Who runs your business?
Who runs your business?
Company One
A while ago I spoke to a chap who runs a company that provides accounting solutions.
The business has been established ten years and he sees it as a service company. They have about fifty active clients whose value to them is anything from $2,000 to $120,000 a year and once they gain a client they tend to keep them.
The bigger problem is getting new business. He would like to actively target more of the larger potential business. He told me he has spent "loads" of money on sales and marketing and it's by and large been wasted. The company was up to ten staff at one point but now employs six full-time and two contracted.
He wants to get one new client per quarter rising to one a month. Although he hates telephone prospecting, because he finds it demoralising, he has engaged a lady to do some mail shots for him to follow up.
We went through the gold mine regarding best customer attributes, Decision Critical Factors and how they can both be applied to smarter prospecting and reduce rejection - "fully with you on this" – was one comment during the conversation.
So where was he, when we next spoke four months on?
Actually he was in round about the same place. The reason so much time had elapsed since we'd talked previously was that he'd been fighting fires. First tax returns got in the way, then one of his customers was being particularly demanding, then someone was off sick, then people were on holiday… anyone who’s run a small business can probably identify with the scenario, and he’s nowhere near achieving his goal because he hasn’t followed through on any of the things we talked about.
… And eighteen months on?
You’ve guessed it: He’s in exactly the same situation. I believe that he genuinely wants things to change but won't accept that the problem is largely down to him doing the same old things yet expecting different results. He’s a nice person and nobody’s fool but is he running his business or is his business running him?
Company Two
Another guy whom I first talked to about his sales and marketing activities at about the same time realised that a new approach was in order. His business provides independent market analysis on a specific industry sector to ‘money men’. His company had been going for four years and had a good reputation yet all of its work was project by project rather than on the annual fee basis that he was striving for but not making much headway in achieving.
The latter was needed to:
· More accurately forecast future business
· Plan staffing levels and
· Grow the company
We agreed that his primary aim was to discover whether this fee basis would be a viable option for any of his current or future clients. That required him undertaking research that would accomplish three objectives:
· Identify/confirm the principal drivers and constraints upon retaining an independent specialist analyst company for an annual fee rather than on a project-by-project basis
· Establish/confirm what and who the hidden influences/influencers were and their power over the final decision
· Ascertain what would make choosing his company to carry out the work a viable solution
The final objective additionally enabled him to establish and act on new business opportunities.
Where is this guy’s company now?
· He has worked through the ideas we came up with together
· Changed his business plan
· Taken on an individual who has now developed his own soft sales skills
· Gained twenty new clients through a mixture of research and straightforward prospecting, two of which are really substantial
They have a much better understanding of their sales and marketing needs and have broken them down into four areas:
Cold
Sales leads
Account management
Upselling
As a result they now have a much more structured approach to their sales and marketing activities.
He doesn’t have a yacht in the Bahamas yet, but he’s well on the way to where he wants his company to be!
The moral of the tale of two businesses:
The second guy isn’t necessarily any cleverer than the first and didn’t work any harder than him but he was prepared to stop bashing his head against a brick wall when he saw it wasn’t getting him anywhere fast and try a different way.
Who runs your business: Are you in control of a sustainable expansion programme for your company?
Who runs your business - To learn more about this author, visit Linda Mattacks's Website.
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Would you just 'kind of like' to get more profitable business without changing the way you currently operate? Or are you prepared to explore and investigate exactly how to make it happen? A tale of two businesses…
Company One
A while ago I spoke to a chap who runs a company that provides accounting solutions.
The business has been established ten years and he sees it as a service company. They have about fifty active clients whose value to them is anything from $2,000 to $120,000 a year and once they gain a client they tend to keep them.
The bigger problem is getting new business. He would like to actively target more of the larger potential business. He told me he has spent "loads" of money on sales and marketing and it's by and large been wasted. The company was up to ten staff at one point but now employs six full-time and two contracted.
He wants to get one new client per quarter rising to one a month. Although he hates telephone prospecting, because he finds it demoralising, he has engaged a lady to do some mail shots for him to follow up.
We went through the gold mine regarding best customer attributes, Decision Critical Factors and how they can both be applied to smarter prospecting and reduce rejection - "fully with you on this" – was one comment during the conversation.
So where was he, when we next spoke four months on?
Actually he was in round about the same place. The reason so much time had elapsed since we'd talked previously was that he'd been fighting fires. First tax returns got in the way, then one of his customers was being particularly demanding, then someone was off sick, then people were on holiday… anyone who’s run a small business can probably identify with the scenario, and he’s nowhere near achieving his goal because he hasn’t followed through on any of the things we talked about.
… And eighteen months on?
You’ve guessed it: He’s in exactly the same situation. I believe that he genuinely wants things to change but won't accept that the problem is largely down to him doing the same old things yet expecting different results. He’s a nice person and nobody’s fool but is he running his business or is his business running him?
Company Two
Another guy whom I first talked to about his sales and marketing activities at about the same time realised that a new approach was in order. His business provides independent market analysis on a specific industry sector to ‘money men’. His company had been going for four years and had a good reputation yet all of its work was project by project rather than on the annual fee basis that he was striving for but not making much headway in achieving.
The latter was needed to:
· More accurately forecast future business
· Plan staffing levels and
· Grow the company
We agreed that his primary aim was to discover whether this fee basis would be a viable option for any of his current or future clients. That required him undertaking research that would accomplish three objectives:
· Identify/confirm the principal drivers and constraints upon retaining an independent specialist analyst company for an annual fee rather than on a project-by-project basis
· Establish/confirm what and who the hidden influences/influencers were and their power over the final decision
· Ascertain what would make choosing his company to carry out the work a viable solution
The final objective additionally enabled him to establish and act on new business opportunities.
Where is this guy’s company now?
· He has worked through the ideas we came up with together
· Changed his business plan
· Taken on an individual who has now developed his own soft sales skills
· Gained twenty new clients through a mixture of research and straightforward prospecting, two of which are really substantial
They have a much better understanding of their sales and marketing needs and have broken them down into four areas:
Cold
Sales leads
Account management
Upselling
As a result they now have a much more structured approach to their sales and marketing activities.
He doesn’t have a yacht in the Bahamas yet, but he’s well on the way to where he wants his company to be!
The moral of the tale of two businesses:
The second guy isn’t necessarily any cleverer than the first and didn’t work any harder than him but he was prepared to stop bashing his head against a brick wall when he saw it wasn’t getting him anywhere fast and try a different way.
Who runs your business: Are you in control of a sustainable expansion programme for your company?
Who runs your business - To learn more about this author, visit Linda Mattacks's Website.
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David BarrDavid Barr is the President of Venture Opportunities, Inc. David has been a professional business broker/intermediary since 1980 focusing on General Business Brokerage and Mergers and Acquisitions representing client transaction value from $400,000 to $20,000,000. Mr. Barr has handled the sale of over four hundred and fifty companies. David earned a university degree from the State University of New York majoring in economics and business. David holds the Mergers and Acquisition Master Intermediary and the Certified Business Intermediary designations from the International Business Brokers Association. He is also a Senior Business Analyst and a Texas licensed Real Estate Agent. For more information about David and Venture Opportunities, visit www.bizdealmaker.com. - Visit David Barr's Website |
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Anne BarrAnne Barr has over 26 years experience in sales and marketing, six years as a franchisee. She has assisted over 367 business owners and purchasers to achieve their goals in career change, transition and exit strategy. She holds the designation of Certified Franchise Executive from the International Franchise Association, Certified Business Intermediary from the International Business Brokers Association and Board Certified Broker from the Texas Association of Business Brokers. Anne is active in professional organizations, networking groups and volunteers for non-profit entities. As owner/operator of four successful businesses, Anne has proven people skills and enjoys helping clients find the right "fit" in business ownership. Visit www.FranchiseOpportunitySpecialist.com for more information about me and my company. - Visit Anne Barr's Website |
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Jeff FosterWebBizIdeas.com is a Minneapolis website design company founded to help people start an internet business by providing them with website, business, and internet resources that help foster the growth of successful online businesses and develop innovative Internet business ideas. We specialize in internet consulting & internet marketing. - Visit Jeff Foster's Website |
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David AchesonDavid Acheson is the founder of DCJA Consultancy. DCJA Consultancy is a management consultancy business specialising in B2B sales consultancy. They offer bespoke and packaged sales consultancy including Sales Optimisation Review, Interim Sales Management, Sales & Marketing Review, 1:1 Sales & Management Staff Analysis, Management Training, Solution Sales Training, Creation of New Pay Plan, KPI's, run Customer Feedback Campaigns, assist with Recruitment, Coaching, Appraisals and set up Strategic Marketing Campaigns. David spent his early career in accountancy and then moved into sales in 1982, working in Office Equipment, IT, Advertising, Training, Outsourcing and Consultancy. He has held many Senior Positions in SMBs and Global Organisations including Head of Sales Operations & Head of Business Development. His knowledge, skills and great experience of the Sales Industry has led to David making keynote speeches and running educational sessions to key businesses through organisations including The Chamber of Commerce and Business Link. - Visit David Acheson's Website |
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Leanne Hoagland-SmithAre your sales where you want them to be? Will you be one of the few who achieves sales or business success or one of the many who have failed to change? Are you tired of being told you are like everyone else? Then you may find my first book on sales of interest. Be the Red Jacket in the Sea of Gray Suits, The Keys to Unlocking Sales available at Amazon or at http://www.processspecialist.com/red-jacket.htm. This book is a reflection of my no-nonsense approach to improving sales to overall business results. If you are truly committed to making sustainable changes, then I can help you secure a positive return on your investment because I focus on executable solutions not telling you the problems you already know you have. From training to corporate (group) coaching to executive one on one coaching, my approach is to assess, create awareness, build a goal driven action plan and then execute. The bottom line question is "Not do you or your employees know it, but do you or they want to do it?" Please call for a free strategy session at 219.759.5601. - Visit Leanne Hoagland-Smith's Website |
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Cheryl MatthynssensCheryl is a life skills coach, licensed Chemical Dependency Counselor and a 20 year entrepreneur. Cheryl's dedication to achieving a life of balance led to her expanding her teaching from the simple managing of life's daily challenges to adding financial well being as well. A direct marketer with DrinkACT, she is gaining ground in the online community with her concepts of making sure business owners, entreprenuers and employees have well rounded life styles. She opened up a small affiliate site - The Balance Guide- to help others find resources for mental and emotional well being. Visit Cheryl's blog to see more of the diversity beyond business she has began offering online at www.thebalanceguide.blogspot.com - Visit Cheryl Matthynssens's Website |
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