Keys to Business Success: Repeat Sales, Referrals and Support

Submitted By: Lee Percival

Here are key indicators of how your business is doing. If you believe in repeat sales, referrals and strong support, then your business will grow, not dry up over time. Why? Because customers have a certain level of expectation when it comes to delivering your business to them. If they do not get what they expect, then chances are high that they will not return. Ever. So, how are you doing in these areas?

Keep Them Coming Back. Repeat business is invaluable, because you do not have to go through the initial vetting process on the part of the prospect. They already know how your business operates and feel comfortable in placing orders with you inside of the structure that you have set up. This is why you should implement an 800 number and PBX system into your business as soon as possible. The ability to present a unified and consistent way of contacting you gives your customers confidence in who you are and the way in which you operate.

Obtain Referrals. When you deliver at a high level, word gets around. In fact, referrals are common among businesses that have a strong reputation. Also, when you establish your business that attains to a high level of satisfaction, you can safely ask for referrals. Most clients are more than happy to make referrals since their own experience is positive.
One way you can encourage those who call your 800 number and PBX system is to place ‘on-hold’ advertisements which are actually short, to the point recommendations of your business by your existing clients. While this does not encourage those on the outside to call, it helps give confidence to those who are in your PBX system awaiting to be transferred or who are on-hold in order for you to check on an item for them.

Supply World-class Support. At no time is this more important than right now. With current economic conditions the way that they are, you cannot afford to lose business or miss out on business because support efforts are less than satisfactory. Going out of your way to help keep a client happy will keep them as a repeat customer for a very long time. Learning that sometimes you have to take a ‘hit’ for a mistake makes your customer all the more appreciative of the way in which you operate.

Making your 800 number and PBX system shine in the area of support means having an information presentation system by which existing customers can listen to fixes or suggestions to common issues that come up in the course of doing business with you. Then, providing a way in which they can talk to a real person with the ‘follow-me’ feature of your PBX system helps endear them to you more than ever.

With these principles, you can help your business continue to grow and thrive in uncertain times. Success rises to the top when attention to details is the hallmark of your business. Keep going and paying attention to these details. You will make it!

How to Write a Winning Business Plan

Bill Bartmann

Lenders will look at your business plan and come to a conclusion that they can or cannot safely invest in your business. If you present them with a plan that shows a business that has great potential, then they are more willing to fund your business. They know there is a good chance that you will repay the loan, with a good return.

If you plan to enter into a partnership, then you must earn the trust of your partner, so he will be willing to invest time and money into the venture. Your business plan should demonstrate, clearly and concisely, your vision of how the business is going to look.

You can negotiate lines of credit with vendors if you show them a clear business plan. They will want you to succeed so that you become a regular customer; therefore, building their business.

Your business plan should demonstrate that you are serious and focused on your commitment to build a successful business. You need to demonstrate skills, knowledge, experience and what makes you stand out from the rest of the companies in your industry

So, how do you present all of this? The rule is “thin to win.” The more “wordy” you are, the less you know; the less you understand what you are getting into. An efficient business plan looks very crisp and clean, with easy to read font. Many experts have created many styles of business plans. Here is an overview of what should be in a business plan:

The Executive Summary is very important; it is the first part of the business plan; how well it is written and the message it conveys will determine the reader's interest in reading the rest. The Executive Summary contains:

• Your Vision Statement
• Your Mission Statement
• Goals
• Strategies
• Action Steps
• Table of Contents

Company Background - This section contains the name of the company, your personal history in the business, your experience and the stage of development you company is at. It's OK to disclose if you are a new start-up. Describe what makes your company unique, patents, trademarks, knowledge, experience and anything that sets you apart from your competitors. Do you have any industry advantages, a better system or are you in a prime location?

Products, Goods and Services - Here, you describe your products and services and how they benefit consumers. Demonstrate uniqueness, value and reasons why you feel more people will purchase from you than from your competition.

Market Analysis - This section will show your business as one with the capacity to survive; the ability to sell your product or services. You will be demonstrating your understanding of the economics of your business if you clearly describe the strengths, weaknesses, threats and opportunities that are part of your business. Being able to recognize where you might be weak and what you intend to do shows you thought things through. Recognizing possible threats to your business, like market trends, fads, advances in technology, etc… will also demonstrate good planning. Stating possible opportunities that can come from your business helps a lot too.

Marketing Tactics - Describe your retail techniques and pricing analysis. Show that you understand your market and how you determined the price of your goods or services.

Management Team - This section is about you and the key managers or department heads in your business. It does not contain long bios; just credentials and qualifications that are significant to your business. This section is also used to disclose how you compensate the key people in your business; their annual salary. You will also include staffing milestones here; if you plan to hire more people, when you plan to do so, and how many employees you project your company will grow to support.

Operations Plan - Here, you share more relevant information about your business and its assets, including plant and equipment; describe the physical facility. How much working capital is needed and how will it be spent? How do you plan to find quality help and train them to develop your labor force?

Financial Statements - If you have a history, here is where you put your Profit and Loss, Cash Flow Reports and Balance Sheet for each year. Also include future projections; what you think you will make in the next few years and how your numbers are realistic based on available data.

Funding - This section is a brief Loan Proposal. Provide a brief overview of your loan request; how much you need, the type of financing you want and the terms of financing desired. Lenders like to see that you have thought about the financial stability of the business and that you understand something about how financing works. Define the terms that will work in your business and how you came to figure this out. Will you require long-term or short-term financing? Will you pay monthly, quarterly or annually?

Use of Capital - What will you use the borrowed money for? Will it go toward the purchase or lease of a building, equipment, beginning inventory, operating capital or something else? How will this loan help you to be successful running your business to ensure your ability to repay the debt? Provide references to your previous funding history, loans you've repaid before. Provide business references in this section to give testimony of your past business practices; delivered as promised, performed excellent service, quick, timely, honest and dependable, etc...

Your business plan should distinguish you from your competition. It is a very important part of your Loan Proposal Document which will be used by lending institutions, private investors, potential partners and anyone that you will have a business relationship with who will want you to succeed.

© Bill Bartmann, Billionaire Business Systems

Business Planning (for nonprofits or for-profits)

Written by Carter McNamara, MBA, PhD, Authenticity Consulting, LLC. Copyright 1997-2008.
Adapted from the Field Guide to Nonprofit Program Design, Marketing and Evaluation.

Preface

Business planning is often conducted when:

• Starting a new venture (organization, product or service)
• Expanding a current organization, product or service
• Buying a current organization, product or service
• Working to improve the management of a current organization, product or service

There are a wide variety of formats for a business plan. The particular format and amount of content included in a plan depends on the complexity of the organization, product or service and on the demands of those who will use the business plan to make a decision, eg, an investor, funder, management, Board of Directors, etc.

Overall, the contents of a business plan typically aim to:

1. Describe the venture (new or current organization, product or service), often including its primary features, advantages and benefits
2. What the organization wants to do with it (buy it, expand it, etc.)
3. Justification that the plans are credible (eg, results of research that indicate the need for what the organization wants to do)
4. Marketing plans, including research results about how the venture will be marketed (eg, who the customers will be, any specific groups (or targets) of customers, why they need the venture (benefits they seek from the venture), how they will use the venture, what they will be willing to pay, how the venture will be advertised and promoted, etc.)
5. Staffing plans, including what expertise will be needed to build (sometimes included in business plans) and provide the venture on an ongoing basis
6. Management plans, including how the expertise will be organized, coordinated and led
7. Financial plans, including costs to build the venture (sometimes included in business plans), costs to operate the venture, expected revenue, budgets for each of the first several years into the future, when the venture might break-even (begin making more money overall than it has cost), etc.
8. Appendices (there are a wide variety of materials included in appendices, eg, description of the overall organization, its other products and/or services, its current staff, etc.)

Nonprofit readers might notice that a business plan is very similar to a well designed grant proposal. In addition to the above items, a grant proposal might include itemization of any deficits (when expected expenses exceed expected revenues), which indicates the need for funding from the particular funder to which the grant proposal is being submitted. Also, a break-even analysis usually isn't included in a grant proposal.

Quite often, an organization's business planners already know much of what will go into a business plan (this is true for strategic planning, too). However, development of the business plan greatly helps to clarify the organization's plans and ensure that key leaders are all "on the same script". Far more important than the plan document, is the planning process itself.

Sections of This Topic Include:

Basic Introduction for Nonprofits and For-Profits (and how to convert between FP and NP)
For-Profit Business Planning (very similar to nonprofit business planning)
Nonprofit Business Planning (very similar to for-profit business planning)
Preparation for Planning a Business Venture (nonprofit or for-profit)

General Resources

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Basic Introduction (for for-profits and nonprofits)

Business planning is usually conducted when starting a new organization or a new major venture, for example, new product, service or program. Essentially, a business plan is a combination of a marketing plan, strategic plan, operational/management plan and a financial plan. Far more important than the plan document, is the planning process itself.

Business planning usually includes a thorough examination of the idea for a new product/service, if there's really a market for it, who the competitors are, how the idea is uniquely positioned to be competitive and noticeable, how the idea will be produced to a product/service, how much it will cost, how it will be promoted, what overall goals must be accomplished, how the development and ongoing operations will be managed and what resources are needed (including money). As noted above, a business plan is a combination of a marketing plan, financial plan, strategic plan and a operational/management plan. Here are a variety of perspectives.

Note to Nonprofits -- to Translate For-Profit Plans to Nonprofit Plans

For-profit and nonprofit business plans are very similar. (Nonprofits have "sales", "markets", "competitors", etc, too.) Therefore, nonprofit personnel would benefit from reading the links in the section "For-Profit Business Planning". When reading about for-profit business plans:
1. Substitute "balance sheet" for "statement of financial position"
2. Substitute "profit and loss statement" for "statement of financial activities".
3. Substitute "customer" for "client"
4. Substitute "investor" for "funder"
5. Substitute "product" for "program" or "services"

For-Profit Business Planning

Basics About Business Planning (including outlines of plans)

Be sure to also see "Comprehensive Overviews" below
Business Plan FAQ
Business Plan FAQ
Business plan basics
Business plan basics business planning resources

Comprehensive Overviews

Be sure to also see "Basics ..." above
Business Plan Outline (FAQ's)
Writing An Effective Business Plan (comprehensive overview and links)
Business Planning (many, well-organized links to other business planning articles)
How to Write a Business Plan (comprehensive overview and links)

Sample For-Profit Business Plan

Sample business plan
outline of a business plan
several sample plans

Nonprofit Business Planning

Basics

(Nonprofits would also benefit from reading the above major section "For-Profit Business Plans". See Converting For-Profit Plans to Nonprofit Plans.)
Preparing Nonprofit Business Plan Nonprofit Business Solutions has some free information
has free info -- scroll down to bottom

Introduction and links to other resources
www.businessplan.org (for nonprofits)

Sample Nonprofit Business Plan
Another sample business plan
Another sample business plan
Nonprofit Business Plan Sample

Preparation for Planning a Business Venture (nonprofit or for-profit)

Before you start a major venture, there are several considerations about yourself that you should address. This manual guides you through those considerations. Then the manual guides you through the major considerations you'll have to address when you complete your business plan. The manual includes numerous links to other free resources as the reader goes through each section of the manual.
Preparation for Planning a Business Venture

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General Resources

Business Plan, Business Planner &Business Planning Site
Bplans.com: The Business Planning Resource Center
Business Resource Center
SBA - Business Plan Outline - Updated September 1997
Entrepreneur's Help Page
5 Most Common Mistakes When Writing a Business Plan
Critical Steps to Writing a Business Plan