Small Business Advice for Growth
Some business owners are creating a competitive edge during the current economic downturn. How?
1. Cut Costs on the Products and Services that Your Small Business Already Uses
Those who are finding business success in these tight times are doing it by cutting costs and spending wisely to keep ahead of the competition. While this may seem intuitive, often it is either not acted upon or it is acted upon incorrectly.
Small business cost cutting needs to be done in a way that will not compromise the quality of the goods and services that a particular business delivers. There is no excuse for cutting the quality that you deliver. Cutting quality will lead to customer attrition.
How do you keep quality in the equation while doing this? Choose vendors who have established credibility. Join an association that has relationships with prescreened vendors. This is also a great way to cut costs because vendors will typically give better pricing to associations.
Joining an association is more cost effective than having your business devote the time to research new vendors.
Where do you start?
Start by making an inventory of what goods and services your business really needs to create quality both now and in the future. Most likely you have already gotten rid of the fluff.
Next consider the myriad of alternative solutions that will save money without compromising quality. Here is a list think about:
- Virtual office solutions
- Virtual Secretary
- Customer service
- Copywriting
- Web based document management
- Virtual subcontractors eliminate a lot of office overhead and payroll costs
- Home based small business
- Telecommuting is an increasingly viable option even for those who need to make appointments with clients. Executive office suites are perfect on an as needs basis.
- Affordable individual health insurance
- There are cost effective alternatives to group health insurance
- Replacing ineffective marketing with methods that get a great ROI
- Small business consulting to analyze and implement effective strategies
- CRM management to solve your follow up failure and help business strategic planning
- Maximize your existing lead generation efforts by getting more from the ones you generate as well as from your existing customers
- Getting full functionality from your website and building a strong on line presence by using professionals
- A professionally designed website reduces the bounce rate
- Websites need to accommodate the way the human eye navigates your site. This will increase your website's conversion rate
- Search engine optimization is mandatory and ongoing and not done well by amateurs.
- Do it yourself efforts online are not cost effective and usually yield subpar results
- Reducing costs on
- office equipment
- credit and debit card processing
- bad check collection
- tax services
- legal advice
- promotional items
- print material
The more ways that are found to reduce expenses, the more that will be freed to put in an effective marketing program.
2. Effective marketing for strategic business planning
The only marketing that should ever be cut is that which is not working. The only way to know what works and what does not is to track. Tracking is not an option. Tracking is mandatory to fully discern best practices for a marketing plan that gets the best rate of return.
Small businesses that use effective marketing will create a competitive edge; particularly during tough times when your competition is cutting back on costs and quality. Many businesses will even make the mistake of cutting back on marketing. Start up small businesses need to recognize that marketing is not the same thing as advertising. Advertising whether it is print, radio, TV or online is just one facet of marketing.
What is marketing? It is the shortest path to a sale. There are hundreds of ways to market.
In a nutshell, effective marketing delivers the right message to the right people.
Who are the right people? These are the people who want, need and can afford what you are offering. It does it through engaging conversation and education. It is no longer about interrupting and peddling. It is about listening to, caring about and responding to the needs of this group.
Effective use of social media means adhering to these principles. Blatant self promoting will fail.
Small business owners who are buried in the proverbial "pile of hats" may grimace at the thought of doing things differently. Change is painful to a lot of people. It is far easier to say "no" and do more of the same. It helps to avoid the fear of the unknown. That is why in tough times so many small businesses create their own doom by "sticking to what worked before".
But change is inevitable. It may occur through various times at different rates; sometimes giving the illusion that it is not happening at all. However, the change that is happening today is undeniable even by the most reticent.
Since the biggest obstacle to making necessary changes is fear of the unknown, doesn't it make sense to hire experts who do know?
Avoid big and expensive organizations that are resting on the laurels of worn out traditional marketing strategies. Choose marketing professionals who have expertise in leading edge technologies and social media trends. If you make the commitment to have these new strategies implemented you will get a great ROI which will grow your business even in tough times.
3. Update Small Business will get it all Started for You
Not sure what to do or where to start?
Get a free analysis to see how much you can save on credit and debit card swipes for example. Check out what else an association membership with great benefits can do for you by giving us a call.
Free up money, implement effective marketing and get way ahead of your competitors.
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