Build Relationships
Much of the business world is simply based on relationships. It is not always what you know, but who you know. If I look back on my business, close to 100% of my revenue has resulted from people that I know directly doing business with 0me, or people I know referring business to me.
Unfortunately, many people, especially smaller business owners, get caught up in the “cave syndrome.” They drive from home to work, and back home again. They live in virtual isolation, and wonder why their business suffers and why they have few friends. Yet to be successful, we need to be in touch with people now more than ever. Set a goal of reaching out to people. Take a more active role in your industry and in your community. People do business with people that they know.
Price right
The wrong price can seriously hurt your success. A price that’s too low can be even worse than one that’s too high if it prevents you from having the resources to provide the best service to your customers. A good profit can keep you motivated through the tough and discouraging times that come to all businesses. Your prices will have to pay for all the familiar bills: rent, utilities, repairs, insurance, outside services, taxes, licenses, registrations, back-up resources, advertising, supplies, equipment, postage, phones, pagers, and everything else that makes it possible for you to serve your customer.
There will be unexpected costs and uncollected billings. A very low price might even cause prospects to doubt the quality of your offer. Read about pricing, learn to test prices, and make pricing a part of your overall business strategy and marketing position.
Sure you have to keep an eye on the bottom line, but you don’t have to make a profit on every single thing you ever do in your life. Give full measure, pressed down, heaped up and overflowing. It’ll be a better world for everybody. A little good will here and there can go a long way towards a greater overall business. In a world so full of need, learn to be generous with what you have.
Cut costs as you raise product quality
This comes down to not wasting assets. Don’t buy what you don’t need or can’t afford. Spending a little more up front can mean fewer repairs or replacements, decreasing your expenses in the long run. When I need to buy something, I ask myself if I can hold off the purchase for one more day. That simple act keeps me from spending impulsively and allows me to buy the quality that I need when I truly need it.
Make an offer
Do something! After all the thinking, planning, reading, and strategizing, you eventually have to offer to sell somebody your product or service. Tell people what you do or provide and ask for their business. Get an order, deliver the goods, and get paid. If you repeat this process over and over again, your business has no choice but to grow.
Little by little, small improvements add up over time. You may not be able to make your business perfect, but if you continually make it better as you go along you will be amazed at the results. Ben Bradley, former editor of the Washington Post, had a teacher who said “Our best today, better tomorrow.” Apply the same idea to your business and you’ll be far ahead of where you are now. Time is going to pass by regardless, so you might as well put it to good use by getting better.
Stop when it doesn’t work
Brian Tracy states that over 70% of all business decisions are bad ones. Yet, despite that high rate, businesses do succeed and grow. Those organizations are successful because the management knows when to stop putting resources into something that isn’t working. Take time to see what isn’t working in your business. Stop wasting precious resources.
Make time for yourself and your family
No one has ever heard at a funeral that “The deceased told me to tell everyone here today that they wished they had spent more time at their office.” We have 168 hours each week and we need to make sure that some of that time is spent in rest, and with our loved ones.
Hang in there; be persistent
“Press On: Nothing in the world can take the place of persistence. Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education will not; the world is full of educated derelicts. Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent.”
Many businesses and individuals succeed because of sheer persistence. Some businesses not only get past the survival stage, but they prosper and grow. Persistence is a key ingredient for any business that wants to be successful for the long term.
