Business Strategy – Strategic Networks

Building your business cannot be done alone. It requires a team of dedicated leaders, staff, suppliers and a well developed team of outsiders who have a vested interest in your business. We call them your Strategic Network. People in your Strategic Network fall into one of three groups

Foundation Network – the people you need in order to build your business, these people offers services, advice and products that your business relies on to function.

Support Network – the people you use for emotional support and advice.

Expansion Network – the people you use to build and develop a wider footprint for your brand.

Watch the video, subscribe to our channel to keep informed of further videos and more business tips and tricks.

By |2016-11-01T10:20:08+02:00April 11th, 2016|Bruce on Business, Business Resources, Entrepreneurship|0 Comments

Business Growth Strategy – Product offerings

What is your current product offering linked to your existing resources? How do you leverage these to develop a firm future focused business growth strategy? We explain a simple to use, yet effective tool that will assist you to map out a product/resource strategy for your business.

A successful business needs to develop a constant relationship between existing assets and resources and product offering, always looking to develop both. But added to this is the need to develop new assets in the form of Staff, Equipment and IP to equip the business to increase the product offering in both width and depth. View this week’s Bruce on Business video for the full story.

By |2016-11-01T10:20:08+02:00April 4th, 2016|Bruce on Business, Business Resources|0 Comments

April is Strategy Month – Do you have one?

This time of year when the seasons change and the new financial year is finally in full swing we tend to look towards our budgets and forecasts with a little doubt and fear. Developing a solid business growth strategy has to be the best way to secure the future of your business. But what is s strategy? How does one go about developing a plan on paper that actually translates into implemented actions and improvements to the bottom lines?

Join us this month as we unpack the different models, frameworks and tools of a functional business strategy.

By |2016-11-01T10:20:08+02:00April 1st, 2016|Bruce on Business, Business Resources|0 Comments

Planning your Business with a Budget


Budgets are never a priority in a small business. But they do serve an important purpose in helping you and your business plan and stay in business for the next financial year.

Michelle gives us 3 good reasons to develop and plan a budget for  your business.

If  you have any questions about your budget, please do not hesitate to give us a call or click and we will be able to assist you.

By |2016-11-01T10:20:09+02:00March 14th, 2016|Bruce on Business, Business Resources|0 Comments

5 steps to make you stick with your marketing plan

MArketing StrategyIt may be tempting to abandon your long term marketing plan when you do not see it working immediately. Don’t! Stick to it and work on it every day.  Be consistent in implementing it. Give it time to work.

These 5 steps can help you make the most of your long-term marketing plan:

  1. Focus on your niche.

Become the expert in all things involving your niche. Don’t limit your knowledge to the services you offer. The more you know about your niche’s priorities and challenges, the more valuable a resource you can become to them. Become familiar with other professionals who can assist your niche with challenges outside your expertise. When you’re tempted to work with clients outside your niche, make sure the time and payoff will be worth it and won’t draw you away from your commitment.

  1. Stay close to your ideal client.

Networking, surveys, online community forums, trade magazines, and associations are all great ways to keep sharp about the things that matter to your ideal client. Also, stay on top of the news, and ask yourself how your client’s needs will be affected by changes in the business and world environment.

  1. Keep your eyes on your competition.

If your clients stop think­ing that you offer a competitive advantage in addressing their needs, you lose and the competition wins. Don’t be the last to know what your competition is doing.

  1. Make sure you’re positioned to win.

If you’re doing the first four steps, you’ll know when it’s time to change your tune, tweak your message, and speak a new language that’s more in tune with what your ideal client needs. Ask yourself, “Is my unique selling proposition still unique? Does anyone do it better? What one thing can I do to serve my clients better?” That’s how you stay unique.

  1. Take action every day.

Follow your schedule. Complete the actions you say you’ll complete in your daily sched­ule. At the end of the week, give yourself a grade for effort. Then give yourself another one for accomplishment. If you’re getting A’s for effort and C’s for accomplishment, trouble­shoot.

 

By |2016-11-01T10:20:11+02:00February 11th, 2016|Business Resources|0 Comments

BOB 14 – Sales Cycle

A lot has been written about the attributions of sales cycle. It really is a simple  step by step process.

Here are the 5 steps of the sales cycle:

1. Inform

You’ve got to inform your customers about your product. Inform them that they have a problem. inform them that they need it. create awareness.

2. Educate

People need to be educated before you can call them potential client. Educate them about your product or your service offering. How does your product solve their problem? Educate them about how it works, where it works. Do some educating marketing.

3. Sell

Don’t jump into selling unless you’ve informed and educated. Do selling campaigning.

4. Re – selling

Remember it’s 10 times easier to re-sell to an existing client than to sell to a completely new one. Re-sell should be your strategic part of your marketing.

5. up-selling

This is about the other complementary services around your product or service offering. What else can you plug in to the initial product.

 

 

 

 

By |2016-11-01T10:20:11+02:00February 8th, 2016|Business Resources|0 Comments

And the winner is…

We are entering the awards season for television, music and the movies again. The press is all abuzz with predictions and hopefuls doing their campaigning and speech writing. But there has been another prize more sought after than any Oscar or Golden Globe.

The US Power Ball was drawn yesterday with the winning numbers 4-8-19-27-34: 10. This has escalated one person who bought a ticket at the 7-Eleven in Chino Hills, California to a new wealth of $1.4 billion.
That translated into local currency looks like this: R23 229 920 000.00. So what would you do with this sort of deposit into your bank account?lottery-balls-cash

OK, let’s stop dreaming, it wasn’t you who won, so get over it. But what was interesting is how so many people all around the world were going frantic to win their fortune. Ticket sales were reported as $1.3 million per minute leading up to the draw last night. I am sure that everyone who had a ticket was already dreaming about their future spending, plans to travel and donate to charity. But the emotional downer of not winning and having to now cope with the jealousy against the winner and all hopes of a financial secure future dashed.

What lessons can or should we learn from all of this? I have a few to share:
Do not put all your hope in winning a future. I know too many people who have put their life on hold until they win the lotto.
Do not spend essential money on gambling. Allocate a certain amount if you must and then spend that and only that.
See the lotto and gambling as a form of entertainment, not as a form of income.
Make plans for your life that do not include winning a future. Plan a career, start a company, invest in something more substantial with better odds that 1 in 292 million.
Work is a blessing. Go out each day and work hard for your living. Put passion, effort and energy into each day and do not wait on the side lines hoping for a free handout. It may never come.
So, let’s go out today and get over your no-winning blues, get dressed and put in a good days work. And congratulations to that person in California, I trust that you will spend the money wisely, with caution and intent. And if you have any left, please read this blog for my details.

By |2016-11-01T10:20:13+02:00January 14th, 2016|Business Resources|0 Comments

Business Rescue Programme now available

The journey that each emerging business must take is paved with obstacles, sharp turns and deadly traps. Navigating this road as an Entrepreneur is not and never will be an easy task. For the first timer or even experienced business owner, it can be a nightmare of sink sand and red tape often resulting in the demise of both your business and financial security.

But not all is lost. The Entrepreneur Incubator has developed a treatment plan for this terminal condition: the Business Rescue Programme is now available for those who want some business medical intervention. This intensive care programme will help you understand what is going wrong, determine a diagnosis and develop a treatment plan.

The two days are spend in a workshop environment with others in a similar situation, guided by an experienced Business Coach, as you assess your business using a variety of methodologies and tools. The second day is dedicated to a future focused strategy that will assist in finding a way forward towards full business health and future wealth.

This programme is currently offered in Cape Town each month and will be rolled out to other centres around South Africa as requested. A virtual course will be made available later this year that can be done online.

For more information or to book your place on the next Business Rescue Programme, go to www.ei.co.za/coaching/rescue. Your business health awaits you.

By |2016-11-01T10:20:14+02:00January 11th, 2016|Business Resources|0 Comments

5 ways to make customers eat out of your hand: Part 3

Here is part 3 of the excellent customer service skills you must have to have your clients eat out of your hand.

 

customer+service

1. Have time management skills

Managing your time properly as a customer service representative can ultimately mean the difference between falling behind in minimum calls required and excelling in the position you are holding.

2. Know your organization

Interacting with your colleagues and being friendly with them will help you if you ever face complex problems. The more people you get to know in your organization the easier it is to work together to ensure that customers are satisfied.

3. Be friendly and compassionate 

Your friendly and caring attitude will surely help in creating the right atmosphere for coming to the best solutions.

4. Be a leader 

Showing that you are capable of providing new solutions fir customers proves your leadership skills and increases your professionalism.

5. Learn from mistakes 

Taking time to reflect on any mistakes you have made is a way for you to gain insight in to how to properly manage customers and effectively communicate at all times.

By |2016-11-01T10:20:15+02:00December 11th, 2015|Business Resources|0 Comments

Learn from mistakes

MistakesAs Scott Berkun puts it, “It’s never easy to admit you’ve made a mistake, but it’s a crucial step in learning, growing, and improving yourself.” So, as the year 2015 comes to an end, most people take some time to look back at what happened throughout the year and spot the mistakes that they might have made and so on.

Taking time to reflect on any mistakes you have done can be a way of you gaining insight in to how to best manage customers and effectively communicate at all times. You can only learn from a mistake after you admit you’ve made it. Nobody can claim that they do not make mistakes; after all, to err is human isn’t it?. So, admitting to your mistakes is crucial. As soon as you distance yourself from your mistake, you are missing an opportunity to learn and grow.

By |2016-11-01T10:20:15+02:00December 9th, 2015|Business Resources|0 Comments
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