How to Grow Your Business: Pro Tips for Managers

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StrategyDriven Managing Your Busines Article |Grow your business|How to Grow Your Business: Pro Tips for ManagersAre you trying to grow your business but feel like you keep running into a brick wall? Don’t worry; this is a common experience that all managers go through at some point in time. It’s the nature of the business world: nothing is supposed to be easy!

Fortunately, you can put the following pro tips into action if you need a boost. These tips will help to protect your business, get it on the right track, and ultimately make growth a realistic possibility.

Hire security guards

For your business to grow, it first needs to be protected. Otherwise, you’ll be at risk of break-ins and theft, which could lead to devasting cost damages.

If your current business premises isn’t protected – whether it’s a small commercial office or a large, multi-floor building – you should consider hiring security guards who will be able to provide controlled gate access, entry point monitoring, and more. Get started by visiting https://usprotective.net/commercial/.

On top of this, you should also have security cameras and alarms installed throughout and around your building for extra protection. Security cameras, in particular, are a great deterrent for would-be criminals, so make sure to bear this in mind.

Create an interesting, emotion-driven marketing campaign

It only takes one really good marketing campaign to get your business off the ground and into space in the modern age. If you strike gold with a marketing campaign, it will get shared across all the major social media platforms; gaining your business some major traction.

Here’s an example of an excellent marketing campaign. Back in 2013, Dove launched their ‘Dove Real Beauty Sketches’ campaign, and it gained a lot of positive attention online.

Essentially, the aim of the campaign was to draw attention to women’s beauty standards and how they have led to many women having low (and untrue) perceptions of themselves.

In the promotional video (which you can watch on YouTube), participants in the campaign had to describe themselves to sketch artists. After this, their partners and friends were asked to describe them to sketch artists, too.

The sketches derived from their friend’s descriptions were much more beautiful and realistic than the ones derived from the actual participants, creating a powerful message.

Regarding this campaign, Dove state:

‘More than 50 million people viewed the Dove video within 12 days of its release. To date, Real Beauty Sketches has been viewed almost 180 million times. We want the film to continue to inspire every single one of the 80% of women who feel anxious about how they look to reconsider their view of their own beauty’.

The point is clear: when a marketing campaign is good, it will gain lots of clicks and have a lasting impact for years after.

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Improve your business homepage

Your business homepage should include enticing imagery, good branding, effective call-to-action, and your contact details. On top of this, it’s also a good idea to include a customer service chatbot in the corner to help guide any visitors to your website who need assistance.

Implement a hybrid work model

Modern business managers have embraced hybrid work models. Hybrid work models allow employees to work from home and enjoy greater flexibility. It also allows business managers to hire new and talented employees from different cities and countries.

Lastly, embrace the hard times

Remember, your business growth journey isn’t supposed to be easy. However, by following the tips above and placing your focus on the right key areas, you’ll be able to grow and expand your business over the coming years.

How To Ensure Your Business Move Across States Goes As Smoothly As Possible

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StrategyDriven Managing Your Business Article |Business Move|How To Ensure Your Business Move Across States Goes As Smoothly As PossibleIf moving house is one of the three most stressful events in your personal life, then relocating your business premises to another state must be one of the top three in your professional career.

With that being said, continue reading to discover how to ensure that your business moves from one state to another goes as smoothly as can be expected.

Start Planning Early!

Planning (when it pertains to relocating your business premises) is absolutely paramount and must always involve checking all the proverbial legal boxes as well as the practical ones.

Ensure you always keep both your employees and customers informed and updated, the former so you are unlikely to lose any valuable employees that have initially agreed to transfer to the new location and the latter to ensure that your customers feel important and valued.

Some of the best ways to maintain relationships with both customers and staff ahead of the move include, but are categorically in no way limited to:

  • Ordering and using stationery with your new contact details clearly displayed
  • Informing any relevant authorities or legal practices of your move in good time
  • Speaking personally to corporate companies and informing them of the change in location
  • Including a map to find your new location with every e-mail and mail correspondence
  • Consulting the relevant trade union representatives for your business and departments
  • Holding weekly employee briefings to update them on every step of the relocation process and progress

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Ensure There Are No Gaps In Operation

Before, during and naturally after the move, it is vital to ensure that your business is operating completely normally and the products or services you offer do not suffer in quantity, quality or speed at which they are provided. Additionally, your customer service standard should not be compromised during this time in any way.

Managing & Directing The Moving Day

The moving day itself needs to be planned and scheduled as much as feasibly possible and one of the most beneficial and cost-effective things to do is to contact a professional and established company such as Acertus automotive logistics who will help with ensuring your company’s vehicles arrive safely at your new destination.

With the threat of the worldwide coronavirus pandemic ever-present in today’s modern world right now, always remember to execute each phase of the re-location process as safely and securely as possible. Accessibility is of vital importance, for your employees and where applicable, your new premises needs to be up to date with both the moral and legal accessibility rules.

The other key considerations when changing the location of your business premises is local, professional and renowned IT solicitors and specialists and the new layout and any changes or additions you will be required to make that differ from the current floor plan.

It would also be prudent to point out that if you are renting your current business premises to thoroughly read through the terms and conditions of your lease.

Top Tips on Choosing the Right Fulfillment Company for Your eCommerce Store

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StrategyDriven Managing Your Business Article |Fulfillment Company|Top Tips on Choosing the Right Fulfillment Company for Your eCommerce StoreWhether you are new to the eCommerce world or are a keen investor with some extra money for a new business venture, eCommerce fulfillment is a great business to get involved with. eCommerce is only evolving and growing, and in 2021 alone, it is estimated there could be up to 24 million eCommerce stores around the world.

It is extremely easy to set up an eCommerce store, and much cheaper and more practical than setting up a physical store. And there’s no wonder, with over 2.14 billion people browsing and shopping online in 2021.

However, there are some key strategies that you need to know if you want them to be successful.

You can have a great store, a great marketing plan, and a great offering, however, if you do not have your fulfillments in order, then you cannot serve your customers. Without a good fulfillment company, and strategy, you will ruin your reputation and your business is likely to fail. With giants such as Amazon Prime offering quick next day deliveries, and some are even available on the same day, the expectations of customers are the highest they have ever been. Fulfillment is key to your bottom line and a successful eCommerce store.

Here are some top tips to help you get started with your new eCommerce business, and everything you need to know about fulfillment.

What is fulfillment?

Fulfillment can be done in-house or can be contracted out to a third party, but it involves the storing, picking, packing, and shipping of inventory from the warehouse to your customers. There is a lot involved in the fulfillment process before a product can be shipped to a customer. Some of these things include the sourcing of high-quality materials and products, managing the warehouse and the inventory, choosing the right packaging for your product, communication between contractors and staff, and keeping the costs down throughout.

Inventory is the first and most important thing to think about in business. Without an inventory, you cannot fulfill orders for your customers. Some businesses choose to keep the fulfillment process in-house, which means sourcing a warehouse to store all of the inventory, as well as staff members to fulfill the orders. Other businesses choose to outsource the fulfillment process, which is usually with a third party logistics (3PL) provider. This option is not just for large corporations, there are plenty of 3PL for small business contracts.

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Why is it important to pick the best fulfillment company to work with?

Outsourcing this part of your business comes with many benefits, such as allowing you to focus on other areas of your business, broaden your reach and grow into new markets, cheaper operating and shipping costs, and much more. If you choose to fulfill your goods with a third party, then you must pick the best one for your company if you want to reap these benefits. You can have the best product in the world, but if you cannot get it to your customers, it doesn’t matter. The right company can positively contribute to your brand success. It is therefore important to conduct thorough research before signing up with a fulfillment company, to ensure they are the right ones for you. Here are some things to look out for.

Shipping speeds

Modern consumers are expecting fast deliveries, and you have a lot of competition with companies such as Amazon. Make sure you work with a fulfillment company that can offer good delivery times and will stick to its promises. Good shipping speeds are key to the success of the future of your online store. Without good shipping speeds, you risk losing customers as they are more likely to opt to purchase the product with a competitor instead.

Location of the fulfillment company

You will need to know where the location of the fulfillment company is, and ensure that it is in a location whereby the products do not have to travel far. This will help with quicker delivery times, as well as costs. Ideally, they should be located near your target customer base. It can also be helpful to ensure the warehouse is located near ports and main transport routes to more efficiently receive materials and send goods. Depending on the goals of your company, now and in the future, you may also wish to consider if they have warehouses in different locations, and offer a quick and easy global shipping solution. It is also a good idea to visit the warehouse so you can see for yourself how they work to ensure they are a good fit.

Order fulfillment processes and software

When you start and run a business, it is likely that you already have numerous rules, best practices, spreadsheets, software, and processes in place. You will therefore need to ensure that the processes and the software offered by the fulfillment company can easily integrate into your company and values. This is vital because you need full transparency and visibility from the company, so you can keep up-to-date with fulfillments and what is going on with deliveries. This way you can manage customer expectations and trust much better.

Management

The staff and management of the fulfillment company are also key to the success of the partnership. You need to ensure that you get along, the communication is clear and regular, and that your business can get personal attention from them.

When you start or run an eCommerce store, building your brand and trust with customers is vital to the success, and future growth of your business. The fulfillment process is going to play a key role in building trust with your customers, and your reputation. This is because not only do customers expect deliveries quickly, but they also want to be able to track them, and their promise of delivery day and time is kept. If the delivery date offered at checkout is too long, if the delivery is delayed, or if the fulfillment is wrong, then your trust and reputation can quickly be shattered. It is therefore crucial that you conduct your research, speak to different companies and find the best fulfillment company that will work well with your business and keep your interests a priority.

A Guide to Preventing Your Online Business From Losing Money

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StrategyDriven Managing Your Business Article |Online Business|A Guide to Preventing Your Online Business From Losing MoneyEven successful businesses start to lose money from time to time, and this can send the entire company into panic mode.

Although financial difficulties are a challenge that you might face occasionally, in order to reduce their frequency and to prevent your online business from losing money frequently, here are some of the top steps that you can take.

Increase Operational Efficiency

Increasing the operational efficiency of your business is paramount if you are going to prevent your company from losing money, as a lot of human errors can lead to customer upset, which can reduce the likelihood of them buying from your company again, or recommending you to others. Therefore, you should do all that you can to increase the operational efficiency of your business, including employing the use of metrics, technology, and particular actions that can increase employee motivation.

Increase Pricing

If you are beginning to notice that your online business is losing momentum, this could be due to the fact that your pricing structure is not correct. For instance, inflation could mean that you are not now covering your supply costs within your pricing, or other companies might be offering better prices than you, which can make shoppers more reluctant to buy any products from your brand. Therefore, you should constantly review your pricing structure to ensure that it still works for your company and that it is in line with other companies within your industry.

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Reduce Costs

It is also important that you look at reducing your costs and expenditure, even if you are not currently losing money, as this will enable you to get larger profit margins and to ensure that you are financially secure if your sales begin to slide. For instance, you should look at cutting your utility bills and even the cost of your office or warehouse space. You might consider using a shared office space, or encouraging your employees to work at home. You might also look for different suppliers who can provide you with the same products for much less, and consider cutting down on the amount of software that your brand uses.

Decrease Waste

You should also find ways to decrease the amount of waste that your company produces. For instance, you might decide to reuse excess materials, or only invest in the stock that you need. In terms of paper waste, you might decide to make your company fully digital, especially in terms of documentation, as this will prevent you from having to store vast amounts of paper documents. This will then prevent you from leaking profits, and can prevent you from having to spend excessive amounts on waste disposal.

Preventing your online business from losing money can be difficult. However, there are many steps that you can take to reduce your expenditure and ensure that your company does not get into financial stress before too long, and this will ensure that your business is able to go from success to success in the future.

On-Demand Manufacturing: The Perfect Way to Minimize Your Risk

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StrategyDriven Managing Your Business Article |On-Demand Manufacturing|On-Demand Manufacturing: The Perfect Way to Minimize Your RiskCountless businesses benefit from traditional manufacturing techniques. These companies find they can have products produced in large quantities so they are always on hand when customers want and need them. When a company wants a custom product produced, however, obtaining a quote becomes a challenge. The buyer or engineer spends time contacting various suppliers to get quotes and answers to various production questions. Furthermore, they must negotiate the price with each manufacturer.

This process takes time and manpower. Furthermore, the manufacturing process lacks the transparency companies want and need. When a startup or small and medium enterprise moves through this process, they often find they detour from the innovation path. Fortunately, they don’t need to take this route. With the help of on-demand manufacturing, often referred to as cloud manufacturing, companies find they have the items they need and stay on track with their business goals.

What is On-Demand Manufacturing?

With on-demand manufacturing, a company only produces the goods it needs at any given time. They can request one copy of the product or 1,000. This process allows companies of any size to provide their customers with the desired product in a reasonable time frame. Startups and SMEs find this is the solution they need to build their business and expand it.

Why Choose On-Demand Manufacturing Over Traditional Options?

Companies want to know the benefits of cloud manufacturing to ensure it meets their needs. They find the process is scalable and allows them to manufacture only those items they know will sell. They no longer need to sit on inventory and pay for storage space for the products or markdown items that didn’t sell as expected. Furthermore, customers love getting a product they need promptly while paying an affordable price for it. There is also no need for the company to produce parts that will sit around waiting to be used, as they can be manufactured only when they are required to fulfill a sale.

The company can expand its product line and create unique, one-of-a-kind items. In addition, they find the need to forecast new product volumes decreases, and they can dedicate staff resources to those tasks designed to grow the business. Customer service improves as a result.

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Less Risk

Companies take on less risk thanks to on-demand manufacturing. In addition, 3D printing costs continue to decrease, manufacturing industries are modernizing, and consumers love personalized products. Startups and small to medium size enterprises benefit from on-demand manufacturing, as they employ a risk reduction strategy. What are some benefits associated with this option?

Customization

Customization options increase with cloud manufacturing, as the business finds it can make small production runs. Customization options boost a company’s sales conversions. Furthermore, companies find they can make prototypes without incurring the high cost of doing so. Prototypes often become cost-prohibitive when traditional manufacturing methods are used, but on-demand manufacturing allows a company to make a prototype at an affordable cost. The company can then determine its market acceptance and determine whether to proceed with manufacturing the item.

Time to Market

Traditional manufacturing methods lead to a lag time between obtaining the initial quote to producing the item. By the time a product makes it to market, the demand for the item could significantly decrease. Startup and small to medium enterprise businesses often find this to be a major issue. They forecast major sales for a product only to find large sums of money are tied up in products that don’t move. Faster production methods enable a business to help more customers and generate more revenue without this risk.

Decreased Costs

The cost assessment takes less time and the estimation process is simplified. The fast production times result in a rapid lead time. Businesses find this reduces their sales risk significantly. Business owners find they no longer need to place a minimum order to work with suppliers. This saves them time and money as well.

Inventory and storage costs drop drastically when a company makes use of on-demand manufacturing. Companies just starting out and small businesses need to maximize their cash flow, and on-demand manufacturing allows them to do so. They reduce the capital spent on storage, as they pay less in warehouse fees and the labor required to manage the storage. The funds saved in this area may be used for marketing, customer service, research and development, and more. All help to grow the business further.

Furthermore, the funds saved in this area may be kept in reserve. Many business owners find they have little in reserve when disaster strikes. The global pandemic of 2020 showed how important it is to prepare for anything and have funds set aside for when a problem arises. Reduced inventory requirements free up funds that become valuable in times such as those.

Transformation

Cloud manufacturing makes use of a platform-based approach. This approach continues to transform the manufacturing industry in ways people couldn’t have imagined a few short years ago. It finds ways to reduce the frustration experienced by designers and engineers in a variety of areas.

The platform provides an interface that is automated and centralized. This platform allows for simplified communication between the engineers and suppliers while eliminating delays and inefficiencies. The streamlined communication process offers countless benefits and eases the production process at every step.

Companies find they can produce products in the U.S. today that previously weren’t possible. In the past, electronic part production runs were handled offshore for a range of reasons. Today, companies in the United States take on PCB assembly and device manufacturing, among other things, thanks to on-demand manufacturing. This allows for cost savings without the worry of delays associated with international business today. The company can feel confident it will be able to deliver on promises to consumers when on-demand manufacturing methods are used.

If you have yet to consider the use of on-demand manufacturing, now is the time to do so. Companies that employ this manufacturing method find they save money while better meeting the needs of their customers. This allows them to compete against major businesses in crowded industries while boosting their bottom lines.