Category: Planning & Management

Building a good company culture takes  work. It becomes one of the keys to small business success. But suppose something’s not right?Does your company culture leave something to be desired? You could find yourself in danger of losing valuable talent and customers.

Check  these five tips on how to change company culture.

1. R.E.S.P.E.C.T

What is company culture? Company culture could be described as the character of the company, its management, its employees and the type of customer it attracts. But that’s just scratching the surface. You might have an idea of what your company culture appears to be and then when you dig deeper, you could find a more negative atmosphere seeping through the cracks.

At the heart of most good companies is a culture of mutual respect that starts from the top and trickles down to the cleaning crew at night. Studies show employees are 26 percent more likely to leave their jobs if they feel there is a lack of respect between colleagues. Before employees head for the door, pay attention to how people treat each other and not only in face-to-face interactions. Look for signs of purposeful miscommunication and overbearing criticism and put a stop to the negativity.

2. Bad Managers

As boss you can’t be everywhere all the time, so you need to rely on your managers to keep the operation running smoothly and efficiently  — but there’s more at stake than just meeting deadlines and staying on budget. Make  your managers directly responsible for setting a positive company culture. If they come across as inflexible and unapproachable, that impacts your employees. Employees who rate their managers negatively are four times more likely to interview for other positions when compared to their peers.  So make sure your managers create and nurture a positive workplace experience on a daily basis. Make trust and open communication key. It the helps turn around a bad vibe.

3. Room for Growth

Employees don’t want to be stagnant in their positions. And they don’t want their company to be stagnant either. Your talent may  come straight out of college? Or perhaps you employ people  who  have been in the workforce for decades. In either  case, an atmosphere of learning and growth goes a long way toward promoting a great company culture. Consider cross training employees to keep everyone challenged or sporadically sign team members up for educational training to improve business practices.

The more you can teach employees from your own experiences as well as outside sources, the more your staff will feel valued and that your company environment makes it worth sticking around. The opportunities you provide create passion and passion creates a unifying bond, boost morale and is a motivation for how to change company culture. As an added bonus, according to a Gallup study, companies that have made a strategic investment in employee development report 11 percent greater profitability.

4. Out of Touch

If your company has grown to the point you don’t have a handle on the day-to-day issues, you could be overlooking some key points negatively impacting your company culture. It might seem like a small thing, but a business that is consistently understaffed puts a lot of pressure and stress on employees and that stress is inevitably transmitted to customers and clients. Make sure you schedule (and/or hire) enough people to ensure employees can do their best work.

Likewise, a company using old technology or outdated systems is not only not servicing its customers to the best of its ability, it’s also putting unreasonable expectations on staff to get the work done efficiently. Stay on top of new tools so your company is always on the cutting edge.

5. Acknowledgement and More

You see how your company culture can improve if you make it your mission to provide better feedback to your employees. You also need to recognize them for a job well-done. And show appreciation for their efforts. Everyone wants to be acknowledged for working hard. This proves true even if it’s just a positive word given in passing. A company culture of respect and self-worth thrives when employees feel their efforts get noticed. And it helps if managers can see their individual talents.

Keep yourself open to listening to employee suggestions for ways to improve their working situation. For example, a flexible schedule helps employee achieve a better work/life balance. Try implementing work at home days for long commuters. Acknowledge individual employee needs This shows you trust and respect their commitment to the business.

Learning how to change company culture starts with you. Take the time to notice the obvious and more subtle signs your company culture needs fine tuning and you’ll reap the rewards of a motivated, engaged staff, helping you create a better business.

How to Change Company Culture [SmallBizTrends]

If you’ve ever researched quick ways to make money, you probably already know a little bit about taking paid surveys online. Paid surveys are an easy way to rack up some extra cash each month, without interfering with your already busy life. Surveys typically take very little time to complete, and the only requirement is having a device that’s connected to the internet.

But paid surveys exist for many other reasons than to put money in your pocket. In fact, businesses use surveys as a way to collect important information that assists in making the right changes to improve their product, marketing campaigns, or customer service in general.

Here’s why businesses pay for your opinion and how you can cash in on it.

How Online Surveys Benefit Businesses

Market research is a huge deal. In fact, companies spend billions of dollars each year by investing in interviews, surveys, product testing, and focus groups. The purpose is to gather data about new and existing products.

Online surveys fit perfectly into the market research realm. Using surveys, businesses are able to learn all sorts of information, including:

• What products consumers like
• How consumers decide what to by
• What factors are most important to consumers when buying products
• Likes and dislikes about certain products

With a simple survey, it’s easy to gather all of this information at once. Online surveys are also extremely cost effective, especially for the high return on investment that they offer. Traditional surveys are labor intensive, expensive, and require a lot of time, sometimes months, to compete.

With online market research companies are able to save time, which in the end saves them money. If a business is looking to learn about what consumers think about a certain product or brand, an online survey is the most efficient way to gather that data.

Using data from online surveys, businesses are able to make more informed and consumer-driven decisions. This helps to improve a company’s standing in their industry, which hopefully improves profits and their bottom line.

How Paid Surveys Benefit Consumers

Taking paid online surveys won’t make you rich, but the compensation is well worth a few minutes of your time to answer simple questions. As a survey taker, you also have the chance to receive free products in exchange for testing them out and providing feedback. Other companies use a points system where users earn points for each survey completed. Points can be used to redeem gift cards, product discounts, and even airline miles.

While getting paid is definitely the top perk of taking online surveys, another benefit is that you, as a consumer, get to have a say in a business’ product, service, or marketing. Surveys show just how influential and powerful the consumer voice really is. By sharing your feedback, you can help to make products better and to give businesses the boost they need to be even more successful.

Maximizing Your Survey Earnings

Taking paid surveys won’t turn you into a millionaire overnight, but there are ways to you can maximize your earning so that you make as much money as possible.

The first step is to have realistic goals and to create a schedule you can dedicate to. How much money you make each month greatly depends on the number of surveys you complete and how much they pay. Most surveys only pay $0.25-$5.00, but you will find certain paid survey sites offer much higher payouts.

It’s also important to create a schedule and stick to it. In order to meet your earning goal each month, you have to set aside a certain amount of time each day to completing surveys. Make sure that the schedule you design fits within your lifestyle. You can complete surveys during your lunch break, during your commute home on public transportation, and during the time you already spend online.

The next step in maximizing the money you make from online paid surveys is to join several paid survey sites. These days there are dozens to choose from, but some of the top options to consider include:

• Swagbucks
• Survey Junkie
• Vindale Research
• MyPoints

By joining several sites, you increase your chances of being selected for surveys on a routine basis. This helps to ensure that you always have a steady queue of surveys to complete. The good news is that if you run out of surveys to take, many survey sites offer other ways to earn, such as watching promotional videos, searching the internet, or playing games.

Conclusion

Paid surveys are used by businesses for market research as a way to refine and improve their products, services, and overall brand. On the flip side, consumers who participate in paid surveys benefit from putting extra money in their pockets.

Growing a successful business is something every entrepreneur and business owner aspires to. So why do so few actually succeed and experience business success?

Having worked closely with very successful business owners and entrepreneurs, and having built my own successful business, I’m here to tell you it isn’t easy.

True success comes from two things: Knowing the business and/or marketing strategy that’s perfect for you, and mastering your inner blocks and mindset.

Both are easier said than done.

And to further complicate things, there’s another BIG problem entrepreneurs often face: Being able to figure out precisely WHERE you are stuck.

Are you using the wrong business or marketing strategy? Or is there a mindset block in the way?

I’ll be frank: Trying to diagnose precisely where you’re stuck is extremely difficult to do yourself (in many ways, it’s a lot easier to work with a coach).

But my Business Success Checklist will help you start. (Really, it’s more of a diagnostic tool to help you pinpoint where you’re getting stuck in your quest for growing a successful business.)

Consider this a starting place for getting clarity on what’s blocking you from growing a successful business … and of course, what you can do to turn things around.

Business Success Diagnosis Tool: Get out a piece of paper and a pen, and answer the following questions.

1. Do you know what business success actually looks like for YOU?

If you don’t know what your version of success looks like, it’s going to be difficult to actually achieve it. (In fact, it’s possible you could be living your success right now and not even know it!)

Take a few minutes to pause and envision what business success looks like to you. Now compare that picture to your current life.

Where are the differences? The similarities? Can you build a bridge from where you are now to where you want to be?

Here’s another post to help you dig into this deeper:

[Goal Setting Checklist] A Simple System to Make Your Dreams Come True

(Plus, if you haven’t grabbed my “How to Start a Business You Love AND that Loves You Back” free book, I’d highly encourage you to do so.)

2. Are you committed to your business success?

Here’s the thing: Success takes work. And perseverance. And doing things you maybe don’t want to do.

EVEN (or maybe ESPECIALLY) when you’re not seeing any signs of it actually paying off.

So how do you keep going even during the darkest times? A lot of it has to do with how your commitment level.

Check in with yourself:

How committed are you to having a successful business? Truly?

Another way of getting at your commitment level is to ask yourself this:

What are you willing to do?

Are you willing to turn Facebook off and write that blog post?

Are you willing to show up at an event to network?

Are you willing to pick up the phone and make sales calls?

Or are you finding yourself full of excuses?

There’s no wrong or right answer here. There’s no shaming or judgment or making yourself feel bad.

There’s only truth. Because in the truth lies the answer to what you’re experiencing.

For more on this, check out these blog posts:

[Video] Flip It! Are You Trading Your Success For Safety?

[Video] Flip It! Your Success: Are You Taking it For Granted?

[Video] Flip It! Do You Break Commitments to Yourself?

[Video] Flip It! Why Resistance Is Your Best Friend

3. Have you created a container for your business success?

One key attribute all successful people have is that they’ve created a container for their success. Their environment, their daily habits, who they surround themselves with … everything is aligned in a way that lets them focus on their genius work as much as possible.

What about you? How do you start your day? What are your daily habits? Do you feel supported as you pursue success?

Or do you find yourself constantly sucked into drama or distractions or other people’s priorities?

Successful people focus on taking action toward their goals and dreams every day, even if those steps are tiny (and maybe even feel insufficient). Every day they do at least one thing designed to move them closer to having a successful business.

Have you set up your day so you can do the same?

These posts can help:

[Video] Flip It! Could Changing One Habit Change Your Life?

Love-Based Money podcast: Episode 72 – Sneaky Blocks to Your Success

[Video] Flip It! Stop Checking Email First Thing in the Morning

[Video] Flip It! How Successful People Start Their Day

4. Are you feeling discouraged, because you think your business success is never going to happen?

I get it. We’ve all been there. We feel like we’re doing everything right, but nothing is happening.

But, here’s the thing: this is what sets successful people apart from those who aren’t successful.

They keep taking action even if it doesn’t look like they’re getting anywhere.

When I start to get frustrated, I either want to throw in the towel or start tweaking my strategy. What I’ve learned is that’s a  sure sign of Resistance rearing its ugly head.

And, when Resistance is showing up, that means I’m on the right path.

For myself, what I need to do is keep moving forward and taking action and allowing myself to feel all that Resistance, so it moves through me.

But, for you, Resistance may show up differently.

What’s important is to feel it and let it move through you, so you can keep taking action.

These posts can also help:

[Video] Flip It! Why You Can’t Rush Transformation Step 1

[Video] Flip It! Are You Trying to Uplevel Your Business Too Soon?

[Video] Flip It! Is Who You Are Getting In the Way of Your Big Dream?

5. Have you suffered a setback or failure?

This one sucks. It just does.

And it happens to everyone.

Another key trait of successful people is they don’t let their failures or setbacks derail them or keep them down. They get back up, dust themselves off, and keep going.

Is it easy? No. But, if you want to be successful, it’s what you need to do.

Take care of yourself. Feel all the feelings — the disappointment, anger, resentment, grief, and anything else that’s coming up.

Then, get back to work.

These posts may also help:

[Video] Flip It! How Do You Pick Yourself Up After You Fail?

[Video] Flip It: Are You Letting Your Critics Win?

Love-Based Money podcast: Episode 68 – The Messy Side of Success

Feel Like “Burning Down” Your Business? Read This. (Part 1)

6. Is your business strategy right for YOU?

In the personal transformation industry (which I’ve been a part of for many years), it’s not uncommon to get so caught up in the mindset piece that the external strategy gets lost.

But, the reality is, the external strategy is just as important.

If you don’t know what you’re supposed to be doing, how can you take action? And if you’re taking the wrong action, you’re not going to see any success either.

There are a lot of posts on the blog to help make sure you have the right business strategy. I would especially encourage you to look at your business model. If you’re building the wrong business for you, it can be hugely stressful.

You can also check out these posts:

[Online Business Models] 3 Steps to Help You Choose the Right One for You

[Best Business Models] Top 10 Signs That It’s Time to Shift Your Business Model

7 Hot Predictions for Business Success in 2018

7. Is your marketing strategy right for you?

Without marketing, it’s going to be impossible to grow your business. And, just like having the right business strategy, making sure you have the right marketing strategy (along with right messaging and ideal clients)is key.

The easiest way to build a business you love and that loves you back is to do it deliberately. In other words, put together a business development plan designed to get you precisely where you want to go.

But, where do you even start, when it comes to creating such a plan?

Luckily, it’s not as complicated as you think to craft a simple, effective business plan around building a love-based business. Below are 10 steps to get you started.

Business Development Plan Step 1. Get Clear: What Do YOU Want?

It all starts with you. The clearer you are on what you want your business to look like (according to what you will be happiest with), the likelier you are to build it.

I know when I first started my business as a freelance copywriter, the only thing I considered was how much money I would make. Yes, I had this hazy idea that by having a freelance copywriting business, I would somehow have the time and space to also work on my novels, but I didn’t actually create a plan around any of that.

Needless to say, I shouldn’t have been surprised when writing my novels didn’t just naturally happen.

However, if I had taken the time to think through my business and get clear on my goals and dreams and how my business would fit into them, I most definitely would have done things differently.

My book “How to Start a Business You Love AND That Loves You Back” is full of exercises designed to help you get clear on what YOU want, so you can build it. Just enter your name and email on this page to download a free copy.

Business Development Plan Step 2. Get Clear: Which Business Model Is Perfect for You?

When I started as a freelance copywriter, I looked around at other freelance copywriters, saw they were making money, and set up the same type of business they had, so I could do the same.

That was a mistake.

Eventually, with the help of Business Coach Shawn Driscoll (who wrote “Love-Based Business Models”), I discovered I was building the wrong business model.

I also came to discover that I wasn’t alone; so many entrepreneurs make this same mistake.

And that’s why I was so excited to welcome Shawn’s book into the Love-Based Business series. Along with learning about the four main business models, Shawn’s book contains a free assessment designed to help you determine which business model is right for you. To learn more about Shawn’s work, go hereand here.

Business Development Plan Step 3. Get Clear: Are YOU the person who can step into that business?

There’s a dirty little truth out there that no one much wants to talk about:

If your goals and dreams haven’t come true yet, it’s likely because YOU haven’t stepped fully into the person who would have accomplished those dreams and goals.

I talk about this more in my “Love-Based Goals” book, which is basically about how you can become that person, and then have your goals and dreams come true. But, for this post, I want you to look at this a little differently.

Have you stepped into the identity of the entrepreneur or business owner who would be running the business of your dreams?

If you haven’t, then it’s going to be difficult for you to take the necessary action steps to create that business. (You may find yourself distracted or overwhelmed or procrastinating, or maybe you get sick or are sucked into drama or something else happens that keeps you from moving forward.)

To build a business you love and that loves you back, you need to be in control of your emotions, rather than them controlling you.

You also need to get rid of any subconscious mindset blocks that may be standing in your way of creating your dream business.

(If you’d like to dive into this more deeply, be sure to check out my “Love-Based Goals” book and my “Love-Based Money and Mindset” book.)

Business Development Plan Step 4. Get Clear: Who Is Your Ideal Client?

It’s impossible to have a business you love and that loves you back if you can’t stand your clients, customers, or buyers. If you find yourself dreading getting on the phone with your clients, or your heart dropping when you see an email from them, how can you possibly love your business?

Knowing your ideal clients is a great way to change all of that. (If you don’t know who your ideal clients are, go here and here for more.)

Business Development Plan Step 5. Get Clear: What Is Your Message? 

Once you know who your ideal client is, the next step is to create a compelling message that attracts them. This article here can help, along with digging into my Love-Based Copywriting books.

Business Development Plan Step 6. Get Clear: What Precisely Are You Selling ?

Didn’t we just cover that in Step 5? Well … sort of.

What I mean here is not the transformation you’re selling, but the vehicle or medium. In other words, are you selling coaching? A book? A virtual course? An event?

You can even drill down further in some of these. Let’s take coaching, for example – what type of coaching? Private, or one-on-one? Group? VIP days? Or something else?

Also, I’d like to encourage you to make sure WHAT you’re offering is actually what your ideal clients WANT to buy. Some clients are only interested in done-for-you services. Some just want to buy a book. Some love the idea of group coaching. Some will only consider private.

If you find yourself not able to sell your offerings to your ideal clients, it may make sense to check that the vehicle you’ve chosen matches what your ideal clients want to buy.

Business Development Plan Step 7.  Get Clear: What Is Your Pricing?

No, I’m not going to tell you to raise your prices. I’m going to tell you to make sure you’re COMFORTABLE with your prices.

Pricing is tricky. You need to charge enough so you feel good and valued for what you’re providing, AND so you’re able to make a decent living from it. But, you don’t want to charge so much that it becomes difficult to find ideal clients, or you’re so uncomfortable saying the actual number (because you don’t feel like you’re worth it) that you can’t sell it.

Okay, so far, these first seven steps are about building a solid foundation in your business. Once the foundation is set, you’ll be in a great position to grow and expand, which is the focus of the next steps.

But, before we move on to those, it may be smart to check out this coaching question… just to make sure you have all your ducks in a row for success and good fortune to start smiling upon you!

Business Development Plan Step 8. Get Clear: What Are Your Business Goals?

Now it’s time to look at growing and expanding … and the place to start is with your business goals.

If you have business goals, this is definitely the time to review them and make sure they’re in line with the foundation you’ve just put in place.

If you’re never set business goals before, this article is a great place to start.

Business Development Plan Step 9. Get Clear: Which Marketing Plan Is Right for You?

Marketing is the lifeblood of any business. If you’re ready to grow and expand, then this is where you need to be spending your time.

You’ll discover tons of marketing resources on this blog if you poke around a bit (from blogging to marketing trends to attracting word of mouth marketing and more), but this post is a good place to start.

If you want to put together a marketing plan you love AND loves you back, my “Love-Based Online Marketing” book will help (it even comes with a Love Your Marketing Assessment and template for creating a love-based online marketing plan).

Business Development Plan Step 10. Get Clear: What Action Can You Take Today?

This one sounds the easiest to do … and yet …

There’s a reason why there aren’t more successful entrepreneurs in the world. And, sadly, that reason is because a lot of entrepreneurs end up stopping themselves, because they don’t take consistent action.

No matter what happens, continue taking action.

In conclusion, maybe you noticed another common theme.

Clarity!

Whether you are an enthusiastic entrepreneur who has just formed their business or at the helm of a corporate behemoth, your business could face an array of challenges. Whether those challenges are just starting to emerge or a distant speck on the horizon, you should learn how to tackle them.

Fortunately, many other businesses have been in the situations that your own could soon encounter. Here are five examples of common corporate risks, plus ways that you could help to counter them.

Skipping too many legal obligations

Your company has a broad array of responsibilities, some of which might even be enshrined in law. For example, in the UK, it isn’t legally palatable to spurn employers’ liability insurance. This sheds light on the importance of looking for business insurance quotes from a reliable source, like a broker.

Sadly, while companies tend to be stringent in complying to operations, they are typically slacker with employee-related compliance like wage and hour laws, Inc. observes.

Neglecting to develop operational infrastructure

If your company is a relatively young one recording rapid growth, you could be so overcome with excitement that you forget to implement the operational infrastructure necessary for sustainable gains. Don’t forget to assess and, if necessary, revise your planning and decision-making processes.

You should also be careful not to make the blunder, to which many senior executives are prone, of confusing “infrastructure” with “overheads”. Put customer care at the forefront.

Drops in product and service quality

Failing to pay prolonged attention to that operational infrastructure can risk your products and services faltering in quality. As soon as this happens, your business willbe negatively impacted.

You might have become obsessed with the philosophy of “growth for growth’s sake”, but you need to break this paradigm to get out of the rut.By preserving standards, you can foster customer loyalty – a strategy five times less expensive than reaching out to new customers.

Sacrificing integrity

You can be under heavy pressure both on a company level – for example, to meet estimates with quarterly earnings – and on a personal level, such as when a big bonus is being dangled before you.

Given these pressures, you might be tempted to cut corners. However, in acting on that temptation, you could cultivate a culture of unscrupulousness in your workforce. If employees become more prone to a little lying or stealing, this can undermine trust previously built up within the company.

Recruiting the right staff

You can likely easily comprehend the frustration which many business executives experience when looking for suitable staff. Even on occasions when there is a large pool of unemployed people to pick from, you might still struggle to find candidates who seem a good fit for your firm’s culture.

Forbes advises that, to overcome this challenge, you “learn how to deal with different personalities, figure out what drives each individual team member and tailor your management accordingly.” If your firm is still small, even just one poorly-chosen worker can hugely hurt the corporate harmony.