Business owners these days rarely take the time to analyze the performance of their various ventures. With the emergence of a global economy that is literally a click away, most businesses—if not all—are too focused on pushing volumes and mutating the bottom line.
One may be quick to defend this highly impersonal attitude as being effective and practical, but in reality it is nothing more than a recipe for disaster in the long-term. As a business owner, if your eyes are set on building longevity, growth and brand loyalty customers, then the time has come for you to break the bad habits that are standing in your way of becoming the next tycoon in your market category.
Poor Customer Engagement
Only a handful of people have the charismatic touch of turning first time buyers into regular customers at the drop of a hat. The sour truth is that most of the companies out there have little concern for the customer, as relations with them are purely touch and go. What if you made the extra effort to be more responsive, caring and engaging? Wouldn’t that be a smart way of gaining a competitive edge over rivals caught in the age-old habit of indifference towards customers? Without customers, the business dies.
Market behavior analysis has proven that most customers become loyal to brands on an emotional level, preferring to stick to companies that express a genuine concern for them and their needs. So it comes as no surprise that poor engagement can only be solved by reaching out and appealing to the customer as a human and not just dollar signs.
After examining customers in the restaurant business, it has emerged that engaged customers make a staggering 56% more visits every month than disengaged customers (those who buy on a whim and are indifferent to brand names). Many businesses don’t even take the time to respond to their customers on Facebook or Twitter.
Tools known to make radical changes in this regard include Boomerang, which is a Gmail plugin that sends reminders to follow up and get back to customers. Hootsuite’s powerful tool helps you as a small business owner manage various social media channels from one place. One of the most efficient ways to engage is to use an all-in-one content management system like Indigenous Software which gives you email marketing privileges, e-commerce solutions and analytics all at the tip of your fingers.
Micromanaging Employees
Being a control freak never ends well, and in business, there is no exception. If you are in the habit of trying to control and manage every single aspect of your company, you should not be surprised when you wonder why you never have time for your family or leisure activities. Delegating responsibly allows you to focus on what is most important, growing your business. You must understand that just because you complete a task in a specific way, this does not mean it is the only way to achieve the end goal.
By empowering your employees, you allow them to be a part of the growth process and they will return the favor by expressing excitement, creating new ideas and minimizing your workloads. Better time management can be achieved by having a day planner, using time limit projections for tasks, project management tools and learning to say NO to the unimportant objectives.
Procrastination: Not Planning Ahead
Every second that trickles away as you ponder aimlessly, flows into a reservoir of lost time. We tend to put things we consider boring and demanding on standby, preferring the easy route. Thawing your frozen thoughts and forcing action can cure procrastination. No one likes to be kept waiting; if anything procrastination leads to distrust, loss of respect and in business this will promote a bad reputation.
Several apps help in this regard. Trello is a team collaboration tool that eases the pressure of daunting task by helping co-ordinate useful collaboration work. Google Calendar is another useful tool which emphasizes scheduling, planning and business implementation.
Lack of Team Communication
According to statistical surveys nearly 92% of all CEO’s claim that team communication is vital to the success of strategic plans. Nearly half of the people approached reported that communication is pivotal to the strategic planning and implementation process.
High-performing organizations have been known to create formal communication plans for twice the number of projects than their lower performing competitors. So it is no secret that for your business strategy to work, it has to be implemented point-by-point, otherwise your projections will fall short of the stated expectations.
Management will communicate more effectively if there are scheduled weekly meetings, centralized online communication tools and updated progress reports on achievements. Studies show that leaders with high emotional intelligence help eliminate disagreements and conflict through excellence communication to keep synergy within the team.
The fact that you are industrious enough to try to make it out on your own means you have what it takes to make a success out of your business venture. If you are able to break these bad habits while keeping your confidence high, then you will surely make a mark in the world.
Author: Andrew Deen has been a consultant for startups in almost every industry from retail to medical devices and everything in between. He implements lean methodology and currently writing a book about scaling. Contact him by email or Twitter @AndrewDeen14
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