Starting a business requires many hours of planning and preparation. Professionals such as, doctors, accountants and attorneys must choose a business form that is best for them. Sole proprietorships, partnerships and corporations have advantages and disadvantages that can cause grief or gratefulness when certain events occur.
Getting Business Advice
You should consult with attorneys, Certified Public Accountants, other business people and the Small Business Administration to determine the following:
Best business organization for you Legal requirements for your business Required licenses and fees Ways to establish lines of credit Adequate capitalization Business plan for a minimum of one year Establish a supply chain management system
In developing supply chain management, you should consider LTL providers in planning the best strategies.
Building and Surroundings
Make certain that parking space is adequate for the maximum number of customers. If the business is operating after dark, adequate lighting and security cameras should be installed. Security guards should periodically patrol the area.
All equipment should be checked to see that it is working properly before the customers are admitted for shopping.
Proper amount of cash should be placed in registers.
Packaging materials and shopping bags should be checked for quality and number.
Check aisles to be certain they are free of all obstructions.
Check shelves to be certain they are fully stocked.
Check the stock on the shelves to be certain that product are marked and priced correctly. Be certain that enough checkout aisles are always available so that customers do not have long delays ig being checked out.
Staff and Other Personal
Checkout clerks should be present and wearing clean clothing or uniforms.
Be certain that a sufficient number of stock clerks are available to restock shelves throughout the day.
Check to be certain that supervisors and all support personnel are present and ready for work. Make certain they present a clean, neat image that represents the business.
Have a designated employee assigned to help customers in each department. Other employees may be available to assist as well, but one should constantly be watching for customers who appear to be lost.
Carefully plan rest breaks so that there is no disruption of work routines throughout the day.
Supervisors
Supervisors should constantly be aware of what is taking place in their departments. They should be ready and willing to assist when problems arise, but they should not attempt to micromanage. Employees who feel that they can do their jobs well will do their work with pride because they expect to be promoted.
The success of any business depends on how each employee does his or her job. Employees who know that they will be rewarded for their work will exert extra effort to please. Employees who feel they are in dead-end jobs will do as little as possible. Supervisors should motivate employees so that the excitement continues.
Article contributed by Jenna Smith