Author: Taofeek Oyekanmi

Yes ladies, how do you ensure you get paid after delivering that service? This is actually very important for service providers, where the client says I will give you 50% now or you get paid after you have set up the decor (for event planners & decorators).

Hate collecting your money? Join the club. Recent studies show accounts receivables is the top cash flow concern of small business owners. To ensure that we get paid, we will share some debt collection tips and best practices this month of October.

First on the list is :

• Take a Positive Stance

Don’t take it personally if your customers aren’t paying their bills on time…(remember not to lose your customer service tact, even when this can seem very difficult to do). Look into why the bill is late.

It could be that your client simply forgot( I always like to give the benefit of the doubt, this way I remain positive). To help avoid these types of missed payments, provide a gentle reminder immediately following the invoice due date.

Yet to access simple tools for free invoice creation? You can speak to us, as we are always available to support.

Having a business idea/being an entrepreneur is really great, however, the dreams can become dead with a lack of funding.

You probably need a website, you need to get your business registered, you need some office space- whether shared, full or virtual, a social media/tech team, at least enough cash to start production. All this means, you need money, regardless of what you are going into, most businesses and most entrepreneurs require at least a little bit of funding to really get off the ground in their early days.

The following are tips on how to get funding for your small business

1. Begin with your personal savings.
2. Take a loan from banks.
3. Seek partnership
4. Seek investors
5. Venture into bigger capital through joint ventures
6. Consider friends and families
7. Explore funding sources such as; crowd funding, Esusu.

Direct mail may seem to be expensive, but it can still be effective if you find a targeted list and send them an offer they can’t refuse. In fact, direct mail results in five times more sales than email.

All you need to do to achieve a super direct mail is:

• Launch a multi-piece direct mail campaign- This can be done in the form of giveaways (could be well calculated, so you do not spend a lot). You could have different categories for winners of these- influencers, followers, old clients.

• Include a clear and enticing call to action on every direct mail piece- do you want to gain more followers, is it a buy 1 get one free offer etc.

• Use tear cards, inserts, props, and attention-getting envelopes to make an impact with your mailings.

• Send past customers free samples and other incentives to regain them.

A “PULL” marketing strategy is one where the customer comes to believe the products you have is the one they have to buy. The beauty is when the customer believes this, price becomes less of an issue. More on the “Push & Pull Sales Strategy”. A “pull” sales strategy is centered around you, the salesperson, asking questions to get the customer to reveal the needs they have and the outcomes they desire. By asking questions, you’re allowing the customer to drive the discussion — or so they think — and thus they will be far more likely to convince themselves.
Once they have convinced themselves, there is nothing stopping them and they will be adamant about buying to satisfy their need. This makes selling a lot easier for you.
So go through your sales process, add one to five questions that you think you ask customers about your product. Get them conversing with you and see a fraction of the difficult customers coming through.

A push marketing is focused on loading up your marketing channel, advertising with a high budget, and trying to convince the customer to buy. This strategy, involves you taking (“push”) your products to customers. Here, you say a lot of BUY, BUY, BUY!!!. The setback is that you may not build your product, you may be talking to the wrong audience. This is the reason why experts suggest the “Pull Strategy”.

The viability of a business is measured by its long-term survival and its ability to sustain profits over a period of time. A business is able to survive when it is viable because it continues to make profit year in year out.

A business demonstrates its viability by making a profit every year of its existence. Some say a viable business is one “with legs,” and the Cambridge Dictionary says something with legs can continue to exist and be successful for a long time.

When a business loses its viability, it loses its profitability which is always difficult to recover. Thus, stay tuned with us as we show some tips to build a viable business.

Business Viability is tricky to define and create, but there are some key factors to making a business viable.
Compare these factors with your business and consider the ideal steps that suit you in increasing your business viability.

Creating viability is a two-part process. First, it means creating a marketing strategy by knowing who you are, who you are selling to, and who else is selling to them. Second, it means having your business financial house in order(through proper bookkeeping of course).

To create a marketing strategy that will make your business viable, you’ll need to have 5 key information:

First , Your Unique Selling Proposition: Having a unique selling proposition (usually called a USP) is a first critical factor in having a viable business. You can go through our previous post to identify ways to create one for your brand.

Remember you can always reach out to us for all your #businesssupport needs, as we remain committed to your business growth.