Tranferring new skills.

Over the past week I have developed new skills that adapt into the work environment. Through helping a friend negotiate a house purchase I have sharpened observation, learned to scrutinize what has been said before responding with a higher bid and to analyse the result of the conversation to ensure that we have responded correctly to the information that was supplied. Although it was an exciting time it was very tiring but caused a time for reflection on how the skills can be used in every day working life. I am sure that this will make me a sharper operator on a daily basis. Some times you need to do something different to appreciate how you normally approach a sale, client etc and that you can change your response attitude for the better.
To develop this further there are also grants available for developing skills and they are backed by the government through Business Link and the Learning and Skills Council. In this current economic climate it makes sense to train your staff and yourself with transferrable skills rather than to employ new staff that take time to induct and who may not necessarily be in it for the long term, however I also appreciate that there are also some very well qualified people on the job scene who are looking for new opportunities.

Marketing in a Recession.

As we are apparently in a recession it is important to maintain visibility infront of your prospective clients.
This does not necessarily have to be expensive but it pays to maintain a level of advertising and awareness with your audience. If you advertise regularly it might be advantageous to trim down the size of your adverts or to negotiate a deal with your supplier. Combine this with free press where possible by sending press releases out about achievements/awards won/staff recruitment/new products etc.
Keeping in touch with existing clients helps as they are true advocates of your business and are ideally placed to refer you to their friends. Try adapting the refer a friend idea by rewarding them for putting you in touch with paying customers. Set the reward to the level of the cost of your product or service and make it personal so if you are dealing with a staff member rather than the owner of a business vouchers may be appreciated whereas a free item that can be converted into cash may be better for the owner of a business................to be continued

Collaborative working.

Often we find that we are not able to supply all of the skills for a client specification and perhaps turn down the opportunity of a piece of work. Look at Networking from another angle. When you have built relationships with people in your circle you also have the ability to call in all the extra skills you need to supply a complete package as well as opening the door for work to be passed your way from these contacts. Set up a Service Level Agreement with these businesses and achieve a win/win situation for all involved.
This makes another good reason to continue Networking and increasing your circle of contacts. Opportunities are all around us if we look outside of the box, however, sometimes it is too easy to walk away rather than think through the alternative approaches.

Do you have a USP?

What gives potential customers/clients the desire to buy from you rather than your competitors? What is so good about your Company/ Business that I should buy from you? Is it your Products, Your Customer Service or something entirely different?
In the current Economic Climate you need to stand out from your competitors and by putting the emphasis on your Unique Selling Point you will be giving a clear message to your customers/clients. 'Buy from Joe Bloggs Joinery because we will call in after 6 weeks to make sure that your bookcase is as strong as we told you it would be.' A very clear message that you take pride in your work and will call back on them 6 weeks later to make sure it took the weight of the books as requested.
Think about your Unique Selling Proposition and make sure that all of your staff are also aware of what makes you stand out from the rest and that they also promote this fact.

Do you sell it all at once or do you hold something back?

We all know about the benefits of up-selling to clients but sometimes this is not a good thing to do. If you have a time dated product and you also have products that can be sold throughout the year it is best to hold those back until the time dated product is sold out and then your client does not have the option of having one or the other but you have left the door open to go back later with an item or items that can be used as an added benefit to the client. You have also not depleted their budget all in one session and left an opportunity to go for the 80/20 rule. 80% of your business from 20% of your client base. However, I hasten to add that I am not averse to selling a whole suite of products if I feel the time is right and the client will benefit from more than one product, but more about that and the 80/20 rule in another post.

Benefits of being a Member of the Rural Meeting Place

One of the benefits of being a paid up Member of the Rural Meeting Place is to supply content for this Blog area. If you are a member and would like to send me something to put here please do. I am looking for material that will make people aware of you and what you do and that will add value, so some interesting Industry news would be good, info on how you can help readers ease their business pains is definitely of interest as would be news of any Industry awards that you have won or are in the running for will be of interest. Promote yourself and your business through this Blog area. If you have something to tell but do not want to write it let me know and I will put it together for you.

Walking away from clients.

At wednesday's meeting we discussed the merits of walking away from Clients. It was very interesting to discover that the Members present, Sole traders through to the larger business, all were of the same opinion on this matter. Our business is the one in control and not the prospective customer/client. We as individuals decide who we want to do business with and how. The how being whether we credit check the potential client first ( a resounding yes), put them on a 30 day account, ask for a deposit up front or just decide not to do business with them at all. The over whelming feeling was that it is far better to take a decision prior to commencement rather than to regret a decision further down the line. All of this considered it was agreed that it is still possible to make mistakes but more bearable when a system had been followed.
Have you had to walk away from a client? How did you deal with it?