Every business goes through multiple changes throughout its lifetime, from something as simple as changing employees to more drastic changes like new business activities or even products. If your business needs a refresh, when better to set some new goals than at the turn of the New Year?
Whether you set personal resolutions or not, having business resolutions can work as a mini business plan for the new year, keeping everyone on the same page and giving you goals to work towards as the months go by. If you’re looking to improve your business this year, why not set one of the following resolutions for yourself?
Refresh Your Marketing
Your company’s marketing can really make or break your entire business depending on how you handle it. No marketing at all and you rely purely on word of mouth. Not enough marketing and you’ll miss out on golden opportunities. The wrong kind of marketing and you could attract the wrong customer base. Marketing can be notoriously tricky, but why not take the New Year as an opportunity to take a step back and look at your existing efforts? What’s working for your business? What isn’t working and is just wasting time and resources? Make it one of your resolutions to refresh and refine your marketing this year and help your business set off on the right foot. You could adjust and adapt existing campaigns or set up something completely new – whatever your business needs, set aside the budget to help.
Embrace Automation
Automation can be a scary concept for a lot of businesses, particularly for employees. There is the threat of a loss of jobs or relying too heavily on technology, but the reality is thankfully very different. While some automation can replace a whole job, there are a number of options available that can improve the way your business operates without putting anyone out of work. The right software can make everything from invoicing and bookkeeping simpler, as well as managing inventory, restocking, and even sales processes. This kind of technology can help to cut down the number of human errors, particularly if you don’t have experts in-house already, and frees up time within your own and your employee’s schedules to focus on other projects within your business.
Beat Burnout
Employee burnout is an increasingly common issue that businesses are facing across the UK and beyond. With the pressures of both work and personal life bearing down on people every day, more and more people are hitting a breaking point and burning out. Dedicate some time and resources to beating burnout for all of your employees and yourself this year. Encourage a better work-life balance where you can, encouraging employees to take time for themselves once work hours are over. You could even look at your business as a whole – are too many team members up to their necks in work? Maybe it’s time to hire someone to help spread out the workload more and give them breathing space. You should also allow your employees to set strict work-life boundaries and encourage them to take breaks and make sure that they can ask for help when they need it.
Refine Your Customer Service
Your customers are the lifeblood of your business. Without them, you probably wouldn’t have a business to run at all – they buy products or hire services, leave reviews, and recommend you to others. They offer you a means to keep operating, so why not improve your customer service to give a little bit back? A better service for your customers can work to improve your reputation too and even streamline the ordering or buying process. If your customers are struggling to contact you, why not dedicate one of your resolutions to improving your customer service? You could open up another phone line, embrace social media and allow for contact there, or even look into installing a live chat on your website. You should also be looking into improved public liability insurance for your business in order to ensure that your customers are protected in the case of accidents or injury as a result of your business activity.
For more information about how our insurance products can improve your business, simply get in touch with Ashburnham Insurance on 0800 1696137.