It can be easy to get bogged down in doing things the way that they’ve always been done or pointless meetings for the sake of it and long email chains discussing nothing important. Take a look at our ideas for making your business a faster, better-functioning machine.
Could Selling Be Easier?
Selling more for less effort is a great skill to have. This means seriously reconsidering the way you deal with your clients. Think about what you could be doing to make selling to them easier. For instance, could customer relationship management software help you control communications with your clients so it becomes more efficient?
Could you cross-sell services? Could you partner up with another business (but not a competitor) in your niche or industry and recommending each others’ services?
How Hard is Your Money Working for You?
When it comes to your money, you need to make sure that you’re signed up for internet banking, and that you’re getting the best interest rate possible.
Are your clients paying on time? Consider charging interest to late-paying clients or offer incentives for them to pay early.
Be More Productive by Ignoring Your Email
Email is a huge time killer. If you’re checking it more than a few times a day, you’re wasting your time.
Avoid sending internal emails too – it’s so much faster to get up and talk to the person, as well as being much friendlier too. The same applies to clients and suppliers. Pick up the phone and talk to them, your relationship will flourish as a result.
Outsource and Automate
There are lots of things that computers can do these days. Things that you or your employees are wasting time doing. Outsource and automate these things and you’re free to do the things that computers can’t – having ideas and making decisions. You can even outsource the improvement of your processes to a company like Evolve.
Optimize Your Online Presence
Your website is absolutely pointless if no one looks at it – and if you’ve gone through all the trouble of designing it and making it look great, but it’s not getting you any sales, then you need to start making sure that it does. Either hire someone to work in-house or hire an agency to do it for you.
Empower Your Staff
Give your staff the power to make decisions for themselves, rather than having to ask for their managers to sort it out for them. This will make them happier, and more productive – which kills two birds with one stone.
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