BizSieve Team | BizSieve.com

Tips to Survive When Your Small Business Is In Financial Crisis

The current economic situation has in one way or another impacted every business in the world. Business owners are struggling to survive the economic downtime. Small business will easily fall prey to the economic down time. To avoid the crippling effects of the financial crisis you need to find some tips and tricks that will help your business to survive.

Here are some well-researched tips will help your company to withstand these hardships:

Cut the costs

Cost cutting is the best way to save some money. However, be careful when doing this as an improper decision can be just as damaging as the recession itself. Some small business owners start cutting their labour cost when they encounter crisis. However you have to be practical this may not be advisable as when the sales pick up you don’t have staff to cover it. So cut down on factors that are not essential or have little impact on other functions.

Pay your bills on time

This is the best way to save some money as the late payment charges and other penalties can prove to be crippling. Your credit rating will also be improved thus enabling you to receive financial support from the institutions in the future without difficulty. If you don’t have money on your due date to pay off your bills you can opt for payday loans. These loans provide you with instant cash and are easily repayable on your next payday.

Spend some money on marketing

You may be under the misconception that spending money during an economic down turn is a bad idea but in reality it is a good idea. You need to be more aggressive with your marketing during down turns. Marketing may cost you but it gives you a good return on your investment. If you lack funds to invest on marketing you can get the help from the payday loans.

Review all the costs

You need to review all the costs. This will help you to find where your money is going. Check the costs of fuel, water and energy overheads. You can set some fixed-price contracts on these areas to reduce the costs.

Motivate yourself

It is advisable to motivate yourself in such a way that you can face any kind of problems in bad times. Also motivate your employees to face the challenges. Reading motivational books and magazines will develop a positive attitude which will help you to overcome any type of problem.

If you follow the above tips with a strong desire and a little financial discipline then you can easily survive the financial crisis.

Author Bio: My name is Michelle. I am a tech writer from UK. I am into Finance. Catch me @financeport

Three Tips for Small Business Owners

There was a time when you couldn’t start a business without putting your credit on the line with a business loan. Today, all you really need is a two hundred dollar laptop or used smartphone and an internet connection. Here are a few principles to keep in mind before you get started:

A Word on Cost, Risk and Planning

Something to bear in mind when it comes to the concept of cost and risk: the more something costs you in terms of time, money and effort, the more planning you should put into it, the more research. When you pay for web hosting, for instance, you need to do you homework and make sure that you’re going with the right web host for your business. On the other hand, sending an email to a graphic designer for a quote takes about one minute, so you don’t need to spend all day researching graphic designers to make that choice.

The more something costs, the more planning it should involve. Maintain this rule of thumb in order to manage risk and to avoid getting hung up on the small stuff.

Plan to Fail

Big ideas are the only ones worth having anymore. You need to be the best at whatever it is you do, and that means thinking big. Making a modest profit on iPods on eBay isn’t going to work, because the people who already dominate that market will just cut their prices lower when you come in to compete with them. They have the access to greater bulk quantities of goods that they can sell for cheaper, so simply selling commodities won’t cut it, someone will always be able to undersell you in that area.

Big ideas are the ones with potential to fail. When you decide to be the very best shoe repairer in your city, when you decide to create a new kind of light bulb, these are the kind of ideas that will allow you to dominate that field if you succeed, but that always have the potential for failure.

Luckily, every failure is a chance to learn, to grow, and to try again. We don’t like the idea of failure, but anything that doesn’t kill us or bankrupt us is a failure that we can afford to risk, and more importantly, nobody ever succeeded without risking failure. Some of the most successful business people failed dozens of times and tried their hands at dozens of things before finding the niche where they truly excelled.

Selling the Story

What you’re really selling at the end of the day is not a better hair dryer, it’s not a nicer pair of athletic shoes, it’s a story. Your customers want to experience something through your product or service, some kind of adventure or competitive edge. Even someone who buys an energy drink isn’t buying caffeine, they’re buying an extra couple of hours partying or they’re buying greater productivity at work.
Stop thinking of your product or service in terms of commodity and start thinking of it in terms of the story.

About the Author: Charles Moore has the credit of writing articles on home organization and solution. He is also a regular contributor to Movingtips.org.

11 Ways to Make Your Small Business Successful

For most of us, starting a small business is no big deal. However, making it successful is the ultimate goal that everyone has in their mind. There are certain techniques that you can use to make your small business run in a smooth manner and earn regular income from it. However, you need to have strong willpower and determination to make your small business successful. Given below are 11 simple ways to do it:

1) Develop your emotional capital

Your emotional capital is the most important resource that you need to run your small business successfully. It is the combination of your zeal, love, and optimistic viewpoint about your business. You need to balance your work and family and also protect your health in order to be successful.

2) Affirm your entrepreneurial freedom

When you’re running a small business, you’re the boss of yourself. There should be equilibrium between arrogance and ignorance. You should understand what to know and what to ignore.

3) Know your clients

Identifying your clients is the most important thing that you have to do to make your small business successful. You should have a clear idea who your customers are. When you are manufacturing fashion accessories for teenage girls, then you should not aim the male teenagers for selling or promoting your merchandise. If you are an antivirus seller, then you should not target babysitters.

4) Have a marketing budget in place

You need money to promote your small business. Therefore, you should decide how much you are going to spend for this. Without customers, you can’t earn money and for getting customers, you have to adopt the right marketing techniques. There are various ways of promoting your small business such as flyers, pamphlets, postcards, and different online methods. You should not assume that your product will spontaneously market itself.

5) Know your competitors

Understanding your competitors well is the key to positioning your product rightly in the market. See what your competitors are doing to attract new customers and try to emulate them. If possible, do it in a better way.

6) Don’t hesitate to say no

Sometimes, a situation may arise when you need to say no to a prospective client or customer or partner. This is particularly important when you feel that entering into a new business venture or contract will not turn out to be beneficial for your small business in the end.

7) Know that “no” indicates not instantly

When a potential customer rejects your instant product or service, there is no need to be disheartened or lose hope. Try to understand why they did so and take the necessary measures accordingly. Keep in touch with them so that they can be approached in future. Take their contact details and inform them about special offers you are giving.

8) Use the Internet

In this age of information technology, the Internet is indispensable when it comes to promoting your business. Create a website of your business and equip it with sections like about us, products and services, testimonials and contact us. Make the most of the Internet to connect to your customers and make your business successful. If needed, go for various Internet applications that are available from free sources.

9) Don’t be extravagant

If you feel that any expenditure you are making is unnecessary, stop that immediately. Extravagance for a small business is a strictly “no-no” when you have a restricted budget.

10) Maintain your accounts well

You should maintain the following types of accounting documents and records:

Cash records
Cash payments
Sales records
Accounts receivable

11) Be a good manager

Being a good manager depends on the following factors:

Hiring the right workforce
Training them adequately
Suitable time management
Regulating absenteeism

There is no guarantee that your small business will be successful instantly. So, don’t leap before you look.

Company House: a Key for your Small Business

A company can leak out unnecessary cash-flow in a multitude of ways: how you deal with your suppliers and what you know about them can surprisingly make a big difference in the great scheme of things.

Sound and Safe Suppliers

‘You can’t choose your family, but you can choose your friends’. A more appropriate business maxim would be ‘You can’t choose your family, but you can choose your suppliers’. All new suppliers to the business should be examined in detail, to ensure that they are technically sound and have the experience and reputation to deliver on their goods or services. A supplier should also be financially stable and have a reliable payment history with their other creditors.

company house

Companies House is an excellent place to start investigating potential suppliers. A database of two million limited companies in England, Wales, Northern Ireland and Scotland, it contains business documents that are up to date and is also an affordable way to ensure that the right supplier is selected. For £4 per month, the database of 260 million documents dating back 10 years is available here at the click of a mouse. There is also a free database that contains information about the company, such as the date of incorporation, insolvency history and previous business names. You can also source companies house information for free using sites such as Duedil.com

A credit check can also be an excellent way of getting an up close look at a supplier. Ask for references from previous creditors and follow up on them. Also, when you get a credit check you should always bear in mind that this information can be up to six months old. If the company is a part of a subsidiary, then consider asking the holding company for a formal guarantee.

Combining this process with a careful planning of the office and the workflow, checking up on competitors using Companies House are two ways that a business can avoid bleeding out money. So take control with these ongoing and vigilant processes.

Social Media Essentials for Small Business Marketing

Most small business owners have started relying on social media networking for their internet marketing needs. It is a simple and effective method of reaching out to your target audience in a focused yet inexpensive form. The sheer popularity of social media has left it an indispensible marketing tool to incorporate in your campaign. Whatever be your target audience demographic, marketing through popular social networks will ensure that your message reaches out effectively and creates a buzz.

It is important to plan your social media presence and campaign in a detailed manner to gain maximum return. Let us list down five best practices which have been known to generate results for small business in the social media sphere.

Image by Pete Simon

Try to be Subtle

Social media does not come with the time limitation of more conventional advertising platforms like radio or television. One must respect this fact and try to inculcate their marketing message subliminally with content that your target audience is interested in. Social media is about information – Create your space and posts around interesting information related to your product or service.

Once you have the attention of your potential client only then should you go for turning him into a lead. Going social helps you build trust among your audience, but only if you let it build by offering content relevant to their interests.

Social Media is about Socializing

At times business owners fail to understand the whole purpose of social media which is to socialize with like minded people and communities. Your presence on social media should never be about ostentatious self promotion. Try to engage with your audience in an interactive way. Your business should come across like a brand personality which understands your audience and communicates like them. Be as interactive as possible, hold contests, ask questions, answer queries, be like a person.

Try to be a friend, there is nothing more trustworthy than a good understanding friend. Clients that you will be able to build like this will most likely remain clients for life.

Go Wide With Your Campaign

Social networks might have its high rankers and they command involvement in any sensible social media campaign but one must not ignore other platforms at any cost. There is a long list of networking sites and each one has some following. As a business owner or marketer you don’t want to leave any stone unturned.

Make accounts and gain presence at as many platforms as you know of. You may decide to prioritize your level of focus, that is acceptable, but do not ride on just one or two networks.

Work on Your Appearance

Just because you are a small business it doesn’t give you the right to look less professional than the big guns. In fact, many small business owners brag about their customization capabilities over big brands. All your content, designs and texts should go under a magnifying glass before being posted. Be aggressive in your strategies and let the world know that you mean business. You may not be able to match with the big players on size but you must equal their quality if not exceed it.

About the Author: ZK is an expert associated with WebTrafficROI, which is a web marketing blog aimed at people who are interested in web business and blogging. The blog also helps entrepreneurs, bloggers, companies and small businesses to make their business better on the online forum.