What EXACTLY do I do?
The other day I was lucky enough to hear from an old friend. He asked me a simple question, “What exactly do you do?” It caught me off guard a bit, because I have a section on my Home page that breaks down Consulting, Fractional COO, Advisor and Speaking. I also have a page called Services that goes into more detail of each of those areas. But really what he was asking was, What exactly are the situations where a business could benefit from one of your services?
That’s a very honest and direct question! I happen to like those questions, so I decided to put together a list of five specific situations for Existing Businesses, New Businesses, Existing Solopreneurs and New Solopreneurs. This list of situations that I can help you with doesn't cover everything I offer, but gives you some good insight into the problems I regularly come into contact with and how I approach them. I hope these issues and solutions resonate with you so that I can help you with your business too!
Existing Businesses
Our business has been going for the last five to ten years and we’ve tried so many different things, but we just can’t seem to grow the company to the next level.
What I would do: This is common, but can be due to many different reasons. Most people seem to think they need a cash infusion to solve growth problems. It’s possible, but the first thing I would do is set up individual meetings with the leadership team. I have a saying, “The people that start it are not the people that finish it.” Depending on the current ownership of the company, I would first connect with the CEO or owner and see what their current assessment of the business is, as well as their own personal view of the business. The CEO may be too inexperienced to take the business to the next level or is just burned out. From there, I would sit down with the rest of the leadership team to get a pulse. What you are most likely going to get is a team that is worn out from the last several years and needs some fresh ideas and perspectives. All of this affects the day to day management of the business and especially the direction the business is going. After assessing the leadership team’s capabilities I would create new initiatives and realign the team to meet those expectations. Of course this is an oversimplified response and there may be many other reasons why companies don’t progress, but you always start at the top.
We have lots of good ideas, but we can’t seem to finish anything. This negatively affects productivity, morale and finances of the company.
What I would do: Companies often lose track of their goals or lack well defined goals to begin with. I would work with the leadership team, to define goals at the company, department and individual level. This is where everything starts and by having goals it automatically inserts guardrails that everyone in the company has to stay within. Having clear company goals is one of the ways your team can stay focused. Typically another reason businesses are not productive is that they don’t manage their tasks effectively. Either it’s done in silos by department or worse, individually, with no oversight and direction. I would get control of projects by learning what system the company is currently using and understanding why the current process isn’t being used effectively. Getting control of projects by implementing a company-wide project process, as well as having someone managing that process, will create a significant boost in task completion.
There isn’t a strong culture at our company. The team doesn’t feel in sync. Something is definitely off. What are we doing wrong?
What I would do: If the employees are feeling that there isn’t a strong culture at the company and that something is off, the customers are most likely feeling it too. Culture is a big umbrella and can cover everything from growth opportunities to training to how leadership engages with the team. Culture is not a mission statement, throwing parties, having free snacks and free lunch on Fridays. I would start by sitting in with leadership, department and individual meetings and listen to how the business is run. From there we would make small tweaks where needed to slowly right the ship. It starts with authenticity, and that needs to be a part of the fabric of why the company exists. Believe it or not, it also has to do with your brand. Customers are not the only ones that buy into the brand, employees do too. Everyone wants to be a part of something. A company that communicates well, has clear goals, defined career paths for their team and routinely engages with one another, are creating a good culture.
At our company, every time you need something done, you have to go talk to a person. Everything seems manual and it feels like we are further behind than other companies.
What I would do: Innovation is the lifeblood of companies today. Stale processes and antiquated tools slow down teams and their productivity. Employees are the first ones to recognize this. Just because it’s always been done that way, doesn’t mean it’s the best. I would do an audit and look at the company processes to see where they can optimize tasks to be more efficient or remove the human part of the operation altogether. I always say, “I’m more worried about what we are not doing.” Automation isn’t about getting rid of employees, it’s about getting more time to work on the projects that matter. When companies embrace constant innovation, everyone wins by creating more interesting work and making more money.
We are a service business, but our industry has become very competitive. To lower risk and increase profit, we are productizing some of our services, as well as selling hard goods. Should we make the transition to Ecommerce?
What I would do: If there’s anything that the last three years have taught us is that the world is not afraid of ordering online. If Ecommerce is not in your business strategy moving forward, then it needs to be. The way I see business today is that every business is a tech company. I would recommend the company cast a wider net and become more uncomfortable by moving into Ecommerce. This is a growth move, not a risky endeavor. It’s the evolution of your business. I would show you how to get into Ecommerce affordably and I then help you put together a strategy that will get you there faster.
We have a family owned business. Everyone is getting older and so we have decided to sell the business. This is a great business with a large amount of recurring revenue. How do we sell it correctly and make sure we get paid what it’s worth?
What I would do: There are many different ways to buy and sell a business. It also depends on your timeline and urgency. Getting a business ready to sell can take several months or even a couple years. I would sit down with the owners and get a full understanding of all aspects of the business, including specialty knowledge of the owners. One of the biggest challenges when selling a business is when the owners ARE the business and no preparation has been made to hand off responsibilities to other departments and individuals. I would then do a full audit on the business documentation and financials, get the business valued, obtain good attorneys, optimize operations and market to potential buyers. There’s quite a bit that goes into it, but the earlier you decide to sell and give yourself time to prepare the business, the much easier it will be. Once you have done all the work, then you can be flexible or not with a new buyer.
New Businesses
I love to bake and so do a couple of my friends. We decided to go into business together and create a small bakery. We’ve done a lot of talking about the business, now I’m concerned we won’t make enough money to sustain all three of us.
What I would do: One of the most important chapters in my book, Create Your Own Job | How to Become Self Employed Without a Plan, is How To Make Money. You can’t just wish it to happen, you really need to understand and examine the transaction. First, I would look at the breakdown of prices and costs of all of your products. Second, I would look for the hidden costs, such as labor and time. Third, I would look at the rest of your expenses. The biggest question is, will the business still support all of you? I would then recommend some serious discussions happen with all owners to discuss next steps, such as investors, loans or part time jobs.
My new travel business is up and running great. I have new clients contacting me every week. The money is there, but by the time I contact the client, get them signed up and work with them, most of the month has gone by and I didn’t make enough money for the month. It’s really affecting my cash flow!
What I would do: Your biggest challenges are process and lead times. Both of these can be easily corrected. I would work with you to understand your business process, how you get your clients, how long it takes for them to sign up with you and how many clients you can process in a month. From that I would build out a process with automations to help you onboard and convert clients faster. At the same time, I would help you build out a dashboard to understand your client lead times. From the day you first come into contact, until you close the deal and get paid, how long does it take? At that point I can help you modify your offerings to build out a strategy to bring in more consistent revenue. Like most things, it’s not what you do, it’s how you do it!
We have a good size team and we’re experienced in the industry. We’re making money and everyone is working hard. When a new job comes in, it feels a little chaotic. Lots of running around, multiple meetings and people stepping on top of another. The job eventually gets done, but it’s exhausting.
What I would do: Small companies eventually grow to larger companies. When businesses are small, everyone has to wear a lot of hats. This works out great when you’re small, but turns wasteful when the company is bigger. I would work with the executive leadership team to identify the essential skills needed for the success of the company, then write the job descriptions for the positions with those skills. I would then identify which team members fit into which positions and work with the leaders to put the correct people in place. Each person would have a job to do and only that job. The result would create a more streamlined approach and hold the correct team members accountable.
We do most of our selling over the phone. Our products are complex, so many of our customers call for details and ask questions. They like talking to a person and placing the order. Slowly we have seen more competition creep in. We had a website built, created an Instagram profile and a Facebook business page. It doesn’t seem to be working.
What I would do: We want to make it easy for our customers. Calling does many things for a customer, shows that you are real, you’re able to show your expertise and you are able to close the sale right there on the phone. Unfortunately, phone sales have a scaling problem, as well as an attribution problem. I would focus more on engagement with your customer and look at the website, Instagram and Facebook as “pre-sales” channels. One of your biggest advantages is that you get to talk to the customer. I would be immediately asking the customer how they found you, why they called you and what kind of products or services they buy often. We often compare our business to others and think of the disadvantages, while we really need to leverage what we do have.
Our business is a service business. To do our job we need to be on site. We have a good business model, but there’s a means to an end, there’s only 24 hours in a day, only have so many staff to visit businesses and can only scale by increasing costs. How do we make more money?
What I would do: Scaling a business is always hard and takes some out of the box thinking and putting yourself in your customers shoes. I would work with the leadership team to identify the pros and cons of the business from the customers eyes. From the cons list I would identify opportunities where customers can help themselves at a lower price point. Then I would create an online website and sell the services as diy products online. This would allow additional revenue opportunities and open up a new market. In creating the products there needs to be a large distinction in value between in person and diy services, so that customers who don’t have the time to do it themselves, still get a great value.
Existing Solopreneurs
My business isn’t going as well as I would like. I’m working hard, but it feels like I’m not getting ahead. I am constantly working and don’t have time to do anything else. What am I doing wrong?
What I would do: Talk to any business owner and you’ll find that it could always be better. A lot of the time they find themselves working in their business instead of on their business. That’s a big distinction. Working “on” your business gives you the ten thousand foot view, but you need reference points so that you know where you are and where you want to be. I would revisit your goals. There should be multiple goals. Things like, how much money do you want to make, what hours each day do you want to work and even outlining what success looks like for you. By setting goals it’s a monthly measuring stick on the progress of your business.
I’ve had my business for a few years now. I want to buy a house and start a family soon. My business makes good money, but I can only support myself right now. How do I take the business to the next level?
What I would do: When you first start out your business the goal is to always have it be self-sustaining, so you don’t have to put any money in every month. Once that happens you are eager for the next phase, supporting others. I always like to start with the money that you want to make each month and work backwards. Next, you need to look at your services and products and find if any of them are undervalued. Could you charge more? What does everyone else charge? Finally, look at new or complimentary services that you could charge more for. I always like to look at bundled services such as a Basic, Premium or Exclusive option, where you can bundle services and charge a higher price. The pricing should reflect the higher revenue you are targeting. You need to sell x number of the Basic Plan, the Premium Plan and the Exclusive plan, each month, to reach your new revenue goal each month.
I’ve been a solopreneur for a couple of years. I started my business just to create a job for myself, but customers are complaining that I never get back to them and some of them are threatening to leave. Should I hire an employee?
What I would do: Congratulations on having more business than you can handle! Believe it or not, that is what success looks like. I would identify the key areas that you need help with. Can you automate with some phone tree software? Is it just returning phone calls? Do you also need someone to help with sales? Do they need to work part-time or full-time? Can they be a virtual assistant and work overseas? Overhead is expensive, so it’s important to understand your needs and then hire for those needs. Don’t overhire for something that you might need down the road, hire for the needs that you have now. If you continue to get busy, you can always hire a contractor or an employee later on.
I’m starting to feel burned out. I work every day on my business, never take a day off and have never taken a vacation. Everyone tells me I need to have work/life balance, but is that even possible when having your own business?
What I would do: Burn out eventually happens to every new and existing business owner. It happens when you are doing whatever it takes to keep the business going. That drive eventually starts to slow down when other areas of your life start to collapse, such as your relationships, health and responsibilities. I would take a good long look at how you are conducting your business, from the moment you come in contact with a customer, until the moment you get paid. Most likely, you are not working in a streamlined way and taking longer to get things done. Probably the other issue you are having is time management. If you are spending time thinking about your business, away from family and other responsibilities, you are wasting valuable time. Don’t worry, you won’t stop thinking about your business, but the problems you are trying to solve will work themselves out while doing something else.
All of my friends have good jobs and are making a lot of money. I started my business to not only be my own boss, but to make money too. How do I make more money like my friends are doing?
What I would do: What is happening here is two different life plans that don’t turn out the same in the end. Comparing yourself to others never works out. I would break things down into two categories, benefits of being your own boss and working for someone else. Write down items in each column and understand why each choice is different. What you need to understand is that by creating your own business, you are delaying the payoff, but investing in long term stability. Your friends that got the job are making more money up front, but are risking long term stability because they constantly need to perform. Both are two different strategies with very different results. You need to decide which one is right for you.
New Solopreneurs
It takes me longer to do things. I don’t know, maybe I’m just slow. I feel like other entrepreneurs are more productive and get a lot more done than I do. How can I be more productive?
What I would do: A lot of people keep busy just for the sake of keeping busy, but that doesn’t mean they are working on the right things. Prioritizing your tasks is 90 percent of being productive and successful. The saying, “slow is fast” means just that. Slowing down, think about what you are doing, what’s the highest priority and do those tasks first. Task management is a practice that anyone can master. It takes just a little bit of discipline and a whole lot of trial and error. Keeping track of your tasks in multiple lists separated by Today, This Week and This Month really helps prioritize.
Every month I’m strapped for cash and have to use credit cards until my clients finally pay their invoices. How do I stop using credit cards to get through the month?
What I would do: Invoicing clients on a regular basis is an essential part of doing business. Many businesses fail because they aren’t managing their finances correctly. I would set aside a time each week to send out invoices to clients. In addition, I would change the payment terms of all invoices to Due Upon Receipt, which means clients cannot pay net 30 or net 45. This would have to be worked out with each customer, so that their billing department understands your arrangement. Getting on top of and staying on top of your finances as a new business will create good strong foundational habits that will increase your chances of succeeding.
My business is new and I’m struggling to find new customers. I post on social media, text friends, hand out my business card, but I’m still not getting a lot of new customers. What am I doing wrong?
What I would do: There are many things that make a business successful. The most impactful action is consistency. We’ve all seen the billboards, magazines, newspapers, etc., with the same ad of the same company emblazoned big and large. Create a marketing and advertising plan that works for you and the time you have and then do it the same time every week. Maybe it’s a social media post three times a week. Maybe it’s a blog post once a week. Maybe it’s an email blast once a week. The trick is to do something on a consistent basis. The other part is understanding your customers and the market. Your business may be seasonal and to get new customers may take 30 to 60 days to close. Understanding what your customers want and how long it takes for them to make a decision, will drastically have a positive effect on your business.
When I look on social media or read articles, it seems like everyone in my industry is doing a lot better than me. I just don’t get it, I’m just as good, if not better than they are. Maybe they have something that I don’t.
What I would do: Imposter syndrome and self doubt is something every business owner deals with on a daily basis. It just comes with the job. The trick is to try and lower the volume of those voices so they're harder to hear. As an exercise I try to remember all the terrible companies I have interacted with over the years and then look them up to see if they are still in business. Most of the time they still are. If that business, which is a crappy business, is still here, then surely there’s room for you! The other idea you have to work on is running your own race. Don’t compare yourself to others, constantly visualize you and your business in their own space unrelated to these other businesses. You are different, have different offerings and are not like them. That will help you focus on doing what you want to do for your business, instead of trying to keep up with what others are doing.
There are so many different skills needed to do my job, but I’m only good at a few of them. How am I supposed to make any money if I can’t do every aspect of my job?
What I would do: One of the biggest myths of having your own business is thinking that you have to be an expert in every position needed for your business. That’s simply not true and detrimental to your business. Focus on what you're good at. If you are good at sales, then tailor your role to do more sales. If you are good at organizing, then tailor your job to organize the business. As a business owner, you should absolutely know what every position in your business does and is responsible for, but you don’t have to be an expert in it. You can learn enough to get the skill done, use some software to help you automate that part of the business or you can hire that part of your business out to someone else. A smart business owner understands what they are and are not good at.