I recently completed a poll in a facebook group, where I posted the question, about what plans Business owners have to improve their Business in the 2018/19 Financial year. Whilst disappointed that only around .4 % of the group responded, however, we must understand in any of our polls, questions with our audience, there will be limited responses, and cant expect responses from every group member.
The following stats, I got from the poll,
28.5% of the Respondents suggested they were going to learn their financials better in the 18/19 financial year to help them improve their Business.
28.5 % of respondents suggested they were going to Increase sales.
22.4% suggested they were going to either Launch or improve their website in the new financial year.
16% of respondents suggested they were going to Introduce a new service or product to help improve their Business.
Around 4% of respondents suggested they were going to find a mentor, coach, advisor to help improve their Business this financial year.
Guess we must also understand, that some of the above responses for each question, was actually the same person, as some did tick multiple boxes/ responses, and not just choose one response.
I find it interesting out of the people who responded to the poll, only 4% of the responses suggested they were going to find a mentor/coach/advisor to help improve their Business, through this I assume the others already have a Mentor/ Coach/Advisor to help, or have had one previously, or don’t see value in someone assisting their Business, and therefore have chosen not to find one, however without another poll of the same respondents I can not ascertain the correct answer accurately.
Understanding Financials– whilst there are good Mentors out there who can assist you in learning more about your financials, often your trustee Accountant/bookkeeper is the best person to sit down with and discuss your financials. However, if you wish to do it yourself, then breaking down all your expenses, and your income to an hourly figure can be a good way to learn how your Business is tracking financially and the size of the profit you are making per item, or service being provided.
Increasing Sales – Reviewing your Marketing plan, is one way we can improve the sales within our Business, what has worked previously and what has not, reviewing the way you use social media and how you can improve that, or reviewing your website can also improve your business. Contacting all your previous clients and discussing how you can assist them with any services you offer, or advising them of any new products or other products you have available can assist in growing your business.
Website – Understanding the purpose of your website, e.g. is it information only, is it a contact page for potential clients, does it need to sell for you, can help you improve your website to ensure it meets your client’s expectations and requirements. Speaking with a Website person, an SEO company or a Marketing company should all be able to help ensure your website is in the right format to reach the outcomes you are trying to reach.
Introducing a new Product/ Service – This is vital for any Business to grow into the future, as offering further offerings to current or previous clients is the best form of advertising, as they already trust you and may be willing to buy more from you. However it is important to do your Market research before introducing anything new, just to ensure the Marketplace wants it, and more than anything are willing to pay for it, no good having a good service/product if someone is not willing to pay for it.
Mentor/ Coaching/ Advisor – As I basically all 3 of these, I won’t write too much about these services, although with the right one of any of these or a combination they can help guide you into what is required to improve your Business.
Thank you to everyone who took the time to respond to the poll, it is greatly appreciated, and think if anything it gives everyone ideas on what they need to do to improve their Business into the future, or that it could be beneficial to think about growing their Business in the future.
