Why do businesses fail is discussed by Peter Hanley with remedies and suggestions for a survival kit. You can change to win.
There are many reasons businesses fail
Some are from outside influences, some are bad management, cash flow factors, lack of attention manufacturing shortfalls or lack of marketing.
The first is a declining market.
If you don’t act early you can only ride the wave to the end.
Print media is a current example in the early days of demise.
Another recent one was the video market and those that kept the doors open too long suffered.
Faxes and faxing are on the wane and you would need to bail now.
Next is the failure to remain with technology.
Look no further than the Mobile phone market. Motorola invented the phone, Blackberry had the first type to message model and Nokia was top of the tree. Where are they now?
This will affect you if you are a Motorola dealer and trying to swim against the stream.
Changes to passing traffic
When a bypass road creates a backwater situation of a business or even a town. One day you are on the main street next to a back alley. Should you have seen this coming?
Changing fortunes of small business
There are many situations that you control and one of the most relevant at this time is not adjusting to social media
The giants are killing the local business.
Think, Amazon, Aldi, Ikea, the big Hardware chains even the major supermarkets.
These chains draw people into the web with price advantages as well as stock selection and unless you change you will be run out of town
Social media and small business
You don’t have to do social media but you will lose business to those that do. Fact.
Businesses are built on Facebook and Instagram because of branding.
These are not selling tools they are branding tools that deliver buyers to your webpage or yo
In the good old days, you had little control over your marketing. This has now changed where you can make a difference.
If you are not active become so and make a difference
Your web page is important.
Never underestimate the value of a good web page. It silently sells every day for you and needs to be kept current. You need to regularly blog to improve your SEO.
This is the selling entity of your business to make it sell.
Failure to do so will lead to business failure.
The rule of seven
It is said that a customer won’t be enticed into the fold until they have been touched 7 times.
If you are sitting back hoping they come through the front door you are dying.
Continuous customer contact is absolutely paramount with so much competitive activity.
Your customers will be drawn away by the lure of your
The bad press brigade in small business
Bad comments on Social media, Google searches and other outlets can cripple you. We can all cope with one or two but when there is a whole swag of them people will stay away.
Failure to attend to every bad comment and find a fix or solution is a path to disaster.
I will give you a simple example.
ON eBay buyers and sellers are asked to rank or comment on the transaction. Get a couple of bad comments and you are doomed because people will skip over you. Have good comments and the buyers line up. Pretty simple stuff.
Customer service in the business
Failure to attend to customer requests leads to customer loss. Word of mouth is a devastating enemy that you can not see or control and it can impact you severely.
Businesses living in the past.
When you walk into the same old tired business every day you get bored with the whole scene.
One day when you go to a competitor that is bright and modern you get a whole better feeling and continue to frequent away from the old.
Spruce up or get out.
A reason to come to your business
By offering a special attraction you can draw customers into the store.
Many Service stations are now offering $1 coffees. This pulls people into the store and increases sales.
Near me, we have a food hall-style outdoor dining area. Many people gather every night to eat and drink. A 24-7 supermarket opened in the middle of all this activity.
They offer soft serve ice creams for $1 and the same with coffee. Diners end the night by visiting the supermarket. Many only buy the specials but
Near me, I have half a dozen coffee shops that I frequent. Mostly I go to the one with a free newspaper to read, not just one copy but half a dozen so that I can check the press while waiting
The old loss leader still works a treat so give people a reason to come to you.
If you fail to do these things you fail to attract business. What happens next is the door closing.
Video, the new kid on the block for business
Youtube has become the search term of preference in many cases.
- Sales
- How to do things
- Brand building
It is all there for you to do and the video world has got relatively simple. No more big production costs.
Newsletters are a must
This may be just one of the 7 touches but the idea is to inform and entertain with regular good articles. They may not buy today or tomorrow but when the time comes you will be front of mind.
I receive one from a local sign Writer. He sends snaps of the latest vehicle or building wrap. It is entertaining and in front of my mind for me or someone, I refer to them.
Email marketing is easy
I bet you get lots of emails. We all do and most rubbish but some have an effect, get opened and acted on.
I had a new contact call me recently to say you have worn me down with your emails, can you help with my problem?
This resulted in the sale of a long-term recurring income and a referral. Good business.
I got this because I did the work and not sat back and waited.
Training in new ideas
The internet world changes every day and so does your business world.
My blog posts daily ideas that you can follow or you or one of your staff can take it a bit more formal with a program that takes you through every idea and component in marketing.
The good part is that it is free and can be shared with others.
Let me summarise the things you can do something about
- Have a social media campaign
- Be registered on LinkedIn
- Keep your web page current and blog often
- Follow the rule of 7
- Fix complaints when they happen
- Excellent customer service
- Keep up-to-date, neat and clean
- Have a loss leader
- Do some videos
- Have a regular newsletter
- Employ email marketing
- Training
That is 12 simple items that you control and can do something about to save the inevitable slippery slide of business failure
Why do businesses fail a blog by Peter Hanley
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