Planning to Win
To win a coveted gold-medal, the Olympic sprinter must leave the start line of the 100m races at least equal, if not better, than the competition.
Similarly, when you read about the different ways in which business owners begin their day, there is a consistency and a pattern for the most successful individuals; they start early and carefully plan the beginning of every business day.
Know what‘s happening in advance
We know intuitively that planning is an important part of a company‘s DNA and therefore, linked to success. Good operators are always planning the future and analysing the past:
— They write a business plan before the business begins
— They create a budget
— They plan the marketing activities
Without planning, you miss important elements of your day
We can certainly complete some activities on autopilot but a plan with regular routines means you don‘t waste time meandering.
— You know you‘re going to drink water, orange juice and/or coffee - have it ready
— Your workout clothing should be ready so you don‘t have to waste time locating it
— Your vehicle, bicycle or mode of transport should be serviced and ready to run at a moment‘s notice
Efficient people will don‘t waste time by worrying about the small items that will set their day off into a tangent of destruction.
This brings us to knowing what will happen throughout your next business day.
By taking time, the previous night, to assess what you intend to achieve throughout the following day, you will have shaped plans that will form the roadmap of your day‘s work. By having the day planned, it will be far easier to handle a diversion knowing that you can return to your specific plans once you have dealt with an impromptu difficulty.
Planning equals control. Start of your business with a plan and you control your success.
It‘s not a coincidence that many successful people including Tim Cook (Apple), Richard Branson (Virgin) and Bob Iger (Disney) all start their working day before 6:00 am.
Are you insuring yourself, without realising it?
Many insurance policies have what is known as a co-insurance clause.
In simple terms, what it means is, that in the event of a claim, if your property or business is under-insured, or not insured for it‘s full value, the insurance company can discount your claim.
This can happen even if you have a partial claim.
According to leading insurance industry figure Dr Allan Manning over 70% of Business Interruption policies could be impacted by under insurance
Here‘s an example of how it works.
If a business had a sum insured for gross profit of $500,000 when the actual insurable gross profit of the business was $1,000,000 on a policy with 80% co-insurance; and the loss was $200,000, the claim would be adjusted as follows:
This means the uninsured loss (reduction in claim) would be $75,000.
This is an example of why the role of the insurance broker is so important. A small saving in premium can have a large cost in the event of a claim. Many business policies also fail to have a long enough Indemnity Period and cover for increased cost of working.
To have your insurance program checked
contact our office.
*The above example was provided by Dr A Manning of LMI Group.
New business is essential for growth
Most business owners know how important it is to have a steady flow of new prospects coming into their business. Lead generation can be a daunting task for many especially for small business owners.
- Video. Most people are time poor so the best way to reach them is by producing a video that encourages people to take action. Keep it short and to the point. There are tools online that can help you make a product video with ease or you could consider using a professional animator.
- Limit Choices. Make your contact or signup page simple to follow. Most people get tired or feel confused when they see lots of things to fill in on a form. People are busy and are usually in a hurry, making it easy attracts them to go ahead and enquire.
- Improve Your Website. Potential clients usually read your ‘about‘ or ‘team‘ pages first. This is where you need to have your ‘call to action‘ and a solid value proposition. Then explain it below and then lead the readers to a specific page that offers all the details. Make your pages visual and easy to navigate.
- Be Consistent. It‘s easy to become frustrated when you don't get immediate results. It is important not to give up as many do after a month or two of blogging. Create content regularly and with time this will increase traffic. Keep your content fresh and if possible have something new and relevant at least every month.
- Use Social Media. LinkedIn leads are like a fruit; there are some you can utilise immediately while others are not ripe yet. You need to sort the leads to find those people who are ready. Review your connections and send a small gift or brochure to those who look like they have potential.
- Email Signature. Most people send dozens of emails every day. Your footer or signature is a marketing tool. Create links back to your website or blog.
Update your cyber-risk knowledge
Do you really explore cyber risk to the best of your
ability? Or do you just talk to a few colleagues and hope you hear about the
latest risks?
With cyber-crime becoming one of the menaces of the
business community, the more knowledge you can get by chatting with cyber experts,
the better you will be able to prepare and plan against an attack.
Staying current isn‘t simple and it takes effort to
achieve good results, but if you want to reduce your cyber risks it‘s in your
best interest.
No-one knows everything
Cyber criminals are forming a queue to find businesses
that can be plundered by using of the Internet and modern technology to move your
money to their bank account.
In the same way that you cannot learn everything about
your business, your customers and your industry, you also cannot be expected to
understand every possible type of cyber risk that could target your business
and your livelihood.
You can‘t do much alone. To learn about the many
different types of cyber-crime that can attack your business, you need to be
resourceful and stay in touch with people and experts in the know. Google
cyber-crime to see what others are saying.
Who do you want to talk to?
You can‘t talk to everyone and sharing potentially
private information about cyber attacks is sensitive.
That‘s why your insurance adviser is a great asset.
He or she is talking to businesses just like yours all the time.
An Infinity Adviser can make enquiries about another businesses cyber-crimes, how they defended them with a combination of new
technology and insurance and how they dealt with closing down and cleaning their
systems if it was necessary.