Can Curiosity Revitalize Your Business? August 19, 2010
Posted by Joan Nowak in Personal Development.Tags: build rapport, get feedback, grow sales, increase sales, personal growth, relationship building
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Curiosity may have killed the cat, but it can revitalize you and your business.
Did you ever notice how curious young children are? For them, the world is full of new things to explore and pursue. And to the frustration of many parents, why is their favorite question. But from a child’s curiosity comes discovery and knowledge.
So how would an ‘eager desire to learn and know’ help you and your business achieve more? When you consider that curiosity compels us to ask more (or better) questions, dig deeper, seek understanding, and explore better ways – it provides benefits in all areas.
In sales, curiosity helps us build rapport with prospects. It drives us to ask questions to understand the person and the business – what motivates them, what they need and why it’s important. When sincere, our inquiries demonstrate interest and help us find common ground – a basis for starting a relationship. Isn’t that what you want?
In operations, curiosity propels us to find new and better ways to serve our customers and streamline our procedures. We seek feedback from customers to understand what we do well and how we can improve. We ask for input from our employees to increase efficiency – to do more with less effort. Our curiosity leads to knowledge – something we can build on.
On a personal level, our curiosity inspires us to learn more on a variety of topics — from personal development to hobbies. Think about the last time something piqued your curiosity. What did you do? Search the web or invest in a book to learn more? Talk to friends or colleagues, asking more questions?
So now ask yourself this — how curious are you?
Find this helpful? Then share it with others. For additional ideas and resources to help you attract more customers, grow sales and build profit, visit my website. While you are there, join my mailing list to receive my monthly eNewsletter and a free copy of my eBook, Mastering the 7 Elements of Business Success.
Mark Up vs. Margin – The Difference Can Cost You August 10, 2010
Posted by Joan Nowak in Financials.Tags: key performance indicators, know the numbers, make more money from your small business, margins, mark up, profit growth
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Your gross profit margin is one of the most critical key performance indicators for overall net profit – yet it’s misunderstood by many small business owners.
Your gross profit represents what you have left over from sales (income) after you take out the cost of goods or services … and it applies to all businesses.
If you sell products, like retailers or distributors, your costs include inventory.
If you make products, like manufacturers, your costs include raw materials and labor associated with production.
If you sell services, your costs include the labor associated with service delivery and may also include supplies required to do this.
Do you know your gross profit margin and how it compares to your industry? If not, take a few minutes to calculate it – divide your gross profit dollars by the sales / income for the same period. Please note that some small businesses include the above costs with expenses (versus cost of goods sold). Talk to your accountant to make sure your costs are set up appropriately.
Are you surprised? Many small business owners are. And here’s the most common reason … they use mark-up to calculate the selling price and assume the markup percentage is their gross profit margin. Ouch… they are not the same.
In fact, if you mark up your products or services 30% — your gross profit margin on this product or service is actually 23.1%. Below is an example to demonstrate the difference.
Your cost for your product or service is $100
You mark it up 30% — so your mark-up (or gross profit $) is $30
Your selling price (cost + markup) is $130
Your gross profit is $30 – note the mark-up and gross profit dollars are the same
But… your gross profit margin (GP $ / selling price) is 23.1%
I have never been an advocate of using mark-up exclusively to establish selling price because it ignores key pricing elements like value and competition. But if you do use this method, be aware of the difference and start backwards. Decide on your desired profit margin then using the cost, calculate the selling price that delivers it.
Here’s the formula: Cost / 1 – desired GP (decimal). For example, if you want a GP% of 25% – bottom formula would be 1 – .25 = .75. It’s the reciprocal in math terms.
MarkUp-Margin Calculation Tool. For a simple tool to help with margin and mark-up calculations, visit my website to download it now.
Find this helpful? Then share it with others. For additional ideas to grow your small business, visit small business resources on my website. While you are there, join my mailing list to receive my monthly eNewsletter and a free copy of my eBook, Mastering the 7 Elements of Business Success.
Who Controls Your Destiny? August 5, 2010
Posted by Joan Nowak in Personal Development.Tags: control destiny, personal growth, personal success, take control of your business
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I continue to be amazed by the attitudes of some business owners who accept that they have no control over their destiny – in business and in life. They have done it this way for years, so it must be right. Or no one can make money in this economy. Why?
Some of this comes from the beliefs we develop early in life. Ever heard a parent talk about their child in a limiting way, in front of the child, to someone else? “Johnny is just like his father – couldn’t organize his way out of a paper bag.”
And what about those who give us advice about business? Some of this advice comes from people who never owned a business or it’s based on prejudices passed down from generations, that simply no longer apply. I recently spoke with an owner who was ‘advised’ not to expand because he would need to take on employees – and getting good people is impossible. Unbelievable!
Most limiting beliefs remain with us because we give up what we want most in life for something we want now. Don’t let fear, self-sabotaging beliefs, or the advice of others hold you back. And as Jack Welch says, ‘Control your destiny or somebody else will’.
Are you in control? Consider the following. What lifestyle and income would you like your business to provide for you and your family? What would this business look like in 1, 3 or 5 years?
If you want a life, then start by doing two things:
Figure Out What You Want. Call these goals, dreams, vision. Visualize what you want and why it’s important to you. And don’t share it with anyone who is likely to tell you why you can’t have your dream.
Make a Plan. Organize yourself. Decide what knowledge you need to gain and what you need to do to get what you want. Find someone who can help you and hold you accountable. Plan your action, then action your plan.
Don’t let the attitude of others or all the negative stuff the media throws out there, hold you back. Be willing to make the changes – in attitude and action – and just do it.
Find this helpful? Then share it with others. If you are still stuck on planning, visit my website for additional articles and resources. While you are there, join my mailing list to receive my monthly eNewsletter or check out my Ultimate Planning & Goal Setting Guide.
