Showing posts with label business fundamentals. Show all posts
Showing posts with label business fundamentals. Show all posts
Monday, February 6, 2012
Continually Trying But Still Falling Short Of Your Business Goals?
Are you continually trying in the hope of earning the level of income you want from your Internet business activities? Is discouragement starting to creep into your thinking? Most people keep on trying in the hope of one day succeeding. However, you won’t succeed unless you address these two key factors.
The first factor is "keep on trying". Some people do the same thing over and over again and never learn from the experience. It’s like continually running into a brick wall in the hope of eventually breaking through. Alternatively, they constantly join new affiliate programs or network marketing companies in the belief that this is the magic one to bring them riches. However, they never devote enough effort or attention to any one program to succeed in it.
The second factor is "hope". For some people, they almost have a blind faith that they will succeed. Yet, they don’t understand what is involved in being successful. It’s almost as if they expect that one day circumstances will change and orders will flow in great abundance along with the profits.
For me, the key to "trying until I succeed" is based on testing and tracking. It is like a circular process whereby an idea is implemented, the results are tracked and then evaluated, the idea is refined or modified based on what has been learnt, and the process starts all over again.
If you aren’t earning what you want from your business, you have nothing to lose by applying this concept. First, look at what you are doing to promote your business. Are you using the same advertising you have always used? Do you know if it is working? Test a new headline and track the results. Test a new offer and see what happens to your sales.
Only test one thing at a time so that you know what is causing any changes in your results. Once you have a good performing ad, use it as your benchmark against which all future tests are measured.
The same concept can be applied to all your processes and procedures within your business. Make some changes and test whether they enable you to perform more efficiently and have more time to do the really important activities that generate revenue.
Now let’s look at the second factor, "hope". I once read that genius is 1 percent inspiration and 99 percent perspiration. The same can be said of success. The 1 percent is in setting the goal and the 99 percent is working hard to achieve it. Success doesn’t just happen, it is created by sustained effort and continual learning.
Hope certainly helps to sustain the effort required to succeed, but hope without effort is wasted. Success is based on many small wins that eventually lead to the big win. This understanding of what success really is helps the achievers do what needs to be done.
It is applied to business through goal setting and planning. You set your goal and then determine what you need to do to achieve it. Most successful businesses utilize budgets and business plans as a formalized process of mapping out what is required to achieve the targets they have set.
They then measure their results against these plans so that they know how well they are doing. This enables them to fine tune their plans to take into account new things they have learnt about their market-place and business. It also enables them to take corrective action before it is too late.
To have the success you want in your business, plan how you are going to achieve it. Test the ideas you have and track the results. Use the knowledge gained to improve all aspects of your business. Be opening to learning opportunities so that you can adapt and modify your approach as circumstances change.
Saturday, November 13, 2010
Get The Fundamentals Right
To succeed in business on the Internet, or in the off-line world, requires an understanding of the fundamentals of business and using them to your advantage. In this article, I will outline what I consider the fundamentals of business success are.
Believe in Your Product or Service
First, you need to believe in your product or service. If you don't believe in it, you will have a great deal of difficulty selling your product or service to other people. You also need to have confidence in your ability to provide and promote your product or service. An old saying sums this up best by stating: "All things are possible to he who believes".
Aptitude for the Business
Secondly, you need to have an aptitude for the business. You will also need the motivation to acquire at the very least basic skills and experience before you start your business. If you were to set yourself up as a web designer but did not have any skills or training in this area, then you will almost certainly fail. However, if you are employed as a bookkeeper and you enjoy the job, then setting up your own bookkeeping service would be a sensible choice with a greater chance of success.
Be Responsible
Thirdly, you need to be responsible to your customers. This is achieved by only making commitments you can keep and by not engaging in misleading or dishonest advertising. If you want to build long-term success in your business, then you need to develop long-term satisfied customers. When their needs are being satisfied, customers are at their happiest.
Aim for High Quality
The next principle is that you need to have a high quality product or service. This will be your best advertisement. Inferior quality products usually generate poor customer satisfaction. A dissatisfied customer can be very dangerous for your business. Usually they tell on average about fourteen other people who will then be disinclined to buy your product or service based on the experience of that one dissatisfied person. Therefore, always aim for a top quality product or service.
Make a Profit
However, it is not enough to have a top quality product or service. You also need to have a product or service that will generate enough income to cover all your business expenses and give you a satisfactory wage. A friend of mine once said that business is only about two things: satisfying customers and making a profit. A simple statement but very true.
Sufficient Start-up Capital
You also need to have access to enough cash to set up and run your business, and enough income to meet your private expenses during the start-up phase. A major problem with many home and small businesses is that they fail to have enough money available to ensure their success. There is nothing more discouraging than having a great idea, getting it started on a shoestring, not being able to expand due to cash shortages and seeing a competitor come along and steal your market.
Start Small
Another fundamental principle of home business success is that you start small. This will enable you to minimize your overheads until you are confident of your success in the marketplace. For many of you, this would mean starting part-time while retaining your full-time income source. When you can, expand your business into a full-time venture. This is a great way of minimizing the risk of failure.
Be Well Organized
Successful businesses are well organized. They have a system for keeping track of expenditure and earnings. This level of organization in your business will help to ensure that you are providing your customers or clients with a top quality product or service. It will also ensure that you have enough information available to maximize your profitability and to satisfy your legal requirements for record keeping.
Be Prepared
Preparation is another key ingredient in your business success. This preparation will include being aware of the regulations and laws affecting small and home business. Armed with this knowledge, you should not have any nasty surprises from unintentional violations of the law.
Have a Business Plan
Finally, successful businesses have developed a comprehensive business plan. This is their road map to success. It tells them where they are going and how they are going to get there. There are a number of good resources about business planning on the Internet. Here are some:
http://www.bplans.com
http://www.businesstown.com/planning/creating.asp
http://www.bizplanit.com/vplan.htm
Conclusion
It has been said that genius is one percent inspiration and ninety-nine percent perspiration. The same can be said about business success. Without having the fundamentals in place, a great business idea will usually fail. Set yourself up for success by considering each of the points raised in this article.
Believe in Your Product or Service
First, you need to believe in your product or service. If you don't believe in it, you will have a great deal of difficulty selling your product or service to other people. You also need to have confidence in your ability to provide and promote your product or service. An old saying sums this up best by stating: "All things are possible to he who believes".
Aptitude for the Business
Secondly, you need to have an aptitude for the business. You will also need the motivation to acquire at the very least basic skills and experience before you start your business. If you were to set yourself up as a web designer but did not have any skills or training in this area, then you will almost certainly fail. However, if you are employed as a bookkeeper and you enjoy the job, then setting up your own bookkeeping service would be a sensible choice with a greater chance of success.
Be Responsible
Thirdly, you need to be responsible to your customers. This is achieved by only making commitments you can keep and by not engaging in misleading or dishonest advertising. If you want to build long-term success in your business, then you need to develop long-term satisfied customers. When their needs are being satisfied, customers are at their happiest.
Aim for High Quality
The next principle is that you need to have a high quality product or service. This will be your best advertisement. Inferior quality products usually generate poor customer satisfaction. A dissatisfied customer can be very dangerous for your business. Usually they tell on average about fourteen other people who will then be disinclined to buy your product or service based on the experience of that one dissatisfied person. Therefore, always aim for a top quality product or service.
Make a Profit
However, it is not enough to have a top quality product or service. You also need to have a product or service that will generate enough income to cover all your business expenses and give you a satisfactory wage. A friend of mine once said that business is only about two things: satisfying customers and making a profit. A simple statement but very true.
Sufficient Start-up Capital
You also need to have access to enough cash to set up and run your business, and enough income to meet your private expenses during the start-up phase. A major problem with many home and small businesses is that they fail to have enough money available to ensure their success. There is nothing more discouraging than having a great idea, getting it started on a shoestring, not being able to expand due to cash shortages and seeing a competitor come along and steal your market.
Start Small
Another fundamental principle of home business success is that you start small. This will enable you to minimize your overheads until you are confident of your success in the marketplace. For many of you, this would mean starting part-time while retaining your full-time income source. When you can, expand your business into a full-time venture. This is a great way of minimizing the risk of failure.
Be Well Organized
Successful businesses are well organized. They have a system for keeping track of expenditure and earnings. This level of organization in your business will help to ensure that you are providing your customers or clients with a top quality product or service. It will also ensure that you have enough information available to maximize your profitability and to satisfy your legal requirements for record keeping.
Be Prepared
Preparation is another key ingredient in your business success. This preparation will include being aware of the regulations and laws affecting small and home business. Armed with this knowledge, you should not have any nasty surprises from unintentional violations of the law.
Have a Business Plan
Finally, successful businesses have developed a comprehensive business plan. This is their road map to success. It tells them where they are going and how they are going to get there. There are a number of good resources about business planning on the Internet. Here are some:
http://www.bplans.com
http://www.businesstown.com/planning/creating.asp
http://www.bizplanit.com/vplan.htm
Conclusion
It has been said that genius is one percent inspiration and ninety-nine percent perspiration. The same can be said about business success. Without having the fundamentals in place, a great business idea will usually fail. Set yourself up for success by considering each of the points raised in this article.
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