their name put in the fishbowl for the drawing. The patron who wins for the month will more than likely purchase when they come in to claim their prize. This idea will encourage existing customers to come back and buy more often.
Offer incentives for existing customers by providing them with a healthy discount for every new customer that they bring in. Another example… you own a beauty shop and you provide your existing customer with a free manicure for any new client they bring in that purchases a cut and color. See how simple this is and how exciting it can be to have your customers walking in with a smile on their faces because of your goodwill?
Another avenue worth pursuing is the use of the internet. Most small businesses are lacking when it comes to utilizing their websites to maximize business. Your website should be more than a space to put your company name and address. Anything is possible and in this age of technology, what better way to stay in touch with your customers than to email them about sales, specials and incentives. Post advertisements about bonus offers and rebates, offer coupons, ask for suggestions, feedback and reviews from patrons to help maintain your relationship with them. Post helpful blogs that will inform customers about product uses, recalls, tips and hints that apply to your services or products. Make your company and invaluable asset and not just a place to purchase gods and services.
Get excited about the possibilities, get involved in the process, water your business and watch it grow. Chances are your competitors are in a reactive mode and frantically trying to find ways to cut costs to maximize profits. You, however, have decided to take a proactive approach, seeing the glass as half full and are making lemonade from lemons!
If you need ideas for how to get more business, click here now and find out more about
‘How To Get More Business With No Costs ‘
~ The Simple Actions For Getting More Business And Beating The Recession
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Protect The Supplies To Your Business During This Recession
By | January 13, 2009
If your business is faring well during this economic slowdown . . . congratulations are in order and by all means . . . keep up the good work. However, before you get too comfortable with your success, there is something that you may not have thought of and is well worth considering.
There are a lot of companies that are in trouble right now and like it or not, one of those companies may be one of your suppliers. The recession is having an impact on every market, every business and every person. Some manage better than others but the fact remains… the recession fairies show no favoritism and can take down the most secure of businesses as quickly as you can say General Motors.
In order to protect your business, profits and assets, it is advisable that you to do a little research on the companies that provide products and services to your business to insure that you are not caught up in a situation that could cripple, if not devastate your financial security.
If you have suppliers that are in dire straights and fighting for survival, your company may be left without products to sell which forces your customers to go elsewhere. Once gone, it will be hard and expensive to get them back. Brokers may be forced to raise prices to you to make ends meet and that added expense may be more than your company can bear. It would be a shame to have all of your hard work building your business jeopardized when a little preparation on your part could have made a difference.
Put on your Sherlock Holmes cap and get to work identifying which, if any, of your providers may be struggling to keep their doors open for business. The vendors that deliver merchandise or the customer service reps at the brokerage house may be well coached and talk a good game in regard to the stability of their company or they may not know how the company is doing at all. Do what you can to find out about potential product discontinuations, price hikes, and changes in manufacturing processes that could affect the quality of merchandise. If your dealer is having layoffs, cutbacks, or pricing increases that seem unusual, this may be a sign that there is a problem.
Take the opportunity to surf the internet for similar products or find other retailers that carry similar products from different vendors or manufacturers. It may be advantageous to have a back up plan in case you should need to seek other contractors as an alternative. Obtain pricing structures, ordering policies, shipment details and make sure that you research their financial stability as well. Be prepared to change suppliers should the need arise and don’t be left in a panic about what to do should worse come to worst. The old saying goes, “An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure”. Prepare, protect and profit.
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Survive The Recession: What Part Of Your Business Needs Improvement?
By | January 9, 2009
The recession is not necessarily a bad thing. It all depends on how you see it and what you do about it that determines how well your business fares. It is possible to come out on top by taking a proactive approach to potential problems by reviewing your business policies and practices, revamping some, tweaking others and leaving the ones alone that seem to be producing benefit.
This is not a task that you necessarily have to take on by yourself. Enlist the aid of employees and management to gather information and brainstorm for ideas to improve areas that may be hindering growth or affect the bottom line. It may be beneficial to consider the following areas to start your research.
Marketing - A recession is not the time to cut back on advertising, however, reviewing your marketing plan and finding creative ways to get the most of your advertising budget can prove to be a helpful step to controlling costs. There are many ways to market with no cost or little cost at all, provided you are resourceful. Consider internet blogging, word of mouth, incentives and referrals. Make the most of print ads by highlighting specials, promotions or specialty services. Check out specialty advertising. It is a cost effective means to keep your company name in the public eye.
Nowdays, customers are looking for a bargain so get them in your door by accommodating them. Price slow sellers to move, ask vendors about special pricing and pass the savings along to the customer, offer coupons and advertise special purchases. Create irresistible offers and market them well.
Customer service is an important factor to consider when competing for business. Other companies in your market may often have the same products and services as your business and one of the main things that can set you apart from the rest are customer service. Take the opportunity to get to know your patrons and train your staff do the same. Implement a mailing list to advise them of specials and provide courtesy calls from time to time. Treat every customer as if your business depends on them for survival and let them know they are appreciated.
Staff training is also vital part of your business and will make a huge difference in how your customers perceive their worth to you. Your staff need to be knowledgeable about the products and services your business offers as well as knowing how to follow procedures for company practices that affect your patrons. Make sure that your staff are trained properly by implementing checklist for new hires and refreshers for long time employees. Delegate training responsibilities to experienced personell or personally see to it that employees know everything they need to know to do their jobs effectively.
Ensure that your management staff is well equipped, also. As leaders in your organization, they should be dedicated to your cause and supportive in your efforts to improve business. Keep them appraised of business details in weekly meetings and ask for feedback.
There are many ways to implement good business practices and find solutions to those policies and procedures that are not working so well. It just takes a little effort, creativity and time. Stay focused, optimistic and expectant of a positive outcome.
If you need to improve your methods for getting new business, click here now and find out more about
‘How To Get More Business With No Costs ‘
~ The Simple Actions For Getting More Business And Beating The Recession
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Recession Proof - New Guide - How To Get More Business With No Costs
By | January 8, 2009
One of the steps to recession proofing your business, is getting more business in so that your sales are being maintained or even increased. Also, if you can do this without spending vast sums of money on advertising, your costs are kept to a minimum.
This is possible with my new guide that has just been released:
‘How To Get More Business With No Costs ‘
~ The Simple Actions For Getting More Business And Beating The Recession
I’ve worked with small businesses for many years and this guide brings together the ideas that I’ve used personally in my business and with my clients.
Just imagine what a difference getting in more business would mean to the survival of your business and even better without spending on expensive advertising.
Click here now and find out more about
‘How To Get More Business With No Costs ‘
~ The Simple Actions For Getting More Business And Beating The Recession
Topics: Recession Proof Your Business Guides | No Comments »
Know Your Gross Margins To Achieve Financial Success In Your Business
By | January 7, 2009
One of the most invaluable ways a business owner can ensure the success of his company is to learn how to figure and track gross margin. Big companies and large corporations alike know exactly where every dime is spent and every dollar that is gained through purchases because they know how to utilize this tool. By tracking revenues, expenditures and market trends, they know how and when to make adjustments to maximize profit margins. When implemented correctly, all of the guesswork is taken out of pricing products and services, you have a better idea of when to set sales and promotions and you can determine what areas of your business need improvement.
Before your head starts spinning at the thought of some complicated math formula, understand that the process is not that difficult once you comprehend it and… learning how to chart your numbers will provide you with the means to adjust pricing, track revenues and costs as well as the ability to spot trends in business flow. Knowing and tracking gross margin is one proof positive way a business owner can determine how well his business is performing financially.
Simply put, gross margin is the direct percentage of the selling price that is profit. While some prefer and most small business owners know the formulas to figure the mark up of products and services to arrive at a profitable selling price, many find the method of figuring gross margin easier as these numbers tell exactly how much of your selling price is profit.
Gross profit dollars are the funds made that pay the overhead and keep a company in business. Knowing your gross margin allows you the benefit of being able to look back over past months to see how your business was doing financially and make comparisons with previous months enabling you to recognize trends in customer flow and traffic.
Another benefit of this practice allows you to see where you may need to make adjustments. Let’s say you own a mom and pop restaurant serving home cooked meals. To compete with franchise operations, you adjust your pricing competitively but are not realizing the profits necessary to maintain your business even though the restaurant stays busy, has a marvelous reputation, and you use all of the finest ingredients.
By knowing your gross margin, you would see that your cost is too high to compete with other restaurants who receive discount, franchise pricing for their consumables, advertising, etc. From this vantage point, it would be clear that you should adjust your pricing to accommodate the cost rather than skimp on the quality items that have made your business successful. Then it would be feasible to advertise that your menu items are made from the finest ingredients and that no cost is spared to deliver quality meals.
If you do not already have this information at hand, go back over the past 18 months and track your revenue and cost. From here, you will readily see whether it is your cost or your pricing that is affecting your business. You also can see what your business was doing at the same time last year to determine where problems may be. Perhaps revenue is down due to decreased customer spending or your costs have increased. Once you can see the numbers clearly, it will be easier to get your gross margins in line, budget for future progress and achieve the success you have worked so hard for.
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