Its all about business.

Archive for December, 2008

Silly Season Service…

Dec 27

Posted by Steve Gray in The Customer Service Dept, The Marketing Dept, The Sales Dept | 2 Comments

It’s just afer Chirstmas and all through the land people are buying, while others take orsers, sell etc.

It’s a great time for retailers, it’s all so busy.

Me I’m after an item, and like to compare prices and hunt about for a good deal (so I’m a cheapskate at times, negotiating can be like that.)

I saunter about zipping through lines of shoppers going this way and that, slow fast, turn right, shoot down an aisle negotiate another bunch of people… I get to my destination to be greeted on browsing with a pimply faced kid who asks, “Are you right?” I have a standard response to that, “I’m fine thanks” unless “narky” and I give them a serve of “Great question are you implying I’m otherwise wrong?…”

The other one they serve up is, “Can I help you?” perhaps it’s a better approach but I go for “I only want help if I’m drowning…” This generally stops them in their tracks.

If I was running a retail  type business I would sack INSTANTLY any staff member who said either of these.

For goodness sake, chat to me, get to the point and discover if I have a need or want, but spare me the pathetic lame approaches, say hi, after all I am human and may well spend enough to pay your wages this week, but put me off and your wages will go elsewhere very fast!

Folks if you are in retail teach your people so say hello, how are you, good morning etc… and then follow this with some pleasant banter that engages me more effectively. Then and only then can I let you through to be able to find out what I want.

For those of you who find this pedantic, lots of people are put off subconsciously by these initial approaches and will shop with their feet, going elsewhere in search of their needs. I will be amongst them.

Hard Financial Reality

Dec 13

Posted by Steve Gray in Finance, Planning, Risk Management | 1 Comment

How many times have you heard terms like, “Never give up”, “Play hard”, “It’s all about taking risks…”, “Put your money where your mouth is”, “To make money you need to spend money” “If only we can make it through this rough patch”, “Set lofty goals to get results”, “Put it on the plastic…”, “It’ll be alright on the night”, “If only I had a bit more credit..”

And of course a whole lot more. Many of these are to do with life in general and business as well (often there is a strong connection with both!). The issue, being able to ensure your business is in good position so the above “terms” don’t effect you.

Easy to say but hard to do so lets look at some basics… You sell services or products, your business must therefore make money, you pay for things with that and have some left over all going well. If not  you are running a charity and are waiting for the next “grant” to prop you up, if you are in private business this can only happen for so long before things get too bad to continue.

Running out of cash happens, running up a credit card bill happens too! Often too easily, you max the card out, the bank gives you more, the monthly repayments get stretched and before long its out of control. If  you have become dependent on it, it becomes a drug.

Over the years I have seen drugs claim lives, and the credit drug seems to almost be just as strong as any substance around! The aim therefore is to ensure you can run without the credit card.

I have had to cut up about three credit cards in my life so far and have now vowed to not have a personal credit card of any kind, a mortgage, or line of credit for an asset sure, but only if I know I can service those loans and do my darndest to reduce the amount owing. My wife first alerted me to my “addiction” and cut up the first card, I owed $1,800 and it was creeping out (doesn’t seem much now but back then I could barely make the repayments if at all.) She looked at the monthly account and there was not a purchase on it for the past four months, I was just paying off things well in the past and not keeping up. The third time… you DON”T want to know… (And I am not telling!)

The next time was a card my wife was offered (special deal in the mail..) she wanted it, she got addicted slightly, I closed the account, I had a card for that account as well and it was not long before the bank was offering us a higher limit… that was the signal to get out so we did. Note it was MUCH harder to close the account than it was to open it.

In business however the stakes can be higher, a big loan to do capital works, buy new stock, the list goes on, but the ability to pay the loan/s back should be a critical factor in doing these things. At the time of writing this we are in the depths of a big financial downturn, the government is handing out cash to families etc to prop things up so more than ever having a good approach to credit risk is vital.

Oh and if you think you can have a credit card account and not tell your partner, think again… they will figure it out at some stage, and the proverbial will hit the fan, and don’t think for a minute it will be evenly distributed.

Here are a few points to stop the sleepless nights, constant worry and hassle credit can bring to some.

  1. Use it wisely – If you must have credit, never increase the limit past a reasonable amount you know you can readily repay.
  2. Cut it  up – This piece of plastic is probably killing you slowly, the stress, the hassle. GET RID OF IT cut it up NOW. Then make repayments to reduce it’s stranglehold NOW.
  3. Re finance – avoid high interest payments, scrap the card but get a personal loan with less interest to take the pressure off the higher repayments, Ok it’s still a loan but at least the repayments are less and you can’t “dip back in and use it”.
  4. Some people have the strength – Chances are you don’t have the strength to use it wisely and it will creep up on you like some form of insidious cancer, whether you can handle it or you can’t, decide now! AND TAKE ACTION.
  5. Evaluate  your position – If you have to pay it out can you? Is it really for emergencies and what constitutes an emergency? Is it just for business or other use as well? Can you up your profits or turnover to make the repayments if you do max it out?
  6. Plan – To make your business profitable, so you can avoid getting into a credit crunch. If you keep not making a profit, then something needs to alter. Prices up? More sales? New products or services? Better service? Better customers?
  7. Get advice NOW – There are financial support and counseling services available, USE THEM. If you have to hire a business coach to help you I guess that could be useful too (Just don’t put it on the credit card!)

Take action to get your business and or personal life in order so you can avoid being stretched, stressed, hassled and have sleepless nights that don’t help your performance at all. “Stop worrying and start living…” Oops! Another term for the list!

December 2008 Featured Forum Member

Dec 11

Posted by Bren Ryan in The Board Room | No Comments

We wanted to know more about some of our active forum members…… so we asked them :-)

Steve spoke to Sue from Abacus Screens……..

1. How did you get started in business?

LOL I think I got started in business from birth. My Mum and Dad had corner stores and I was taught business skills at an early age. (I can remember balancing the till while in primary school…It was one of the ways we learnt to count ?) After school I worked in One Hour Photoshops, working my way to manager by the time I was 19. In 1995 I was offered a “job” at a lab as manager..turned out to be they wanted someone to buy it, so I did ?. This led to the expansion to 2 suburban Kodak Express stores. In 2001 someone offered me an offer too good to refuse so I took it ? (I took a year off and then took up a position as the EA to the Managing Director of the No 3 Photographic Supplier in Aus.)

Meanwhile my hubby, Mick, had been working in various companies doing Security Screens, Window installation, Blinds, Awnings etc. In 1998, I convinced him he should go out on his own. This business – Abacus Screens and Security – while successful, suffered from my lack of time to manage the business side of things.
(Advertising not planned but very much RE-active rather than PRO-active )
In 2000, he was offered a job at one of his suppliers so he took it. Lesson 1: ONE business at a time ?

Fast forward to 2005 and we moved from Brisbane to the Sunshine Coast. Mick secured a position at a local screen company. (I am still travelling to Bris 3 days a week). Mick learnt very quickly that the coast was grossly under serviced in the security screen business, so we resurrected Abacus Screens in October 2006

Understanding the problems from “Abacus Mach I” we put a number of things in place up front.
A: We made sure we had enough money to start. Printing, advertising, good ute, etc etc etc. Also enough “buffer cash” for 3 months wages, just to take the pressure off.
B: We joined a couple of networking clubs, so we had people to talk to and bounce ideas off.
C: Mick spent a fair bit of time scoping out who he knew (Lots of his old colleagues have moved to the coast and are now in management and decision making positions with building, window or aluminium companies)

Nearly 2 years down the track and all in going along VERY well.

2. What inspired you to become part of the FBT forum?

Gosh it is soooo long ago now ? From memory I was googling something to do with business and came across FBT. I am a forum junkie and join anything !!! Most though get deleted from my Favourites after 3 months or so when I get bored. So I guess the fact that I have been a fairly active member for the past 16 months or so is testimony that the forum is vibrant and above all RELEVANT!!

3. What have been your three biggest business challenges (so far) and how have you overcome them?

1: Finding staff- As with many communities, we have a skills shortage on the coast. (Hmmm Well maybe not We have a “committed worker shortage”. Talk to many business owners (especially “tradie types” in any coastal community) and , if the surf is pumping, the sickie rate is high ?)
We have overcome this by asking prospective employees LOTS of questions (I asked the forum to give me some questions to ask – Thanks Guys!!) and following up references. My number one telling question with references is “Would you be happy to have “Fred” work for you again?”
2: Marketing – With my background in retail I have great skills in creating a rapport to keep customers coming back and back. Abacus presents a different scenario wherein, generally, we only see our customers once or twice Overcoming this is an ongoing process. I ask a LOT of questions of similar, non-competing businesses. Eg our local winner of “Young woman in Business” is in the steel shed business, so I rang her up, took her out for coffee and picked her brain.
3: Managing Growth – Mick is getting a reputation among builders for being good ? So being able to say NO is difficult. We have learnt to say No gently, “No you can’t have it in 5 days but is 7 ok?” If he delivers in 5 Great!! But at least he doesn’t have to. Having a buffer allows us to outsource the manufacturing if need be.

4. What five tips would you give to a person starting in business?

Know your craft. (It astounds me how many people have NO idea about any part of the business they are in – Often seen in franchise owners)
Learn the basics of book keeping. It is VITALLY important to know the basics of profit and loss and the difference between Gross profit and Nett profit. I see too many people who think they can buy something for $10, sell it for $20 and think they have made $10!!
Work ON the business. Of course you will read that everywhere, but what does it mean? It is the time to do bookwork, time to think of marketing strategies, time to work on staffing, time for networking. You need to MAKE time. If you feel you have no time because you are actually doing the job- get some staff and let them do the job!! If you have staff for 1 day, use that day to work ON your business.
Make sure you (and your family)are healthy. As an employee, it is ok to have a day off to be sick or look after the kids when they are sick. It is much more difficult to do this as a small business. Keep fit and eat well.
Balance family life Keep a diary. USE it. I have been known to schedule family time ? But it IS important to block time out in your diary for yourself. Remember than in the overall scheme of life your kids and family is worth FAR more than any business. Little Billy’s birthday party is infinitely more important than any business meeting. If you already had a meeting with Client A and Client B wanted to meet you would reschedule… Family is ALWAYS Client A!!.

5. Is there anything you would like to say about being in business, and or being an active part of learning more from Internet type forums?

Internet forums can be a good source of information and networking. FBT has a great cross section of industries and people who are ready to help There is no such thing as a silly question ?

6. The best part about being in business is…

The journey ?
I like to think of any of our businesses like a baby. They took a year or so of sleepless nights and teething troubles, then they walk all by themselves and eventually don’t need you anymore ? Along the way you need to guide and point them in the right direction, they won’t just grow on their own. Discipline is important and , if you get it right, you raise a healthy self sufficient entity that has a life of its own.

Mick Moynihan & Sue Josephson

Abacus Screens
25/6 Beerburrum Street
DICKY BEACH Qld 4551
Ph 5491 5489
Fax 5439 4125
www.abacusscreens.com.au

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