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Want to Kill Your Business? Here’s How…


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Want to Kill Your Business? Here’s How…

 

Prior to the great depression of the 1930’s, Ford outsold Chevrolet. Reacting to the downturn in the economy of that era, Ford cutback back on advertising while Chevrolet continued with an aggressive marketing plan. Ford’s sales suffered and the two companies actually reversed roles in the automotive market place.

 

It seems everyone is looking to cut costs theses days, and for good reasons. With the economy in a recession, we need to make tough decisions. Cutting advertising during these times is simply the wrong thing to do and a great way to kill your business. Shop owners need to look at their expenese made during the last few years and find ways to cut the “fat” not the “meat”. We need to understand the difference between an expense and an investment. Investments will eventually add to your business, unnecessary expenses will hurt business.

 

Want another way to kill your business? Offer deep price discounts. We are all concerned about our customer’s wallets and hear the complaints about prices everyday. If you think that deep discounting is a way to sell work and bring in customers, think again. In past recessions, it hasn’t been the companies providing the cheapest goods and services that have done well. Consumers become very picky about how they spend their money during tough economic times.

 

Concentrate on value, not price. If consumers only cared about price, the Yugo would have outsold Toyota or Honda. Yugo was about price, not value. The end result: You don’t see a lot of Yugos around, do you? Being competitive in your market is one thing, giving away much-needed profits can be disastrous.

 

It’s better to offer a Winter Maintenance Package (which includes an oil change) for $49.95, then trying to sell $14.95 oil changes. Selling a Winter Maintenance Package has value and will give your techs the opportunity to look for other profitable service work. Work on increasing car counts, this will increase your opportunity. Don’t try to hit a home run on every car. The little things add up at the end of the day. Adding a few cabin filters, air filters, wipers and batteries will add much-needed dollars to your bottom line.

 

Here’s another way to kill your business: Worrying about all the bad things that might happen. When your thoughts are focused on all the things that can go wrong, a lot of the things you worry about actually occur. It’s like the kid in little league that walks up the plate and says to himself over and over again; “I’m going to strike out. I hope I don’t strike out. I always strike out”. And guess what happens…he strikes out!

 

Be positive. You are the leader of your company. You need to be strong and show confidence. This is equally important when talking with customers. Don’t complain about the economy, this makes things worse. People want to be associated with winners.

 

And here’s the last way to really kill a business: Ignore your two most important assets: your employees and your customers. Your loyal customers and your faithful staff were with you building your business during the good times. When things seem bleak, it’s easy to forget the good times. But good times will come again. Things go in cycles. Don’t take my word for it, just look at history and listen to people like Warren Buffet. So, take care of the people that made your business a success: your employees and your customers. Treat them with respect, show them you care about their well-being and they will be there when things turn around.

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  • Have you checked out Joe's Latest Blog?

         1 comment
      I am going to borrow a quote from billionaire, Warren Buffet, “The best investment you can make is in yourself,” This statement, while simplistic, speaks volumes. A shop owner is much more than a boss, a shop owner is a leader. And leaders are solely responsible for the success of their team. This means that you must work hard and commit to a life of continuous learning and improvement. It also means that if the team fails, a leader must always blame himself or herself for that failure and find ways to improve.
      For your business to flourish, you must invest your time and energy in understanding what your role is in your company. It also means that you must be committed to continually improving your level of competence. This does not mean that every task is your responsibility. However, it does mean that the buck stops with you. If your business is not where it needs to be, or you are looking for increased growth, then it is your obligation to do the hard work and set goals, have the vision, perform the research, and develop the plan to achieve your overall objectives.
      When you invest in yourself to become the best leader and the best businessperson you can be, others around you will feed off your energy and your passion. This sends a strong message to everyone on your team that you have what it takes to bring the company to the next level.
      One last thing, another obligation to your company is assembling the right team of people around you. Once you have the right people, you need to invest in them too. Find what truly motivates them, not what you believe inspires them. Be a coach to your employees and always strive to bring out the best in them. Be strong with your convictions and expectations, build strong relationships with your employees, and don’t be afraid of admitting when you drop the ball.
      While Warren Buffet is best known for making billions of dollars with his investment strategies, I want to believe that this quote has its basis in something that money cannot buy.
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