12 days of small business advice
- Business Rescue Business Growth
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At Be Rescued, we love giving small business advice and we love Christmas, so, this blog combines both - 12 days of small business advice! But the big question this festive season is when does 12th night fall? Do you take your decorations down on the 5th or 6th January? The timing has long been a subject of debate. Here are 12 pieces of small business advice that work whatever the time of year.
12 days of small business advice that work all year round
1. Know your finances
The saying ‘look after the pennies and the pounds will look after themselves’ certainly rings true for small business owners. If you concentrate on understanding everything about the finances in your business - from the smallest amounts of money, you have more chance of growing your income.
If you understand what is coming in and going out of your business bank account, you will know what your business needs to turnover to make a profit and grow. So, our first piece of small business advice focuses on knowing your finances.
As a small business owner, you might have an accountant or an employee who manages your accounts but make sure you have oversight on a regular basis. That way you will have peace of mind knowing that everything is as it should be and can sleep soundly!
2. Plan and set goals
When you drive to a new destination, you can’t get there if you don’t plan your route. The same is true of business - planning should be a key priority.
One of the best pieces of small business advice we can give at Be Rescued is to Plan, Plan, Plan. Update your business plan regularly and plan for everything from your marketing to forecasting your income.
Maria Pombo at Be Rescued completed a ten-mile Tough Mudder in 2021, which took a lot of training and preparation.
Maria’s words of advice: “Planning for the Tough Mudder I always had the end goal in mind and worked hard to get there. But I built up my training gradually using small milestones. I advise business owners to take the same approach and it pays dividends.”
Rome wasn’t built in a day, so build in mini goals to help you get where you want to be. You can ask for help along the way, Be Rescued provides advice for small businesses from turnaround to growth. Get in touch with Maria at Be Rescued.
3. Use the Business Model Canvas
A Business Model Canvas provides a framework for the workings of your business and the all-important strategy that underpins it. It will help you understand the fundamentals of your business and will pave the way for business growth.
If you are starting a business, it’s important that you get things right from the get-go to increase your chance of success. A Business Model Canvas will help you visualise all the essential elements in your new business such as your customers, your core activities and your value proposition.
At Be Rescued, we’ve shown our clients the value a Business Model can bring to their business. Throughout 2021 we shared our knowledge on the model and how it works in a series of blogs. You can read them now on our website! If you need any help formulating your Business Model Canvas, contact Maria at Be Rescued.
4. Keep on learning
The Be Rescued team are huge fans of learning and never miss an opportunity to brush up our skills. There has been an acceleration in online training, giving small business owners the chance to learn about topics from how to do your accounts to social media marketing.
Whether you are just starting out or run an established company, our advice for small businesses would be to keep on learning. There is always something new to discover that can benefit your business. A webinar might give you a tip that unlocks lots of potential or changes the way you do things for the better.
So, be like a sponge and soak up as much information as you can. Learn new skills and encourage your team to do the same. Sometimes skilling up your employees might be more beneficial to your business than taking on someone new. Your staff will also get greater job satisfaction and be happier at work when they develop new skills. So it’s a win-win for everyone!
5. Never give up
Sometimes it’s tough being a small business owner. There are more highs than lows but the lows can make you question why you are running a business.
No matter how tough it gets try to persevere. Remember why you started the business in the first place. Before you give up, seek help to see if you can turn things around.
Problems can seem insurmountable but there is often a tried and tested solution. At Be Rescued, we help companies solve their problems and turn their businesses around.
Be Rescued is on a mission to help small businesses survive and thrive.
6. Build a network
No man - or woman - or business - is an island! You know your business better than anyone but at times you need the support and expertise of others. Reaching out for help could make all the difference to your business.
Join networking groups to talk to other business owners. You will benefit from sharing knowledge with others and may well find answers to difficult questions. There are huge benefits to being part of a group and sharing your experience will make you feel less isolated as a business owner.
It also helps to build a network of experts you can draw on from time to time. Whether you need small business advice on marketing or how to manage a contractual dispute, it will help get things resolved more quickly if you have a go-to person.
Be Rescued is here for the good and not so good times, book an appointment with Maria if you need any support.
7. Future proof your business
We’ve gone through a major digital transformation with many businesses moving their products and services online to continue to trade effectively. None of us could have predicted this digital acceleration would happen with such speed but there are things you can do to future proof your business.
It helps if you develop a future mindset. Think, where will my industry be in five years time? Keep asking customers questions to uncover their changing needs and wants, you can then develop products and services that are relevant to them now and in the future.
Be an early adopter and embrace change to keep pace with developments in your industry and the wider business community.
8. Don’t panic if things go wrong
One of the best pieces of small business advice we could ever give is ‘don’t panic if things go wrong.’ Of course, sometimes it’s easier said than done. When the worst happens panicking is the most natural thing in the world.
But the best course of action is to swear loudly if you need to then take a deep breath, step back and work out a short-term plan. There is likely to be a tried and tested solution.
The worst thing you can do is brush a problem under the carpet, it will not disappear. For example, if a final demand drops through the letter box there might be something you can do to ward off any bailiffs. Communicating with the creditor is the best course of action, whereas ignoring the demand will only make matters worse.
Reach out for small business advice from an expert. Maria at Be Rescued is here for when things go wrong and can even help you see some problems as opportunities.
9. Celebrate small wins
The joy of building in mini goals is that you can celebrate small wins.
It’s not all about winning big - winning small rocks!
Small wins help you to reach bigger goals.
Give yourself a big pat on the back and thank any people who have helped you.
Drop an email to say thank you to your team or any outsourced experts, it will brighten their day!
10. Do the paperwork
Paperwork can seem boring and it’s time consuming but dotting the i’s and crossing the t’s might save your business considerable hassle or a major dispute.
Always have contracts and agreements in place with anyone you work with whether it’s your employees, suppliers, shareholders or customers.
It also pays to make sure your terms and conditions are up to date to protect your business financially and legally.
Sometimes it helps to have an expert look over your paperwork to ensure nothing has been missed. Maria at Be Rescued can help to ensure your paperwork is in order. Contact Maria.
11. Look after yourself and your team
With working from home and hybrid working the norm for many businesses, it’s sometimes hard to keep track of staff wellbeing. Book in regular updates with any employees to check how they are doing. Sometimes a quick ‘hello’ video call is enough but you might need to devote more time to checking on your staff. If you have any concerns seek advice from a mental health expert.
As a small business owner it’s easy to forget your own mental health. With so many things to juggle and lots of responsibility it can be hard to switch off. But make sure you build in time to spend with friends and family or simply to do the things you enjoy. It’s all about ensuring that you and your staff have a healthy work-life balance.
For information and resources go to Mind, the mental health charity.
12. Have a sense of humour
How often have you seen a job description with the words ‘sense of humour essential’? Let’s face it, a sense of humour is a must for life in general! But it really helps if you can laugh about things when you run a small business.
We work hard but enjoy having a bit of a giggle at Be Rescued. So, we thought we’d finish with a Christmas joke:
How did Scrooge win the football game?
The ghost of Christmas passed!
So, that’s it from our small business advice blog for this year!
A very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year from the Be Rescued team.
We look forward to sharing more helpful content with you in 2022!
In the meantime, get in touch if you need any small business advice or want to share a terrible Christmas joke!