How to move your business to the next level and succeed! Tuesday 10 th November 2015

Transcription

1 How to move your business to the next level and succeed! Tuesday 10 th November 2015

2 Who are we & what do we do? Business Coaching & Support specialists Passionate about Results-focused Business Support We identify KEY and VITAL things to focus on for sustainable growth... Our help leads to the Vital things being: Understood by the business Owned by the business Actioned by the business We work collaboratively with major High Street Banks, Local Authorities and a range of Professional Partners... We have a shared vision Supporting SME Businesses to grow 'profitably Creating jobs and wealth locally Sharing of knowledge

3 Session Objectives To understand some of the options for moving your business forward to the next level To familiarise you with some of the processes you will need to adopt to reach the critical lift off To introduce you to some best practice processes To start to move you outside of your comfort zone!

4 What we see How many hats do you wear?.some may fit some may not! Its not a question of how well each process works, it s a question of how well they all work together

5 Areas of focus Leadership Sales Team Profit Marketing Strategy Goals Systems Cash Time Management

6 So where next? The Key Business Drivers ( in our experience!) Vision Business Plan Financial forecast Cash Flow forecast Raising finance Marketing Sales / sales process Management accounts Developing your company structure and your team Leadership & Management Managing your time

7 Vision start with the end in mind What do you want out of life? What do you want/ need the company to deliver - Lifestyle? - High income? - Legacy? What will the company look like in 3 / 5 years time? - Home office? - Factory / business premises? - International? - Inter-galactic? When do you want to get there?

8 The Business Plan Why do you need one? To fail to plan is to plan to fail Consider the pro and cons validates your ideas What is it? A living document, reviewed every month Does it need changing in the light of experience? Often too optimistic instead of realistic Who is it produced for and why?

9 The Business Plan Plans are only plans if they are WRITTEN. If they are not written they are? Wishes

10 Financial forecast Sales less Direct Costs (= Gross Profit) Product pricing (and versus competition) Which products/services make what gross margin? Indirect costs, e.g. Salaries, Office costs, Overheads, Marketing, Loan repayments etc. Net profit = what is left over! c

11 Financial forecast Rolling 12 month forecast Are you making enough sales, profit? Are your costs under control? Usually over optimistic What could possibly go wrong? Get someone to play devil s advocate Better to make mistakes on paper c

12 Financial forecast c

13 Cash flow forecasting Produce a cash flow forecast Should follow your financial forecast format What are your experiences so far? Assumptions you should make. Longer debtor days ) Longer sales cycle ) than you think Growth costs are higher ) c

14 Cash flow forecasting What is a cash flow? Knowing what your bank account looks like today, tomorrow and onwards The lifeblood of any business Why it s important Not having the cash to pay bills can bring down your business! How often do I need to look at it? Plotted for the next Quarter Reviewed and managed Daily Actions reviewed Weekly c

15 Cash flow management Ensures realism, highlights/avoids negative projections Should be constantly worked upon (the aim is to always improve the cash position) Built from the forecast/budget and looking back at trends Brings about actions each and every day based on the cash needs of the business Allows you to look well ahead and manage within your facilities Will you need more working capital to fund growth.? Just because the bank balance is good doesn t mean the future cash position will be! c

16 Raising Finance Having done the business plan, financial forecast and cash flow forecast. How much do you need to invest or borrow? What s your lowest forecast cash amount? Approach your bank Consider increasing mortgage / equity release Look for investors / partners /crowd-funding / peer funding Family/friends c

17 Management Accounting Monthly management accounts Always know where you are vs. your forecasts Profitability by product Cost of sales Expenses P&L versus budget / financial forecast Cash in bank Enables you to revise forward cash flow forecast See problems before they develop!

18 Marketing Marketing is about finding and keeping customers Identify your target market(s) / sector(s) What has /hasn t worked for you so far? Understand who are your customers and what they want Know your competitors (and identify why are you different) Then (and only then) build your marketing message(s) Unique Selling Points (USP) / Perceived Benefits (UPB) Customer wants and needs Your differentiators Always focus on benefits not features

19 Marketing Consider your marketing mix (activities) Social media - Cheap financially, can be expensive on time if not managed marketing - Needs good data and ing systems Newsletters - Printed / / Video Advertising - Press/TV/radio/online Website - CMS / Search engine optimisation / Pay per click Video Blogs Networking / Speaking at events Leaflets/literature Then schedule each activity with goals, timeframes, owner(s), budgets

20 Sales I m not a salesman! oh yes you are! Is your Elevator pitch good enough? 30 seconds. What we do, where we do it, who we do it for and what are the benefits (to my markets)? Always Sell benefits, not features Build relationships, obligation, commitment First impressions count / People buy people and service Always know what the customer wants to buy What causes them pain / sleepless nights? Identify their timescales and buying process Does your product/service do what they want or what you want?

21 Sales Objection handling Know the common objections and formulate answers Do you need to change your marketing? Talk less listen more 2 ears and 1 mouth use them in that proportion! Body language What are you reading from their posture? Analyse your conversion ratios What could I have done better? Analyse by marketing campaign Why don t people buy (it s not always price driven)? Make sure you have a sales process!

22 Building the right structure and team As your business grows it needs a formal structure and a great team But.. you do not build structures around teams you build teams around structures Ensures clarity of roles - each team member can see how and where they fit into the organisation And you need to be a good LEADER and MANAGER

23 Leadership and Management We give people the title of Manager but we expect them to Lead People very confusing! PEOPLE are LEAD Management in business is getting people together to accomplish desired goals and objectives using available resources efficiently and effectively THINGS are Managed

24 Your job as a Leader & Manager As a business leader you need to inspire and motivate your teams to achieve your goals Look after their welfare Promote empowerment and ideas culture Develop others But leadership does involve some management As a manager you create efficiency and promote effectiveness Get your processes slick and systems developed to get the most from your team Delegate tasks where required But remember, NEVER expect a task to be carried out or completed as you would have done it

25 Building a successful team It starts with strong leadership! Followers are drawn to people who exhibit strength and can inspire belief in others It then needs a clear vision Set and communicate your objectives and sell the story Share responsibility and gain commitment Ensure you have a mix of blended skills Remember - your people ARE (or will be) your business!

26 What brings it all together? How you use your time!

27 Plan how you use your time BETTER PLANNING + BETTER THINKING = BETTER RESULTS Daily Pressures What bridges the Gap? Long Term Aims and Goals Your ability to plan and manage your time

28 NOT IMPORTANT IMPORTANT The time management quadrants URGENT NOT URGENT CRISIS MANAGEMENT QUALITY 1 CRISES PRESSING PROBLEMS DEADLINE DRIVEN PROJECTS PUTTING OUT FIRES 2 PREVENTION RELATIONSHIP BUILDING NEW BUSINESS OPPORTUNITIES PLANNING VALUES TRUE RECREATION DECEPTION WASTE 3 INTERRUPTIONS SOME PHONE CALLS SOME MAIL SOME REPORTS SOME MEETINGS POPULAR ACTIVIES 4 TRIVIA BUSY WORK IRRELEVANT S SOME PHONE CALLS TIMEWASTERS ESCAPE ACTIVITIES GOSSIP Plan for Q2, Q1 will happen, delegate Q3, avoid Q4

29 Big rocks and little rocks Always put the big rocks in first and keep the most important thing the most important thing

30 Summary - 9 key things to Focus on 1. Strategy & Planning Develop a winning strategy, clear business goals and a powerful business plan 2. Marketing How to get and keep the right customers! 3. Sales Develop a winning sales process 4. Profit This is where cash comes from! 5. Cash Raise it, create it, manage it and USE it effectively! 6. Team Biggest resource. Care for it, develop it 7. Systems How will the business work when you are not there? 8. Leadership What it takes to get people to follow you! 9. Time Your biggest asset. Do the right things for the right reasons at the right time

31 And one more KPIs Key performance indicators (KPIs) might include. Number of leads generated By campaign How many have converted Number of sales per client per year Average sales value / profitability Sales by product / category Visitors to your website (Google analytics) Average debtor days Etc., etc. Measure the results from all areas of your business and act on them!

32 How do Pro-actions help? Retained Service 1:1 relationship with a Business Improvement Specialist focussed on the areas which will make the biggest difference to your business and meeting on an agreed schedule that really works for you Business Improvement Workshops Monthly, cost-effective, sessions with up to a maximum 9 other business owners, that support you through all the key aspects of maximising your business whilst learning from others. There is set work and review plus support in between No contracts, tie-ins or minimum spends We are selective over who we work with long term as we are only able to work with a certain number of clients at any one time

33 Next steps If you re serious about wanting to move your business to the next level.. We ll meet with you 1:1 (free of charge and with no obligation) Give you a steer on where / how you can improve your business and what we can do to make a difference Talk to us today It may be the one chance you get to work ON your business not IN your business

34 Questions & Discussion Thank you for coming! Find us on social media...