by ColoradoCoach.

As a small business coach I often see small business owners running themselves ragged, working long hours,  not spending time with their families nor doing the things that they enjoy and not experiencing the freedom they hoped owning their own business would bring.

It is easy to get stuck in some of the common pitfalls of business ownership.  These bad habits can be difficult to break out of. The key is really to  start working smarter, not harder.

I thought I would share the  most common mistakes I see small business owners make, and how you can prevent (or stop) yourself from making them:

1. Not setting clear goals. Operating without a clearly defined outcome, where you want your business to go is a sure recipe for disaster.  It is important to take actions with a purpose. Too often I find business owners who are doing many of the right things, but with no direction or purpose and then they get frustrated because the results are not what they expected. Creating a solid vision, and establishing clear, measurable & attainable targets are the first steps.

2. Confusing being busy with being successful. It’s really easy to believe that working 70-hour weeks in your business is just part of being successful.  But what about having the personal freedom and financial freedom to do the things we enjoy and spend time with those we love?  What about creating a balance in your life?  Become aware of how you spend your time.  Assess whether you are spending it in the most efficient way.

3. Weak marketing message.  If your marketing message doesn’t speak directly to your market’s needs and wants your marketing materials will get lost in the storm.  A strong and consistent marketing message that speaks to the question “what’s in it for me?” will trump sexy design every time. Be clear on what problem you or your product solves for your target.

4. Ignoring your true target market.  Too many businesses operate without a good understanding of who their target market is, including how they think, and how they behave.   Trying to market to everybody  is a recipe for disaster, all marketing initiatives are just shots in the dark, and money into the fire.  With this knowledge about your market, all leads are qualified and conversion rates soar.

5. Forgetting the value of current customers. I often see small businesses work so hard on bringing in new business and forget to serve the current business they have.  An example of this is answering the phone during a customer transaction. Or offering discounts to new clients, but not honoring the same discount for current clients.

Customer retention and satisfaction drive profits. It’s far less expensive to cultivate your existing customer base and sell more services to them than it is to seek new, single-transaction customers. Most surveys across industries show that keeping one existing customer is five to seven times more profitable than attracting one new one (Graham Roberts-Phelps.)

Customer retention is about relationship and keeping them active.  Customer loyalty programs are a great way to reward frequent customers, plus it is a helpful way to learn these customers names and get contact information. Use the customers name.  Remember details about them (birthdays, vacations, spouse, children, etc).

If you identify with any of these concerns now is the time to address them.  As a business owner you are not expected to be perfect in all areas of the business, but you should expect that you know which resources to allocate to each concern. Not addressing a problem will definitely not solve it. Throwing more money at it only makes it a more expensive problem. Take time now to clearly identify, create a vision, implement a plan and evaluate the outcomes.

Posted in Vision, business, Failing, success, Coaching, goal setting | Print | 2 Comments »

by ColoradoCoach.

The three most important factors in purchasing real estate: location, location, location.  I know it seems cliche’, but it an essential part of understanding how to buy real estate as an investment.  Similarly, the three most important factors in personal development are a vital piece to understanding how to make positive conscious changes in your life.

The first important factor for personal development and self-improvement is awareness.  You must become aware of how you think, your feelings, your actions & behaviors, and your habits.  You also must take time to recognize the things that you are not doing that can be detouring you from your success.  Finally you must become clear on what it is you want and why it is that you want it.  This level of awareness does not come easily.  Much of the beginning of my coaching relationships focus on this area.  I have discovered that many people believe they are aware of who they are and their problem areas, but are only aware of the symptoms of their issues.

Too often we are aware of the symptoms in our lives, like not enough money, overweight or stressed, but unaware of the true underlying problems that create these outward signs of distress.  We are conditioned and programmed to treat symptoms in this country. If you have a headache there is a pill for that.  Heartburn?  Yep there is a pill for that.  We are never taught to identify the true problems and treat that.  Absolute awareness is critical in making changes in your life.  You must know what you are up against.

The second critical factor is vision.  You must have a clear vision of what you are pursuing.  Can you imagine hitting a target you can’t see?  How about putting together a 3000 piece jigsaw puzzle without seeing the picture on the box?  Can it be done?  Sure it can.  I takes a lot longer, is way more frustrating, and completely draining of energy.

By creating a detailed vision of what it is you are after you are more capable of seeing where the pieces belong.  It will still require putting them together in the correct way, some trial and error, but you will not be aiming blind-folded.

Clarity of a plan is just as important as a clear vision.  Once you have the picture you begin to create a structure for completion.  In completing a jigsaw puzzle, you first find all the edges and construct the border of the puzzle.  Then you begin to group the pieces by color or forms from the picture.  So it is with your vision. First create a structure and then identify the steps that will lead to putting all the pieces together.

The third and final critical factor is application, application, application.  Most people I speak to about personal and professional development have amazing libraries.  They have books from all the gurus Napoleon Hill, Zig Ziglar, Tony Robbins, Jack Canfield, Steven Covey, Brian Tracy and Jim Rohm. The problem is not lack of information or content, their problem is lack of application and action.  We all have access to the resources we need to create the life and achieve the goals we desire.  The struggle arises out of applying those resources effectively.  It’s like owning a Mercedes-Benz S-Class and never driving it. Instead you choose to take the bus everywhere and complain when the bus doesn’t go where you want to go.  You have the resources, apply them.

Knowledge becomes wisdom when you experience it. Applying what you learn creates that experience.  Don’t take my word for it, try it for yourself.  Go and begin applying the lessons from this post.  Become aware of yourself, create a clear vision and take action.

I hope that after reading this you realize that the three critical factors in personal development are application, application, application.

Posted in Personal Development, Vision, success, SMART goals, Coaching, habits, goal setting | Print | No Comments »