As small or medium-sized business owners, we can get caught in the trap of trying to be all things to all people. It’s just not possible. If you’re focused on marketing, you can’t be addressing technology issues or your business clients for that matter. As the business grows, it is important to consider how to make your business more efficient. For many business owners, which means hiring, outsourcing, and increasing productivity.
5 Ways to Make Your Business More Efficient
As a Managed IT Services provider, we visit a lot of businesses, run our own, and have made a few observations of the commonalities of all of us. Here are our thoughts.
- Outsource. Years ago, I was in a networking meeting where the financial services professional told us to do what we do best and outsource the rest. I’ve always remembered that especially when making decisions about functions like marketing and accounting, and Managed IT Services. Literally anything that was not related to financial services was outsourced. It is a good lesson in focusing on your business so you can serve clients; sometimes that means you can’t perform all the functions and that’s okay.
- Stop being busy but not productive. All too often we meet business owners and managers who know they need Managed IT Services but cannot meet with us for weeks, if not longer. When we finally meet with them, they tell us tales of needing to increase revenue. This begs the question of how they can be so busy but not productive. If this is happening to you, take time to review how you’re spending your time and with whom. If it’s endless meetings with no results, it’s time to rethink how you’re doing business which leads me to #3.
- Identify your ideal client. If you’re busy and not productive, you may be chasing everyone to be your client rather than finding your ideal client. Be specific. It’s not just people who need their taxes done; it’s couples with young kids who are both professionals. See the difference? Being specific doesn’t mean you can’t collaborate with the other people; it means ideal client prospects take precedence. You can share this description at networking meetings and casual settings to help spread the word about the products or services offered.
Being focused on the type of clients you want means you’re spending time with people who are or who can introduce you to your ideal client. That alone will create space in your schedule, make business more efficient, and grow your client base.
