November 21st 2008
The questioning ideas will help you identify what’s really going on in just about any selling situation that involves a sales obstacle or challenge. Of course, you may wish to target your questions more specifically.
Below, you’ll find some more narrowly focused questions for specific challenges you may face. Continue Reading »
October 23rd 2008
One of the first questions you should ask yourself is if you will be able to run and manage your new business with the resources you’ll have at hand. For example, if your budget projects that you won’t be able to hire help for the first three months, and you plan to work six full days a week by yourself to be available to serve customers, when will you find the time to do the bookkeeping, recordkeeping, marketing, Continue Reading »
September 26th 2008
A project programme or plan is quite a sophisticated tool. It converts the words of your agreement into a detailed sequence of interdependent actions and activities. That plan, however, is far more than just a list of those activities. For, during its creation and use, it will also provide:
A common understanding, for all involved, of what actions and resources are required
July 20th 2008
Every bank and lending institution will require a business plan before they commit themselves to lending you money. A business plan basically shows that you have established that there is a market for your product/service and that having established sufficient demand, you have a good estimate of what your costs will be, as well as your sales volume, cash-flow and likely profit (although the last is often optimistic). Continue Reading »
July 16th 2008
A contact plan describes in specific detail how you will contact prospects and customers over a period of time to meet your specific goals. Each contact plan should contain the following sections:
Your contact strategy spells out your goals and describes how ongoing customer communication will be used to meet those goals. When thinking about your contact strategy, be sure to consider the online service imperative. What are you going to offer your existing and prospective customers in exchange for giving you permission to contact them? When Wegmans Food Markets developed its contact strategy, it focused on extending the service and customer-oriented approach that you’ll find in its retail stores to email communication. It has developed a contact strategy that is focused more on delivering relevant content and information than on selling. Its goal is to ensure that it provides its customers with notification of special produce, recipes, health tips, and more in order to simplify their grocery shopping and food preparation tasks. Continue Reading »
July 16th 2008
What kinds of things will trigger contact? In some instances you’ll plan and schedule your contacts far in advance (such as annual sales). Others times you’ll be responding to one of the following situations:
May 11th 2008
There are many situations that may cause you to seriously consider selling out. Among these are the obvious such as age, ill health, a decision to move your family to a new area, burnout, family pressure, or just the desire to move on to something new.
When selling becomes a serious option, you need at least nine months to find a buyer and consummate the sale. For even better results, plan to take two years. Here are the steps you should follow to obtain the highest price for your enterprise.
May 8th 2008
Too often, it happens that an elaborate business plan is drawn up for the bank and investors, and then it ends up in a cupboard gathering dust. Instead, you should use the business plan as a management tool to keep track of your progress and benchmark your successes. Obviously, your business plan will also change as you go along. It is a dynamic tool that you should be constantly sharpening and tweaking. So, how can you use your business plan as a management tool? Continue Reading »
May 8th 2008
Just as you need a solid foundation for a building, so you need theright infrastructure for your business. This needs to be addressed ahead of time. Seriously, many businesses fail because they become too successful. Their infrastructure can’t cope with their growth and so their business literally falls apart. Don’t make that mistake. Clearly define what infrastructure will be required to run your business, both in the short and long-term. Let’s look at the different components of your business infrastructure:
May 6th 2008
The quality of your business plan will ultimatelydetermine the quality of your future and that of your family
A note before you take this step: the business plan is written for YOU. You must be comfortable with it. It must a friendly, easy-to-use, simple guide to help you manage your business and, as importantly, measure your achievements. You must personally compile your business plan and take full ownership of it. Although you may need to use consultants or advisors, this is your future you are planning. The quality of your business plan will ultimately determine the quality of your future and that of your family. Continue Reading »
