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Digg it UP - Five Ways to Improve Your Bottom Line
Greetings to all!Well its easy to see that in our day and age, money is just as important as Oxygen! A Bold statement you may ask, but lets face it Life without Oxygen = No Quality of Life. Life without money = Not very much quality of life. Everything we do these days is harbored by the size of our wallet and bank balance.Seeing the world, Trying new sports, buying the home we deserve and everything else in between requires the universal communicator MONEY!To be honest I have a Love Hate relationship with money, I hate it because it can be very difficult to acquire it! but I love it because it allows you to broaden your horizons in terms of physical and material gains! For example if you wanted to see Elephants in t
4. Standandize and Simplify your Procedures
It’s amazing how much time developing a simple form can save a company. The more people involved in your business, the more important it is that you have a set of standard procedures to follow. This will reduce training time when employee turnover occurs, lower the chance of errors, and increase efficiency in all aspects of your business.
5. Measure the Results of Your Efforts
Company and personal goals need to be
So it’s been a while since you’ve played house or made art out of macaroni noodles—that doesn’t mean that you aren’t creative! With effort and continued practice, ANYONE can be creative, and ANYONE can use this creativity to set their company and product apart from their competitors.“Why is creativity so important?”Being creative means continually presenting yourself and your company in new and interesting ways, and enticing customers in a way that your competition can’t duplicate (if you’re good, they’ll try).Creativity is one of the strongest and most valuable traits you can have as a salesperson, because it increases your value within your company and among your customers. It is that value that will chang
1. Review and Update Your Business Goals
Many people are adept at staying very busy while accomplishing nothing of value. Don’t fall into this trap—and, if you do--dig out as quickly as possible.
In order to succeed, you must set clear goals. If you have employees, those goals also need to be communicated to them. While there are many good and noble goals you can set for your business, one of the most profitable that I often ask myself is “what can I do that will make the most money the fastest?”
This doesn’t mean that other goals such as contributing to good causes or providing excellent customer service aren’t important. If you don’t provide excellent customer service you won’t be in business very long anyway. But goals can often be clarified by setting them in order, and determining which will bring the quickest, most long-lasting financial results to your business is a great place to start.
2. Find your Niche and Develop a Competitive Edge
While it’s hard to compete with the “big boys”, there is plenty of room for small businesses to find their competitive niche. My competitive niche happens to be log furniture. While there is competition in that niche, I don’t have to compete with the “big boys” such as Walmart when it comes to selling log furniture. Tracking down Amish suppliers on lonely country roads, developing relationships with those suppliers, picking up, packing and shipping log furniture just isn’t part of their business plan. And it probably never will be.
Your niche will probably be something different than shipping log beds, but you can be sure that there is a niche open to you. The key is to find the profitable activity that your business does best, and focus on that.
3. Hire Superior Employees Who Share Your Company Culture
If your business is large enough to require employees, be careful who you choose. In my experience, it’s better to pay more for top-notch employees who won’t require daily baby-sitting, than to nickel and dime it with job-hoppers who are perpetually unmotivated, late to work, or enmeshed in personal problems so deep that they can’t perform their job.
Everybody goes through difficult times in their life, and you need to be sensitive to that. Your company will be miles ahead, however, if you can find employees with the emotional energy to buy into your vision and get excited about their jobs.
You can find, develop and keep that kind of employee by investing significant amounts of time to recruiting and training. Make sure your compensation package is attractive, and, if at all possible, offer health insurance. Incentive compensation or profit-sharing plans can also be quite helpful in motivating employees to previously unheard of heights of achievement.
4. Standandize and Simplify your Procedures
It’s amazing how much time developing a simple form can save a company. The more people involved in your business, the more important it is that you have a set of standard procedures to follow. This will reduce training time when employee turnover occurs, lower the chance of errors, and increase efficiency in all aspects of your business.
5. Measure the Results of Your Efforts
Company and personal goals need to be q
Before any document is finalized, you need to let someone else take a look at it. I cannot stress enough the significance of this step! Letters, memos, reports, brochures, even important e-mails—any writing that will see the light of day— should be read by others before you send it off because:• Feedback sharpens your final product even though it may drive you crazy, take time, or make you feel like you’ve bared your soul to the world.• Feedback does not mean you have to give up your voice or throw out what you’ve written. Feedback does not equate with criticism.• Feedback is getting another perspective—that of the different audiences who will read your document.• Feedback means that when you hand
This doesn’t mean that other goals such as contributing to good causes or providing excellent customer service aren’t important. If you don’t provide excellent customer service you won’t be in business very long anyway. But goals can often be clarified by setting them in order, and determining which will bring the quickest, most long-lasting financial results to your business is a great place to start.
2. Find your Niche and Develop a Competitive Edge
While it’s hard to compete with the “big boys”, there is plenty of room for small businesses to find their competitive niche. My competitive niche happens to be log furniture. While there is competition in that niche, I don’t have to compete with the “big boys” such as Walmart when it comes to selling log furniture. Tracking down Amish suppliers on lonely country roads, developing relationships with those suppliers, picking up, packing and shipping log furniture just isn’t part of their business plan. And it probably never will be.
Your niche will probably be something different than shipping log beds, but you can be sure that there is a niche open to you. The key is to find the profitable activity that your business does best, and focus on that.
3. Hire Superior Employees Who Share Your Company Culture
If your business is large enough to require employees, be careful who you choose. In my experience, it’s better to pay more for top-notch employees who won’t require daily baby-sitting, than to nickel and dime it with job-hoppers who are perpetually unmotivated, late to work, or enmeshed in personal problems so deep that they can’t perform their job.
Everybody goes through difficult times in their life, and you need to be sensitive to that. Your company will be miles ahead, however, if you can find employees with the emotional energy to buy into your vision and get excited about their jobs.
You can find, develop and keep that kind of employee by investing significant amounts of time to recruiting and training. Make sure your compensation package is attractive, and, if at all possible, offer health insurance. Incentive compensation or profit-sharing plans can also be quite helpful in motivating employees to previously unheard of heights of achievement.
4. Standandize and Simplify your Procedures
It’s amazing how much time developing a simple form can save a company. The more people involved in your business, the more important it is that you have a set of standard procedures to follow. This will reduce training time when employee turnover occurs, lower the chance of errors, and increase efficiency in all aspects of your business.
5. Measure the Results of Your Efforts
Company and personal goals need to be
Accounts receivable factoring refers to a process in which you can sell your invoices to a financing company for a rate, less than the face value of the invoice sold.The responsibility of collecting cash against the outstanding receivables lies with the financing company, who then makes a profit by collecting the funds at the face value of the invoice. The advantage of this arrangement is that a firm can receive instant cash, which was otherwise tied up in inventory, to further expand the business.Again, the responsibility of collecting the cash against the invoices lies with the financing company. To collect the cash, the financing company needs to keep the outstanding receivables as current, and then work out a time line
Your niche will probably be something different than shipping log beds, but you can be sure that there is a niche open to you. The key is to find the profitable activity that your business does best, and focus on that.
3. Hire Superior Employees Who Share Your Company Culture
If your business is large enough to require employees, be careful who you choose. In my experience, it’s better to pay more for top-notch employees who won’t require daily baby-sitting, than to nickel and dime it with job-hoppers who are perpetually unmotivated, late to work, or enmeshed in personal problems so deep that they can’t perform their job.
Everybody goes through difficult times in their life, and you need to be sensitive to that. Your company will be miles ahead, however, if you can find employees with the emotional energy to buy into your vision and get excited about their jobs.
You can find, develop and keep that kind of employee by investing significant amounts of time to recruiting and training. Make sure your compensation package is attractive, and, if at all possible, offer health insurance. Incentive compensation or profit-sharing plans can also be quite helpful in motivating employees to previously unheard of heights of achievement.
4. Standandize and Simplify your Procedures
It’s amazing how much time developing a simple form can save a company. The more people involved in your business, the more important it is that you have a set of standard procedures to follow. This will reduce training time when employee turnover occurs, lower the chance of errors, and increase efficiency in all aspects of your business.
5. Measure the Results of Your Efforts
Company and personal goals need to be
Sometimes in the search for a cheap conference calling solution, companies will often run across websites offering free web conference calling. Are these services offering a real service? Are there any hidden fees or gimmicks? In most cases believe it or not, there are no gimmicks. Certain service provider do in fact provider absolutely free web conferencing calling services. Many companies have discovered the benefits of using a free conferencing service. Using free conferencing services provide easy conferencing services.Several of the options available provide quality audio conferencing and often are available on a reservationless system. Now in order to use most free services, it is usually required that your company si
Everybody goes through difficult times in their life, and you need to be sensitive to that. Your company will be miles ahead, however, if you can find employees with the emotional energy to buy into your vision and get excited about their jobs.
You can find, develop and keep that kind of employee by investing significant amounts of time to recruiting and training. Make sure your compensation package is attractive, and, if at all possible, offer health insurance. Incentive compensation or profit-sharing plans can also be quite helpful in motivating employees to previously unheard of heights of achievement.
4. Standandize and Simplify your Procedures
It’s amazing how much time developing a simple form can save a company. The more people involved in your business, the more important it is that you have a set of standard procedures to follow. This will reduce training time when employee turnover occurs, lower the chance of errors, and increase efficiency in all aspects of your business.
5. Measure the Results of Your Efforts
Company and personal goals need to be
LLC (limited liability company) provides the benefits of liability protection and pass through taxation features of sole proprietorship or partnership. Many small business owners prefer this form of corporation as it provides greater flexibility in management. The general characteristics of LLC’s are limited duration of existence, no double taxation and member or owner managed business.LLC’s can be incorporated by filing with the state authorities. The general procedure is that of incorporating a corporation. The advantages over a corporation are that there is no need to get the consent of shareholders, no need to issue shares and no need for the board of directors. When selecting the name of the business, it should end with LLC.
4. Standandize and Simplify your Procedures
It’s amazing how much time developing a simple form can save a company. The more people involved in your business, the more important it is that you have a set of standard procedures to follow. This will reduce training time when employee turnover occurs, lower the chance of errors, and increase efficiency in all aspects of your business.
5. Measure the Results of Your Efforts
Company and personal goals need to be quantified to determine if the desired results are being achieved. Key areas of measurement include the cost, quality, quantity and timeliness of work to be done. Each of these areas can have a profound impact on the bottom line of a business.
Cost: It goes without saying that if two Amish furniture suppliers offer similar quality, furniture design and delivery timing—but one is substantially lower in cost than the other, I go with the lower cost supplier. There are a few exceptions to this rule, but not many.
Quality: Quality is everything in most businesses, and log furniture is no exception. I’m not the least bit interested in shipping defective furniture from Michigan to California and back again, all because a customer wasn’t happy. That is a total waste of money, and hits the bottom line directly. This is why we are such sticklers about quality control, and why it’s been nearly four years since a customer even thought of returning an item.
Quantity: Generally speaking, if you sell more, you make more. This is certainly the case with rustic furniture suites, especially with the high cost of shipping today. As a result, our website is focused around selling larger orders. We’re always happy when somebody orders a log bed, but we try to make it appealing for them to buy a nightstand and dresser too, by offering truly significant discounts. Regardless of your business, you can likely do the same. It’s generally easier to sell more product to an already existing customer, than to go and find new customers.
Timeliness: Late deliveries cost money—at least they do in our business. It costs money to overnight packages that could have been sent by UPS ground or the postal service. It costs big money to expedite pallets of furniture. In addition, there is the stress, hassle and disorganization that comes with rushing around to do things at the last minute. This is why I try to leave a timing “cushion” in every furniture order I process. Regardless of what you’re selling, you should too.
Doing things in a timely, organized manner gives a sense of professionalism and control—and that practice, together with the other suggestions mentioned in this article, can also have a direct and positive impact on your company’s bottom line.
Copyright 2005 Log Cabin Rustics
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