As a small business owner, you may ask yourself why tracking sales is important. You know the products that you offer, you know your budget, and your books balance at the end of every month. Why do you need to make the effort or invest in some type of software that will allow you to track your sales? This article will discuss the importance of that and more.
Selling Products Continue reading
There’s an interesting video on YouTube featuring former Google CEO Eric Schmidt. In it Schmidt explains the benefits of having a coach. He tells the story of his early years as CEO when a board member suggested that he find one. Though Schmidt felt there was nothing wrong – he was the CEO, after all – he took the board member’s advice and began to work with a coach. As Schmidt explains in the video, a coach helps give perspective to things we are unable to see ourselves.
The same is true with alliances. Continue reading
As an Entrepreneur what is the one resource you wish you more of right now? I’d be willing to bet the answer is most likely time. If you’re running low on energy there’s always more coffee, right? But, if you find you just don’t have enough time in the day to get everything done what do you do? You can’t add more hours to the clock.
So how do you free up more of your time? Continue reading
Think you know your target market? Most business owners will answer with a resounding, “Yes.” However, too often companies identify their demographics at the onset and then never look back.
Target Markets are Evolving
The 2010 white paper, “2010 America: What the Census Means for Marketing and Advertising,” forecast changes in the demographic make-up of the U.S. along with the resulting business implications. It suggests that too many entrepreneurs neglect changes to their current target market. The result: same old sales strategy, no increase in sales.
There seems to be a growing trend. The number of entrepreneurs is increasing. People, whose life are in an upheaval, discover that their real passions become the fuel that drives their work. This work becomes their source of revenue. There are several reasons for this:
Most people are very familiar with the idea of “win-win” in the development of joint ventures. This way of thinking has helped push old world business owners into thinking about the benefits of helping their business partners as well as themselves.
To strengthen business relationships, you need to focus on what would benefit both parties. The result creates more of a unified force. Asking yourself how you can help your business partner will truly make a huge difference in the long-term stability of your venture. A good way to start a relationship is to ask both parties for their Conditions of Success (COS). Then everyone knows what is expected at the end for joint success.
You’re a talented and innovative thinker planning to launch a ground-floor venture. Should you go it alone or bring in a business partner?
As we mentioned in our earlier blog, “Is it Too Much to Ask for the Perfect Business Partner?” a number of business pairings throughout the years have turned into great successes. Primarily because of the skills and traits each partner brought to the pair. However, a lot had to do with the actual relationship between the individuals involved.
Not Everyone Should Be Your Partner
This seems like an obvious statement. However, Continue reading
Some entrepreneurs may disagree with this assessment; however, according to a 2009 MSNBC.com article, “Economic cycles are Darwinian, picking off weak companies and leaving survivors stronger.”
The good news is that the survivors often benefit as their competitors disappear. Unless, that is, you haven’t planned ahead.
Comprehensive Business Plan Vital Continue reading
I came across a blog the other day written several years ago by Al Lautenslager for Entrepreneur.com.
He tells a story of walking into the dry cleaners and finding a $5-off coupon for the pizza joint a few doors away. Deciding to enjoy some pizza, he walks to the pizza place to redeem the coupon and there on the counter he finds a $5-off coupon for the dry cleaner. This might be called reciprocal marketing or, as Al suggests, fusion marketing. Whatever you call it, it makes sense.
Finding a power partner – Continue reading
Think of all the famous and successful business pairings there are and have been in the world. People like Ben and Jerry of ice cream fame or Warner Bros. moguls Sam, Jack, Albert, and Harry. There’s Bill Hewlett and David Packard; Richard and Maurice McDonald; and Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak from Apple. So what makes a perfect business partner?
According to the Forbes article, “What to Look for in a Business Partner,” writer Melanie Lindner suggests five necessary traits to make a business partnership work. Continue reading
In a recent press release, Hallmark, the world’s leading greeting card brand, announced a strategic alliance with Shutterfly Inc., a leading Internet-based digital photo site. The goal is to have “exclusive Hallmark-designed customizable cards featured on Shutterfly’s new personalized greeting card site, Treat.com.”
According to Investopedia.com, a strategic alliance is… Continue reading
Successful businesses around the world understand the power of creating joint ventures to grow their business. Developing relationships with other companies gives you the ability to grow your revenues and has been used by corporate giants and small business owners. The principle works as it is based on strategic alliances.
A joint venture is essentially partnering with other businesses to create a partnership. Continue reading
When you first opened your doors for business, you were probably excited about the opportunity ahead. You had researched the market, talked to advisors, investigated financing, and made your dream come true.
Now it’s time to keep sales growth strong by taking the next step (or two) toward small business survival. Continue reading
As many people know, it can be very difficult to grow revenue for their company. Do you have the right sales strategy in place? Maybe you don’t even have a written strategy. Are sales growing as expected? Maybe you should double check your sales strategy or put one in place to guarantee your company continues to have some growth.
The first reason you should check your strategy is to ensure your entire sales team and the whole company Continue reading
For the under-30 crowd, a career isn’t about graduating college and working for a Fortune 500 company anymore. It’s about finding a passion, usually involving social, economic, or environmental issues.
In the May 2012 The Tennessean article, “Young entrepreneurs blaze their own trail,” writer Duane Marstellar suggests that more and more young adults are becoming entrepreneurs for economic and personal reasons. Marstellar cites:
Joblessness among 18- to 29-year-olds nationally Continue reading
Power Partners is a compelling concept. Simply put, it is a group of businesses that band together to use and promote the products of the other businesses in the group. There is an old song; “No Man is an Island.” No one can do it alone in the business world.
As much as we might want to think that we can win the battle alone; it just does not work that way. No matter what your line of work, you cannot afford to stand alone. You need people promoting your business and helping to build your clientele. Yes, we have many online marketing tools to help us out, but what is better than “word of mouth,” especially when it comes from people you trust.
Find the people your customers trust, and build a relationship with them. Continue reading
According to the Inc. article, “How to Network to Increase Sales,”
If you routinely return from a networking event with a pocketful of business cards that aren’t useful to you, you need to rethink your strategy. While it’s good to make friends, it’s better to make money.
The difficulty is that while networking is a useful sales tool and many business professionals Continue reading
Today in a world where there are literally millions of products being sold, it’s importnat to have a strategic plan to increase your sales. There are many things competing for consumer’s attention. Implementing a plan to get the consumer to buy your product and increase your sales growth is very important. You can use many avenues to do this. Some are to develop a marketing strategy, provide excellent customer service, and also to have an good social networking presence. Continue reading
Regardless of what you sell – product or service – or how you sell – brick and mortar, online, or both – the first step in the sales process is to identify the right customers for your business. Understanding who your customer is will help you know where to find them.
According to the recent Business Insider article, Continue reading