Expanding your business

It is said that the most difficult change for a comapny is to go from small to a medium enterprise.

 I have to agree. Our company consisted out of three people 12 months ago. Now we are 13 people. This means that we are growing in leaps and bounds. This is great for our business, but I now have a problem:

How do you ensure that 13 people are productive for 100% of the day, without it affecting your own productivity?

My team is very busy, but need constant input from myself to stay productive. I have my own deadlines that need to be met and the administation is simply killing me. How do you manage your time between your own deadlines and keeping your team productive?

I have now installed ADSL at home so that one can be productive for longer during the day, but here is the problem: I am already averaging 14 hours per day (at the office), I have a 5 week old baby girl and my wife cannot keep up which means that I need to help.

I am sure that there are many people in the same position that I am. How do you manage your time?

I would love to get some feedback!

Keep Well!

Great Reading

Andy LaPointe wrote a great article on his blog yesterday called “Forget the question, change your answer”.

Here is a quick extract:

“Mid 20^th century: How can I increase my profits?:
Start a real estate company and construction business to take advantage of the baby boom after WWII.

Late 20^th century: How can I increase my profits?:
Start an technology-based Internet company.

Early 21^th century: How can I increase my profits?:
Start a communication-based Internet company.

Mid 21^th century: How can I increase my profits?:
Start a company that provides international trade and global distribution. The world is shrinking and trade will be vital to all aspects of the globe.”

I found this to be a great read.

How often do we sit around discussing a question, and not the answer. The perception of the world being a smaller place, have not yet struck home with everyone yet.

 Our business is located in a small town called Paarl, in the Western Cape of South Africa,  and yesterday, out of the blue, someone from Canada and Australia contacted me for work.

What did I do after I spoke to these people? Immediately went and checked my website. Is it up to date, are the numbers correct, did I add my latest clients, etc.

This article from Andy just made me realise again that profits are to be made, but I  must make sure that my focus is on the correct place and keep I keep my “shopfront” (website) up to date.

Keep Well!!

Online Exposure

It is fascinating that there are still companies that believe that an online presence is a waste of time.

I met with a prospective client this morning. During the meeting he told me that another friend of his spent the last 20years in the manufacturing industry. This guy, let’s call him Gary, eventually got promoted to CEO of their national company. Gary does not see why having an online footprint will help his company doing anymore sales and why money should be “wasted” on updating/reworking their current website.

Here is what I told him (not my exact words, mind you):

“You have a great manufacturing plant, with the some of the best machines for manufacturing textiles. This company has a website which was last updated in 2000. There are no images on their website and the contact person mentioned does not work for your company anymore. People in the town where your biggest factory is located, is under the impression that your company closed down 4 years ago. Do you really believe that not having an online footprint will help?”

Marketing is vital to a company’s survival. Yes, online might not be the only answer, but it definitely should be in the strategic mix of marketing your company. Having spent lots of money advertising in different regions throughout the country, they have missed their local market by a long shot. Relying on people to assume that you are still open for business and not communicating with your local market have cost this company dearly!

Never under estimate the power of marketing, be it online or offline.

 Keep Well!