Why is it some businesses are successful and some are not?  We have been researching, reading reports and considered the many businesses we come across and have found some common themes.

We have listed seven salient points for you to consider:

1. They have ‘Strategy’;  A strategy that works for you, a road map that gives you clear instructions about what you and your business is about and where you need to take it for it to work and most importantly be worthwhile.  This is about you understanding what you are offering, your customers, how to reach them and how many you need to reach.  Surprisingly many businesses do not have this and wonder why they are not making ends meet.
2. The ‘Right Attitude’; Here we don’t just mean a positive attitude (although essential) we are referring to ‘Resilience’.  Resilience to bounce back, rough with the smooth, resilient to accept you are worth success.  A belief that what you are doing is good enough and worth it.
3. An ability to ‘Change’ and take ‘Risks’;  Of course you have taken a a risk by starting out on your own but it must not stop there.  Business is about constantly understanding your market and the needs of your customers. this requires you to constantly change and try new developments, products and ideas. For many change can be very difficult as it usually requires you to let something go to allow something new to come in.
   This can be daunting, with the fear of the unknown but remember no 2, you are more resilient than you realise.
4. An Understanding of ‘Customer Service’;  This is more than understanding who your customers are. this is about understanding how you connect with them and provide a quality service from start to finish. Build in a regular review of your customers journey, see what they see, feel what they feel,
   hear what they hear and identify what their result is from interacting with your business. Ensure you and your staff regularly update your skills and learn about people. How do people learn, how are they different? Run focus groups to identify the needs of the customer and see it from their perspective. Regular training and quality assurance of the business processes ensures you deliver quality customer service.
5. A Marketing Plan; How will and do you connect with your customers?  This is unique for any business because your business is unique.  We may be a training company but what and how we deliver is unique to us. Therefore, how we communicate with our customers is in our style.  What language do we use, where will our customers be?  Are we communicating business to business or business to individual?  When is the best time to talk to our customers whether that be on line or offline.  By having a clear marketing plan you are saving yourself a considerable amount time and money.
6. A recognition for the need to LEARN;  As a business owner you may be great at producing the product, you are creative and use those skills to design beautiful items.  OR you have great knowledge in a particular area that is valuable and beneficial to others, such as Accounting, HR or Law but none of this means you will be any good at running your business.  Sorry but it’s true.  Successful entrepreneurs understand the importance of investing in themselves and then further down the line, as the business grows, investing in training for their staff.  Learn how to create that strategy, learn how to build your marketing plan and have business processes that save you failing.
7. A LIFE & WORK Balance; This is about discipline and having some time management proces
   ses that work for you.  We are all different when it comes to time and how we manage it is key to the success of your business.  We can’t buy more time, we can’t renew it or recycle it, once it is gone, it is gone.

Just like any of these 7 things successful business have they are all essential and skills that can be taught therefore you can learn how to put them into place.  Can you imagine having this in place and what a difference this would make to you and your business?  Whether you get a business coach or attend a workshop to help you learn these essential processes you are far more likely to sustain your business with them than without them.