Why do we start a business? To make money? Is that it? Is that ALL there is? Could there more to it than that? Make new friendships? Have fun? That sounds a little more “user-friendly”! Go a bit deeper and look. Do we want a legacy? Yes? If so, how do we do that? And…

I am almost finished reading an awesome book called Hyper-Focus by Chris Bailey. Some of what I read I knew already. Keep reading and I will share some cutting edge pointers. The stats he refers to are incredible. One study was done in situ – meaning live studies on real workers. (In situ studies are…

Increase sales by cold calling? You would rather stick needles in your eyes, right? Seasoned sales pros hate cold calling. Did you know that? It is true. They do it because they think it gets sales. And cold calling does work. The problem it that it is a brutal game. Loaded with rejection. Doing it…

I just read a Blog from the Business Development Bank of Canada called 7 Steps to Setting the Right Price for Your Products or Services. The Blog makes some good points. I have 2 comments on it, though. Firstly, the Blog has the overall wrong focus. It is inward not outward. This is common. What…

How do you forecast future sales? The word “forecast” means – “to predict or estimate (a future event or trend)”. Cash is tight. You must get your sales forecast to determine your cash-flow. People make one fundamental error in forecasting sales. They treat sales like it is one thing. Sales are not one thing. Sales…

Being in business is just about creating and selling stuff. Delivering services. Right? Wrong. It is about creating advocates for your business. There is a pathway to creating advocates. It is narrow and uncrowded. Would you like to know what it is? The best way to show you is with a Chart, a grid. It…

People love to shop. Businesses love to expand. Businesses and people spend what they earn… The one thing they do not have enough of is what? Savings. The pandemic created a global liquidity shock. Customer A owes your business money. They lost 95% of their sales. They cannot pay you. You, then, cannot pay your…

Selling on credit is risky… Businesses closed in the pandemic.  Meaning they cannot pay you. Or, you cannot reach them, as offices closed. What to do? Three things. Number One – Re-Set Your Credit Terms It is better to have no sale than a bad debt. A bad debt is awfully expensive. It is not…

We are in the midst of a global liquidity shock. What is that? It goes like this. Business A is not getting paid. To preserve cash they stop paying their payables. Business B is Business A’s supplier. Business A’s account payable is Business B’s “accounts receivable”. Business B, in turn, tells its suppliers that “no…

Everything is going virtual, right? Zoom meetings. Cloud-based accounting. Online banking. VOIP phones. Website portals. The pandemic has forced businesses to figure out new ways to work online. How do you market right now? Tip #1 – Create an Awesome Service Experience Online Let us say you own a restaurant. It has been forced to…