Unfortunately, it is a well-known fact that most businesses fail within the first year. This is mostly due to business owners not knowing or understanding what is required of them. They tend to think they can open a business and then not work at it, but that isn’t the case. When you have a business you need to make sure you are always making a profit. Initially, you may make a loss but that is due to forking out for products and stock. Keeping your business steady should ensure you are well on your way to making a profit.
By Team Savant
Image: Tani Olorunyomi
Employees
Your employees are a staple of your business that you need to make sure you keep around. If you have members of staff constantly coming and going you are going to lose some serious money. This is due to not dedicating time to your business when you are needed to conduct interviews and chase references for new employees.
Ensure that your employees do not want to leave as soon as they start. Show them that you are a great company and owner to work for. Offer them incentives and regular rewards, or bonuses. This could be something simple like an extra day off when they request a holiday for example.
Your employees should understand your business model and realise that occasionally you need to work to deadlines. This should be done as efficiently as possible. Be approachable as a boss just in case there are ever any problems in the office. That way your employees will know they can talk to you about anything.
Marketing
When it comes to selling your brand you need to be big in the marketing game. If you struggle to understand how to market your company well then it will struggle to stand out against the competition. Marketing is one of those things that most people get wrong when starting a business. If you really have no clue what is going on you can hire someone to help you with this. They are known as marketing consultants or even marketing agencies.
They will take a look at your business and previous marketing ploys. They can tell you where you are going wrong and what you can do to improve. You may be unaware but there are so many marketing strategies these days including leaflets, emails, social media, and video marketing. Whichever you decide to use, it needs to be done right.
Marketing also doesn’t have to cost your company the earth. There are loads of companies out there who can help bulk print flyers or business cards to enhance the way you market your business.
Money
Managing your money wisely is a great tip for running your business. You need to be aware of all incomings and outgoings, this will prevent your company from going down the pan. You always need to be striving for a profit, if you are not doing that then you are not cut out for the business world. Sure, you might be making a loss initially, this is due to startup costs. Soon enough you will be making a nice tidy profit and showing the competition who is really boss.
If you are struggling to get the customers through the door meaning your incomings are declining then you need to think of ways to boost this. You could hold a seasonal sale and get rid of all your stock at cheaper prices. This entices people into your business, even online. Advertise the sale and we can guarantee there will be new and existing customers taking a look at what is on offer,
Outsource
You might have heard of outsourcing. This is when you wish to save money but tasks still need to be performed. So you outsource the work to save money and boost earnings. If you had to pay a regular salaried worker to do a job that only needs doing occasionally then you are wasting a lot of money each month. There are outsourcing agencies that can help you with anything you need.
For example, if you need help with your computers and internet security then you could call on the help of managed IT services. Get a managed service provider today and you won’t regret it. The whole point is that they free up our time for other aspects of your business. They will monitor your cybersecurity and let you know if there are any problems.
We hope you enjoyed taking the time to read this article and got some ideas as to how you can stop yourself from struggling with your business.