By John Sanpietro, Certified Business Coach
Founder, Stamping Is My Business
In my decade-plus years Coaching stamping business owners, I've often noticed they, and their businesses, suffer from a Vitamin C Deficiency. They have a shortage of:
*** Cash ***
*** Customers ***
*** Confidence ***
Lacking just one of the 3 C's can be detrimental to your business.
Lacking all three… well… let's just say the prognosis isn't good.
I'm happy to report, however, there is a cure for Vitamin C Deficiency. Follow the steps below and you'll be on the road to recovery in no time!
Cash
We've all heard the saying, 'you have to spend money to make money.' Unfortunately, for the cash-challenged, there's some truth to it.
Running your business on a shoestring is always a good idea. Trying to do more with less is always a good idea. These things keep you lean, mean and profitable. However, not spending money on the things your business NEEDS will actually hurt it.
If you're unable to spend money on supplies you NEED, business services you NEED or, even, continuing education you NEED, you're spending less in the short term, but making a LOT less in the long-run.
The reality is, a business needs cash to run efficiently. A business needs cash to grow. And a business without cash is in trouble.
So, how do you generate more cash in your business? Focus heavily on return on investment (ROI). Make sure every dollar you're spending is returning the necessary amount. If it's not, eliminate it, and find more profitable ways to spend that money.
The combination of eliminating unprofitable purchases, and getting maximum ROI from the purchases you do make will give your business the cash infusion it needs.
Customers
It doesn't matter how talented you are… or how good your projects and classes are… if you don't have customers, you don't have a business.
And the more customers you have, generally, the bigger your business will be.
This is where marketing and advertising come into play.
Marketing and advertising is crucial to any business, and I don't think I'm exaggerating when I say at least 95% of stamping business owners aren't doing enough.
Every day you work your business, you should be spending at least 15 minutes on marketing and advertising to your existing customers, existing prospects and/or groups of people who don't know you even exist yet.
You want a steady influx of new mailing list subscribers to replace the ones who are leaving/showing less interest, as well as to grow your overall customer base.
Confidence
This is the toughest of the Three Cs to work on, because it's not quite as simple and straightforward a fix. Lack of confidence can come from many areas… and for many reasons. More often than not, it's simply a symptom of the bigger problem, and, generally, it's best to identify the root cause and go to work on that.
One of the most common causes for lack of confidence is you don't feel your skills are as good as your fellow stamping business owners.
My response?
They don't have to be, since your fellow stamping business owners aren't your customers.
Your actual customers are the only people you need to be concerned with, and as long as you're always one step ahead of them, you'll be fine.
Remember… 'in the land of the blind, the one-eyed man is king.' Think about it.
So, if you have a Vitamin 'C' Deficiency, the sooner you get to work on fixing it, the sooner it'll be fixed… and the healthier your business will be!
Warmest regards,
John
John Sanpietro
Certified Business Coach
STAMPING IS MY BUSINESS!
http://www.stampingismybusiness.com
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