Let’s Talk Business

1

Let’s Talk Business Back To Basics Business Solutions - Support for Small Business

Attempts To Reduce Anti-Competitive

Behaviour In The Marketplace

Is Not Supported By All

Professor Graeme Samuel, former ACCC Chairman

Inside this issue

Cover Story - Attempts To

Reduce Anti-Competitive

Behaviour …......................2

The Eight Keys to Effective

Interviewing

Dr Tim Baker …..….............3

Biz Snippets …………….......4

Marketing for Success

Dennis Chiron………...........5

The Two Great Myths

Geoff Butler ………………..6

How Do You Increase Your

Sales, While Charging More

Than Your Competition?

Dan Buzer ……..…………...7

How to Choose Your Perfect

Web Designer

Karen Ahl ……..………..….8

The Principles of Accident

Prevention

Ron Court …..…….…...…...9

Cashflow Management for

Your Business

Jo-Anne Chaplin………….10

Editor’s BizTips ……….….11

LTB Objectives …..........…12

Volume 2 Issue 21 - August 2014

Let’s Talk Business

2

Attempts To Reduce Anti-Competitive Behaviour In

The Marketplace Is Not Supported By All

Economists have expressed serious

concern about calls from farm advocacy

groups for a legal provision that could

prohibit big businesses from engaging in

behaviour that would substantially

lessen competition in marketplaces.

In its submission to the Government's

Competition Policy Review, the

National Farmers Federation has

proposed a hybrid version of the 'effects

test'.

The current law maintains that big

businesses with market power can't

misuse it with the intent or purpose of

substantially destroying a competitor.

Professor Graeme Samuel, from

Monash University's Faculty of

Business and Economics, and the

former head of the competition

watchdog, says an effects test, in theory,

would go one step further.

"Some regulators have said that it's too

hard to prove that there's an intent or

purpose that will drive a competitor out

of the market," Professor Samuel said.

"And thus what they want is to change

that to a test of engaging in any conduct

that is not misusing your market power

but simply engaging in any conduct at

all that would have a substantial anti-

competitive purpose or effect.

"It will impede economic growth, it will

impede the ability of big business to

engage in normal, economic behaviour,

but most importantly it will have no

impact on the sort of behaviour that the

farmers complain of, which is the

behaviour of big retailers and big

processors dealing with them."

Professor Samuel is concerned the NFF

and other rural lobby groups are

misinformed about the benefits of an

effects test for farmers.

"If a small farmer is done over by a big

business that's not going to substantially

lessen competition in a market," he said.

"I think the focus towards the effects test

is entirely misplaced. And it's not the

NFF's fault.

"Politicians have, for decade after

decade, promoted amendments to the

misuse of market power provisions,

which is the provision that the effects

test is being focussed on, thinking that

that's the one that will deal with the sort

of complaints of the constituents.

"Well, no, it's not. It has no application."

Chairman of Frontier Economics, Philip

Williams, agrees a change from a

purpose to an effects test provision

would have little benefit for farmers and

small businesses owners.

"If all that happened was that the word

'purpose' was cut out and the word,

'effect' was left, my guess is that there

would be very little change at all in the

conduct that the courts would find

illegal," Mr Williams said.

"That third limb of the test, the

'purpose', is not a barrier to litigation

at the moment.

"So I think the people that say, 'We're

having trouble proving it so let's

substitute or add 'effect' to the

'purpose' limb, are really missing the

point.

"The litigation that fails, fails not

because of a failure to establish

purpose but because they fail to

establish the taking advantage, this

causal connection."

Mr Williams says farmers who tried to

prove the effects test against big

businesses allegedly misusing market

power would most likely be

unsuccessful.

"Farmers would still have to establish

that the reason they're in trouble is

because of the market power of the

supermarket," he said.

"They'd have to establish it's not due

to their inefficiency or them being too

small (a business)."

"Markets are tough, unpleasant and

difficult places to operate and I think

businesses who look to competition

legislation to protect them against

unfairness are basically looking in the

wrong direction.

"What competition law does is say,

'Provided you're competing on the

basis of efficiencies there's no

protection from the legislation'.

**From a story from Lucy Barbour,

ABC Rural

Professor Graeme Samuel,

Phillip Williams

Let’s Talk Business

3

The costs of hiring the wrong

employee and the opportunities for

hiring the right ones is often a result of

the quality of the interview process.

What are the fundamental do's and

don'ts that are critical?

Here are eight do's and don'ts that are

vitally important.

Do's

1. Open-ended questions

Ask questions that allow the candidate

to elaborate and expand on their

responses. Questions that begin with

Why, What, Where, Which, Who, and

How are the best question openers. In

contrast, asking leading or closed

questions should be avoided.

2 Behavioral questioning

Ask the candidate for examples or

critical incidents from the past

experience to back up their responses.

For example: How would you go about

dealing with a difficult team member?

What examples can you site from your

past experience?

3. Rhythm

Rhythm is a process that starts with a

question, followed by a comment and

elicits more information. In contrast,

interrogation is question, answer,

question, answer. This model prevents

the candidate from elaborating on their

answer. It is best to ask the question,

then make a comment such as "go one",

"tell me more" or repeating key words

from the candidates previous response

such as "you were stressed" after they

have said something like: "It was a

difficult situation I was in, I felt

stressed"

4. Putting the candidate at ease

Remember, the idea of an interview is

to put the candidate at ease, not to put

them under pressure. There is enough

pressure already; you don't need to add

to this. Your job is to bring the best out

of the candidate. Smile. Adopt a

friendly attitude. Nod. Give the

candidate time to respond and so on.

Don'ts

5. Not allowing the candidate to

elaborate

Silence is powerful. Let the candidate

finish what they are saying before

launching into the next battery of

questions. Silence will be filled by

the candidate if you keep quiet and

allow them to expand on their

response.

6. Ask tricky questions

Asking a candidate to explain their

worse habit is not a good question.

They are unlikely to tell you, and if

they do, they will give you a very

mild version of that habit. Stick to

the script. Ask questions related to

the role only.

7. Plan questions

Spend time with the panel and get

agreement on the set of questions to

ask. Be consistent. All candidates

deserve to be asked the same set of

quality questions, otherwise the

process is unreliable.

8. Don't write too much

Make eye contact and don't take

copious notes. While you are busy

writing all the responses, you are

missing vital non-verbal ques.

Listen to their responses. Be

attentive. Write your notes at the

end of the interview and allow for a

full interaction to take place.

There are many other do's and

don'ts, but these from my

experience will go a long way

towards a quality interview.

Dr Tim Baker is an international

consultant and author of The

End of the Performance Review;

A New Approach to Appraising

Employee Performance.

www.winnersatwork.com.au

Dr Tim Baker

Managing Director

WINNERS AT WORK Pty Ltd

www.winnersatwork.com.au

www.about.me/tim.baker

tim@winnersatwork.com.au

Telephone. +61 7 3899 8881

The Eight Keys to

Effective Interviewing

Editor’s Note:

Dr. Tim Baker is an international consultant, successful author, keynote speaker, master trainer, executive coach, university lecturer and skilful facilitator.

In a nutshell, he has conducted over 2,430 seminars, workshops and keynote addresses to over 45,000 people in 11 countries across 21 industry groups.

"“Dr Baker leads the world in

offering an innovative new approach

to appraising employee performance.

His research and energy in the

specialised field of performance

management is evidenced by his

international profile as a renowned

speaker, management consultant and

facilitator". Stephen Hartley,

Australia’s leading expert on project

management and author of "Project

Management: Principles, Processes

and Practices.

Let’s Talk Business

4

Lost Balloonist

A man is flying in a

hot air balloon and

realizes he is lost. He

reduces his altitude and spots a man

down below. He lowers the balloon

further and shouts: “Excuse me, can

you tell me where I am?”

The man below says: “Yes, you’re in

a hot air balloon, hovering 30 feet

above this field.”

“You must work in Technical

Support,” says the balloonist. “I do,”

replies the man. “How did you

know?”

“Well” says the balloonist,

“everything you have told me is

technically correct, but completely

useless.”

The man below says: “You must be

in management.” “I am,” replies the

balloonist, “but how did you know?”

“Well”, says the man, “you don’t

know where you are, or where you’re

going, but you expect me to be able

to help. You’re still in the same

position you were before we met, but

now it’s my fault.”

Worker with

Imagination

Several weeks after a

young man had been

hired, he was called

into the personnel

director’s office. “What is the

meaning of this?” the director asked.

“When you applied for this job, you

told us you had five years

experience. Now we discovered this

is the first job you’ve ever held.”

“Well,” the young man replied, “in

your advertisement you said you

wanted somebody with imagination.”

Quick Thinking?

Deciding to

surprise her

husband, an

executive’s wife

stops by his office.

As she walks in unannounced, she

finds his secretary sitting on his lap.

Without hesitating, he begins to

dictated a letter… “And in

conclusion gentlemen, budget cut or

not, I cannot continue to operate this

office with just one chair.”

Ambition is a poor excuse for not

having enough sense to be lazy

Do not underestimate your

abilities. That is your boss's job

An expert is someone called in at

the last minute to share the blame

For maximum attention, nothing

beats a good mistake

I have to work hard because

thousands on welfare depend

upon me

If we knew what we were doing

it wouldn't be called research

The light at the end of the tunnel

has been turned off due to budget

cuts

Funny Business

Lazy Workers

A quote from an

interview with the

head of a growing

company. Journalist asks: “So how

many employees are working in your

company”

The boss replies: “Approximately half

of them”

HUMOUROUS SIGNS

QUOTES & QUIPS

Let’s Talk Business

5

Marketing for Success

Dennis Chiron Marketing Means Business

0451 184 599 www.marketingmeansbusiness.com

dennis@marketingmeansbusiness.net.au Skype: dennis.chiron2

Every business owner I know shares

one thing in common: they all have a

strong desire to create a stable, steady,

successful business that achieves

profitability and grows over time. But

not every business owner knows the

“recipe” that makes this possible.

So what is the recipe – the formula? In

a word, it's marketing.

But what does the word 'marketing'

mean? It means a lot, lot more than just

getting the word out about your

business?

In its most complete form, marketing is

about so much more than simply letting

people know that your business exists

(although that's an important piece of

the puzzle.)

In fact, in many ways, getting the word

out is one of the last steps in a good

marketing plan.

In order to succeed, you must establish

relationships with customers.

The strong, lasting relationships that

will ensure your success are built on:

Establishing trust and rapport

Understanding customers' needs

Providing real benefits

In many ways, these three essentials all

reiterate one central concept:

The relationships between successful

businesses and their customers depend

on careful understanding and reliable

fulfillment of human needs.

The business owner understands what

people need, and does everything he

can to meet those needs.

A strong marketing campaign is much

more intense, and it provides many

benefits that help you attract customers

at the same time as you clarify

achievable goals and create realistic

plans to meet them.

At its best, a strong marketing

campaign and plan helps you

understand:

Your business

Your target customers

Your competition

The full range of opportunities

available to you

The best way to attack those

opportunities

Appropriate pricing

The marketplace in which you

operate

… and a whole host of other issues that

will help your business grow to achieve

the success you wish for.

Whether you own a small or large

business, if you're in the game to

succeed, a well thought out marketing

campaign and plan is one of the best

tools you can employ along the way.

Understanding Customer Needs

Most business owners have an intuitive

understanding of their customers’

needs -- but that intuitive understanding

becomes a much more powerful tool if

you articulate and analyze it.

Only then can you fully understand

how to most effectively build the kind

of customer relationship that will help

your business succeed over time -- this

principle is central to many marketing

and business coaches.

As a starter step in your planned

marketing campaign, you should ask

yourself the following questions:-

Who are my customers?

Who are my potential customers?

What kind of people are they?

What are their incomes? What are

their needs?

Where do they live?

Can they buy? Will they buy?

Am I offering them real benefits,

when and how they want them?

Is my business in the best place?

Is my pricing right?

How do customers perceive my

business?

Who are my competitors, and

what is my edge on them?

How does my business compare

with my competitors'?

Customers always have expectations

when they walk into a business, and

those businesses who provide the

highest level of service will know how

to identify those expectations and meet

them to the customer's satisfaction (or

beyond).

By focusing on your customers needs

and developing a culture of pro-active

and responsive customer service in your

business, you can enhance relationships

and build customer loyalty and

customers will want to come back.

The quality of your customer service is

almost wholly determined by your

ability to meet your customer

expectations, and understanding your

customers needs and wants.

Let’s Talk Business

6

It’s my belief that we as business

owners have been sold two great

myths of the twentieth, and now the

twenty first century.

The first of these is that Time is

Money. What you say! We’ve

always been told that time is

money, and to some extent that is

correct. Time is money for our

staff, and all good leaders and

managers absolutely need to

measure how effectively our staff

are generating income within their

paid time.

However, for us as business owners,

it is absolutely imperative that at

some point we are able to disengage

our ability to earn money from time.

After all, how much is enough

money? For most of us it’s just a

bit more than we have now, and

then when we get that we find we

still need just a bit more.

If our ability to increase our income

is directly linked to time, it

ultimately means that we just end

up spending more and more time at

work, which probably isn’t the

reason we went into business in the

first place.

Tom Poland, a high end executive

mentor calls it the Sophie’s Choice

of life.

You may remember the famous

movie about a young Jewish mother

at the gates of a death camp that

was given the choice of which of her

children lived and died. A very sad

story that ultimately resulted in her

going mad.

The equivalent for all of us is if asked

to give up one thing out of money,

health and relationships, I can

guarantee that almost everyone will

say they would give up the money.

But what happens in reality? People

give up their health, and their

relationships with family and friends

in pursuit of the holy dollar, and then

pay them off with some kind of

cheque book love but buying them

gadgets to make up for our absence.

You first and only job everyday in

your business is to make yourself

redundant, because until you do, it

will be reliant on you being there

more and more. If you stop, it stops,

and if you try and sell it no one will

want to pay much for it.

In the end, you need to disengage

your customer’s relationship with

you personally, and replace it with an

equally strong relationship with your

brand, knowing no matter who they

deal with in your business, they will

have same experience.

You also need to have in place the

structures, system and measurement

so you can manage it strategically,

and not just operationally.

The second myth is that Bigger is

better. We are constantly bombarded

by people, the government and media

telling us that the only way to

succeed is growth.

To my way of thinking, bigger is only

better if it satisfies two important

criteria. Firstly, if it gives you better

economies of scale. This means being

able to buy at better prices, improve

your efficiencies by batching

production or investing in more

technology to improve output.

Secondly, and just as importantly,

growth is only better if you can

maintain the efficiency of a small

tightly managed business. It’s a sad

fact that as any business gets bigger it

becomes more inefficient. This means

that it takes more sales to generate

profit.

When we start our business we know

where every dollar is, and where they

go because there are generally so few

of them.

Unfortunately, as businesses grow we

tend to lose this tight control and costs

creep, wastage increases and

efficiencies suffer.

Once again structure, systems and

measurement will be your saviour if

done well. Remember, when it comes

to business Size isn’t everything!!

Geoff Butler FAIM AP, MAITD MACE

Principal/Business Improvement & Implementation Specialist

Business Optimizers

Mobile: 0414 943072

Fax: 3036 6131

Email: geoff@businessoptimizers.com.au

Skype: business.optimizers1

The Two Great Myths

Let’s Talk Business

7

How Do You Increase Your Sales,

While Charging More Than Your Competition?

The better your business communicates

your products or services deliver

benefits the customer wants, in a way

that they want it - the higher the price

you can ask.

When you take the time to understand

the needs and wants of your target

market you can establish your

uniqueness in the market place.

‘A Grade’ customers prefer to pay

more for benefits. If your customers

baulk at prices, they either don’t care

about the benefits you are offering or

they simply are NOT ‘A Grade’

customers. ‘C Grade’ Customers

(Challenging) tend to want cheap, not

extra benefits.

Think of the car manufacturer, Ferrari.

Why can Ferrari sell its cars for up to

twenty times the price of many cars on

the market?

Is a Ferrari twenty times faster, more

fuel efficient or more comfortable than

other cars on the market? The answer

is no. So why does Ferrari have the

ability to charge twenty times more

than most cars?

Because Ferrari is unique!

Ferrari focuses on developing a

reputation of a unique, high quality

brand.

Their USP of excellence is not only

reflected in the cars they sell. Ferrari

demonstrate their USP of obsession

with quality to every area of their

business.

For example; Who they sponsor and

how they present themselves, their

website, letters, brochures, show room

floor, customer service and even their

factory floor!

Your USP should be so powerful and

identify with your ideal customers so

clearly that you can confidently “shout it

from the roof tops”.

Your USP should be on your stationery,

signage, vehicles, banners, business

cards, radio ads, TV ads, promotional

material, etc. Your USP could even be a

headline to your advertising.

Some successful businesses

have even used their business

name to share their USP!

What is unique about your business that

your customers would consider a

fantastic benefit?

Here are some examples to consider …

Absolutely, positively overnight! Get it first time or get it free! At your door in 30 minutes or it’s

free! If we waste your time the

appointment is free AND we’ll pay you $50 for wasting your time!

Coke is it! 11 Secret Herbs and Spices

Once you have established your USP,

the next task is having a strategy to

integrate it into your business.

Some things to consider are …

How will you insure that your

market place knows about the ways

that make you unique from your

competitors?

What systems need to be adjusted to

make sure your USP is being

delivered consistently?

When will you ‘check in’ with your

customers to make sure your USP

is perceived as being an important

factor to them?

Your USP may stay the same for the

life of your business, or it may change

regularly. Develop a system to monitor

the effectiveness of your USP.

Take the time to get this right. It is a

key element to your sales, marketing

and business success. Your USP is your

unique businesses identity.

How do I know my

USP is not working?

Answer … you compete on price! If

you drop your price to make sales,

something is not working the way it

should be.

The goal is to continually innovate and

find ways of adding value to your

customers so that they are happy and

willing to pay more for the experience

of dealing with your business.

If you would like to experience a

complimentary review of your business

that takes less than an hour, call me on

0414 567 188.

I’ll rush to you an easy to understand

Business Diagnostic Tool!

Remember … “Business is More Fun

When There’s Profit!”

(PSSST … that is our USP J)

Dan Buzer

Profit Mechanics

0414 567 188

www.profitmechanics.net/ dan@profitmechanics.net

Let’s Talk Business

8

Many small business owners have

never had a website created for

them. Most people wouldn’t even

know where to start.

Think about what you want your

website to look like as well as what

you want it to do for your business.

Start with asking yourself these

questions!

What features do I need/want? Will you need a shopping cart,

online payments, slide show,

member’s area, blog or just

information?

Look at competitor’s websites to get

some ideas. Make a features wish-

list. You can always start small and

add features as your business grows.

How many pages do I need? 3

pages may suit you for starters. How

many pages may you eventually

require?

Who am I aiming at? E.g. age

range, gender, interests, education

level etc.

Do I want to update my site

myself? Updating your own website

can save you time and money.

What have I got to spend? Define

your budget. Work out what you can

afford upfront, monthly and

annually.

Now that you have a rough idea of

what you are after, you now have

enough information to get an

accurate quote.

Most web designers will ask some of

these questions anyway so it is

always good to be prepared.

Now, turn the tables. You need to

ensure you are going to be working

with the right web designer. Web

designers are not always created

equal!

12 Questions you should ask your

web designer

Planning for your website can be

tricky enough. Choosing the right

person/company to work with can

make this process; less stressful and

more cost effective.

Here are some basic questions to get

you started and to help you better

understand what they can do for you:-

1. How many websites have you

created?

2. Can I see some live/published

websites that you have done?

3. Have you done any websites for

businesses in my industry?

4. Is this your full-time job & what

are your Office Hours?

5. Will I have access to my website

to make changes like upload new

images and change text?

6. Do you provide training/support?

7. What monthly/ annual fees should

I expect & what do they include?

8. How much of my website will you

build yourself/outsource?

9. How long will my website take to

go live?

10. Does your price include Online

Marketing or SEO (Search Engine

Optimisation)?

11. What information/images/graphics

do you require from me?

12. If I want to add a blog or shopping

cart later, will I need a new

website?

Getting to know your web designer,

what they are capable of and if they

are as passionate about your business

as you are is important. Achieving the

right match will ensure the overall

success of your website. You want a

website that will HELP you stay in

business for a long time.

Look out for hidden fee and

unnecessary bells-and-whistles.

Consider how easy it is to

communicate and if you feel

comfortable dealing with them.

#1 TIP: Get more than one quote!

Good luck in finding your perfect web

designer.

For further information, please feel

free to email Karen ~ The Webgirl.

Karen Ahl Bac. Bus (Mark, Man), TAE40110,

Cert IV IT Caboolture, Queensland

Ph 0415 142 178

www.web-sta.com.au info@web-sta.com.au

How To Choose Your Perfect Web Designer

Let’s Talk Business

9

and indirect costs associated with

accidents can endanger a company's

competitiveness.

For instance, financial losses due to

increased insurance premiums, lost

production or disruption to production

schedules, damage to equipment and

plant, loss of time for other employees

(eg, supervisors) during the accident

investigation, training of replacement

employees and the possibility of fines

and adverse publicity are all issues to

consider.

Whilst it is possible to insure against

some of the expenses associated with

injury, ill health and damage to property,

the hidden uninsurable costs could well

exceed the insurable costs.

In the increasingly competitive market

place, it is becoming common for clients

to request companies to provide safety

records as part of tender analysis

processes or pre-qualification.

A number of beliefs are crucial to the

success of the accident prevention

process:-

People are our most important asset.

The majority of accidents and

incidents are not caused by "careless

workers", but failures in control

(either within the organisation or

within the particular job), which are

the responsibility of management.

The preservation of human and

physical resources is an important

means of minimising costs.

Control of health and safety is

achieved through co-operative effort

at all levels in the organisation.

Competence in managing health and

safety is an essential part of

Ron Court, AMC, Dip (Funerals) ,Cert IV OH&S, Cert IV Training & Assessment TAE, MQJA, JP (Qual)

OH&S Advisor

0419 679 619 roncourt@aapt.net.au

The Principles of

Accident Prevention

professional management.

All accidents, ill health and

incidents are preventable.

Health and safety; and quality,

are two sides of the same coin.

Three basic steps

All employers, employees and self-

employed persons have a duty of

care towards their own, and others'

health and safety at their workplace.

Additionally in some cases,

ongoing OHS performance

evaluations are conducted on behalf

of the principal contractor

*Identifying the Hazard - involves

recognising things which may cause

injury or harm to the health of a

person, for instance, flammable

material, ignition sources or

unguarded machinery.

*Assessing the Risk - involves

looking at the possibility of injury

or harm occurring to a person if

exposed to a hazard.

*Controlling the Risk - by

introducing measures to eliminate

or reduce the risk of a person being

exposed to a hazard.

You can get information about your

OH&S obligations and other

valuable OH&S resources both in

hard copy and online from their

websites.

http://www.deir.qld.gov.au

Always seek independent legal

advice on what is applicable to your

situation.

Every accident has one or more

identifiable causes.

The employer is responsible for

ensuring a safe system of work is in

place and therefore must take action to

prevent accidents from occurring or

recurring.

For some, this concept still causes

difficulty. The term "accident" suggests

that an event occurred itself, with some

degree of chance and it implies no

blame or responsibility.

Some people associate or equate an

accident with injury or damage, when on

many occasions accidents do not result

in injury or damage.

These events are often termed "near

misses".

Determining where, why and how

accidents occur is fundamental to

understanding the causation and

implementing preventive measures.

Once the circumstances and causes have

been identified, effective measures can

be taken to prevent similar occurrences.

An employee who is injured is likely to

suffer financial loss and either

disfigurement, disability, pain or in

extreme cases death.

The effects of an injury may not always

be temporary and can have devastating

long-term consequences on an

individual's personal life, social and

other activities.

There may also be a significant impact

on the injured person's family and

friends.

The employer should be concerned with

accident prevention because the direct

Let’s Talk Business

10

Jo-Anne Chaplin

Tax & Superannuation Professionals Pty Ltd

PH 07 3410 8116 / Mobile 0457 960 566

Email : taxandsuperprofessionals@gmail.com

Web: www.taxandsuperprofessionals.com.au

I am a qualified Accountant and will celebrate my 20th anniversary as a

Registered Tax Agent this year. During my time in Public Practice I have

assisted clients to achieve business growth and prosperity. My earlier career

included positions in banking, manufacturing, construction and retail. My

particular interest is in promoting a culture of using local industries and

business in order to build a strong community.

Management of your business cash

flow is incredibly important. Here are

a few tips which you can employ to

get control of your business cash

flow:

Prepare a cash flow budget for the

next twelve months.

Using a spread sheet or analysis pad

with at least 15 columns across, list

your income sources and then your

expenses down the left hand column.

Leave a couple of rows between the

income and expenses that can be used

as a total amount. Head up the

columns across the page for the

months ahead.

Enter estimates of monthly sales and

other income. Using historical sales

as a guide will assist you in

identifying trends and volume of

sales. Also build in special events that

relate to your business eg, Christmas

sales, holiday period sales, end of

financial year etc.

Next, enter the known costs of your

business, i.e. fixed costs such as rents,

insurances, loan repayments and other

expenses which are the same every

month. Then enter estimates of the

non-fixed costs – replacement of

stock, wages, advertising etc.

To calculate your cash flow total each

column’s income and expenses and

write the surplus/shortfall at the

bottom of the page. It should be

15% of gross sales is enough to meet

these commitments.

Use appropriate software for your

business so less time is spent on

administration.

As a small business, you need to be

sure that your invoices are going out

on time, and your debtors are paying

on time, and your business activity

statements are up to date.

The software should provide you with

streamlined invoicing of clients,

recording your expenses and liabilities

and due dates for payments, provide

you with sales, debtor and creditor

analysis as well as a payroll system if

you have staff.

Also important is the correct

calculation of GST liabilities.

Use the services of an Accountant

If you don’t have one, you should find

an Accountant with whom you can

discuss business issues at any time of

the year. Professional fees vary widely,

and most advisors are happy to provide

fee estimates prior to accepting a

client. Obtaining advice in relation to

the structure of your business, the

recordkeeping requirements, staff

issues, tax issues and cash flow and

general management issues is

paramount in making sure you

succeed.

instantly clear which months are slow,

and which are profitable. Examine

your figures to see where savings or

adjustments can be made to increase

the surplus or minimise your

shortfalls.

The process of budgeting can be quite

time consuming at first, but once a

workable budget is in place, it can be

easily updated regularly.

Have a strict policy for collection of

debtor accounts.

Be sure to have a strict collections

policy, and make your clients aware of

this at the point of sale. Contact the

debtor as soon as possible after the

trading terms have been exceeded to

see if an oversight has occurred, or

whether an arrangement can be made

to clear the debt.

Set aside funds on a regular basis to

meet GST/ PAYG commitments

Transferring a percentage of your

gross sales into a separate bank

account will mean that you will have

enough cash to meet your BAS/Payg

commitments when they fall due. This

method can also be applied to amounts

deducted from employee wages. There

are a wide variety of bank accounts

which offer high interest on at-call

balances which can be used to hold

monies required to meet GST and

payg instalment commitments.

Usually a percentage of about 10% -

CASHFLOW MANAGEMENT

FOR YOUR BUSINESS

Let’s Talk Business

11

Apologize, Don't Debate

If a customer has a problem,

apologize and fix the problem. Make

sure to let customers vent their

grievances, even if you are tempted

to interrupt and correct them. Then

give them a refund, new item, or

whatever will fix the problem.

Debating or haggling over a refund

creates ill will. Repair mistakes

immediately. Keep in mind that a

complaint about your company is an

opportunity to turn the situation

around and create a loyal customer.

Obviously, there will be some

customer requests that are too

outrageous to comply with. If that's

the case, do your best to offer a

moderate, appealing alternative.

Feedback Keeps You Focused

Ask your customers to rate your

service on a regular basis. This can

be done via a short questionnaire

included with every product sold or

mailed to key clients.

Keep the questionnaire short so that

it is not a burden for customers to

complete, and make sure they know

they can decline to participate.

Always let customers know the

purpose of the survey is to serve

them better.

If they fill out the survey and have

no problems, it is a reminder of what

good service you offer. If issues do

arise, they can be addressed.

Stay Flexible

You must be flexible when it comes

to your customers and clients. This

means doing a project for a client in

a pinch, having an early morning

meeting even if you like to sleep in,

and meeting on Saturday even if you

usually reserve your weekends for

yourself.

Estimate that a job will cost more

than you think, and bring it in lower.

Many small businesses make the

mistake of reversing this maxim -

over promising and under

delivering. This is a true recipe for

disaster.

You may get the business, but your

level of service will make it difficult

to compete. If 24-hour turnaround is

excellent service in your industry,

don't promise it in 12 just because

the customer requests it.

What Makes You Different?

Why should customers buy from

you and not from someone else?

What does your attitude and actions

say to your customers? Do you

make your customers feel welcome

and wanted? What lasting

impressions will your customers

have from purchasing your products

or using your services?

Make the experience for your

customer a memorable one and let

them remember your for your

superior customer service.

Concentrate On Service

The businesses who thrive in

increasingly competitive markets

are those that focus on service.

Give free reign to your experienced,

knowledgeable salespeople to

convey their passion for your

products, and encourage them to

build relationships with your chosen

customers.

Be a wealth of information to

customers, and advertise your

experience by offering seminars or

workshops. When feasible, offer to

order hard-to-find items and sizes.

Flexibility can also mean getting

information for your client, even

though it may not be in your area of

expertise.

Say, for example, you're catering a

wedding and your client needs

information on Irish wedding customs.

It's just as easy to make a call to your

local library and fax the information to

your client as it is to say "I don't know

anything about that."

And making that extra effort will

ultimately pay off with a very satisfied

customer.

Always Say "Yes!"

This doesn't mean giving up your

personal will to your customers but it

does mean finding a way to help

customers with their requests.

If you run a gift business you might

wrap a present for an important client,

even if you don't usually provide gift

wrapping.

You might stay up late to finish a

project if a client suddenly has a

deadline moved up, or travel in a snow

storm to meet a client even if it means

an unpleasant trip for you.

Always saying yes, means the words

"that isn't possible" should be forbidden

from use in your business. You cannot

afford to use them.

If this sounds expensive and

inconvenient, it is, but it is less

expensive than losing a customer and

having to spend money and time

landing a new one.

Under Promise, Over Deliver

Make your customers believe they are

important to you by always appearing

to go the extra mile. Build a little

cushion into a deadline and deliver

early.

Dennis Chiron Marketing Means Business

0451 184 599 www.marketingmeansbusiness.com

dennis@marketingmeansbusiness.net.au Skype: dennis.chiron2

Let’s Talk Business

12

“Let’s Talk Business” Small Business Publication

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www.marketingmeansbusiness.com

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We welcome contributions,

suggestions for articles and letters

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Please address correspondence to:

The Editor, LTB

PO Box 569

Bribie Island, Qld 4507

Phone: 0451 184 599

dennis@marketingmeansbusiness.net.au

Web: www.marketingmeansbusiness.com

You are welcome to re-produce

any of these articles. However,

please quote the source as “Let’s

Talk Business”. While every effort

has been made to ensure that all

information contained herein is

accurate, no responsibility will be

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Likewise, the publisher accepts no

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