5 Common Mistakes All Small Business Owners Should Avoid
We probably don’t need to tell you that running a successful business is much easier said than done. Unfortunately, many new business owners make mistakes that further hinder their chances of success unnecessarily. Here we will explore some common mistakes small business owners make and provide tips on how to avoid them. As you read on, keep in mind that these mistakes are common, but they don’t have to be the norm. With the right mindset and strategies, you can dodge some of these bullets entirely and build a thriving business.
Not Having a Solid Business Plan
You cannot plan for everything, but you should try to. Many of the profitable businesses we know today spend millions on R&D or market testing. This indicates the importance of conducting research before any significant launches in your business. Do not believe the mental lie that you are ‘wasting time’ if you are conducting surveys or prototyping. It is all a part of the process of excellence. Without much research, you’re essentially just winging it. Your research will provide you with a clear understanding of your target market, competition, pricing, marketing strategies, and more.
Neglecting Marketing and Online Presence
If the importance of marketing and an accessible online presence is news to you, I’m glad you’re reading this article. This statistics list from Nerdwallet shows that 81% of buyers will research a product/service online before buying, regardless of whether or not they purchase it in-store or online. Nevertheless, small business owners often make the mistake of not investing enough time, effort, and money into online marketing. You may have the best product or service in the world, but if nobody knows about it, and WHY you believe they should spend money on it, your business won’t thrive. Invest in high-quality advertising and marketing strategies that resonate with your target audience. You can create and manage most social media platforms for free or fairly inexpensive, so you might as well use all the resources available to you. For some practical tips, check out this article on how to build a successful digital marketing strategy.
Failing to Build and Maintain Relationships
Your business isn’t just about products or services. It’s also about relationships. Businesses are made by people, so go meet more of them. Building and maintaining strong connections with customers, vendors, and business associates is vital for long-term success. Networking events, expos, industry events, and more are all essential to planting seeds for future business opportunities. Even an informal cup of coffee with someone in your industry could create a connection (or a connection that leads to a connection) to produce an unforeseen opportunity for growth, collaboration, or simply advice. Thank your customers for their business, stay in touch with vendors, and network, network, network.
Refusing to Delegate
As a small business owner, you may think you must do everything yourself. Unfortunately, this mentality can lead to burnout, exhaustion, and a poorly managed business. Delegating tasks to qualified individuals can free up your time to focus on things like growing your business. Understand that you can’t do everything on your own, and there’s no shame in asking for help. One person doing everything simultaneously will more likely cost you more time, and quality. Figure out where you can outsource so you can have an intentional focus on what you really need to handle
Neglecting Financial Management
Finally, many small business owners overlook the importance of proper financial management. This does not mean hoarding every penny either. You might think that you ‘need’ this or that when starting out, or on the other extreme, refuse to spend a dime because you want to be ‘frugal.’ Neither of these is ideal for success, so the best plan is to make a budget and give yourself boundaries and allocations for the different areas of the business. Also, you need to track your expenses, profit margins, and revenue streams to get a current and representative picture of the business’s health and progress in order to make informed decisions. Consider hiring an accountant or using accounting software like Netsuite or QuickBooks to make things easier.
We get it, you have a lot on your plate. That’s why you don’t need to fall into these traps to make it any harder. Use the tips outlined above to help you avoid them and build a successful business. Remember, success doesn’t come overnight, and it won’t come without challenges. But with determination, a solid plan, and the right attitude, you can achieve your goals and make your small business a resounding success.
The Alliance to Save the American Dream is a non-profit organization dedicated to three core goals.
1. Develop an Ideas Factory to give small businesses and industries a centralized place to share innovative ideas that must be considered.
2. Build a unique Resources portal for small businesses to go to for answers or resources that address a wide range of issues or challenges.
3. Offer a new networking opportunity for small business owners to connect while also giving them a platform to share their own personal stories. For more information, visit savetheamericandream.com.
How Small Businesses can Combat the Labor Crisis
Small businesses have been hit hard by the labor crisis in recent times. The pandemic has caused a shift in the job market, with many employees choosing to work remotely or looking for work that offers better compensation and benefits. This has left small businesses (especially brick-and-mortar) struggling to attract and retain employees. The latest from CNBC shows the hiring disparity has worsened as the summer season rolls around the corner, with construction, manufacturing, and transportation industries being hit the hardest. Despite all this, there are a few things that small businesses can do to combat the labor crisis. Here are some strategies to help you navigate this season.
Offer Competitive Compensation and Benefits
One of the best ways to attract and retain employees is to offer attractive compensation and benefits. Your businesses may not be able to offer salaries that are as high as those of large corporations, but offering other benefits such as healthcare, vacation time, and retirement benefits can go a long way in attracting and retaining employees. As with many things, hiring a worker is a negotiation and an exchange of value. If your business cannot provide remote work or higher pay, you must increase the value of your bargain in other areas such as these. Additionally, it is essential to keep up with industry standards in terms of compensation and benefits, to remain a viable option when compared with others in the job market.
Streamline Hiring Processes
The hiring process can be tedious and time-consuming for both the employer and the employee. It is essential to streamline the process to ensure that you do not lose out on top talent due to a lengthy hiring process. Consider eliminating unnecessary steps in the hiring process, by conducting initial screening interviews via phone/one-way interviews with predetermined questions. Hiring platforms such as Indeed provide these options. If possible, limit the interview process to one in-person meeting, optimizing the time with necessary evaluations like skills tests. This can be performed in one meeting without compromising thoroughness in hiring.
Foster a Positive Company Culture for Retention
By extension, It is essential to prioritize employee retention if you want to get ahead of the labor crisis, as prevention is better than cure. The company culture can play a significant role in attracting and retaining employees. Be proactive in offering opportunities for growth and advancement within the company. This incentivizes the employee with a vision for the future within your business! Also, ensure that employees feel valued and appreciated by providing regular training, off-site team-building activities, and other perks. Additionally, make sure that employees have a good work-life balance, which can help reduce burnout and lead to higher job satisfaction. To most of the younger demographic in the labor force, these factors can weigh more than financial compensation.
Leverage Technology
Technology can be a valuable tool for small businesses looking to combat the labor crisis. Consider implementing a human resources management system (HRMS) to help streamline HR processes, such as onboarding and benefits administration. Examples are BambooHR, Deel, ADP, etc. It is not wise to ‘wing’ HR processes without a firm infrastructure to manage employee wellness. Additionally, wherever feasible, embrace remote work as a way to attract and retain top talent. A report from November 2022 by LinkedIn shows that it is the most sought-after post-pandemic job characteristic and will be a major pull for many job seekers. There are many tools available to help facilitate remote work, such as video conferencing, project management software, and collaboration tools.
While it may seem challenging to attract and retain top talent in this current job market, these strategies can help small businesses remain competitive and successful. Emphasizing employee satisfaction and well-being is key, as happy employees are more productive and will help your business thrive. Remember to stay positive and focused on the long-term success of your business.
The Alliance to Save the American Dream is a non-profit organization dedicated to three core goals.
1. Develop an Ideas Factory to give small businesses and industries a centralized place to share innovative ideas that must be considered.
2. Build a unique Resources portal for small businesses to go to for answers or resources that address a wide range of issues or challenges.
3. Offer a new networking opportunity for small business owners to connect while also giving them a platform to share their own personal stories. For more information, visit savetheamericandream.com.
Artificial Intelligence (AI) is the future. Here’s what that can mean for you.
Small businesses need every advantage they can get to remain competitive. Artificial intelligence (AI) has become one of the most powerful tools for large corporations, but AI usage isn’t limited to the big players. Small businesses can leverage AI in a variety of ways to streamline their processes and improve their bottom line. Despite conflicting feelings on the continued pervasiveness of AI, here are a few ways it can favorably affect your business:
Personalized Customer Service
AI-powered machines can mimic human-like conversations and provide customers with tailored answers to their inquiries. Instead of hiring more customer service assistants to respond to the same inquiry a hundred times over, AI machines can provide 24/7 support in responding to frequently asked questions, and weeding out the nuanced customer service issues, thus saving time and money. AI can also be implemented onto websites via programmed chatbots.
Recruitment and Talent Sourcing
Hiring can be a time-consuming ordeal, especially for more vital roles within your business. AI software such as the Applicant Tracking System (ATS) can set preferences with keywords, experience parameters, and so on. This will help with a swifter review of hundreds of resumes and cover letters, focusing more resources on the more competitive candidates.
Personalized Product offerings
Data has always been available, but AI will help you understand it faster. With AI-integrated systems, you can utilize specified insights about target demographics through shopping history, pages visited on the websites, etc. This will aid in delivering better-aligned product suggestions to the right consumer.
Automation of Repetitive Tasks
Small businesses have many repetitive tasks that take a toll on team productivity. However, AI-powered automation can take these tasks off the team’s hands, such as data entry, appointment scheduling, and order fulfillment, freeing up time for more creative and impactful work.
Financial Analysis
AI-powered financial analysis can take on the responsibility of analyzing complex financial data, which helps small businesses make informed financial decisions. They can help you assess the efficiency of your advertising budget, track customer behavior and price points, and create accurate financial statements.
In the vast digital landscape, Artificial Intelligence is quickly becoming a game-changer for small businesses worldwide. The effective use of AI technologies spares your limited resources and increases your operational efficiency and productivity while driving sustainable growth. With its scalability and affordability, any small business would benefit from leveraging AI tools to keep pace with technological advances and seize the opportunities they offer. Optimize your business today by implementing AI with one or more of the above strategies!
The Alliance to Save the American Dream is a non-profit organization dedicated to three core goals.
1. Develop an Ideas Factory to give small businesses and industries a centralized place to share innovative ideas that must be considered.
2. Build a unique Resources portal for small businesses to go to for answers or resources that address a wide range of issues or challenges.
3. Offer a new networking opportunity for small business owners to connect while also giving them a platform to share their own personal stories. For more information, visit savetheamericandream.com.
Efficient Ways to grow your (B2C) social media
It’s no surprise to anyone that a solid social media presence is essential to the growth and overall success of almost any enterprise today. A small business cannot hope to last very long without investing time, money, and creative resources towards ensuring that it is a priority, despite how ‘small’ the small business is.
Here’s how:
Batch-create Content
‘Content’ might seem like an overused word nowadays. However, as mentioned, one cannot hope to achieve much without it. Businesses need content on their socials. The difficulty then comes with the consistent content flow to your spectators and consumers—many attempt to post daily, and have their phones on record at all times. However, we’d advise ‘batch-creation’ of content. This means having a designated day to capture and edit a few days/weeks’ worth of content, all in one planned day. This is most advantageous when this is used for high-demanding content forms such as video/reels. Planning these out every week or every other week will leave you in better shape to focus on other aspects of your burgeoning business.
Social Media Planning Platforms
Following the above step, the next best course of action will be to schedule your content for as far out as possible. The trick with social media is not so much having one viral post, but consistency. You set the precedent of how often your audience should visit your page. If you wish for them to engage with your content consistently, you must have a stream of content consistently. Examples of such platforms are Sprout, Planoly, Hubspot, etc.
Reels
You’ve seen ‘em, you love ‘em, now you gotta make ‘em. New reports show that video content (specifically reels) is now garnering the most views and likes on most Meta platforms, especially Instagram. The algorithm for post visibility leans into this. What that means for your business is: to grow your reach and recurring audience, you must produce reels, regardless of your industry. Going even further, trendy audio can be a helpful tool to maximize your exposure. Use these platforms to your advantage, and take the time to generate buzz on socials. Your business will thank you.
Analytics
What’s better than content? Informed content. The beauty of social media is that it is fairly inexpensive, and most of the platforms such as Facebook and Instagram already provide built-in back-end analytical information. This will help you locate and specify your target audience, and curate content that meets their viewing and engagement needs. Use the insights provided from your own page, competitors, and other public information to specify your content. Data usually indicates preferences and affinities towards certain things, while also highlighting what does not pique the interest of the respective audience. Utilizing such information efficiently can be a game-changer for social channel growth.
AI (Artificial Intelligence)
As a small business owner, the more you can automate, the better. Having AI tools will help you do just that. Social media doesn’t simply end with the visual content but also includes the written copy that accompanies it. This includes captions under Instagram posts, blogs on LinkedIn, and more. In order to expedite these processes, you can use AI tools such as Jasper AI, (which has free options) to formulate online copy based on the specified criteria that you provide.
Social media can be a mammoth field to dive into, and more could be said, however, we hope you can take action on these tips listed above, and watch your following grow!!
The Alliance to Save the American Dream is a non-profit organization dedicated to three core goals.
1. Develop an Ideas Factory to give small businesses and industries a centralized place to share innovative ideas that must be considered.
2. Build a unique Resources portal for small businesses to go to for answers or resources that address a wide range of issues or challenges.
3. Offer a new networking opportunity for small business owners to connect while also giving them a platform to share their own personal stories. For more information, visit savetheamericandream.com.
