Business Education

Is Your Business Really Ready to Expand in the Coming New Year

Is your business really ready to expand in the coming new year? Although the question seems complicated, it’s not too difficult to answer. Just four key factors can quickly help you determine if you’re ready to expand your business. And, perhaps more importantly, if your company is ready to expand.

What it Really Means to Expand a Business

Business owners often think about two elements when it comes to expansion — output and sales. Of course, it’s not that simple. However, these are two very important parts of the overall equation. Nonetheless, what it really means to expand a business is to take on a whole new level of responsibility.

Even thinking about growing your business is exciting. Expansion means more products or services, customers, sales, and income for you. And, for businesses with physical locations, expansion might mean opening a bigger or second location. Before you rush into expanding your small business, you need to make sure your company is actually ready for growth. Your recent business success isn’t the only thing you should look at.
—Forbes.com

It also means the business having to respond to a new level of production while not losing it’s nimbleness or its personalized customer service. After all, if it can’t do the latter two — stay agile and maintain customer care quality — it will hurt the company greatly.

4 Signs It’s Time to Expand Your Business

So, just what are the signs that it’s time to expand a business? Well, it comes down to only a select group of factors, which include the following:

You have too much business. Time and again, you’re falling behind because you simply lack the resources to get all the work done. You’ve streamlined every single solitary step along the way and still, you’re not able to adequately keep up. Worse yet, it’s starting to show itself to customers. Too much work and too few resources to get it done in a timely manner.
You have a strong team in-place. Your team members are your secret sauce. Without them, you’d really be in big trouble. Fortunately, they’re able to pull off magnificent feats over and over again. Well, that’s not only good news for the present, but really good for a future expansion.
You have the money to expand. Expanding usually means incurring significant expenses. But, if you have some retained earnings saved and a strong forecast for the next several months, you probably can afford to expand your operation.
You have a plan to upscale your operation. While the first three elements are absolutely critical, this is perhaps the most important of all because it will define your way forward. (It’s also where winging it just won’t cut it.) So, take the time to consult an experienced business consultant and coach. Someone who has helped companies grow before. Work together to formulate an actionable expansion plan.

What other advice would you give business owners who want to know if it’s time to expand? Please share your thoughts and experiences by commenting!

Interested in learning more about business? Then just visit Waters Business Consulting Group.

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How Small Business Owners Can Craft Irresistible Discounts and Sales that Standout from the Competition

October 18, 2023 No Comments

How Small Business Owners Can Craft Irresistible Discounts and Sales that Standout from the Competition In the competitive landscape of modern commerce, offering discounts and sales is a strategic way for small business owners to attract customers and boost sales. However, simply slashing prices is not enough; your discounts and sales need to stand out amidst the sea of offers customers encounter daily. Because of this, it’s necessary to explore the most effective strategies small business owners can use to make their discounts and sales not only noticeable but also irresistible. By implementing these techniques, you can increase closed deals, enhance customer loyalty, and ultimately, drive higher profits for your business. Ways Small Businesses Can Offer Enticing Discounts and Sales that Beat Out Their Competition Discounts and sales are a great way to attract new customers and increase sales. However, with so many businesses offering discounts and sales, it can be difficult to make your offers stand out. Here are a few tips on how to make your discounts and sales stick out over the competition: Offer unique discounts and promotions. Instead of just offering a generic discount, try offering a more unique discount that is relevant to your business and target audience. For example, you could offer a discount for first-time customers, a discount for students or seniors, or a discount for customers who refer their friends. Use creative marketing language. When promoting your discounts and sales, use creative and eye-catching language that will grab attention. For example, you could use phrases like “Limited-time offer!” or “Save big today!” You could also use images and videos to help promote your discounts and sales. Personalize your discounts and promotions. When possible, try to personalize your discounts and promotions for each customer. For instance, you could send customers personalized email offers based on their purchase history or interests. You could also offer discounts and promotions to customers on their birthday or other special occasions. Make it easy for customers to redeem your discounts and promotions. Your discounts and promotions should be easy for customers to redeem. Avoid using complicated codes or restrictions. You should also make sure that your discounts and promotions are prominently displayed on your website and in your store. Also, be sure to track the results of your discounts and promotions. It is important to track the results of your discounts and promotions so that you can see what is working and what is not. This will help you to improve your future discounts and promotions. More Discount Strategies Small Businesses Can Use While these methods are actionable and helpful, there are additional ways to make such offers enticing to new and repeat customers. Here are a few additional tips that can help you increase the number of closed deals and profits from your discounts and sales: Create a sense of urgency. When promoting your discounts and sales, create a sense of urgency by letting customers know that the offer is only available for a limited time. This will encourage customers to act quickly and make a purchase. Use social proof. Social proof is a powerful psychological phenomenon that can influence people’s behavior. When people see that others are taking advantage of your discounts and sales, they are more likely to do the same. You can use social proof by displaying testimonials from satisfied customers on your website and in your store. You can also promote your discounts and sales on social media and encourage customers to share their experiences with their friends and followers. Upsell and cross-sell. When customers are taking advantage of your discounts and sales, it is a great opportunity to upsell and cross-sell them on other products and services. For example, if a customer is buying a new phone, you could upsell them on a case or screen protector. Additionally, you could also cross-sell them on a wireless plan or accessories. By following these tips, you can make your discounts and sales stand out over the competition and increase the number of closed deals and profits. But, take the time to experiment to learn what works most effectively. Chances are there’s a combination that will yield the best results. With a little trial and error, you’ll discover what works and what doesn’t. Right now, you can get John Waters’ latest book for FREE! (Currently selling for $19.95 on Amazon). This inspiring book titled “Profit by Design: The Blueprint to Successfully Scale Your Business and Regain Your Freedom” is a must-read for business owners who want to do just that! Request your FREE copy in any of the following ways: By phone 602-435-5474 Visit Waters Business Consulting Group By email: Steve@WatersBusinessConsulting.com

Get Your Body Butter and Toothbrush Rentals Here! What could Possibly Go Wrong?

April 10, 2019 No Comments

Strangely, no one is lining up outside the body butter and toothbrush rental stand. How odd? Who would have guessed such an idea wouldn’t take off? After all, you have a huge selection. So, there are plenty of choices. Yet, no one is interested. Something’s amiss here and you can’t quite put your finger on it. Even Good Business Ideas are Not Guaranteed Winning Strategies Okay, so the headline says it all. It’s a totally ridiculous business model. There’s not a person near or far interested in renting body butter or a toothbrush. Yet, people do come up with some strange concepts to sell and are surprised when they don’t pan out. You’ve created something unheard of. You’re passionate about it. You believe in it. You’ve also spent an insane amount of time figuring the whole business out down to the tiniest detail. By now, you can talk about it for hours — and to top it off, it actually is a great idea. But for some reason, you can’t sell it. So, what’s the problem? —Forbes.com On the flip side, there’s no guarantee a really good idea will widely succeed. Even the best concepts run into problems. In other words, solid products and services aren’t immune from the realities of the marketplace. Put another way, there is no straight path from unknown to sensation. How to Test a Business Idea So, how do you know if a business idea is worth pursuing in the first place? How can you determine if it’s something which has a real chance of making it in the free market? Try these suggestions to establish a baseline: Look for successful competition. Everyone wants to believe their idea is “new.” But, that’s usually not the case. In-part or whole, it’s likely been done before. So, look for examples and see how they fared. Test different versions several times. There’s no such thing as perfect. Meaning, your business idea isn’t without some sort of flaw. Even if you’re really confident in what you’ll offer, it could perform better or worse, depending on a few tweaks. Offer a variety and see which works. Explore the industry to gain an understanding. It’s certainly true good ideas are boxed out of the marketplace because they aren’t allowed. Perhaps it’s too heavily regulated or there are just too many obstacles to make it feasible. Think about how it can scale and adapt over time. If the business can’t scale up to meet demand, that’s a big, red flag. And, if it’s not able to evolve with the changing times, that too, is a big obstacle. Think about creating a Minimum Viable Product (MVP). Ok, what the heck is an MVP. A minimum viable product (MVP) is a concept from Lean Startup that stresses the impact of learning in new product development. Eric Ries, defined an MVP as that version of a new product which allows a team to collect the maximum amount of validated learning about customers with the least effort. This validated learning comes in the form of whether your customers will actually purchase your product. A key premise behind the idea of MVP is that you produce an actual product (which may be no more than a landing page, or a service with an appearance of automation, but which is fully manual behind the scenes) that you can offer to customers and observe their actual behavior with the product or service. Seeing what people actually do with respect to a product is much more reliable than asking people what they would do. If the business can’t scale up to meet demand, that’s a big, red flag. And, if it’s not able to evolve with the changing times, that too, is a big obstacle. How do you test a business idea to ensure it’s a viable one? Please share your thoughts and experiences by commenting! Interested in learning more about business? Then just visit Waters Business Consulting Group.

4 Big Problems with a WFH and On-Site Hybrid Business Operation

June 15, 2021 No Comments

With the roll-backs of local, state, and federal COVID-19 restrictions, businesses are attempting to return to a state of normalcy. But, reinstating pre-pandemic conditions isn’t as simple as they ought to be, and too many entrepreneurs are experiencing such a cruel reality. So, some are experimenting with a hybrid solution: a combination of work-from-home or WFH and on-site business operation. Sure, it certainly sounds like a logical solution. But, every solution breeds new problems. Meaning, there are distinct disadvantages to adopting a WFH and on-site business model. Biggest Hybrid Workplace Advantages Obviously, corporations around the world wouldn’t put a hybrid model in-place unless it had substantial benefits. And, there are some compelling reasons, like the potential of increased productivity via a customizable schedule. After all, happy employees are more productive and that’s certainly good for the bottom line. Then, there’s the morale boost which comes from being able to choose from WFH and on-site. Employees cherish the freedom and that too, helps to boost both productivity and morale. What many companies are converging on is a mixture of remote working and traditional office working, known as the hybrid workplace. A hybrid workplace exists when a business allows their employees to work either remotely or from the office. In a typical hybrid workplace, employees have the choice of working in a central office, working from home, or splitting their time between the two. —WeWork Ideas Blog Additionally, it can help to reduce operating costs, which decrease with the lessened need of supporting individuals constantly on-site. Moreover, it allows employees to avoid toxic situations. For instance, two or more employees who don’t get along very well in-person can find relief by not having to be in close proximity. 4 Issues with a WFH and On-Site Hybrid Business Operation While a hybrid operation might sound like a perfect answer, that just isn’t the case. Unfortunately, there are big potential problems with adopting a hybrid model, as the following issues might present: Managing a hybrid team is very difficult. Anyone with experience in managing a team is familiar with the vast time and effort that goes into making it work. Now, add-in a bunch of other variables that weren’t present before and it’s easy to imagine just how more difficult or nightmarish managing people in totally different physical locations is in reality. Some WFH employees will take advantage. Put this problem in the all-too-obvious column: some employees will exploit the new policies to their own personal advantage, even if it results in harming others and/or the company. While it’s not something you might relish thinking about, it is most definitely a possibility or perhaps, even a probability. A hybrid scenario can easily foster resentment. Another potential problem is along the same lines as the one above — that one or more employees will gain a sense of others’ nefarious behaviors regarding the hybrid operation. That could very well cause resentment to rear its ugly head. Not everyone will contribute the same amount. Expounding on the last two possible issues, is the real possibility one or more employees will shuffle responsibilities off their own shoulders and onto their coworkers through a form of sleight of hand. What other suggestions do you have to deal with potential work-from-home issues? Please take a few minutes to share your thoughts and experiences. Perhaps others can benefit from your unique perspective! Interested in learning more about business? Then just visit Waters Business Consulting Group.