Feb/100
Try not to be perfect
Sometimes it can feel like your local business simply isn’t progressing. Even though you are putting in long hours and trying to do everything right, things just aren’t going your way.
Your manager forgets to put the new menu out even though you reminded him twice. Your supplier shows up late, leaving you short of stock for a whole day. A staff member calls in sick on a busy shift. You constantly interview people just in case someone leaves at short notice, but half the time, interviewees don’t show.
Problems such as these make you feel like your hard work is getting you nowhere. It seems that, no matter how much you do, things will never be exactly as they should.
And, in a way, you are right to feel this way. Things will never be exactly as they should. Things will never be perfect. There will always be at least one small thing that goes wrong. If you are striving for perfection, you will never quite get there.
But the thing about striving for perfection is that your competitors will never quite get there either. They have many of the same problems as you do. Like you, they also have to work hard to make their business almost perfect. And you can bet that they often feel like pulling their hair out too.
So when times are tough and it feels like things aren’t working out how you planned, just remember, you don’t need to be perfect. You just need to be better than your competitors.
Dec/090
The problem with doing nothing
There are many reasons why you should do nothing.
- I can’t use a discount to attract new customers because my existing customers will be upset.
- I can’t change my supplier because it will mean rewriting our menu.
- I can’t send marketing emails or SMSs to my customers because they might find it irritating.
Your job, if you wish to make a difference and grow, is this. Put to one side your comfort with the way thing are today. Then, find reasons why these activities do make sense. Not only why they make sense to you, but also to your staff and customers.
- Create a separate promotion exclusively for your existing customers. Perhaps an incentive to try a new or premium service.
- If you can’t easily change your menu, you are wide open to local competitors who might change their menus daily. Do yourself, your staff and your customers a favour by redesigning your menus to be more flexible.
- Get your customers’ permission to send them messages and make sure you send messages that are relevant and compelling.
The problem with doing nothing is that you are learning nothing. You’re not finding out what works and what doesn’t. The problem with learning nothing is that you are not moving towards the situation where your hard work generates more money.
Aug/090
Are your suppliers the right size?
As a small business, you are likely to have a number of suppliers that are bigger than you. When times get economically tough, suppliers tend to get tough on prices and payment terms too. If you are one of very many small customers to that supplier, chances are that you will have little negotiating power.
At times like that, it’s worth remembering that for each large supplier, there are usually several much smaller suppliers competing with them. Some of those suppliers will be very keen to have your business and you may be surprised by the attention and terms they are willing to give you in return.
Of course, there are many reasons why it may be better to work with a large supplier. Regular deliveries are more convenient for you and can mean not having to pay staff to come in at awkward times or out of hours to receive and store stock. A large supplier will usually have a solid distribution network, which means you’ll usually get your goods on time. They are likely to have a greater choice of products because they have the resources to carry them. Plus, their scale will make it difficult for smaller suppliers to compete on price for mainstream products.
On the other hand, smaller suppliers can often have lesser known or niche products and it may be possible for you to get those products exclusively so that you are the only business selling those products in your area.
In my local bar business, I once swapped my house champagne, a high volume item, for an unknown brand from a smaller supplier. I had some of my best customers participate in a taste test so I knew that the unknown brand tasted better than the well-known one. The price was less than the mainstream brand and payment terms were the same as before. The new supplier delivered the champagne personally and offered champagne product training to my bar staff. Once customers got to like the new brand, they also realised that they couldn’t buy it anywhere else locally, since I had made an exclusive deal with the supplier.
Niche products, better payments terms, more attention and exclusivity. These are possible upsides of working with smaller suppliers.
Convenience, reliability, choice and pricing on mainstream products are the possible benefits of doing business with larger suppliers.
Which is the right size for you?
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