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Up0bb1, post: 270074, member: 53375 wrote:As Greg said honesty is number 1.
But also don’t give negative comments about your competition, so many business’s do this just to make themselves sound better. If you cant sell yourself on your own abilities, don’t go down into the gutter by baging the opposition. Even if a client says that ABC does a bad job, and even if I agree with them, I never verbally agree or get into a discussion about it. Just my own personal integrity wont let me. But I will also often recommend some of my competition (if they are good) if I don’t offer that exact service or am to busy, potential clients remember those things, I have had some come back saying that I helped them out, can I take on a job this time.
Remain positive, I refuse to deal with business’s who are negative
Great advice! There is something to be said for creating symbiotic relationships with your business peers.
Up0PowerofWords, post: 270072, member: 979 wrote:In your answer, Ann, you have a problem and I believe you could try a web chat app. It feels more personal than just reading the site but you can put some links on it to direct the usual enquiries – plus coming back to answer their query when you can (i.e. take off your number). I am trialling a Hubspot chat for this but there are many others as well, to free up your time.Besides the chat and blog, I communicate via email and phone or Zoom. Seems to be easy enough, and I use phone when there are any chances of unclear communication or issues.
Thanks, already have a zopim chat on the website but as we’re a nursery and microbusiness I’m not always sitting at the computer. I need to channel my energy into a productive use of time otherwise I’d be working 24/7. I’d rather not answer the phone at 7am than to get stuck scrolling through my website with someone. I also prefer to have clear concise information available to cut back on miscommunication that can come with verbal chats.
I think every business is different in their needs and business owners at different points of their lives will use different strategies in time management. I’m at the point where my time is precious to me :0
Up0Hi Maddison, Good luck in your new venture! I think one area that I have issues with and I think you may have even bigger issues with is “free advice”. You need to figure out how much time you are willing to give for free and how you can constructively channel that into accessible information. I go into a great bit of detail, have blog articles, product descriptions with tons of info, etc so that the information is readily available. However lots of people scrolling on their phones don’t read it and prefer to hear it from a live person. I spend a lot of unproductive time answering questions that the answers to are in writing and waiting while people literally scroll through my site and load pages.
In your case I would consider doing weekly webinars or something similar where you could get three or four potential customers dipping their toes in but there is a time limit and you control how detailed the info you provide is. The alternative is lengthy free personal consultations or even worse someone feeling you’ve been curt by not giving them advice.
Ann
Up0I make coffee.
Up0If you are involved with the project and it’s ongoing, don’t use third person. Be upfront about who you are. Also rethink your “Do you struggle with loneliness” blurb. It sounds like a dating app. Instead of focusing on negatives, focus on increasing happiness, connectiveness, etc. and then tell me why you are different from all the other apps that connects work groups out there.
Good Luck!!
Up0Greg_M, post: 269687, member: 38207 wrote:Thought it was time to update the avatar, the one I had was from about 5 years ago and made me look like a bank robber…now I just look old and unshaven.
CheersIt’s a an emblematic representation of the times
Up0Paul – FS Concierge, post: 269679, member: 78928 wrote:If I have noticed a theme amongst soloers, it is they budget very well but only enough to stay afloat and for some, maybe a bit more during “normal times”.For the most part this works well enough, but I have always worried that a lot of people in business do not have a “buffer”.
There are a couple few things connected to a buffer that make a big difference:
1. A lot of businesses do not charge enough. Charging a fair, market price is something we should do without guilt, especially when we think oif the value we are delivering.
2. Doing things for free. All of those little things add ap and when it is all said and done, cost us very dearly. Mostly, if we ever want to have a chance to build a buffer, we have to charge for the big things of course, but also the little things that take up our time.
3. Doing 1 and 2 above well, might allow us to save. Be ob the lookout that saving some of your profits, especially in the first year might hurt some, because you pay tax on all of your profits, even if you do not pay yourself all of them.
4. Understand cashflow. When things get back to normal and we can look forward to growing again, taking on new clients often means waiting for them to set up their systems to pay you. And this can take time. So there can be quite a time before getting the money for the new shiny job you have just won. If you have to buy stuff and pay suppliers before you get that money, you will need cash in the bank to do so.
And the best way to have cash in the bank is to take steps to build….A Buffer.
I can’t speak for everyone but I know in my experience it took work to change our strategy from “do everything, take everything, claw like a dog to make money, make sure the business survives and grow as much as possible” to “Hmm, I’m working my butt off and my quality of life sucks, how do I make the same amount of business more profitable” particularly when you are married to the other half of your business and they are a price dropper and stock expander. Some people never seem to come out of that initial strategy.
When I was last active I was and am working on that. Surprisingly, I haven’t seen any drop in turnover even though I have an order minimum and pass credit card/paypal fees along to the customer. I’m targeting more high end stuff and all of this has given me more time to work on newsletters sales, fb, descriptions, etc and most importantly go fishing! It’s taken my other half a fit of time to come around but he’s finally seeing that the type of business we do makes a big difference, not just doing business.
I don’t know what is going to happen in the future but I’m thankful that we don’t have a “big” little business and that we can downsize our expenses quickly if we have to. Being smaller gives you the ability to adjust faster so I feel as secure as I can at this point.
Bert, I love your strategy, I’m scramble quarterly every time.
Greg, love your new avatar
Ann
Up0Great idea. Make sure you research your competitors thoroughly :p:p https://blog.yellowoctopus.com.au/australian-gin-guide/
Up0Hi guy’s, haven’t been here for awhile, I’m glad to see most of you are still fighting the good fight. It’s earthshattering to have the rug pulled out from under you but it can also force us to make changes in ourselves as well as our businesses. I know that’s hard to see when you wondering where your next mortgage payment is coming from.
March was very intense for us. As soon as we heard the words “global pandemic” we started running massive sales to payoff the credit card and outstanding bills. We’ve been adjusting to being empty nesters and one of those changes was to buy a better boat that suited our aging bodies. It’s been great, plenty of snorkeling and fishing on the reef but there’s no money in the kitty for global pandemics so it was imperative we pay off as much as we could. Our sales last quarter we’re up by about 15% on last year as people reconnect with their gardens, shop online and plant things they can eat. And then it sort of all fell apart. Australia Post was overwhelmed with packages, domestic flight stop carrying the mail and social distancing at post offices became a big thing. Delivery delays were effecting the quality of our product and we were also seeing a lot of new customers who weren’t familiar with our processes and didn’t read too much to familiarize themselves. Delivery problems is a terrible way for new customers to get to know your business. It got really stressful and hairy.
We’re still open but now only shipping to Queensland. We’re going into a slower time in the year anyway so we’ve applied for jobkeeper and are using the time to do things we never get around to and just breathe! The veggie garden is up and running and I’ve started online yoga. There’s enough money for fuel (as long as it pays for itself with fish) and we’re living day by day focusing on things that are within our control and trying not to freak out ruminating on second waves, the impending recession or zombie apocalypse.
After two natural disasters we’ve got a sense of where your headspace needs to be. You have to go into lowgear and roll with the punches. Reserve your energy for the long battle ahead. It’s more guerilla warfare than tactical battle as you’ll be making your game plan up as things shift. Good luck to everyone and be kind to yourself and others.
Warm Regards, Ann
Up0My chromecast dongle! Trying to give equal time to Do Yoga With Me, Nike Training Club and Netflix.
AnnUp0It sounds like you haven’t really done a lot of research into eccomerce and are investigation the two whose name comes up the most. My advice is to look at what sort of shopping cart you’ll need for fashion, what sort of shipping you’ll be doing (flat rate vs postage calculator) how you will be fulfilling your orders (bulk pick or third party inventory) and other specific issues that you’ll need tailored to your business, etc and look at all options available. Every ecommerce solution has different strengths and weaknesses and pricing plans include different features.. Why not set up free trials in each solution and have a play with features and pricing?
I’m one of the people having a jump from Neto and I’m amazed at how much I’ve learned about different options out there from other users that are also jumping. Many are not choosing to go with Shopify and Big Commerce doesn’t seem to be getting any action. I certainly look at front end and backend very differently now. Chew I was very impressed with Ricemill, if I were bigger you would definitely be a front runner.
Right now Ecorner is my strongest contender but I just need find the time to set up a free trial and play with it.
Bert, this is the “Selling Online” Forum. If you think the Neto posts are all “whinge threads” perhaps you should scroll on by the threads that mention Neto
Up0My concern is I swallow the increase and global domination doesn’t go to plan. More competition may force the big dogs to be a bit more competitive and Neto may not do well over there. What happens then? Do I get a price increase because they are hemorrhaging money in the U.S.? Or what happens if Telstra decides to sell them or break up the company and sell off assets? Like I said I could eat the increase but I may be setting myself up for bigger headaches down the track.
I agree it is a great platform but it is hard to use it to it’s full potential with the current customer support situation. Someone from the outside who has never gotten the run around for two weeks or had support tickets become old and grey may feel that many customers are over reacting but I think since the Telstra takeover customer satisfaction has been going downhill and there is a lot of resentment surfacing. Money is important, it’s part of the way we “value” our business but relationships and trust are also important components in doing business.I’m curious Jason why would you choose Neto over Shopify? I’ve heard dollar for dollar their support, apps and templates are better.
Up0John Debrincat, post: 264389, member: 2969 wrote:You should really do the numbers before changing your service provider. There are a lot of considerations that can impact your business. We have been inundated with inquiries. Some have had a longer term want to change and this is the straw while others are making a spur of the moment decision, not so good. As much as we would like to get lots of new customers i would urge that the decision be made carefully. We would be happy to talk through your business case with you. eCorner is not for everyone but we pride ourselves on helping people make the right decision.So thank you for all the messages and calls we have created a simple online form if you want more information and we will ensure these are fast tracked for you.
https://www.ecorner.com.au/neto-migrationThanks
JohnVery sensible advice John, as I said I’m in no rush.
Up0That goes for us too Bert.
- Less than a month ago they promised their customers that old customers would stay on their plans and only new customers would have to go on these plans.
- They have sold themselves on NOT pricing according to turnover like other platforms and not taking a percentage which when you tier according to turnover is.
- They have sold themselves as charging in Australian dollars not U.S. and being an Australian company. They are now charging in U.S. dollars and moving to Denver, Co. USA.
- They have a jump in their plans from 100,00 to 750,00 which means everyone in between is considered a large business and being charged on a large plan.
- They have given customers less than a months notice that they will be forced to the new plans.
For me the issue isn’t so much the price jump, it’s the poor customer service, that fact that there is no sweetener to help me swallow this, the fact that trust has been broken and that they have given me a big FU. I have no idea what they will do in the future on the road to global domination, there is a good chance they’ll go bust in the U.S. and then I’d be left with no notice and no platform.
If you consider that “good” business you can count me out as doing business with you.
Up0About 18 months ago they pushed for “partner” web designers that are affiliated and get a cut for new clients. I think they have a dog in the fight as they’ve developed their businesses around Neto. I just had to leave the original group as some of those hitters were saying things like “you’ll only have to sell another $450 a month to cover the increase, if you can’t do that you’ve got a more serious problem”. I don’t really think that’s the point, trust has been lost. People are angry and they are deflecting away from the real issue. It will be interesting to see how this goes
