Top Tips on Running a Successful Business

culled from:beds.ac.uk

1. REVOLUTIONARY STRATEGIES

Being strategic in business means that you have to be ahead of yourself – working towards something and being proactive with what needs to be done to get there.

If you do not have a strategy, you will be working from day to day and most of what you have to do will be reactive.

I believe that many of the consistency problems that businesses face are simply down to not being strategic.

Even if you know where you are going, how can you get there if you don’t know where you are starting from?

2. FOCUS ON PROFIT

To be successful in business, you must understand money, and the golden rule of money is to make sure more comes in than goes out. Many individuals and companies just don’t seem to understand how important this basic rule is. More has to come in than go out.

Profit must do two things, not one. There must be enough to re-invest in the business as well as enough to make you feel it is all worth it.

3. A COMMITTED TEAM

A committed team needs to have something to commit to; you can’t just expect them to be committed because you are. Create a goal with the team. It is then their goal. They start to understand why they come to work each day.

Balance of your team is crucial. You must have the right people working for you. Good recruitment and training are essential here, you can’t just wish for a better team; you have to train them.

Motivation is about communication, so communicate with your team in such a way that motivates your team to fly!

4. DELIGHTED CLIENTS

Trust is a key thing for any service provider to be able to grow their business. You need your customers to trust you, firstly so they will return, secondly so they will take your advice, and thirdly so that they will recommend other people to you.

Trust is all about consistency, we trust people who are consistent. Interestingly we still like people who are inconsistent, but we don’t entirely trust them and may not recommend them.

You can’t just delight customers on Thursdays! You have to be offering the same level of product, service and experience every day!

5. UNIQUE MARKETING

Don’t keep secrets! Tell your clients and your prospective clients about all of the things that you do.

Before you get involved with expensive and sophisticated marketing techniques, start by simply making sure people know all about the services you offer, products that you sell and training that you do. Do you have free parking? Let them know.

Marketing is about creating a reputation for you business. How do you want people to perceive you? Are you getting that message across with your marketing? Are you getting into people’s heads – or is the answer to your message simply “so what?”

Be creative with your message and make sure everyone gets it!

Now all you have to do is get the message out there. Create a marketing strategy based around advertising, PR, the internet, internal marketing and active marketing. You don’t have to spend fortunes. Be creative and get out there. Make it happen, rather than just sitting there waiting for people to walk through the door!