The best way to increase sales is to make sure each new sale acquires a customer that can come back for another sale. Treat the sales process as a service that makes it easy for the customer to make a decision and to buy....
Having clear policies and procedures is one very good way of defining exactly how the business should work. Better still, having business processes outlined is a great way of examining weaknesses and identifying areas for improvement....
The best way to grow a startup service business is through referrals. This approach removes the need for sales and marketing expense while at the same time providing a third party reference that makes the sale easier and the price higher....
You will almost certainly need external advice to support an ISO 9000 certification for your business. This is not just about internal expertise, but about taking an independent, objective view on policies and procedures to support improvement....
A startup business has to be more than an idea when you come to sell it. For most cases, a rule of thumb is to work on building a track record of growth of at least 3 years. You also need to have enough in place to be confident to project future grow...
Being a control freak is a known risk for small business owners. If you want to grow the business you need to step back by delegating more and developing a management team. Procedures and work instructions can also help - paperless is best if you can...
A scaleable business is one that uses each sale to build residual value or ongoing income for the business. To achieve this you have to look beyond a simple sales transaction and look more in terms of customer acquisition and trust building....
The best time to sell the business is when it has a clear future and growth path ahead and at least 3 years of steady or substantial growth behind it. At this point, if the valuation is at the right level for you personally to move on, it could be ti...
As soon as your business starts to develop beyond a sole trader situation you need to have a management team in place to support operations, decision making and making it easier to obtain finance. It will also take pressure off you - reducing workloa...
How far you should grow your business depends on finding the right balance between opportunity, personal capability and personal aspiration. It is important to be honest about what you really want as money is not always the full story....
The best way to establish a new niche is to combine offering with location. So a successful local offering taken national might work. Equally, something that works well in one locality could easily work in another locality. Also consider selling poin...
