Posts Tagged ‘Planning’
Marketing Strategy 101: How Your Small Business Can Make It Big in 2017
The last few weeks leading to the new year affects businesses everywhere – whether it boosts your revenues due to holiday shopping or slows down sales because your line of business doesn’t complement the season. For small businesses, a drop in sales may mean more serious repercussions compared to big companies. Whatever the case may…
Read More5 Things We Can Learn from T-Mobile’s Customer-Centric Branding Strategy
Until recently, typical industry leaders were distant and indifferent towards the frustrations of their customers. Things are no longer the same. The more time people spend on the internet, the more they realize that their voice matters. Nowadays, the echoes of one disgruntled customer can blow up a company’s entire marketing strategy. This realization first…
Read MoreIs Your Business Stable Enough for Growth?
The question might appear almost redundant: what business wouldn’t benefit from growth? But while growth is the lifeblood of any company, it also brings significant challenges—particularly in the cash flow department. In fact, a growth phase can be particularly dangerous as it will involve heavy investment in the business, including the purchase of new stock…
Read MoreA Good Resolution: Schedule Regular Management Meetings
It’s not too late to schedule your monthly management meetings for this year. Use some regular meeting schedule such as the third or fourth Thursday of every month. Review your business plan milestone dates, deadlines, tasks, plan vs. actual results, and upcoming milestone dates and deadlines. All the managers committed to the plan will know way…
Read MoreHalf of New Businesses Don’t Survive the First 5 Years: Don’t Be One of Them
At one time or another, most of us have thought about starting a business. The temptation of being your own boss, making your own schedules, and working for your own company can sometimes be irresistible. However, launching a new business can be a risky proposition. According to research by the Small Business Administration, only half…
Read MoreHow to Reduce Company Expenses and the Pain of Fixed Costs
Business owners constantly wrestle with the age-old question of how to reduce company expenses. While income fluctuates for most businesses, expenses are something you can exercise some control over. Expenses fall into two main categories—variable and fixed. Typically, variable expenses, as the name suggests, change with revenue. As your revenue increases, you tend to spend…
Read MoreQuestions to Ask Trade Show Organizers
I am often asked how to tell which vendor events will be worth your time to attend. There are two things you should do to determine if a trade show is a good use of your time and money before signing up: Visit theevent as a guest and check it out for yourself. Often you will be surprised…
Read MoreThe 3 Strategy Questions Leaders Need to Ask Right Now
Do you smell that? That, my friend, is the smell of freshly baked, ready-to-serve strategy. This familiar aroma is wafting through the halls of many companies this time of year as diligent executives return from retreats in fancy places to reveal the results of the heavy lifting called strategic planning. These sessions are as exhausting…
Read More5 Tips for Applying for an Online Loan
It’s no secret that small businesses are critical to the nation’s economic prosperity. After all, they employ nearly half of all U.S. workers. With so many relying on the success of small businesses, it’s more important than ever for owners to have quick and convenient access to funding that can keep their businesses running—and growing—smoothly.…
Read More5 Simple Rules for Better Business Decisions
They teach decision sciences in business schools. Those of us doing business, either as entrepreneurs, business owners, or careerists, talk a lot, and think a lot, about business decisions. We all want better business decisions. I’ve taken some of those courses and heard a lot of the talk, and I’ve survived running my own business…
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