“In Business” by Roland Millward

We hear of many businesses that fail and yet they seemed to be doing well. Why can a business increase sales and production have a great product and then fail?

It is often because the management have not factored into their business plan ‘Cash Flow’. A sudden increase in sales can cause a business to have to purchase materials and stock in advance of them getting paid. This can cause a severe cash flow problem within the business.

It is better to grow a business more slowly unless funding can be put in place to allow for this potential problem. This problem particularly affects manufacturers who may find a gap of 3 months or more of paying for materials and for the goods to turn into cash. Large orders may be  wonderful but they could also ruin your business. Calculate the costs and allow for cash flow and avoid such problems.

For many business owners there is the frustration of not getting their websites listed onto the first page of search engines, particularly the big 2 Google & Yahoo. Of course there is not room for everyone on the first page.

You could of course pay for the privilege using the sponsored search facilities such as Adwords on Google.

However if you have your website optimized for searches you may get there without paying Google for the privilege. It is possible to do it yourself or employ a Search Optimization Specialist but remember there can be no gurantees.

A search on Google or Yahoo will help you find such companies and also tips on how to do it yourself. There are many books written on the subject too.

One of the obvious ways to increase your business income is to attract more customers. However what if each customer spends a little more money with you?

Upselling is all about getting customers to spend a little more. How can this be achieved?

One way is through selling them an upgraded product. Cars for example have various models in the car range. Some have a higher specification and as a result a higher price tag. Can you pursuade your customer to have the better model? Customers will, after having the better product, always be more pleased with it.

If the product you are selling is already at the top of the range or indeed perhaps there is no range choice, can you sell additional products to go with it. For example if you sell laptop computers why not try and sell a carry case, anti virus or additional software? You may even have special discounts on products that come into action when purchased with a main item.

Think about your business and see where you can upsell and increase your income and profits.

Advertising a business can be very expensive. How about though doing it for free?

Many businesses have found that they can generate a good amount of business from free sources.

Two that I like are Gumtree and Craigslist. Both of these sites allow free advertising in various categories and by city. Take a look at the websites and get a feel for how they work. To get the most benefit you would really need to submit your ads daily as they are listed in date order the most recent at the head of the page. It is easy however to resubmit ads without having to write them out. Just keep a note of the reference numbers for the ads.

In addition to these methods you may find free directories, social media sites such as Facebook and Twitter where you can promote your business.

Having your own company blog can also be a great way of generating interest in your business and keeping existing clients up to date with your products and services.

Go for it! It’s free and so what have you to lose?

Many people over the years have dreamed of having their own business. They have probably seen advertisements or been approached by friends offering them the opportunity to join a ‘wonderful’ business. Promises of huge earnings offered with very little work once you get a ‘downline’, a group of people all selling the product for you. You will earn a slice of every sale down to so many generations deep.

Do such MLM (multi level marketing) schemes work? Well for a few the answer is yes. But it is only a few compared to the thousands that join these schemes. You have to be at the top of the pyramid. (Yes it is a pyramid something denied by MLM fans). My advice is to keep well away from them.

Selling products on commission is fine but why share that commssion with others? The products these schemes offer are usually hard to sell at inflated prices so be able to pay others a slice and so sales are difficult to make.

Find your own products to sell or sell someone else’s. Pay commission to others and have a team of affililiates but avoid MLM.

To your success!

Don’t you just hate those call centre calls when someone is just reading a script?

I called a national bank the other day to simply ask a question. It was obvious that the person had been given a rigid script that they had to go through before they would answer my question. 15 seconds turned into 5 minutes!

Was I impressed with that bank’s well trained staff member? No! Think about your customers. When they phone you do they get a robotic person or a real human, as natural as though they are standing next to them person?

The telephone is a great tool in business and when used properly can bring in enormous benefits. Yes, staff need to be trained on how to talk to people but not scripted. Maybe if you own a business and employ people to answer the phones now is the time to get them some training and not a new script!

When you are selling a product there are many techniques that a salesperson can use. In fact there is no one single way to sell and you need to learn all the techniques that you can to be successful.

One way that I would like to write about today is the ‘puppy dog’ method.

Let me describe a situation. Let’s say you have kids and someone asks you to take a puppy home for a few days to look after it. The kids (and probably you too) fall in love with this little bundle of fun. Why he’s so cute!

Now what happens when after a few days you have to hand this bundle of joy back? Can you imagine the devatation in your household. How can you let this little fella go?

Now apply this technique to a product. Perhaps you sell large Plasma TV’s. Imagine you let someone have one on trial for a weekend. How would they feel when you came to collect it? Maybe they would decide there and then that no way are you taking this away … they want it …. why they need it!

Yes a short trial can be enough to convince the most hardened purchaser that they should buy this item. Remember the ‘puppy dog’ technique you could see those sales rise!

Have you tried Twitter yet? This website may seem simple as it is designed for short messages similar to text messages from your mobile phone. You only have 140 characters but you can say a lot with that particularly because you can use web links. You can send messages from your mobile phone to Twitter. Visit www.twitter.com.

You are able to become a follower of people you like and others can follow you. Your followers can view the messages that you leave. The messages are called ‘tweets’. There are lots of add on sites developing that you can use to enhance yout Twitter experience. Twitter works on the basis of one question “What are you doing now?”

Now for the business ideas. You can find like minded people say “internet marketers” or people who live in your area and join up with them as a follower and encourage them to follow you. You will then be able to build a business relationship and direct them to your website.

It is all very simple but very effective. Give it a go today!

One of the most vital skills in business is the art of listening.
Listen to your customers. What are they telling you?

All good sales people will tell you that you should spend around two thirds of your time listening and only one third speaking. Or to put it in a well used illustration ” You have two ears and one mouth, use them in that proportion”.

It is certainly true that when you are speaking to someone you need to develop listening skills. Show the person that you are listening by your facial gestures, nodding of the head and perhaps a little mmmm sound. Don’t go over the top!
Ask questions and sometimes relate what you have been told so as to gain clarification. For example you could say “so what you feel is this ……..” repeating the key thought that they had covered. People like to know that you have listened.

You can also listen to your customers through the power of the written word. Perhaps a survey on your service and then act on what it tells you. Look for areas to improve or to find products that clients are wanting but you are not providing.

Taking the time to listen and then to act on what you hear will pay dividends.

Are you listening?

For years people have said, “It’s not what you know but who you know that counts!”.

This statement is very true in business. If you want to develop your business it will pay dividends if you have a core of people that can help you achieve your goals. This could be the people who you use to help you with accounts, advertising, web design, marketing store design and layout and the list goes on.

There is also another way that ‘who you know’ is important and that is in knowing those who can give you business by introducing you to others. For example if you are a builder wouldn’t it be great if you had a number of estate agents (realtors in US) who when selling homes in need of buidling work you would be recommended?

Such relationships need not happen by accident. There are many ways to develop these through what has become known as networking. Opportunities for networking can be through organized networking events. Groups have been set up that often have breafast meetings that give an opportunity for all there to talk to each other and set up arrangements. For example 4networking have regular meetings across the U.K. and are well worth attending.

In addition you could try and set up arrangements by contacting companies that could have a mutual relationship with each other.

So if you are not networking now make plans to do so today!