Great article on how small businesses can recession proof their business.
Takeaways:
- Improve your management reporting (and your management!)
- To keep your company lean, you should set and measure inventory targets and keep in daily or weekly communication with your sales and operations staffs (talk about sales and operations and how to improve efficiency with better workers - talk TO these departments to!!)
- To keep from losing business, keep in close touch with your customers. Recognizing that when the business climate changes, customer needs will change as well. That may mean new markets will open up (You need the best people in place to help your clients and to help find the new opportunities/markets that will open up and how your company can make money from them. Talk about marketing, customer service, and business development)
- Develop strategies to land more customers - To make their companies grow they will have to steal customers from their competitors, period. The pie is shrinking. To do that you must create the best experience for your customers and to do that you must have the best people in place.
- Spend on hiring. Business owners should hire—not fire—during a recession. Economic downturns are short-lived keep the bigger picture of long-term growth in sight. "It's easier to invest training time for new hires during slower growth periods. Another strategy is to look around for people who have been laid off from other companies and pick up some available talent. "This is a great time to find top performers who will help bring your company to the next level”
- Continue to get the word out about your business. Continue marketing and advertising (talk about getting A Players in these departments and using CB to get the word out there also!)
- Entrepreneurs must keep their personal credit ratings high
No comments:
Post a Comment