Tag: business

Do you want my money or not?

Why do so many companies make it so difficult to give them money? Here are just 5 ways to make me take my money elsewhere?

  • Don’t have a website
  • Have a website, but don’t provide contact details
  • Have a website with contact details, but don’t respond to my queries
  • Don’t return my phone calls
  • Break your promises, or make unreasonable promises

I bet you are thinking that your business would never do any of these. These are not difficult things to get right; they really are the basics. If you can’t get these right, how are you going to get a complex task like implementing a 5 year growth strategy right?

In this week alone, every one of these has happened to me several times, when trying to work with both small and large organisations.

Is communication killing your business?

I just gained a new client because her current service provider takes too long to get back to her.

Not because my product is better, or because I am more skilled. It was simply because I am a better communicator than her previous supplier.

  • How effective is your communication?
  • What business are you losing because of your communiucation skills?
  • How can you improve your communication with your clients?

A few lessons from Gary Bailey

Gary Bailey

Some tips I picked up from Gary (ex goal keeper for Manchester United) at our Toastmasters conference. Enjoy!

Manchester United:

  • Is a $1 billion business
  • Has 300 million customers
  • Delivers weekly to its customers

The principles of a good soccer team apply to business as well…

  • Be tough- learns to takes knocks
  • Build on gratitude
  • Appreciate staff and all those around you
  • Things go wrong for everybody at some time
  • It’s how you deal with life, not what happens to you that is important
  • Plan for the future
  • Don’t send emotional emails because there is no emotion in email
  • Make time for others
  • Raise your energy
    • Body; food & exercise
    • Spirit; helping others
    • Mind;
    • Emotions;

10 ways to grow your business

  1. Advertise on company and community notice boards
  2. Free announcements in local/community newspapers
  3. Barter your services in exchange for free advertising
  4. Word of mouth – tell all your friends
  5. Business cards – never leave home without them
  6. Be outrageous – do something so out of the ordinary that you get free publicity
  7. Offer to write articles for local newspapers or magazines. Note that these are articles and not advertorials
  8. Make contacts with complementary businesses to provide a stronger offering that helps you both
  9. Be contactable make it easy for your customers to find you. Have a website, and respond to emails and phone calls
  10. Follow through on your leads and customer queries