How To Run A Business

There are many ways for you to learn how to run a business.  The purpose of this article is to give you the basics of running a business then open the doors for you to learn more on the other pages of this website or guide you to places that can teach you one on one on how to run a business.

How to run a business through effective management skills

When you are running your business you need to do a lot of things.  Some of these you might enjoy doing, others you might not like to do at all.  Some you might be good at and others you might have a very difficult time with.  The first step to running a successful business is letting go of some of the control and letting others do the work you do not like or you are not good at.

As soon as you give up control and let others work in the business while you manage everything and work on the business you will be much more successful.  If you have a small business at the moment and you are working on everything yourself then you need to start putting in more time learning how to run a business properly.  When I first started learning how to run a business I would work all day then I would take courses at night to teach me how to learn how to manage a business.  The skills of a manager are absolutely imperative for a successful business.

How to run a business with strong marketing techniques

Every business needs customers and the best way to get customers is through using strong marketing techniques.  You can use many different methods of advertising and marketing but to be successful in this area you need to know how to write.  This form of writing is called copywriting and helps to get the marketing message across to the reader, listener or person watching TV.

Most smaller businesses will use words to get their point across.  The number one mistake people use in their marketing message is using their own business name as the headline to the ad.  Instead you need to grab attention with your headline.  One that draws the potential customer to your advertisement to read what you are saying instead of throwing the message in the garbage, turning the page, or turning the channel.

From there you need to lead the customer into the body copy.  Explaining to them the benefits of your products or services and using client testimonial to reinforce those benefits.  At this point you can talk about price.  Give a strong guarantee and add a call to    action.  The call to action can be a discount for those that act fast, or something for free for the first X number of people to call.

Other ways you can market your business and yourself is by cold calling and networking.  These methods put you face to face with potential clients.  By doing this you are building a relationship right from the beginning prior to doing any work with the client.  Networking can be done at breakfast clubs or the chamber of commerce.  I have had success with both.

There are many other ways for you to market a business, but this gets you started.  To learn more check out some of our other articles or my ebook on marketing and copywriting skills.

How to run a business with proper money management skills

More businesses fail because they run out of money than any other reason.  Yes, a lot of this is because they do not have strong marketing plans in place to bring in business, but there are a lot of companies that over spend in the beginning stages of the business that kills the business.  Think about this for a minute, if you hire someone when you do not really need that person and 4 months goes by before you let them go, then a year down the road when you could have used that money for the business to survive, there is none.  This happens time and time again.

To not let this happen to you there has to be will power.  Will power helps you resist what you think you need that you really don’t need.  I have seen people buy $10,000 in extra equipment that never was used over 5 years.  That money could have gone to marketing that could have helped the business grow.  Or survive for that matter.  All I can say is resist the urge to spend on things you do not need.

This includes going out for dinner.  I have seen so many people do this.  They start their business and start going out for dinner more than they did before.  They always tell me ‘This is a write off, what is the big deal?’  Here is the big deal, if you spend an extra $100 per month for a year that is $1200.  That money can help you in so many ways.  If you are making money then the write off is ok, but if you are not, then stop bragging about being in business and watch where you are spending your cash.

How to run a business using time management

The next big thing you should be aware of and start to control right from the beginning is your time management.  We all do this, get on the computer and check our emails and other messages.  If you get in the habit of doing this once in the morning, once in the afternoon, then in the evening you will save over an hour per day.  Something as simple as checking emails can make or break a small business.  You might be thinking that is crazy, but often when a business fails it is the small things that add up to kill it.  1 hour per day is 5 hours per week or 260 hours per year.  260 hours per year is well over a month of productive work.  Now you can say you do not do this for an hour a day, but I guarantee that you do with something.  Maybe not email, maybe a phone call from a friend during the day, a long lunch, a sporting event, or some other activity that kills your time.

I am not saying you should not enjoy life, I am saying you need to be willing to do whatever it takes in the beginning stages of the business to reap the rewards you will get in the later stages of the business.  If you do not do this then you will never see those rewards, and if you are like a lot of people you will blame the economy or some other reason.  Do not be that guy, be the guy that is willing to make sacrifices with your time now to succeed.

I like to say this to myself throughout the day, not sure where I heard it from so I cannot give credit, but I am not taking credit either.  Ask yourself throughout the day, ‘Am I being as productive as I possible can at this moment?’  if the answer is yes, smile and carry on, if the answer is no, give yourself a good kick in the butt and get productive.  Remember to always be doing the best you can at everything you are doing.

Once your company is successful you can slack off then.  Sorry to say, but by then the habits of time management and success will be engrained in you and you will not want to slack off.  Do take some time for yourself though, no point in being a rich burnt out person that is miserable with your life.

These are the ideas that I use when I run a business.  Check throughout the website on how to run a business in the industry you are working in.  If there is nothing there yet come back soon as we add 1 to 3 new articles per week.  Feel free to comment on any of the articles or if you like send me a message directly.

Thanks,
Kelly