Category Archives: Products and Service

Commitment to Good Service

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As part of my decision to Automate, Delegate and Outsource, I decided to outsource my laundry load to a laundry service.  My first trial went very well, even though I did not know much about how they operate.  I wasn’t sure if I should count the number of items I send it, check it afterwards etc.  Anyway the service has been going very well untill the last weekend when I discovered some clothes were missing.  I wasn’t sure of what could have happened as I expect them to take an inventory before and after washing them.  Anyway I stopped by on Monday to find out if the remaining clothes had been discovered and luckily they were.

What I learnt today as well was that there were four ladies who provide the laundry service on a shift basis.  The lady who attended to me today is always in high demand and I also learnt that people specifically wait for her shift before they bring their laundry in.  Now that got me thinking….even as a laundry lady, you can distinguish your service from others through dedication and perfection of your skills.

Lady A – her customer service was impeccable, I was quite impressed with how attentive she was when I came in for the first time.  She educated me about her services and what they offer.

Lady B – she is just superb, she is not only friendly but also shows you what she has done when you come to pick up your laundry load.  She pays attention to detail and this is evident in the way she handles the clothes.  She folds the clothes with such care, making them wardrobe ready. I was so impressed with her skills.

Lady C – not very attentive and haphazard with her work.  Forgot to pack some of the clothes for pick-up.  Quite careless with her folding and packing.

Lady D – never met her.

So the question I will like to ask you is which one of the ladies are you?  I never thought there was anything extraordinary about a laundry service until last week.  It reminded me that you can distinguish yourself by the service you provide or the products you sell, if you commit to mastering your skills and going the extra mile.

You never know who is watching – so always keep your game on and treat each and every customer like your first.

Enjoy your day.

Temi Koleowo

Business First Steps

Waiting for the Perfect Moment

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I love this quote as it resonates with me in every way.  As someone with a melancholic personality, I tend to want everything to be perfect before I make a move.  Years gone by I wanted the perfect business plan, perfect location, perfect set-up etc before I could even consider launching a business. But when I started out in business, I was quick to realise that if I stay in the place of “wanting to be perfect”, I will lose my place in the queue.  Guess what? Someone, somewhere will surely come and take my place soon enough, then the idea I thought was going to be perfect will now be common!

Sometimes we need to start from where we are at so we can grow as we gain more experience.   I am not advising anyone to go out and start a business without adequate research, planning and good business advice.  But some of us just refuse to set out of the boat to check if the water is tepid or cold!

  • What business idea have you  been thinking about?
  • What expansion plans do you have for your existing business?
  • If you were going to take the first step what will it be?
  • Can talking to someone else about it help you put things in the right perspective?

One of the actions that helped me when I started out in business is getting my idea out there into the open by telling people (trustworthy ones) about what I want to do. Once it gets out there, you are somewhat committing yourself to act and do something about that idea.  You can bet the people you told will be asking you about that idea and what you are doing with it.  A few years down the line, I still follow the same process in developing new ideas for my business. This is where a business mentor or even a business consultant’s help can come in handy, it might be worth investing in one.

Write It Down, Make It Plain

You should also commit to writing down your ideas, invest in a journal or a notebook. Date your entries so you can look back over time to see how far you have come.  Write the inspirational information down as it comes to you and do not worry about format or frequency.  You can also create a mind map for yourself, with you in the middle and the potential of your ideas branching out from you like a spider web.

Take Small Steady Action

Developing an idea needs action on your part, ‘thinking it’ cannot make things happen.  There is room to daydream but you now need to progress from that place to the next room of ‘taking action’ to realise your dream.  Start a to-do-list of what you want to do with your idea. Do not develop long term goals just now as you might find it overwhelming.  Begin the process with a weekly plan, then monthly, six months, one year etc.

Go online and research the prospects of your idea/passion using various related keywords.  Check out your competitors and even patronise them if you can afford to and think of how you can differentiate your idea. Create a folder for the information you gather online/offline and bookmark useful websites.

Remember the journey of a thousand miles begins with one step.  If you already run a business, what are your ideas for expansion?  Starter? What ‘Business First Step’ are you going to take to develop that passion/idea lying dormant within you?

I wish you great success

Temi Koleowo

Business First Steps offers a FREE exploration session in addition to business start-up packages, eCourses, eBooks, business start-up one2one program, brainstorming sessions and other services.  We are passionate about developing new and existing SMEs and will love to be a part of your success story.

Photo culled from Shoreline Neighbours FB page.

Defining Your Sales Funnel

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In the hope of making a sale, we cast our net through various marketing strategies to capture eligible customers from the deep blue sea of customer curiosity.  Though the net is cast for a particular target market, you end up will all types of people in your net.  A natural selection process starts to take place depending on what you have on offer.  Some will stay with you a little longer because you have what they need. Whilst some will immediately exit your funnel because there is a better offer, they prefer their previous supplier or for something else. Luckily some will come back later when the need arises for your product or service.

You can’t meet the needs of every one that comes your way but you can either direct them somewhere else or introduce more products to meet the needs of your target market. So how do you capture the ones you want?  What do you give to entice your potential customers that visit your website or read your offline advert?  One great option is to define and create a good sales funnel.  A Sales Funnel helps you pass customers succesffully through your sales process so you can generate sales over a long period of time and also gain repeat purchase.

Create Awareness:

People need to know about what you offer before they can patronise you. This can be through email marketing, flyers, social media etc.  So what have you got in your bag of tricks that you can offer them for FREE or as a taster?  When you advertise your website/shop to potential customers; entice them with free offers so they can get a taste of what your business is about. E.g. a complimentary 30 minutes session as a wedding planner. Make sure your free product or service is high value and good quality too. Remember you are introducing the strength of your business by this offer.

Generate Interest:

We all have unanswered questions in our lives and the businesses that excel are the ones that are able to provide answers to our questions or meet our needs.  So is your business generating interest from potential customers?  Re-evaluate your marketing strategy and ask yourself if you are feeding the curiosity of people who come through your sales funnel.

Give Intent:

Help them see a good outcome when they purchase your product or service by selling the benefits and results to them even before they buy it.  . Do you identify with the pain of your potential customers?  E.g. As a personal stylist, what will be the greatest need of your customers? Highlight those benefits on your website as the antidote for their pain.

Finally a Purchase:

Your ultimate goal is to gain a customer through the purchase of your products or services over time.  For example Asda and Tesco have very large sales funnels.  Once you enter the shop, they provide the means to meet many of your needs – food items, electrical items, furniture etc. Think of your target audience and consider the products and services you can add to your offering to ensure they patronise you for longer period of time.  If you can successfully get your customers to pass through your sales funnel then that is a job well done.

Business First Steps Sales Funnel Workbook and Action Plan is coming out soon.  This workbook will help you identify the needs of your customers and create a wide range of products and services to meet those needs and also create passive income for your business.

I wish you good success

Temi

www.businessfirststeps.co.uk Affordable and personalised services for your business start-up and development.

Photos from Martinandmatthew.com and ngould sxc.hu

Defining a Niche Market for your Business

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Business can be a pleasure if we get things right from the start. One of the keys to being a successful business owner is the ability to identify an industry gap and your niche market.   I am sure a lot of us hear about niche markets all the time, internet marketers always advice – find your niche, know your niche!  So is all the hype really worth it?  Yes it is!

In this blog, I want to demystify how you can identify a niche for your business idea or improve on what you have.

The Wide Reach of the Web

The World Wide Web is just as it name implies, a web that collects all sort of information from all over the world.  Cyberspace is versatile and reaches the most remote parts of the earth.  So how do you compete with a business in Mongolia or another in Kenya?

You Find your Niche Market

When you decide to start out in business and if you are like me, ideas might come in drones and crowd your mind with so much information. They might overwhelm you and some people even quit at this stage…yes before they start!  The solution is not to quit but to start your quest by identifying the things that interest you.

If you are interested in motorcars, you may not be able to compete with the likes of Mercedes or Ford Motors. There is a likelihood that you can offer what customers are missing from the big competitors.  Even though they eat the cookies, there are bound to be some crumbs that may fall on the ground. Just imagine if you keep collecting the crumbs every time they get a cookie. Before you know it, you may have a cookie of your own!

Analyse Your Products and/or Services

What do you want to offer?  Is it an area you are very knowledgeable about?  Or is it something you can learn?  Your product may seem like a great idea to you, but will your customers feel the same way?

For example, your product may appeal to mothers but what kind of mothers will your products appeal to, mothers of toddlers, mothers of boys, mothers of teenagers or grandmothers?

Narrow Down your Search

Once you have been able to identify your market e.g. toys for toddler boys. You need to determine the keywords that describe your market.  You can now use the best keyword search facilities to identify how many people search for what you have to offer.  You may discover that there are many people looking specifically for what you have to offer but very little competition.  If the competition is low, you may have found your market.

Revamp a Product or Service

There might be a lot of competition for your proposed product or service, but don’t give up!  There might be nothing new under the sun (According to King Solomon of the bible) but there might be better ways of doing things.  Can your product compliment an existing one? Can you offer an extension of what is currently available?   You should study your competitors and think of how you can make your business unique.

Find the Right Description

When people ask about your business, develop a well thought out description of your niche market. For instance if you are a personal trainer, never introduce yourself as ‘just a trainer’. Introduce yourself as ‘a personal trainer with over 12 years experience of providing Thighs and Abs Training, specialist area being Abs and Thighs training for mothers who have had a C-Section’.    Now you bet people will pay attention! (this may be idea for someone out there).

Identifying a niche market for your business can help it stand out from your competitors.   Before you embark on your business there are other issues you will need to factor in as well. Using a niche market strategy in isolation may not guarantee business success.  But it will compliment your other efforts as you embark on developing your business concept.

Check out my brainstorming sessions – your virtual business partner when you need one.

I wish you good success.

Temi

www.businessfirststeps.co.uk

Photos courtesy of sxc.hu Spekulator and Lockheed.

Your Business and the Affordability Factor

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Extra! Extra! People are not spending as they should.  So what does that mean for the business owner, less sales? Not necessarily for all of us.  I bet some companies out there are making the recession work for them.  Even though people are not spending as they should, they still have to eat, clothe themselves and do all the basic things to survive. I still have to visit the supermarket weekly whether I like it or not because my household have to eat.

Surfing Above The Recession

So this got me thinking, how businesses can ride the current financial storm?

By providing what people need and not just want they want.

We might not all be able to afford a night out at an expensive restaurant, but a three-course meal at home at the fraction of the price might just do the job.  That is why I love the idea – M&S £10 dinner for two offer.  That means you cut out the babysitter cost too, just wait for the kids to go to bed and lay out a nice meal for you and your partner…fun times!

Can’t do the spa? A lot more people will subscribe to a body scrub that makes you feel like a million pounds at the fraction of the cost.  Gym membership too much for some? An affordable and effective home workout routine might be the way to go. These are the kind of products people will naturally subscribe to – affordable feel good factor, I call it.

Not all businesses have to downgrade their products or services in the recession.  Surely there are still the small percentage of clients that can afford the luxury goods and the usual lifestyle. If that is your niche market, good for you. You should bear in mind that there are probably a lot more businesses clamouring for the attention of the same customer.  So being able to reinvent your products and services should be at the top of your list too.

For the buyers who need to cut back on excesses, think of how your business can meet their needs at a cost they can afford.  Don’t let the recession send your business packing, get creative and develop products and services that can ride the storm.

I will love to hear how you have been able to rise above the recession storm.  Please Get in touch or add your comments.

Business First Steps wishes you every success.

Temi

www.businessfirststeps.co.uk