As an entrepreneur, you must be willing to spend your time and money on improving your business, but do you really know which of your investments are actually worth your resources? By first opening your mind to what can boost your revenue will help you come up with the smartest decisions for your enterprise.
Below are the most recommended business investments entrepreneurs should make:
PUBLICITY: There is no way people would know about your business if you don’t spread the word about it. Marketing is one of the major components of business success, so you should take this seriously. Do your research well and find out how you could better reach out to your target market.
MARKET RESEARCH: No matter how good your marketing campaign is, nothing will happen if you are addressing it to the wrong group. Surveys are a good marker research tool that you can use to have a clear idea of who needs and wants your products or services.
AUTOMATION: Automating your business processes is a costly move, but this could pay dividends in no time. By automating the procedures for your repeat tasks, you can easily let others take over when you are unavailable.
OUTSOURCING: Instead of hiring people to help you run your business, outsourcing them can be a more cost-effective option. Don’t hesitate to spend on employee salary because not having to do certain things personally gives you more time to address other more important issues in your business.
TRAINING: Training is necessary for the activities that your in-house staff is doing. By providing internal training, offering feedback, and investing more time with your workers, productivity in the workplace should go up. Your goal must be to keep your quality employees to avoid having to spend on recruiting and training new workers time and again.
GOOD SUPPLIERS: A good supplier, as you may know, is one who will offer you reasonable prices and give timely deliveries. But that’s not all you should aim for. Ideally, you would want to benefit from the quality of their services and products as well. If you choose a known and credible supplier of ingredients for your food business, for instance, you will have the right to sell your products at slightly higher prices.
BUSINESS COACH: Working with a mentor doesn’t make you an amateur at all. If you are new in the world of business and you want to learn everything about your industry and how to effectively run your enterprise, a business or life coach is what you need. With their experience and expertise, you will learn how to approach the different challenges you may face. They will also guide you in all aspects of being an entrepreneur until you are able to make good business decisions on your own.
Cecile Peterkin is a certified career and retirement coach, and a registered member of the Career Professionals of Canada and the International Coach Federation. She is also the Founder and Senior Career Strategist at Cosmic Coaching Centre, provider of career and life management services for middle managers and mid-career professionals across Canada, United States and Europe.