Business Trouble Shooting

We all face problems at work, and more often than not they are problems shared by everyone around us. LBN ran a round-table Business Trouble Shooting discussion to help find some solutions. Listed below are the problems people are currently facing and the solutions what were suggested.

 

DISCUSSION ONE:

Time management & meeting expectations

• Not enough hours in the day
• Client expecting you to be available 24/7
• Getting into a routine
• Time management
• Lack of structure
• How do I manage my own expectations in order to mange my clients expectations
• How can I prioritise my business when my life I so busy and chaotic
• Consistency & Priority

 

The Solutions

• Let customers know you have a waiting list
• Up your price
• Employ someone – apprentice or trainee
• Reduce expectation
• What do you want from your business? Find what you want and your clients/customer will have to follow

• Recommended Time Management book – Time tactics of very successful people

• REMEMBER: you will only ever do half the work you plan
• Realistically you will only do three things a day. Plan your work correctly!

• Create a Monthly work plan. Then split it into weeks/days as required
• 3 year plan, 2 year plan, 1 year plan, Monthly Plan, Daily plan
• Plan your day – split it into 4 sections
• Calendar App – colour co-ordinates so you can prioritise
• Other App suggestions Excello (project management app), Trello, Hubspot, Basecamp
• A good way to set up your project timeline is to plan across rather than down

• Write lists of everything you need to do and cross it off as you go. Especially if feeling overwhelmed as you can see what you are achieving

• Time slot your emails. Only read emails once or twice a day
• Set up an email Out of Office

• Do what you are dreading first

• Set up your company the way you want to from the start. Don’t go out of your way to please people if you don’t mean to continue offering the service at that level

 

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DISCUSSION TWO:

I’m a new business & finding it difficult getting into certain areas. Besides Social Media is there other ways to get out there?

 

The Solutions

• Networking / meeting people. Cumbria area is very strong for referrals
• You need to showcase trust
• Testimonials
• Case Studies
• Behind the scenes / a day in the life
• Articles in magazines
• Press Release
• Word of mouth / referral

 

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DISCUSSION THREE:

Finance Software

 

The Solutions

• Check with your bank. Some offer free online book-keeping software (Free Agent with NatWest)
• By 2020 Tax will be digital. HMRC will require all businesses to be doing their book-keeping online
• HMRC supply a free version of online accounting software – Basic Tools (Not Recommended!)
• There are many paid and free options out there:
• Xero (Angela Favell recommended)
• Quick books
• Freshbooks

 

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DISCUSSION FOUR:

Recommendations for a New Business
3 key things to ask yourself when setting up a business online

 

The Solutions

• Start as you mean to go on
• Set-up your pricing structure correctly from the start.
• What are you worth? What is your personal survival budget? Then work backwards to price your goods / services
• Anticipate your clients
• Good Customer Service is essential
• Cumbria Chamber of Commerce offer a 3 day course for anyone start a new business
• Be consistent
• Promise & deliver
• Do a competitor analysis
• You can collaborate with your competitors
• Find and know your audience
• Find your USP – what will you give your customer/clients?
• Do 100% what you believe in
• Don’t be everything to everyone
• Who do you want your customer to be?

 

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DISCUSSION FIVE:

Finding your Unique Selling Point (USP) and using this in marketing

 

The Solutions

• Ask ‘what makes me unique?’ If X offer the same service – why should the client/customer buy from you?
• Ask your existing customers why they use your services
• Combine you with your USP
• Ask questions / listen to your client
• Value yourself
• Hire a copywriter to help define yourself. It is difficult to do your own
• Ask family & friends do help define you / your business
• What are your brand values? These will define who you are
• Grammerly

 

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DISCUSSION SIX:

Finding time for Social Media & the best time to do this for a maximum audience

 

The Solutions

• Use a content Calendar
• Write a content plan and schedule
• There is so much content out there it is recommended that you produce quality not quantity. You only need to post a few times a week
• Make sure your branding is constant al the way through
• Keep a bank of photos and post ideas (secret Pinterest board is a good idea)
• Have hashtag ladders – list of 5 related hashtags
• Sian Conway from #ethicalhour is great for Instagram. She also has a podcast which has great tips
• Best time to post is different for every business. You need to look at your follower stats and see when they are online. All social media has this option

 

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DISCUSSION SEVEN:

Being taken seriously
What happens when your customer/clients are older?
How to keep in touch with clients who move on

 

The Solution

• Employe an agent or ask someone to act as an agent
• You need to establish trust – have testimonials
• Videos of work online that you can refer people too
• Video introduction to showcase work for potential clients
• Join LinkedIn – more business orientated than some of the other Social Media platforms
• Make sure you befriend customers on LinkedIn / FB etc so if they do move on you can still contact them

 

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