Want to start a business blog, or improve your office communication? Whatever your business dilemma, our panel of experts has the answers.
"In my geographical area there are others doing what I do. In marketing terms, how can I stand out from the pack?"
Hunter Leonard, founder of BlueFrog Marketing and author of Marketing Has No Off Switch, says:
"Choose a niche. Become a specialist for a specific age group – retirees, for example. For local opportunities check data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics or the council. Survey the market continually to know more about what your customers need and want. We've benchmarked 500 businesses and only 15% have surveyed their customers in the past 12 months. Differentiate by having the most skilled employees, best service, fastest response time etc."
"I'd like to start a business blog, but have no idea what to write. How do I stay away from a sales pitch?"
Brian Giesen, Regional Director of Ogilvy 360° Digital Influence, says:
"Sales pitches don't fly when it comes to business blogging. Follow these steps:
1. Find relevant bloggers and read their posts. This will give you an understanding of topics, writing style, the community and how to fit in.
2. Think like a blogger. Carry a notebook and a Flipcam to collect story ideas on the go. A blog post might be a 30-second interview with a customer, recorded on your camera phone.
3. Blog as a team. Most new blogs fail because they lose momentum after the launch. Get your colleagues blogging with you to take the pressure off any one individual."
"We're a small company with eight staff but several employees have complained about a lack of communication. How can we resolve that?"
Angela Diamond, Director of Diamond Communication Services, says:
"Without knowing if the team members work in close proximity or are geographically separated, I would assume that there is a discrepancy between employees' expectations of their leader's role in communication and his or her expectation. Communication is two-way and the best option is to ask what staff want to know, in what format and how often. Larger companies would conduct a staff survey. If it seems too confrontational to ask, get a third party to ask on your behalf."
"Business owners are constantly told to set realistic goals in terms of sales and profit, but what's the difference between 'realistic' and 'impossible dream'?"
Andrew Griffiths, bestselling author of The Big Book of Small Business, says:
"The best way to set financial goals is to use your historical data and measure your average growth from previous years.
1. Work out your average yearly growth as a percentage for an understanding of your historical growth rates.
2. Add this to your current year's turnover to set a realistic financial target.
3. If you are in a growth stage and marketing aggressively, set it higher by a few percentage points.
4. Don't go crazy – aiming for 100% growth only leads to disappointment.
5. Understand that growth will be related to your business development activities. You can't expect year-on-year growth without taking action to make it happen."
Do you have a question you'd like to pose to one of our experts? If so, email roslyn@mahlabmedia.com.au with 'Ask the Experts' in the subject line.
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