We cannot underestimate the importance of keeping your employees happy as a business owner. When you want to foster loyalty and trust amongst your team, setting the foundation to keep them motivated and comfortable will put your best foot forward. But how can you ensure you’re doing the most to make your employees feel welcomed and valued within your workplace? Here are some ideas to follow.
Understand their work/ life balance The work/life balance is a hard one to pin down in the modern day. But if you demonstrate from the beginning that you’re willing to go the extra mile to be flexible, you’ll be a very popular boss. After all, you don’t force them into overtime, you don’t expect a ‘crunch’ from them on important projects, and you’re able to see the clear benefits of spending your life doing more than work. This kind of empathy goes a very long way. Make the workplace comfortable If your employees can’t work in a supportive, comfortable environment, nothing else you do is going to make a mark. Maintaining a comfortable workplace means things like keeping the temperature level, or ensuring there are no leaks, and if so you contact a company like leafield commercial roofing within 24 hours of noticing them. You should also think about the ergonomics of your working setup, and how this could be affecting employee health in the long term. Make it easy to say something When a team feels like they can’t speak their mind, they’re never going to quite be happy at work. They may rub along well socially, and they may be able to focus on their work, but they’re not going to be operating without a sense of anxiety. After all, one wrong word could have them ‘frozen out’, or up in front of the boss and reprimanded. So it’s better to let them know from the get go that they can speak up if there’s a problem or if they need to report something. Put the power into their hands. Set up chances for promotion Promotion is exciting. It's something to aim for. And in the workplace, whether the company itself is big or small, it’s the number one thing an employee is going to reach for. But if there are no chances for promotion, or the idea of it is unappealing thanks to the tasks involved, people aren’t going to put in their all. You need to make promotion a ‘shiny’ thing, that comes with a pay rise at the least! If you want to make employees happy, you’re going to have to put the work in. This means going as far as you can to ensure they’re comfortable, they’ve got the motivation they need to get the job done, and that they never fear coming to you with an issue. A reprimand may be needed one day, but it’s never held over their heads to make you feel like you’ve got discipline over your workforce.
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Sometimes a hobby should stay as a hobby because we all need something to do that brings us joy. Other times though, turning your hobby into a business could spread that joy far and wide. Miniature models are one of the most fun hobbies, and there is a market for them too!
What's more, is that a hobby like this can be brought into a business on the side. Most of the time, you are already spending time doing it for free after work and in your free time anyway. But how can you turn it into more than a hobby? Note: you will always need to register your business before you start making money, so check the requirements for your country and follow them asap. Funding Looking at all of the materials that you currently use, the chances are you have already spent a great deal on them. Part of turning it into a business is going to be buying a lot more in terms of materials - because, even as a smaller business, you'll need to be able to increase the speed at which you produce things. The right machinery might feel like a stretch, but you can find second hand machinery for sale, like compressors that are larger than you might typically use. There are a couple of peer-to-peer options for funding, including Kickstarter and Patreon, where people who support what you do can put money into the start-up. Get social As much as you enjoy spending time creating and painting your models without an audience, you'll need to get social. By getting social, you start to get the word out about the work you are doing. Take high-quality photos so that you can share the details, and start adding prices too. Research the right hashtags to make sure you are getting out there to your audience. But the most important part of having social media is to be social on it. That means commenting and liking other people's stuff too. Brand name Yep! One of the most exciting things is coming up with a brand name. <Something> Models, or a name that will mean something to the audience you are trying to reach. Keep in mind that some names will be trademarked, so it is always a good idea to check them out before you start using them. Since you are your brand here, you can keep it authentic to you, and people will appreciate that a lot more. Make sure you convey that this is a passion first, and you'll be surprised how supportive the right audience will be. Have a set ready Often there are models that will sell like hotcakes because they are beloved by the players or watchers of that specific thing. Make sure that you have a few ready to be shipped so that if you hit the right audience and are getting loads of orders, you don't get snowed under! And consider if you will take commissions for one of the pieces that required design work and intense printing. These can be very lucrative but also time-consuming, so price yourself well. Almost all start-ups will follow the same path, and this is no exception; here is what you need to keep in mind: Steps to Starting a Business.
When it comes to keeping customers happy, do you know exactly what it is that they want? Sure, they all want good prices and the best service possible, but when they can get that from literally hundreds of other businesses similar to yours, what will make you stand out head and shoulders to the rest and keep them returning time and time again?
The probability of selling to an existing customer is 60-70% while selling to a new one is as low as 5-20%. While it pats to attract new customers, it will be more beneficial to focus on those that have already made a purchase. So what can you do to keep their business and ensure you improve customer retention? Good Customer Service Customer service is the be-all and end-all when it comes to retaining customers. It doesn't matter how amazing your products or services are; if you aren't backing them up with excellent customer service, be it virtually or in person, then they will simply walk away and find someone who can fill their needs. Everyone needs to be on the same page regarding the customer journey and their role in making it work for the customer and giving them the best experience possible. Loyalty Schemes A thank you email after the purchase isn't always something that is needed and wanted; you can, after all, do this at the point of sale or with purchase confirmation. To entice people back to spend more with you, you need to be reeling them in with something they want. Loyalty schemes are the best way to do this. What you offer and how you offer it can be different; you only need to look at the power the Tesco Clubcard now has in the retail market to see how beneficial this can be, but it needs to work for your business. If you are unaware of how best to implement this type of offer, loyalty consulting can help you learn more about your customers and what they need to develop the right loyalty scheme for you. Fill A Need You need to fill a need people didn't know they had before they knew they needed it. Vague? Sure, but this can be done within any business by analysing customer habits and looking at the data they provide you with. Are they booking certain items on your website but not purchasing? What do they purchase instead, and what is that specific demographic interested in? The actual result of what you offer will be unique to your business and your customer needs. Still, by looking at all the data you hold, you can delve into different areas or products that other companies are selling to help you meet your customers' needs and ensure they come back to you repeatedly. Conclusion Making those repeat sales should be your top priority in business. Taking care of your customers will do more for your bottom line than spending huge amounts to attract new customers and neglecting those already there. Improve your customer service, provide excellent products and services, and do what you can to ensure you hit a second, third or 50th sale.
It’s really important that you are communicating with all of your staff as best as you can, because this is the kind of thing that is really going to be vital in having a strong team who are happy to work with you. It helps in fostering a sense of community and connection, and that in turn means that everyone is going to feel so much more that they are part of a family. So if you are keen to improve the internal communications in your business, there are a few things in particular that you might want to focus on.
In this post, we’ll take you through some important and useful advice on how to boost the internal communications in your business as best as you can. If you can do that, you are going to find that you are much more likely to have a happy and unified team across the board. Memos One of the most important kinds of communications you might have in your business is the memo. These can be enormously helpful, because they are a way of letting everyone know about a vital change that will affect them. That is incredibly useful when you have a new way of doing things and you need to let everyone know, for instance, or when you are simply trying to make sure that you are keeping everything on track as best as you can. A memo can technically take many forms. It can be an email or something that pops up in a shared calendar, or it can take the more traditional form of a notice pinned on a wall. It very much depends on your business and the kind of operation you are running, as well as what you need to communicate, and how sensitive the information might be. In general, however, memos are really useful, and certainly something that you should be making good use of as best as you can. Company Pamphlet A really effective way to communicate a greater number of things, however, would be with a magazine or a company pamphlet. It’s a really good idea to have one of these, and to put it out regularly as necessary. Many companies find that once a month is a good amount, or you might only do it once a quarter - again it all depends on your operations and what you feel is necessary. In any case, it’s something that you are definitely going to want to think about, and how you approach it is really important too.
The better the quality of the pamphlet, the more likely it is that your people will read it, and it can actually become a really effective communication tool in that sense. So getting some professional booklet printing to run it for you is going to be a really good approach. You should also consider having a team dedicated to the editing of it, so that it takes on as professional a form as possible. If you can do that, it's really going to make it a much more effective tool.
Text Chat There are all kinds of text messaging services that you can use, and these are increasingly becoming a major tool that many companies are making use of. The handy thing about text chat services is that they are incredibly quick and easy to use, and you can get in touch with any number of people about whatever you like this way, often without even having to pay any money. And if you use a service like WhatsApp, then you are also going to enjoy end-to-end encryption, so that your communications are more secure across the board too. Text chat is definitely a useful tool to make use of, in any case, and you will find that doing so can be a really helpful thing for your business generally.
Face To Face
And finally, let’s not forget that face to face communication is always going to have its place too. You will have many occasions when speaking to people in this way is the best approach, and it is often certainly the most secure. So don’t forget with all the tech available that sometimes the old way is the best. At the same time, you should remember that it is not always the way to talk about everything. It’s all about making use of the right means at the right moment. If you can do that, it’s going to help a lot.
If you want to be a success when it comes to business, having the right employees is certainly going to help. Whether you’re a small startup or a huge business, the truth that you must never forget is that your employees are the heartbeat of your organisation, and you have to have the right ones for it to thrive. With that in mind, read on to find out more about exactly why it’s important to find the right employees.
Building A Strong Company Culture One of the key reasons to find the right employees is to build a strong company culture. When you have employees who align with your business’s values, mission, and vision, you will be able to have a much more positive work culture overall. That’s because these employees will embrace the company’s culture and inspire their colleagues by working well in a team and generally being positive about their work. When you choose the right employees, you need to find ones that will blend in with your business and how you work, so you need to take this into account when you are interviewing people, as this is just as important as their skills and qualifications. It’s definitely something to speak to your chosen recruitment services about, as they’ll be able to help you. Better Productivity When you recruit the right employees, you can have much better productivity in your business, and it can all become a lot more efficient. Skilled and motivated people have the potential to work efficiently, meet deadlines, and deliver high-quality results, and when employees are passionate about their work, they become more engaged and take ownership of their responsibilities. By hiring the right people, you can build a team that collaborates well, maximises productivity, and drives the company towards its goals in an exciting and positive - and ultimately profitable - way. Customer Satisfaction The right employees are going to have a direct impact on customer satisfaction, which, in turn, will help to grow your business and make it as successful as possible. Employees who are at home in their roles and are a good fit for your business will be committed to giving the best customer service possible, and they’ll build up some great relationships with your customers. These employees are the ones who will understand customer needs, provide personalised solutions, and exceed expectations wherever they can. The great thing about this is that satisfied customers are more likely to become repeat customers, refer others to your business, and contribute to your company’s success. Boost Creativity Having the right employees can be a great way to boost creativity within your business. People with diverse backgrounds, skills, and experiences bring fresh perspectives and ideas to your business, and even if you can’t utilise them all, there will be some that will help you immensely. When you recruit a talented and diverse workforce, you can ensure that as many new ideas as possible are brought to you, and that your company can stay ahead of the competition and adapt to the way the market is changing and growing. |
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