It's an awful thing that people say they have a business but when people ask for a business card they can't give them one. I absolutely do not like when people hand their telephone number on a piece of hand written paper. That is something that I feel is very unprofessional.
Mistake #2
Start a business but does nothing to market that business. How will a business grow if people do not know you exist? The moment you say you have a business the hard work starts then.
Mistake #3
Not using social media to market your business. Social media is the biggest marketing tool available. Does your business even have a website. There are free sites available and sites that can be hosted for only $5.00 to $7.00 a month.
Mistake #4
Assuming that because you have a website that your site is visible within search engines. You may be on the web but unless you direct traffic to your site, people may never know you are there. A lot of the people that are visible actually pay for traffic through a program called Google Adwords. It's not that expensive and it's worth it.
Mistake #5
When people ask business owners questions about their business and there is a blank stare. This makes people wonder just how qualified you say you are. You should be ready, willing, and able to answer ANY questions that people may ask.
Mistake #6
Over spending-It takes investments in any type of business with the exception of a few but a person should never spend more than they make. Risk are great if you almost 100% know that there will be a return but the money you invest should be a certain percent of your businesses earnings. In other words, you are taking a small percent of the money that you have ALREADY made from business and reinvesting it.
Mistake #7
Starting a bad business investment. You MUST study the market and make sure that this is for you. Many people see what others are doing and want to play copy cat but honestly what works for someone else may not work for you!
Mistake #8
Not presenting yourself as professional. Do you have a portfolio? Do you have brochures handy. Please do not give a person a dirty business card, or a wrinkled brochure. :) :):) (I'm really laughing but I am serious) Is your website attractive?
Mistake #9
Not having a plan B. Your plan B is not to say that plan A will not work but when your business is not making the money that it needs to handle all of the expenses, then you need a plan B. This may be doing odd jobs to help fund that business or working a part time job until your business pick up.
Mistake #10
Not keeping accurate business records. Every business owner is required to pay taxes. You must keep a cash flow log. This is a form that you can make your self. You must keep a daily record of all money spent and all money received for your business. There are programs like quick books that can help you and also make sure you find out everything that business owners can write off for tax purposes. I will find a link and post it.
* Bonus Mistake*
Not being qualified for the services that you offer. If a person says that they build homes and can't, now that's a huge problem. Honestly is the best policy and besides if you are not qualified then they will find out sooner or later!
To learn what business owners can write off on taxes go here: http://www.ehow.com/how_5140183_write-off-business-expenses-taxes.html
Make sure you click on the blue words within all of my blogs because they will have information that will be helpful to you.
For more business and marketing tips. Follow this blog and get your business where you need it to go. Share my link with friends. Remember that if you build it, they will come. (They=Clients)
I have more than twenty years of experience as a business owner. I was born into entrepreneurship and I want to share what i've learned over the past 20 years.
Learn How To Start A Business On A Budget Here:
http://victoriasheffield.hubpages.com/hub/How-To-Start-A-Business-Free-Or-Almost-Free
Learn How I Receive So Many Leads Right Here Online That Sometimes I am So Busy That I Do Not Know What To Do!
Here Are The Secrets To My Success!
No comments:
Post a Comment