Tag Archives: business start-up

A Business Start-up Poem

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To start your own business is like a long test

Never the same scenario because people have their uniqueness

It always starts from an inkling idea then grows

Like a baby it needs incubation, everyone knows

Passion plays a really great part

and will help once your courage starts

You can never ever get too much information

It’s out there so do the necessary collation

Of course there’s those who can help you pass the test

Such as one called Business First Steps

by Lufem Black © 2012

BFS www.businessfirststeps.co.uk

Personalised and Practical Business Start-up Services

What is in Your Warehouse?

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I had the glimpse of Asda’s depot recently. I was amazed at the number of activities that go on behind the scene, whilst we innocently shop for our daily needs.  There were boxes and crates everywhere, people unpacking, packing, moving, checking, listing, scanning, noting and buzzing.  There were just so many people involved in getting the stock from suppliers to shelves.

If deliveries were dumped all over the Asda depot floor without being checked in, left unpacked for days then delivered late to the shop floor.  The innocent people who come in to the store just to pick up a few groceries will probably not be able to do so.

Your Personal Warehouse Stacked to the Roofbigstock-Full-warehouse-with-forklifts--16555610As you may have noticed from my previous posts, everyday life always gets me thinking. What came to mind as I observed this depot was the bare truth that we are all custodians of personal warehouses.

The same delivery process is applicable to what is occupying the space in our personal warehouses.  Many of us have got huge skills, talents, gifts, experiences, services, products etc that should be accessible via the ‘shop floor’ so the numerous people who need what we have can gain access to them.  But for reasons best known to us, our depot is littered with unopened boxes that are yet to be shipped to the right location or arranged on the appropriate shelves.

I am also guilty of this syndrome.  I started analysing our exhibition at the recent business show, I was truly amazed at the number of people who need the services we provide.  Whether Business First Steps went to the show or not, it will have taken place. The only difference being many people may not be able to access BFS’ warehouse to pick up the services they need.

The same goes for those thinking of starting businesses, community groups, social enterprise or new career – what you have is the solution to someone’s problem or the answer to someone’s question. The question is, are your goods on the shelves where they can be accessed?   If you are already running a business, are you maximizing the products or services you offer?  Are you constantly restocking your shelves?

Who is Taking Stock of Your Stock?

Many of us are probably taking stock of what we have done over the past 10-11 months. I try as much as I can not to be swept away by the “what have you achieved this year” syndrome. It doesn’t matter to me if you set goals in April, June or November. The most important aspect is not the time you set the goals but the actions that follow the goals.

bigstock-Taking-inventory-19677038According to Wikipedia 2012 ‘Stock-taking or inventory checking is the physical verification of the quantities and condition of items held in an inventory or warehouse.

This may be done to provide an audit of existing stock valuation. It is also the source of stock discrepancy information. Stock-taking may be performed as an intensive annual check or may be done continuously by means of a cycle count.’

How often do you take stock of the resources delivered to your warehouse?  Are you using your knowledge, skills, talents and resources to add value to the lives of others and yourself?  Are you marketing the products in your warehouse to those who need it?

One of the key elements of stock taking is to understand your own strengths and weaknesses. What manpower have you got to move your stock? I am reluctantly letting go of tasks that slow me down. I now let someone else do them (and stack their own shelves) whilst I can concentrate on what matters most to me.

There are a lot of factors we need to consider when setting goals for ourselves – these include:

  • Personal and family circumstances
  • Your abilities and personality
  • Your mind-set and daily schedules
  • Available resources – including funds, knowledge, support etc.

If the task at hand is one of your pet hate why don’t you delegate it? Just imagine if Asda directors/managers decide to do the depot work themselves, rather than put people in place to move the products to the shop floor.  All those intricate details need to be taken care of and they choose to hire the manpower for it.

In one of my previous blogs I wrote about my new acronym ADO – Automate, Delegate and Outsource – this is helping me a great deal, I feel a lot lighter with less baggage. There are just so many tasks one person can get done at any given time. I have come to realise that there is no point feeling guilty about tasks you may never get done – I felt that way for a very long time. Be realistic and get help, however you can even if you have to trade by barter.  If you are thinking of starting or growing a business and you can’t navigate through the numerous steps, get help!  Do not make the mistake of convincing yourself that you will get it done and let another year come and go.

Stock taking is a necessity but the stock-taker has the power to make sure the floor is adequately stocked and meeting the needs of those who want to buy the goods.  So if you have to take stock as we approach the end of the year, do it with the mindset that you will get your goods to the ‘shop floor’ before they expire in the depot.

I wish you good success.

Temi Koleowo

http://www.businessfirststeps.co.uk

Practical and Personalised Business Start-up Coaching, Services and Support.

Free Two Hours Parking

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I know this might sound strange but I always dread parking in those free two-hour parking bays.  Some of them will state free two hours parking limit, no return within three hours.  I question if I return later than two hours whether I will be booked for my tardiness? Does anyone actually set the timer for cars parked in two-hour limit free parking bays?  I really will love to know the answer but not at the expense of a parking fine.

The parking sign got me thinking (as I do) about business start-up and development.  A lot of us park in these bays with the notion of just staying for two hours and we end up staying there for much longer than we anticipated.  Ok, we probably will not get a physical parking ticket for hanging out in our ‘comfort zone’ bay longer than we want.  But life does pay back to those that do take action and those that don’t – in the long-term.  The question is what payment will you prefer?

  • You may be in a job or career with five years’ time limit
  • Your business idea may still be on the ‘two year limit’ back burner
  • You may have even started a business but there is no noticeable growth to show for your efforts.
  • The number of your customers are still the same after so many years.
  • Products or services are still the same range.
  • Someone else has done something similar to that business idea you have been nursing for a while.

My question is “have you exceeded your parking limit” in your current bay.  What happened to the goals you set at the beginning of the year about the things you wanted to do with your idea or your business?

Have you moved from the parking bay, drove around for a while and ‘returned after three hours?

Ok so the first business idea or new product didn’t work out after putting in so much effort, time and resources. I understand the disappointment but please do not return to the same old bay.  Why don’t you explore other parking (business) opportunities instead, for all you know you might get a better spot with little or no restrictions.

I know what it’s like to be charged up momentarily, ready to face the world but feel dejected when challenges crop up forcing you to go back to your old bay.  It is so easy to get caught up with life and what it brings, but to succeed we just have to fight to achieve our goals or we will never get to the right destination.   No successful business owner will tell you that running a business is an easy feat.  To excel and go beyond the thought stage of your idea, business, products or services, we must push beyond the barriers.  We need to set realistic goals and achieve them through consistent and persistent actions.

Find a Better Parking Space

If you have been working on a new product or service for your business, how can you accelerate the process?  Do you need to set realistic goals and deadlines, get help or a mentor, get more resources or gain more knowledge?  Do you need to set time aside, reduce your workload so you can work on your business rather than in your business?

Are you a start-up?  Consider what you need to do to actualise your business idea.  Make a list of the things you need to change and start taking action to make headway with your idea.  What are your roadblocks? Identify the actions that are keeping you in that parking bay and work toward eliminating them.

Be uncomfortable in your ‘comfort zone’ and choose to make conscious efforts to grow – it offers great dividends and rewards in the long run.

Till next time

Temi Koleowo

Business First Steps – personalised and practical business start-up services

Photos courtesy of bigstockphoto and johnridley sxc.hu

Pushing Beyond The ‘If Onlys’

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I have had a lot of ‘if only’ moments in my life.   Sometimes those moments stretch into days, then weeks, months and even years.  If only I went to a certain school or a certain college, lived in a certain neighbourhood, had a certain friend or mentor or whoever I needed to influence me to take certain steps in the ‘right direction’.

Then came a time when I had enough of my ‘if only’ moments.  I decided that I had to rid myself of the excuses of not stepping out to do what I wanted to do for so long.  Ok I can’t change the past but I can stop wallowing in self-pity and determine my future.   Even if I had done all those things on my ‘if only’ list, I still have to work hard to make a success of my own life. Who says anything good will come easy, even if we got certain things right from the start.

So in 2009 I decided to bury my ‘if onlys’ and start Business First Steps – doing what I love.  Since I started my business, the ‘if onlys’ are fading into insignificance because God is causing all things to work together for my good, even those things that I thought were accidental.  Yes, I was scared of the unknown when I started but I did it afraid anyway.  A few years down the line and I am still surging forward – sometimes afraid.  In those few years, I have fought some really tough mind battles – the battle to stay or to quit, to fight or to give in to defeat.  Undeniably it takes a lot of courage and other traits to start a business.  It takes even more courage and the ability to win the battles of the mind to keep on doing that business.  If you can stand up to fight and win those battles, then you are surely on the right track to Success Avenue.

So if you want to take a step in the right direction today and start your own business, do what I did in 2009.  Take a moment to consider some of the successful people out there doing what they love every day of their lives. Find out how they started, did they all have an easy start…I don’t think so.   Then think of the small steps you can take to start creating your own pathway to a future with very few ‘if onlys’ in it.

If only you can step out of your comfort zone and act on your plan TODAY, you probably will be writing your own successful start-up story pretty soon.

I really wish you good success.

Temi Koleowo.

Business First Steps… Personalised and Practical Business Start up Services and Support

Business Reality Check

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Musing about my business tasks today and the following realities of starting and running a business came to mind.  Just what I need to remind myself of my role as a business owner.

The Time Factor

Everyday we are bombarded with the miracle cure for whatever business ailment we may have. Whether it is procrastination, low self-esteem, lack of skills or imagination.  There is something out there prescribed to help you get results in an instant. Starting and growing a business takes a lot of time and effort.  Stop buying into those lies about the next best thing for your business that could make you an instant £100,000 profit with absolutely no effort on your part.  I spent a fair amount of money on some miracle start-up remedies some years back, they got me nowhere. Now I know better – one has to dig deep foundations for a business, so that when it grows it will not topple over.  Shallow foundations and quick solutions do not provide lasting results.

However, there are some great products out there that compliment your efforts – those are the ones worth buying.  They not only help your business but also make the job of running your business a lot easier to manage.

It’s Your Job

You can hire a consultant, an accountant or even cajole your mum to help.  If you want your business to succeed, then you need to do a lot of things yourself.  Even if you eventually employ people, you cannot ignore or shy away from your role as the business owner.    Yes you can copy systems off the internet or go to numerous seminars and get all fired up, you still have to put what you learn to work.  Take ownership of your business idea and push it till it becomes your reality.

The Dark Side

As the main decision maker in your business (if you are not a partnership) you should be ready for the dark and lonely days.  The days when the weight of the business decisions will be on your shoulders alone. When people will look to you for answers and to make decisions that will benefit the business. Create the right atmosphere you will need for those dark days; surround yourself with people who can uplift and motivate you to keep moving forward.

Eat the Humble Pie

There is no doubt in my mind that when you start your business you will be humbled.  Not everyone will think you have a good idea and not everyone will think you are smart. Be ready for criticism, irate customers, competitors who will steal your ideas, oh! be ready for all sorts.  The important point to remember is not to lose the values you hold dear when you face your business struggles.

Commitment

You can’t make a success of any venture if you do not commit to it.  You get out of your business what you put into it.  If you want it to grow then you have to commit to developing your idea on a daily basis. There is no short cut to business growth, be innovative and prepared for opportunities.  Set goals for yourself and commit to achieving them within a given time frame. The more you do this, the better you become and the more tasks you mark off your to-do-list. When you look back in a few years time, you will be amazed how far you have come.

Till next time, I wish you good success

Temi Koleowo.

Get the eBook: Bring your Business Idea to life and start the business of your dreams.

Photo courtesy of Bigstockphoto.

The Power of your Talent

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I am sure most of us have watched British Got Talent. Isn’t it great when you see an unassuming person come on stage, watch people smirk and then everyone stands in awe as they perform their act? In the same way, others come on stage and go on about how good they are, but once they start their act, you wonder what on earth they had to drink before the show. They probably spent the better part of their lives believing they were the next best thing until the BGT judges brought them down to earth.

My Damascene Conversion

Many moons ago, I used to look at many people with envy wishing I had their talents. The better part of my life a few years back was a wish list. I wish I could run; wish I could sing, wish I was a little bit taller and wish I was good at this or that. After I was made redundant from my last job a few years ago, I finally got my ‘Damascene conversion’. I was forced to stop and take notice of MY TALENTS!!! I was pleasantly surprised to discover I had a collection of skills I had disregarded over the years. These were skills that were needed in the market place, skills that could make a difference, skills that could start a business. Well, all that is now water under the bridge as my talents have now become Business First Steps.Tada!!!

Your Personal SWOT Analysis

I come across many people in my job who fail to recognise or act on their peculiar and God-given talents. Some of the categories of people I find are listed below:

  • Some are aware of their talents but don’t do anything about it
  • Some just think what they do is nothing special
  • Some know what they are good at and want to do something with it.
  • Some know how to maximise and magnify whatever they have.

Well I know the things I struggle with (gardening and entertaining guests for starters) and when I see someone else do these tasks with it ease; I can’t help but stand in awe.

A good way to take stock of your talent is to do a personal SWOT analysis on yourself. You may have heard of SWOT analysis used mainly for business plans. The good news is you can also use it to self-diagnose your own strengths and weaknesses, so as to find and fan those innate abilities within you.

Strengths – These are the positive things you can control within yourself such as education, organisation skills, attention to detail, business experience, communication skills, fortitude, ability to see project through, ability to transfer skills to others, ability to teach, listening skills, self-confidence, ability to cook, gardening, parenting skills, good inter-personal skills etc.

Weaknesses – those internal negative things you can control, which can be personal or business traits such as nonchalance, disorganisation, low self esteem, inability to focus, lack of experience in specific field, impatience, inability to finish project etc.

Opportunities – situation within your control that you can take advantage of and maximise. These are opportunities you can identify internally and externally to enable you to develop the skills you need to start a business, fill a career gap in the market, find a novel way of doing things, remodel a system, add to an existing role, product or service etc.

Threats – External conditions that are beyond your control but which you can lessen the impact; these can include shortcomings or limitation in your chosen field.  Other threats could be the negative perception of your skills, industry, business, career, product or service, government legislations affecting your ideas etc.

Step Two

Ask a few family and friends to give their honest opinions of what they consider to be your strengths and weaknesses.  Be prepared for some hard truths as some might have more to say about your weaknesses than you bargained for.  Before I started out in business, I did this exercise too and my family had the opportunity to express themselves (ouch…truth hurts!). I also sought the opinion of a business consultant who was able to help me streamline my ideas and focus on the right ones.

These two exercises should help you identify some of your peculiar talents and what you do next will determine how far you can go with them.  Opportunities present themselves around us every day. Being prepared helps you spot those that fit in with your repertoire. Stop letting these opportunities pass you by whether to start your own business, develop an idea, a social enterprise or advance your career.

If you need help with your SWOT analysis or to identify your passion and turn it into purpose with profit/value, I can help.  Business First Steps provides the tools and services to help you bring your ideas to life.

I wish you good success

Temi Koleowo

Get the eBook Bring Your Business Idea to Life www.businessideabooster.com/

Why Hiring a Consultant is Essential for Business Growth

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A lot of people with a business start-up plan would benefit from hiring a business consultant for a number of reasons. While many would-be entrepreneurs would go without this service to save money, it may actually cost them more in the end. Going without the consulting service doesn’t mean that the company will fail; it might just not perform as well as hoped.

The Benefits of a Consultant

If you have a business start-up in mind, there are some very good reasons why you should consider hiring a consultant before you get too deep in the planning process and completely miss your way.

A business consultant has a wide range of expertise in the entrepreneurial field these include:

  • Writing business plans
  • Assistance with loan or grant proposals
  • Company registration and licensing
  • Writing realistic marketing goals and even with creating a good budget
  • Support and assistance along the way

These are a wide range of details that are all very important in the life of a business. If you don’t understand each of them, the consultant will explain the intricate details to you. They will also help you with the completion of these tasks to start your business.

If you may have already created a business and marketing plan, a consultant can review your plan to ensure it is realistic and will lead to a viable business.  The Business consultant will also look at your ideas and plans to see if anything is missing. It is so easy to miss out on very important start-up tasks but these consultants have been trained to spot these things.

Start on the Right Path to Success

Starting a business is not an easy task, it takes a lot of dedication to develop a business idea and put the plan into action. That is why many people have ideas they carry around for many years without starting out.

There is also the post start-up tasks which include marketing and every day business activities to consider. The business consultant will lead you through these steps to understanding what it takes to start successfully. They will also discuss with you the use of any partners, joint ventures or employees if you are considering moving in that direction. Many individuals start off hiring staff and acquiring premises when this could be delayed and financial burden reduced. The professional consultant will let you know what is necessary or not for your business.

Other than these benefits of talking to a consultant, there are other areas that they can help you with. They can assist you with sales strategies, choosing marketing methods, cutting down on expenses, improving customer service, improving the product, seeing potential problems in the business model, and dozens of other tasks. These are all essential aspects to consider when running a business that not only survives but thrives.

When you, as an entrepreneur, go to a business consultant for assistance, it is possibly the best thing that you can do for your own success. It does cost money to review your business with a consultant and to obtain assistance with it. However, this will pay off in the end. Spending this money will make you more money as a result because you will understand how to make your business a better one. You will be able to control your costs and budget your expenses to a higher level. You will learn how to spot problems before they become too big to repair.
Business Consulting does not stop at start-up, it runs through the life of a business and those who cherish business success make use of the skill religiously.
These are all benefits of hiring a licenses consultant to assist you with your business start-up and they are all essential to the success of your company.

Business First Steps provides brainstorming sessions for start-up and existing businesses.  They help businesses focus on the right way forward, set and achieve realistic business goals.

Till next time, keep surging forward….Temi.

Are You Breaking The Rules?

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We all have rules we live by most of which are unwritten rules, the same principle applies in business.  We start out with ambitious business strategies to take the world by storm.  We put most of this information down in a business plan and edit as we go.  But do we actually look back after a while and ask ourselves “is it time to change the rules”?

Business development needs flexibility.  The world economics is always changing and sometimes we can be stuck with business ideas and plans that work against us.  Even though our business requires structure, we need to adapt a flexibility mode as we grow.

Tip: Do not cast your business rules in stone rather be open-minded about the endless possibilities of your business idea. 

For example: If you set out to meet the needs of mothers with young kids and you get more enquiries from fathers with young kids, you need to ask yourself if it is time to change the rules.

Emotions can get in the way of your business idea, so be careful how you analyze your aims and objectives.   Yes, I know your business dream is to always meet the needs of moms with young kids but if the market doesn’t make that demand on you, you might need to change the rules.

I started out with Business First Steps from a very different platform.  I have an idea of what I wanted to do, but could not grasp the full picture at the time. As I progressed in business, I found out soon enough that some rules had to be broken. Yes my ideas in the beginning seemed great, but holding on to them will do my business more harm than good.  Emotions had to give way to common sense and good reasoning for my business to grow.

Action Plan:

If you have your business aims and objectives written down, now is a good time to revisit them and align them with the reality of your business operations.

If your aim and objectives are in your head, please take time out this month to write them down and post them somewhere conspicuous so you can see them every day.  This will help your business tremendously as you will know when it is time to change the rules.

I wish you good success

Temi Koleowo

www.businessfirststeps.co.uk

Business Tools and Brainstorming sessions for Business Start-up, Development and Growth.

Photo courtesy of iamwahid sxc.hu

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