It’s important to constantly track trends and new ideas for increased profitability in your business.
The business world is constantly changing an improving. Looking for new ways to improve your customers experience and streamline your operations, will not only increase your profit margin, but it will also improve the quality of your life. In order to establish increased profitability for your business, you need to master a new set of skills.
Here are the seven most important habits of a successful business owner.
1.Innovation: Always be open to new ideas, new ways of learning (especially from other industries and experts). Have the right mindset for growth and success, and be willing to adapt to changing times and evolutions in marketing. Always look for opportunities to grow, both personally and professionally. Be an expert at business management and know how to leverage yourself for quick and explosive growth.
2.Identification. Be able to identify EXACTLY what type of client you want to work with and have systems in place to attract the RIGHT client, and weed out the ones that don’t meet your standards. Create a customer avatar. Know exactly what your client needs from you, and what got them to arrive at that need. Be able to deliver your solution with a systematic approach, that makes the client feel as if it were custom tailored to their needs. Build an ongoing relationship with your clients. This will be mutually beneficial.
3.Investment. You MUST invest in your marketing education and be able to accurately measure your return on investment. For example, if you are able to track that an investment of ‘x’ gets a return of ‘y’ and you only continue that particular strategy if ‘y’ is consistently greater than ‘x’. You are able to outspend your competition because you have a predictable, measurable return on investment.
For example, if a new client is worth $1000 for your practice, and you had to spend $400 to acquire that new client (something your competitors would not dream of doing), then you can outspend your competitors because you know your business metrics better than anyone else.
4.Mastermind. You must surround yourself with people that are smarter than you, and meet with them often to discuss questions you may have, and to come up with great new ideas for your business. Cultivate meaningful relationships with the right people. These people are usually other successful business owners, experts in marketing and business development, employee productivity and many other areas related to business management. You must be able to give back and be approachable in other people’s eyes. Don’t come across as someone who only wants to extract as much information as possible and never contribute back. You should always be expanding your circle of influence, and be seeking out people that have effective systems in place. Always be learning, and seeking to be better.
5.Management. Be a master at time management and people management. Know how to manage your day and focus on high value tasks that lead to growth in the business. This would include relationship building, client acquisition, and proper assignment of tasks. Don’t be discouraged by the monotony of daily tasks. Keep your eyes on the long term goal, and be determined to reach it.
6.Metric Analysis. Be able to define the lifetime value of a client. The lifetime value of a client is the amount of profit you make from them during the lifetime of your relationship with them. It is a measure of:
•How much you get paid for the average transaction.
•How often the person buys from you.
•How many of their friends and family they are likely to refer to you
•Your average net income per transaction.
Most clients have a lifetime value of several thousand dollars. Successful business owners understand this and know that Repetition + Request = Referrals. You have to ask for referrals if you are going to grow your business rapidly.
7.Problem Solvers. Be willing to tackle difficult questions and seek solutions. Successful business owners have the ability to answer the tough questions, and are able to answer questions about their business goals, strengths, and weakness. Questions such as:
Get good at these skills and you will have a profitable business that runs like clockwork. Ignore these important skills, and you will get eaten alive by your competition.
