Advice In Business

Business solutions can be easily found in all sorts of places, the difficulties occur in three main areas:

1) Once you have the answer you may not know how or have the skill to put it into action.
2) You have to make the solution fit your own specific business.
3) You haven't got time to find the solutions or make them happen when you have them.

These then become objections in your own mind and you find them difficult to overcome.

This is not just related to business, it's a whole thought process that causes difficulties for people in many different ways.

• How often do you find yourself exploring great opportunities concluding that it's just not possible for one reason or another?
• How often do you close the door on ideas and suggestions believing that they can't work for you?
• How often do you return to normal practice instead of identifying the "gap" or the "missing piece" that would make all the difference?

What you need to know is that your not alone - The brain has no way of choosing whether to focus on the negative or the positive - It's your knowledge and experience that have to be counted on to make such major decisions.

Many coaches, mentors and consultants talk of "best practice" - which potentially means finding out who has the answer to your business issue and then putting it into practice, and there is absolutely nothing wrong with that. In fact it's very often exactly the right thing to do. In the world of NLP (Neuro Linguistic Programming) It can be referred to as "modelling" and this is seen as a major strategy in life and in business. And the theory has been around for a very long time...

"If I have seen further it is only by standing on the shoulders of giants" 
- Sir Isaac Newton

However, there is still more that you can do...

As we have now established "Best Practice" works but let's stretch the mind even further - what would be the "Next Practice" you could choose?

In other words once you have the best practice sorted, how could you take it to the next level?

And the answers may not be in any book, magazine, on the internet or in any business manual...

They are in the Questions You Ask Yourself.

You see your mind is like a computer if you type the word "poverty" into Google, you will find a raft of information about poverty... If you type the word "wealth" into Google then your answers will be packed with information about wealth.

Your brain works in exactly the same way.

Clearly then, there is a need to ask yourself quality questions, not just when facing challenges, but at any time of day when you're struggling to overcome obstacles that are holding you back and preventing you from taking the right steps forward.

Good questions are open and involve the use of the words, who, where, when, what, which and how.

So start thinking about how you need to change your thinking process?

What do you need to do?

Who can help you?

And when will you start?

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Posted in: Advice In Business

Setting Up A Commercial Laundry Business

Whilst it may seem a daunting task to start with, setting up a commercial laundry business is not that hard provided that you can get the financing in place to get going. However whilst they are not cheap to set up, many banks class them as a safe investment and are willing to lend finance to set them up, particularly given the 20-30% profit that they can make. Thus making them a reasonably safe investment for the bank.

Obviously this will mean having to pass the usual credit checks etc. However they will primarily be interested in your business plan and how much operating capital you will need - This is the money you will need to pay staff and suppliers until you get cash flowing in to the business from customers, rather than the money need to buy the commercial laundry equipment.

When it comes to premises you have a wide range of options, as you will be picking up and delivering your customers laundry it does not matter where you are located within reason. This means that you should be able to source premises that are cheap to rent, which is important as a commercial laundry can need a lot of space for drying and storage of washed items, as well as items waiting to be washed. You will also need some office space, although this will be minimal compared to the laundry part of the business.

When it comes to the financing for your commercial laundry business then you have two main options, outright purchase of the equipment, or leasing it. Whilst if you have the cash to buy it outright this may seem an attractive option, however leasing it may prove to be far more cost effective for a couple of reasons.

Firstly by leasing the equipment you will get the chance to replace it with newer more efficient machines every 3 to 5 years, and secondly you are likely to be offered a comprehensive support and maintenance package with the lease. This can be vital as every hour that a machine is broken, you are losing business or customers.

A good maintenance package is essential to any commercial laundry business, whereas if you buy the equipment outright then you will have to set up separate agreements to cover this.

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Posted in: Setting Up A Commercial Laundry Business

Commercial Laundry Machine Maintenance

When you run a commercial laundry company, equipment failure is and always will be a worry, particularly if you have just set up a new commercial laundry company and do not have too many customers yet. You soon realise the importance of customer retention and that you cannot afford to lose customers due to laundry equipment failure in the early stages.

This may seem a slightly odd statement as you might think that you cannot afford equipment failure at any stage of your business, however as your business expands you will be able to afford more equipment and hence buy two pieces of each of your key equipment such as washers and finishers. When you have the luxury of having two of everything you are not so worried if one piece of laundry equipment breaks down.

However when you are just starting out it is essential that your machines keep running without fault.

When purchasing commercial laundry equipment it is always a good idea to take out a maintenance agreement with the same people you purchase the equipment from. Indeed do not buy from anyone that offers no maintenance cover no matter how good the price seems.

With a commercial laundry you need equipment to be covered 365 days a year and 24 hours a day, as when you get busy those are the timeframes you will be working to and need your maintenance to cover you for. A 9 to 5 cover is not an option, as a lot of your work will be done overnight. Also machines do not know what day of the year it is, so if they breakdown on Christmas day then you need that covered as well.

You also need your cover to be with someone that carries a wide range of spare parts for your machines and that has a fast call out and break fix time in your area.

All of these are the things you need to consider when taking out a commercial laundry maintenance agreement.

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Posted in: Commercial Laundry Machine Maintenance

Social Media for Business

When investing time in any marketing effort for your business, be sure that you are making the most of your ROI (return on investment). This means the money or time (because we all know by now that time is money) you devote to your social media campaigns needs to be delivering some sort of payoff. This payoff might be financial or perhaps another type, for instance developing important and beneficial connections. The main thing about ROI is that you simply need to decide before hand what you expect social media to do for you and your business.

Unfortunately, most people who make use of social media don't keep track of their ROI at all. They may keep track of dollars expended, however usually do not take into account their time spent at all. While they commit an exorbitant amount of time to social media, there's no accounting for it. The fact is that if the time spent is not well thought out and strategically planned with consideration to specific goals, a great deal of that time is not productive.

Since most business owners don't study the impact of their of social media campaigns, they have no idea that they may be wasting a lot of time and effort on activities that are not paying off. Activities that suck up valuable time exist in every business, large or small, but social media without direction, like long social telephone phone calls, can be one of the biggest time wasters in your business if you let it be. If you find yourself using any avenue of your business to do anything besides generate leads leading to revenue, then study the ROI of any activity you spend on any activity in your business.

There are several ways to maximize your ROI when making use of social media. The best way is to optimize the time you spend on social media by strategically using automation tools. However, be conscious of the fact that some certain types of automation may be detractors while others can add a great deal of value. Which types add or subtract are truly subjective to your business and are issues that you should study within your own organization.

There are various types of automation for social media which enable you to create your content once and distribute it throughout all of your channels. There is also automation available to schedule posts about your blogs or new content and even website plugins which allow a you to publish and schedule multiple posts with the push of a button. Other kinds of automation let you interact with new people, for example auto tweets to brand new followers and auto following on Twitter along with constant re-tweets and re-sending of the identical information at different time periods throughout any given day.

What is important to keep in mind is to value your time above all else. After that, be certain that you're creating value for other users of social media as you decide which forms of automation to use. Automation can keep you from wasting time. There isn't any valid reason to spend time publishing exactly the same link to the same new article or blog post again and again throughout all your social media channels. However, there are all kinds of reasons for making personal contact with people who follow you, "Like" your Facebook page or comment on what you've written. Activities such as these turn prospects into paying customers. Naturally, social media is social at its heart, and you cannot be social if you're spending all your time posting information rather than connecting with the prospective customers that are waiting for you.

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Posted in: Social Media for Business

Money Saving Ideas For A Small Business

If you are a business owner in today's economy, you know that now it is more important than ever to cut costs within your business to be able to grow your company and of course the bottom line. Those goals are increasingly difficult in the present day as the economic outlook worsens, but below are a few tips to ensure that your business can operate more affordably, and thus thrive in this economy.

Renegotiate Contracts

If you have small businesses that serve your small business, now is the time to negotiate lower rates on your contracts. For example, if you hire a landscaper, cleaning crew, or if you rent the space where your small business resides, you can review and re-negotiate those contracts to save you money on your monthly expenses. Chances are, those small businesses are glad to have your money coming into their business, and will do whatever it takes to keep your business, even if that means getting a smaller margin on their fees. It is worth a try to see if you can get a lower rate on some of these items, even if it means reducing the service you pay for.

Leverage Free Publicity

With the internet being such a popular communication and advertising tool, small businesses have a much easier time finding affordable ways to promote their business. By creating a website and leveraging social media sites, you can easily attract new customers in ways that were not possible just ten years ago. Set up a site on all of the social media service providers, have a consistent message, and take advantage of some free advertising!

Don't Just Buy Individual Items

If your business uses lots of supplies, do some research about how to get the cheapest per item cost, and buy these items in bulk to save money. Whether it's cleaning supplies, office supplies, or other commodities, look for ways to buy in bigger bulk to spend less money over time.

Check Your Utilities

Most small businesses cannot operate without utilities such as water, cable, and internet, but if you can find ways to save money by choosing the most affordable provider for these services, you may be able to add some money to your bottom line. Do some research in your area to see if you can choose your provider, and if so, find the one that can serve you in the most affordable way. In many areas, your energy, internet, and cable providers are in a competitive market, so you can choose which one serves your small business, and perhaps save some money along the way.

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Posted in: Money Saving Ideas For A Small Business

How to Set Up a Focus Group

A focus group can be an effective tool for small business. These groups allow business owners to get an idea of how people will react to a new technical products, services or advertising. It was first used by the powerful Fortune 500 and medium enterprises; however, the use of focus groups has spread to even small businesses. Before starting a discussion group to test a new idea, it is important to ensure that it is an effective and viable segment of your target market

Location: Decide the destination city or town too set the group in and guidelines to be used in selecting the first group of member from different ages and income level. Decide on the monetary award for the members after seeking the recommendation of a moderator...

Screening: screen the first Participants before the session scheduled to begin. Make sure you get a true representation of your market, you must first select a group within the right demographic area, and then continue to develop this team to the participants, are the necessary characteristics. Always have a group composed of the right consumers who have direct influence on the product.

Moderator: Give each focus group a moderate. A moderator is one of the most important aspects of a focus group. They keep the whole group together and the task is able to interpret clues to the participants. Get someone who has experience in the target group in moderation. Work with the facilitator in the development of a list of issues or focus group guide and rules. Distribute copies of the rules to key people within the company. Let the moderator to select the plan. Set a deadline for an editor to select the participants. Set a date and time for group discussion and to inform all members of the management team in the calendar. Ask the moderator to remind the participants of the focus group three days earlier. The moderator has to buy tickets if the group is out of town.

Schedules: Carrying out more than one group as each client is unique and the answers you get from a group of people can be completely different from the responses you receive from another. Schedule at least two or three discussion groups and then compare answers to find the real data.

Concepts: Develop concept 3 boards, or handouts that summarize the new products, the company wants to test.

Recording; Recording the proceedings. You need to take notes and monitor the newsgroup, because you may lose some things. The registration procedure with a voice recorder or video, so you can play again.

Plan: Plan the logistics of your discussion group. The group meeting should take place in a location convenient for participants. Furthermore, it should offer refreshments and the moderator should be responsible for ensuring that the group is involved in the process. A focus group of bored, hungry and uncomfortable members will produce very different results from a group that has a comfortable and conducive environment.

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Posted in: How to Set Up a Focus Group

Why Same Day Delivery Service

Same Day Delivery Service

Same day delivery is fast becoming the standard for delivery services, with consumers demanding their goods delivered on the same day at a specified time and location of their choosing. This kind of service gives the consumer more access to their deliveries, enabling them to configure each delivery to their specific needs. This service is mostly used by businesses and is usually carried out by couriers. Some individuals are taking advantage of this service, but for the most part most people do not realize the need or benefit of having a reliable courier to deliver items or pick up items when they do not have the time to do it themselves.

Same day service is getting more attention from individuals, with consumers generally demanding more control of their deliveries and in need of dictating term for their deliveries. The consumer is looking for more access to their goods, demanding to set the schedules for pick up and delivery, rather than being told when and where to wait for their shipments. Courier services have recognized this need and have taken advantage of it, offering a variety of services to suit each individual consumer. Within minutes of contacting a courier an individual can get their goods picked up and can specify where and when they want them delivered. This is definitely works for the individual making it more convenient for them.

Courier services generally are willing to deliver most items from envelopes, packages, gifts to truckloads, depending on the courier company. The charge generally consists of the determination of weight, size and distance of pick up to destination. service is usually more costly because it is customized and personalised. It is interesting that most people use courier services for their jobs, but have not realised they can use a courier service for their day to day lives. Same day delivery can be utilized in daily living for example:

* Gifts can be delivered to a loved one or a gift basket to a hospital
* Items can be picked up from a store, bakery, bookshop, restaurant, etc
* Medication can be picked up from the pharmacy, medical supplies like wheel chairs
* Furniture can be delivered on the same day, electronics too

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