April 1, 2019 | Mason Roberts
If you search the internet high and low, you can find lessons from small business owners all over. They want to share their experience, as well as help other potential business owners who need some guidance.
Advice for small business owners from small business owners can be a very helpful tool, especially if their business is extremely successful. It can be a game changer for your business.
After all, who better to learn from than someone who has already been in your shoes? It is very likely that an accomplished small business has experienced the same struggles as you may be now and have figured out a way to navigate through without so much as a blimp in the road. If you do not have access to a successful entrepreneur, here are some tips and advice that are common between small business owners:
1. Do Not Overlook The Importance Of Trends
Following a trend, for any purpose, will bring people into your business. Change with the times. When having your own business, this is important. It is extremely likely, with the exception of a few people, that your customers are looking for the new, shiny, “in-style” product.
With that in mind, even if you do not sell a specific product, customers are bound to answer more positively to a marketing technique that is on trend, like promoting on a high-demand social media platform.
Whether it is you who is doing the marketing, or someone who was hired for the job, make sure you take note of popular things happening on these platforms, such as hashtags, keywords, or tactics that your customers will attract too. Overlooking the importance of trends in any field of your business can cost you hundreds of customers that you aren’t even aware that you lost.
2. Be A Good Leader
Being a good leader, a competent boss, is important in a small business. Almost everyone in the world responds to great leadership. It is an effective way to keep your staff on point and your business in order. Your staff will slowly start disappearing if they are being treated with poor, rude leadership skills.
You may have some stragglers that stick around because they desperately need the money, but the majority of your employees will not put up with such an environment. They will want to run away as fast as possible, sooner or later. It is important that your employees and customers see that you are a confident leader who treats everyone fairly and makes amazing decisions in the face of difficulties. As a small business owner, make sure you are leading beautifully, rather than dictating demands.
3. Mentor Your Employees
When running a business, your employees' skills and ability to complete daily tasks is vital. You cannot hire employees, and then leave them in the dark to fend for themselves. They must be trained and instructed on what to do. If you do not mentor your employees, the way they should be then you have no one else to blame but yourself once mistakes start to happen.
Make sure they know the basics of the job, as well as the minuscule details. Also, inform them of what is expected of them. You cannot expect anything extra of your employees if they are not told so. Help your staff become the best they can be, because of this, your business will do the same.
4. Keep Everything Organized
Organization is a great skill to have. In a way, it will keep your business on track. This is a huge time savior. It will also keep your brain in check. If you’re working in clutter, your brain is cluttered. This will help you further your business in many different aspects. Your productivity will be high, as will your work effort.
Also, if customers walk into your business and it looks like it was flipped upside down, it can almost be guaranteed that they will not be back to your establishment anytime soon. If customers walk in your business and genuinely enjoy their experience, they will be back.
5. Learn New Things
Everything around you is changing frequently. It is a reality. Everything grows and changes eventually. It can be sooner, or it can be later, but it will happen. So, change with it. Learn new things to further your business.
Many small business owners do not change with the times, creating a decrease in sales. Before you know it, they are out of business. While there are people who appreciate a vintage-y business that is sort of stuck in a different decade, many do not. In this case, the smartest idea is to listen to the majority of people. Change and evolve with the times.
6. Build Relationships With Customers And Staff
When entering a small business, many people appreciate a comfortable experience with someone whose judgment they trust. Building a relationship with your customers will give them this. They will want to come into your establishment and be a part of it.
Also, building relationships with your employees should make them want to work harder. Now, in saying this, you do not have to share with them every little detail about yourself, or any details really, just show interest in a different way than just customer and employee.
7. Have Fun With Your Business
Starting a small business can be stressful, as you would expect. Something to remember is to not get immersed in the stress and to enjoy the journey. This is something that you have been working on very hard, probably sleepless nights with blood and tears. Do not forget the reason you are doing it.
It would be a sad day if you worked endless days and nights to start this business and are so stressed that you cannot even enjoy it. The worst thing to do is to keep thinking of what to do next, always having something to do on your mind. You will burn out and not enjoy your career anymore. If this is your dream career, do not forget to have fun with it.
