Everybody wants to see a nice big positive number in their profit column when they look at the end of year financials. It’s what you work so hard for – to make money and be successful.
People who run small businesses know that even being profitable at all is no easy task, let alone squeezing out as much profit as you possibly can. It’s a tough world out there with lots of competition and you’ve got to do an exceptional job to be successful.
The good news is, it is possible to boost your profitability by making some small but strategic changes to the way your business works.
Streamline Procedures
Many business procedures can become complicated and inefficient over time. Use the DMAIC process from Six Sigma to identify the problems in your procedures and implement changes that will allow your workforce to be more efficient and more profitable.
You may find it’s not one big procedural problem that’s majorly holding you back, but lots of little problems that combine to cause you big issues. If you can work through these problems in a methodical way, then you can make big improvements to your profitability.
Concentrate on Your Mission
A mission statement should tell people the purpose your company serves for its audience. If you’ve got your mission statement right, it should follow that if you’re effectively carrying out your mission statement you will be profitable.
It’s easy to move away from the things you are good at in business. There are so many distractions out there, but sometimes, you’ve got to get back to doing the things you do well.
Take another look at your mission statement, adjust it if you need to, and then make it a focus.
Reinvigorate Your Marketing
Marketing changes very quickly over a short period of time. If you don’t adapt to these changes then your business is going to look very outdated to the people it is trying to appeal to.
It’s important that your business stays visible and reaches its ideal customers in the places they want to be reached. Social media marketing and websites aren’t just for companies with big budgets, they are effective marketing tools for businesses of all sizes.
You’ve got to keep your marketing fresh and reach people where they want to be reached, otherwise, you’re going to miss out on potential customers.
Re-Energize Your Employees
Your employees are one of the bedrocks of your organization, so keeping them motivated is extremely important. Studies show that the number of employees that feel motivated in the workplace is very low and this can be a huge source of inefficiency for businesses.
If you can find ways to incentivize your employees and to encourage them to love coming to work, then it’s normal that you’re going to see a boost in their performance. Workplaces can become stale over time without people even noticing, but it doesn’t take much to freshen things up.
Re-energize your employees and you’re bound to start seeing a difference in your profit column.
As part of streamlining procedures, automate everything you can. From billing to proposals to contracts and the like, find a way to automate all of it.