Bruce Outridge

What Do You Know Better, Sports or Your Future?

Posted on January 26, 2012 by Bruce

Have you ever watched or listened to people in a bar or at work talking sports? I find it amazing how many people are up to date with the latest stats, know the information on all the players, and who has been traded where and by whom. The same people can spit stats out at the tip of a hat yet most haven’t spent two minutes thinking about their lifestyle or where their heading. Now I am not down on sports, I don’t follow anyone in particular, but enjoy the odd game, I am just too busy to to keep up with sports and all particulars that go along with that.

Here is why I even bring this up, how many people that are deeply involved with watching sports know where there lives or careers are going in the future. I believe there is a time when we have to wake up and smell the coffee, start thinking about the future, and look at what we have accomplished in life to date. Any financial planner will tell you the same thing, think about the future but how many of us do it. In Ontario Canada here we have lost many positions in the manufacturing sector and it has put a real strain on the economy and people in general. I know that situation is echoed across North America and the world for that matter. I don’t see that situation changing fast or soon to be honest with you so it is important for people to take charge of their own businesses, careers, and personal lives. I believe many are caught up on how to do that however and it does take some effort. So here is how you start and for those of you in your forties you may already be thinking of this as it comes to mind as you may be going through a mid-life crisis.

The best way to start is to evaluate where you are now and what type of lifestyle you would like for the future. Now realize I am not talking monetary necessarily but that will play a big part of that, I am talking career, and personal needs. Do you want to travel, do you want a large business, are you happy in your current position, is the company one that may be around for a while? All those questions should be answered and thought about very seriously. Many folks stay at their current jobs, not paying attention to the economy and the company situation and then are mesmerized when the company goes out of business. Many times that can be seen very early, but people weren’t paying attention. This is the time to make that back up plan and get started protecting your dreams and goals. The best place to start is by turning off the television set with the sports on and sitting down with your significant other and talk about a plan.It may be the best use of time you could have, of course don’t plan it on a night with the Superbowl!

About the Author

Bruce Outridge is a business and leadership consultant for entrepreneurs specializing in transportation and creative markets. More information can be found on his website at www.outridge.ca

5 Steps to Successful Marketing Plan

Posted on January 19, 2012 by Bruce

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You do have a marketing plan don’t you? Every business owner should have a business plan that includes a decent marketing plan, yet many don’t. Unfortunately that causes people to waste time on things that don’t work or people that can’t help them. I have five steps that should be part of everyones marketing program and these steps can even be broken down more if needed. They are not in any particular order as the branding step should be the first step.

First is cold calling or outreach, now I know what your doing no one likes cold calling so use outreach. Outreach means calling a new new business to see if they need your services, mailing out a piece that will grab their attention on your services etc. You may do this more when starting out than you would when established but it is important to do it. Just do it tactfully so you don’t come across like a telemarketing company, unless you are a telemarketing company.

Networking is probably the best part of the marketing plan but make sure the places you spend your time are worth your time. I see people at networking groups that that shouldn’t even be in the group, their target market isn’t even present. You’re not doing yourself any good in that area.

Your online presence is critical both for social media and for your website. Make sure your website is working to do what you want it to do and that you have a presence on the main social media platforms. Online is how people are searching for businesses to day and if you don’t have a website you are missing lots of business.

Existing clients and referrals are crucial to the longevity of any business, make sure you treat your existing clients like gold. Asking for referrals or giving discounts for referrals are a great way to get additional business from satisfied clients.

The last but not least is branding your business. You need to have quality materials for your business cards, a decent logo that establishes your business. Make sure everything matches so that people start to recognize your business online and offline.

Marketing is an ongoing program that constantly needs to be tweaked and tuned to be effective. The place to start however is to get the plan down, know who your target market is and the best way to reach them.

About the Author

Bruce Outridge is a business and leadership consultant. He specializes in business plans and marketing solutions for businesses specializing in transportation and the arts. For more information visit his website at www.outridge.ca

What Do You Do When Your Professional Board Disagrees?

Posted on January 12, 2012 by Bruce

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As a business owner there are many tasks that you are responsible for and probably handle yourself. Everything from signing the big deal to cleaning the washroom may be in your list of jobs to be done at any given time. That is the joy and life of most entrepreneurs. Although many of us are good at multitasking we generally know quite a bit about several parts of our business but not everything. That is where the board of advisors come in for your company. The board may differ from company to company but usually consists of your acountant, your financial planner, your banker, and a business consultant. You may have more or less depending on the size of your business. Having all theses people on your board may make you feel that you’ve got a decent team behind you, that you will get financial and business advice that helps you grow. What happens however when the team doesn’t agree? When you are a small business keeping cash flow running smoothly can be a creative task especially if you have debt and obligations to pay. So as you are trying to do your best you are being told different things from each advisor, and the problem is that they are all right.

Here is what happened to us, we were trying to pay down debt and improve our financial picture. My partner and I had made a sound decision not use credit cards if at possible and live on cash. Our financial planner was elated and said that was the way to go. As our accountant was doing our taxes we were going over expenses and he said that it would be better to be paying certain items with the credit card as it helps in tracking items better in the long run, also the right advice. Our business consultant said try to increase your cash flow by reducing debt meaning that we should pay by cheque whenever possible, also the right advice. By now you are probably starting to see the disconnect that was starting between the advisors.

In the end the final decision comes down to you as as business owner. The team are advisors only and you have to do what is best for your situation. Just like the President you have to weigh each decision against the actual situation. When advisors give you advise they are advising from their outlook on the situation, which will be different for everyone. You have to make the best possible decision for your business based upon the facts and the best case scenario. Welcome to the world of business.

About the Author

Bruce Outridge is a business and leadership consultant for entrepreneurs. More information can be found on his website at www.outridge.ca

Working with Referrals

Posted on December 29, 2011 by Bruce

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Have you ever gotten a referral from someone that turned out to be a very profitable project? It is a great feeling isn’t it? Have you ever given someone a referral that didn’t do what they were supposed to do? That probably left you feeling lower than an ant on the ant hill. Referrals are very important to business, to self esteem, and to our integrity as a person. Whether you are giving someone a referral or accepting a referral how you act upon it or deal with it says much about you but also the person that the referral came from.

Back when I was starting at a moving company I was 17 years old, the boss liked the way I worked and asked if I knew anyone else that would like a job. He assumed that my friends would be as hard working as I was. The friend that I recommended turned out to be the laziest guy on the block, very loud, with no customer service skills at all. I felt terrible and he eventually got fired, but his work ethic was a direct reflection on me. I was too young to know that at the time and vowed it would never happen again. This has happened in business as fellow entrepreneurs that seem to be very driven and dedicated are looking for business. I give them a lead and tell them to take good care of the person and sometimes I am let down again by people not following up, or not getting them the information required promptly. I have been given leads that I follow up with, they accept the project, waste my time, and then seem to disappear. All of this looks worse on the person who gave the referral than the person that I am working with. I don’t understand why people go to business meetings, network, and spend most of their waking moments looking for business, then when it is handed to them through a referral they blow it by doing nothing or not following up properly, it blows my mind. So what is the best way to handle referrals and be successful.

First, when you have been given a referral follow up immediately with the client. Treat that client as gold and make sure you inform the client that your friend is an amazing person and thought the contact would be a good fit for the project. Once you’ve contacted the client respond back to your friend, thank them for the referral and give them a status on where the conversation ended and the next steps to be taken. Once the project is completed you may want to thank your friend with a lunch or small gift, of course the best thing is to refer business in return to them if applicable. If the client was referred for one project only and is a client of your friend then any future sales or contact should go through your friend unless otherwise arranged. Don’t steal a client from your friends it won’t take you very far down the road. Blow a referral and you may be blowing future business right down the toilet.

About the Author

Bruce Outridge is a business and leadership consultant. He specializes in two areas namely transportation and the visual arts and helps entrepreneurs start and run successful businesses. For more information visit his website at www.outridge.ca