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6 Strategies for Staying Ahead of The Competition

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StrategyDriven Managing Your Business Article |Staying Ahead of The Competition|6 Strategies for Staying Ahead of The CompetitionIt can be hard to stay ahead of the competition when you operate in a competitive industry, as there will always be brands looking to lure your customers away. Staying ahead of the competition will require constant work. When you stand still, you will lose out to other brands. You need to be aware of key strategies for building your competitive advantage, improving the customer experience, and keeping the competition at bay.

1. Competitor Research

The most efficient way to stay ahead of the competition is to research your competitors carefully. Identify what their strengths and weaknesses are and find ways in which you can use this information to your advantage by making timely and informed business decisions.

2. Differentiate Yourself

Differentiating yourself from the competition is a great way to stand out from the crowd and provide a unique experience for your customers. Identify a unique selling point that will appeal to your target customer, and you should soon start to notice an improvement in your customer base and further cement your position as an industry leader.

3. Retain Existing Customers

If you are to defend your position, then it is vital that you are able to retain your customers. The competition will be trying to lure your existing customers away, but you can avoid this by providing a high-quality product/service at a competitive price, by making customer service a priority and through rewarding loyal customers.

4. Improve Customer Experience

Ultimately, customers want to have a positive experience, and they will always gravitate towards a brand that can provide this for them. Improving the customer experience with the help of an experienced contact centre consultancy can help you to retain your current customers, whilst also benefitting from customer referrals. If an individual has a good experience with your business, they will become advocates. These figures are invaluable when staying ahead of the competition.

5. Increase Marketing Efforts

It is much easier to maintain your position when you stay in the mind of the consumer. Increasing marketing efforts can increase your visibility, establish your brand is a key player in the industry and keep the competition at arm’s length.

6. Plan for Growth

Sometimes, a company is so busy looking over their shoulder that they forget to look forward and plan for the future. While you certainly need to think about the competition behind you, you must always be moving forward and have plans for your own growth. This will require staying current on industry trends, embracing new technology, tackling new markets and expanding your offering.

It is vital that businesses know how they can stay ahead of the competition so that they can maintain a positive reputation, attract and retain customers, and cement their position as an industry leader. These are a few of the most effective strategies which will help you to thrive in a competitive industry and be the brand that consumers turn to when they are looking for a positive experience.

A Small Business Guide to Coping with the Festive Rush

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StrategyDriven Managing Your Business Article |Festive Rush|A Small Business Guide to Coping with the Festive RushFor most businesses, the festive period is tough, especially those that are focused on retail. You might be busier than ever before, which is excellent in many ways. You might be making more money, finding new customers, and growing your business much more successfully than you ever have before. But, while big companies cope with the festive rush easily, for small businesses, especially those battling through their first festive period, it can be hard to keep up. Many small businesses find that quality and customer service suffers while they are busy and that everyone has a hard time dealing with stress.

But it doesn’t have to be like this. The holidays can be fun, profitable, and great for business. Here’s a look at some of the things that you can do to help your business cope with the festive rush.

Plan Ahead

It might seem a little late to plan if you haven’t started already, but depending on the nature of your business, you might still have a little while before the hectic period kicks in. Plan and prepare as much as you can. Make sure your staff levels are right, think about opening extra and consider any sales and offers that you plan to run, and how they might affect your business. You may also want to prepare things like packing, deliveries, and anything else that you can do in advance to make life easier.

Get Some Extra Help

Remember, you don’t have to do it all alone. You can hire temporary staff to cover the busy period. You could outsource work to Managed IT services. You could even hire freelancers and VAs to take care of your social media feeds and other online work. Getting help can ease the strain and help the festive period go more smoothly.

Prioritize Your Tasks

When we’re busy, prioritizing is more critical than ever. You might have a massive to-do list. It might be so big that you couldn’t possibly get it all done. So, prioritize. Do what you need to, leave the rest for a quieter time.

Leave Non-Essentials for a Quiet January

Most retail businesses have a quiet January. You might be a little busy for the first few days if you are running sales, but things quickly die off. Leave any jobs that aren’t essential, such as deep cleaning and stock counting, until January.

Have a Cut Off Date

Let your customers know your cut off dates. Have clear information about the end of sales and offers, as well as your last dates for Christmas deliveries. If you are taking time off over the holidays, let people know these dates now, so they are prepared.

Simplify Processes

Try to make things easier for you and your team by simplifying tasks and cutting unnecessary work. Try to streamline as much as you can, and things will run more smoothly when it’s busy.

Look After Yourself and Your Team

When it’s busy, you need to be able to work at your best. This means looking after yourself and your team. Make sure everyone has time to rest, fill your break room with healthy snacks, and take the time to celebrate the hard work and success.

How to Advertise Your Business to Generation Z

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StrategyDriven Online Marketing and Website Development Article |Generation Z|How to Advertise Your Business to Generation ZMove over Millennials, because Generation Z is here. These new kids on the block are slowly but surely leaving college, getting jobs, earning their own wages, and taking control of all the world’s buying power.

Gen Z is set to have the buying power in the palms of their hands for at least the next ten years, so if your business is to survive throughout the ‘20s, you’re going to have to consistently find a way to appeal to this young audience. To do that, you’re going to have to advertise your company in a way that engages and interests them.

To find out how you can advertise your business to Generation Z, be sure to read on.

Work on your online reputation

Many experts have determined that the first Generation Zers were born in 1995 and the last were born in 2012. This means that this generation, also aptly named the iGen, has grown up blissfully unaware that there was once a world in which the web did not exist. Having had the internet quite literally at their fingertips for as long as they can remember, one thing is for sure: Generation Z is incredibly well versed when it comes to searching the web, so you won’t be able to pull the wool over their eyes in this instance. They will search your company online, they will find what they’re looking for and, ultimately, they’ll decide whether to bring you their custom based on the information/content that they unearth.

If you’re to stand a chance of advertising your business in the best possible light via the web, you’re going to need to work on your online reputation. Fortunately, there are companies out there that can assist you in this instance, meaning you don’t have to go it alone.

Typically, a reputation management company such as Reputation Rhino will leverage the following tactics in their bid to boost your online presence by:

  • Monitoring online mentions
  • Publishing professionally written content
  • Interlinking high-impact content
  • Optimizing social media profiles
  • Editing or removing negative content

Work alongside influencers

Generation Z spends most of their time scrolling through their feeds and keeping up with the updates on their timelines. The fact that they use social media so regularly means that you must advertise on the likes of Twitter and Instagram if you’re to stand a chance of reaching your young audience.

When you do decide to market via social media, a good piece of advice is to work alongside influencers. These are people that post photo and video content promoting certain products and/or services.  You can also collaborate with Twitter and Instagram marketing agencies.

When looking for an influencer to collaborate with, it’s important that you don’t set your sights too high. Don’t attempt to partner up with world-famous celebrities like Cristiano Ronaldo, Kim Kardashian, or Ariana Grande because, even if you do miraculously get through to their PR teams, they’re going to charge boatloads of cash to advertise your products for you. Instead, set your stall out a bit lower and seek to reach out to ‘micro-influencers.’ These are people that have a social following of between 1,000 and 100,000.

To set your business up for a decade’s worth of success, you’re going to need to start appealing to Generation Z as soon as you possibly can.

Which Business Sectors Are Attracting Investment?

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StrategyDriven Editorial Perspective Article |Investing|Which Business Sectors Are Attracting Investment?When business owners are successful, it’s only natural to start considering how they can make the most of their profits and savings. Many of these people decide to invest in other companies to get a return as they generate wealth, but it’s important to understand which industries represent the most stable investments. Becoming an investor requires just a single dollar, but it could be the start of a profitable portfolio that you, your business and family will benefit from for many years. There are plenty of sectors which offer attractive returns, but here are some of the most secure which are attracting investment.

Which are the best sectors to invest in?

When deciding which industries to invest in, there are some key factors to consider. To get the highest level of returns, you need to be willing to take risks. You can reduce some of this risk by diversifying your investments and keeping investments in place for a minimum of 5 years. It’s also important to review your portfolio on a regular basis and not to buy or sell shares based on panic or impulse.

Electricity, oil, and gas

While the world is seeking renewable energy alternatives to reduce our reliance on fossil fuels, the world is still heavily reliant on oil, natural gas, and electricity generated using these fuels. Globally, the energy sector is valued in excess of $7 trillion and by 2035 it is anticipated that the global demand for energy will increase by as much as 30%. World governments have to source fuel to keep their economy and society working which makes this sector a secure investment. Head over to read a blog by engineering and mining expert, Roberto Casula, for some key statistics on the US oil and petroleum industry.

Health care sector

The health care sector offers a wealth of possibilities for investors as it is known as a ‘defensive sector’ (it is largely immune to economic fluctuations) and has steadily increased over the last 10 years and looks set to continue on an upward trajectory. Health care is a particularly fast-growing sector for several reasons, but particularly because we are living longer than ever before.

This increased the need for care items for the elderly and there are plenty of gaps in the market for the healthcare sector. There have also been great leaps forward in biotechnology and even people without investment experience in the industry can find a niche sector to become involved in. Whether the economy is thriving or not, people still need to buy their medication.

Technology

Technology is innovation and looks likely to form the foundation for much of our society for the foreseeable future. From computer hardware and software to technology service providers, app developers and data processing, the potential for growth is seemingly limitless. The biggest technology companies include Apple, Microsoft, Google, and Facebook.

Financial sector

The financial services such as credit cards, banks, insurance companies, and brokers are similar to the health sector in that the aging ‘baby boomers’ are expected to pass on a lot of accumulated wealth to their children and grandchildren. This money will need managing and the financial services sector will be there to facilitate this.

Why You Need Effective Customer Relationship Management For Your Business

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StrategyDriven Customer Relationship Management Article | Why You Need Effective Customer Relationship Management For Your BusinessEvery business organisation exists for and because of its customers. It is for this reason that they have to keep creating, establishing, and maintaining healthy customer relationships. They can do this with an effective customer relationship management. Here are the reasons why CRM is good for your business:

Provides a Deeper Understanding of Customer Characteristics

An effective customer relationship management system can help your business learn more about your customers. Your knowledge of your customers can help your company design better products. It also improves the services that you provide to your customers.

Take for example Effective Logistics. They have a good understanding of the different needs and wants of their customers. They use this knowledge to customise their product offerings. They are also more proactive since they now have an idea of what their customers are looking for in such companies. You can visit Effective Logistics website to have an idea of what we mean.

An effective CRM can help you gain a better understanding of the reasons why they purchase your products. You can use this information to further improve on their buying experiences. Customer relationship management also gives you an idea of who your loyal customers are. You can then create a programme that will further increase their loyalty to your brand.

Your business is in a much better position to anticipate their needs. This is because you have an in-depth knowledge of who your customers are and what they want from you. You can start creating a solution to these perceived needs before they become actual necessities. If your business is proactive enough, more customers will want to stay loyal with your brand.

Improves the Efficiency of Your Business

There is one very important reason why many successful organisations always employ CRM in their operations. It can improve the overall efficiency of the business. Whether you want to admit it or not, your main concern is to drive the profitability of your company.

Having more customers can give you the profits that your business needs. However, you should also not overlook the importance of minimising, if not eliminating wastage. Customer relationship management systems can help you create a more efficient workflow for your employees. You will never waste time and resources on things that do not have an impact in the experiences of your customers.

CRM systems promote efficiency in businesses. It allows them to organise certain aspects of their operations. They can also use CRM information in the automation of different things. Business analytics, sales processes, and marketing campaigns can benefit a lot from the information generated by customer relationship management systems.

Streamlining the different processes can save a company a lot of time, effort, and resources. They can focus more on what really matters to customers. This minimises wastage, making your profits more significant.

Optimises Your Interactions with Your Customers

Your knowledge of your customers can give you the advantage of creating more meaningful interactions with them. Being proactive gives your customers the feeling that you are looking out for their welfare. You are always looking for more ways to improve their experiences with your products and services.

Your marketing and sales team can use CRM data to customise their interactions with customers. They are more knowledgeable. It gives the impression that you know what they want and that your business exists only for them.

Fosters Brand Loyalty

An effective customer relationship management system can help you build brand loyalty by providing customers with more remarkable experiences. You get to streamline the different processes that each customer has to go through. You make it easy for them to avail of your products and enjoy the different benefits that such products provide. You also get to reach out to at-risk accounts and be more proactive in addressing their concerns. This is one way you can dissuade them from turning their backs on your company.

Keeping your customers happy will make them very loyal followers. They will serve as brand ambassadors. They will tell their friends and acquaintances about their experiences with your company. Not only are you building brand loyalty; you are also expanding your customer base.

These things can translate into more revenues for your business. Think about this. If you can reduce customer defection rate by at least 5 percent, you have the chance to increase your profits by as much as 85 percent.

An effective customer relationship management can help your business achieve your bottom line. It strengthens the very foundation of your company. After all, a business without customers is not a business at all.