The Magazine for Business Owners
FLUIDBUSINESS MAGAZINE
Create solid foundations
The Back to Basics issue
SPRING 18
Achieve sustainable growth
Get your lightbulb moment with our inspiring articles.
Fluid Business Academy
In this issue... 04
Fluid Insider
05
Business Coach Q&A
06
Defining your role as a business owner
Taking a look at what's happened during the past three months, and what to expect in the next quarter at Fluid Business.
In this edition, we've asked our business coaches for their best advice for business owners.
You might not have a job description, but you'll recognise some of the roles you play in your business.
08
Get your sales engine revving
10
Building the right team
Peter Boolkah talks about his five-step method to get consistency in your sales process. Building a world-class team required two core ingredients - values and results. Does everyone in your business have both?
12
Making the most of your time
14
Four ways to boost your service delivery
Top tips to manage your time, along with the critical do's and don'ts of time management.
Coaching tips from Ray Moore and the four proven components to improve your service delivery.
18
Common sense is not so common after all When your business encounters a problem, how often do you step in to solve it?
A note fr om. . NATALIE HARIRAM
Managing Director of Fluid Business Coaching. Welcome to the Spring edition of the Fluid Business Magazine, the first issue of 2018. For us, the beginning of this year has been about getting to the core of business ownership and helping business owners to get the basics right.
Natal ie Har iram
It's been a busy quarter here with the Fluid Business Academy becoming fully operational and the launch of the Levels Assessment. This Levels Assessment is a great way of tracking your business and personal progress as you go on the
journey of business growth. As well as this, it diagnoses your pain points, helping you to develop an accurate plan. We've also welcomed two new team members- Yazmin Culleton and Helen McDermott. Yazmin is your main point of contact for appointments with the business coaches. Helen is our Digital Marketing Manager and will be focusing on the Fluid Business Academy and the Levels Assessment. I hope you have a great quarter!
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Fluid Insider A look into the last quarter at Fluid Business Coaching and a sneak peak into what to expect over the next three months.
ByCHARLOTTE RICHARDSON-BECK MARKETING EXECUTIVE
Throughout the first quarter of 2018 we've been covering the basics of business ownership each week in our 'Back to Basics' series. Through blogs and podcasts our business coaches have been covering everything from succession, leadership and team dynamics. You can catch up at: fluidbusiness.co.uk/podcast In this special Back to Basics edition of the Fluid Business Magazine, we're continuing this theme. Each article covers a core area of business with tips and advice for business owners to master whilst growing their business. You'll find articles from the business coaches, covering the four drivers of business - time, team, money and delivery.
We kick off with an article about defining your role as a business owner. The lines are often blurred and using The Levels Framework, we explore the different roles of a business owner. Next up, Peter Boolkah shares how to get consistency within your sales process using a five-step method. You'll also find coaching tips from our business coaches, covering how to build a successful team and time management. Finally, we have an article from The Levels Blog, written by Ray Moore. It's an eye opener and will help you to question everything that you see as common sense! We hope you have an exciting and successful quarter!
Have a great quarter.
LEVELS
Charlotte
ASSESSMENT
Understand the challenges in your business and why it's holding your business back. The Levels Assessment reveals the areas of your business and mindset that are out of balance and diagnose your pain points.
Helen McDermott Digital Marketing Manager helenmcdermott@fluidbusiness.co.uk 01245 473377
Through a series of questions, we'll get to the core of the issues in your yazminculleton@fluidbusiness.co.uk business and mindset and paint an 01245 473377 accurate picture of your business now and how to get it on the path to success. Take the next step at:
fluidbusiness.co.uk/levels-assessment 4 | FBM SPRING 2018
Yazmin Culleton Office Administrator
Q&A
RAY MOORE | ANDY SLEET | PETER BOOLKAH
Each edition we ask business coaches Ray, Andy and Peter a common business coaching question. This time we're asking:
What's the best advice for business owners? Straight talking coach, Peter Boolkah, is an expert in rapid growth. He combines his coaching and corporate experience together with worldclass tools to help high-growth businesses continue to grow.
Peter Boolkah
A: One of the most valuable and important things to do for yourself and your business is to get a mentor or coach. They'll become the person that operates in your blind spot, seeing the things that you don't. Remember, you don't know what you don't know, so spend time with people that know more than you. Networking with other business owners is also a great way to learn. Find out what other business owners have experienced you might just find that you have encountered similar challenges.
Andy specialises in readying businesses for sale, he's a Gazelles certified coach and has experience incorporating lean strategies into the workplace to get the best results from you, the business owner.
Andy Sleet
A: Be opportunistic. As a small business you have an edge over larger, more rigid companies. If you see an opportunity, don't be afraid to go for it and use your size and flexibility as an advantage. An important thing for all small businesses to remember is to not resist changes in technology or service offering. Don't let your competitors or industry move ahead without you.
Expert in family business and succession planning, Ray Moore is the Founder of Fluid Business Coaching. He has written books exploring his proven framework for business growth - the Levels Framework.
A:
Whether you're starting a new business or introducing a new product in an existing business, test and measure is a good principle to operate with. Set KPIs and regularly review and assess new processes to find out what is and what isn't working.
Ray Moore
If it's not working, learn from it, refine your ideas and approach then try again. Talk to your customers and find out what they want and their thoughts on your idea. You might not have the perfect solution right away, but by testing and measuring, you'll get there!
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BUSINESS OWNER In the humble beginnings of your small business, you'll remember being the "jack of all trades" - doing the accounts, customer service and everything in between - as well as your 'actual' job. As the business starts to grow, this becomes impractical so you start to hire people in your business. Hiring staff into your business is a signal that you've done a good job of running your business so far! And by growing the size of your team, it will enable you to work 'on' your business, not just 'in' your business. This should give you the time to step back, see the bigger picture and drive the business forward. The larger team should give you the time to think about strategy and implementation of this strategy. But, often the fear of losing control can prompt the owner to unconsciously stay involved with everything. Being involved in every decisions - large or small - as they are the glue that holds everything together. At this stage of the business' transition, the owner values their contribution by their own hard work and determination, often being the first in and last out every day.
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The key to changing this is learning the art of delegation and shifting your mindset from being a worker. It's one of the most important changes that every business owner must experience to take their business to the next level. It's to delegate supervision to others and trust them to do their job. The two biggest fears are that they will lose control and that there will be no time to do 'actual work.' Interestingly, this transition does not take away control, it frees up more time which enables you to observe, monitor and assess what's truly happening in your business. There will be a gravitational pull for you to be involved in everything. You have to resist the temptation and work on your observation skills - ask questions and take in everything that you see happening. You'll be amazed at what you can actually see when you take a step back. Get a clear picture of what's going on in your business. This will enable you to make real change and push the business forward, enabling you to provide real value.
In Ray Moore's book he compares the different roles the business owner plays to wearing different hats.
Do you know what hat you're wearing and which hat you should be wearing?
On any particular day, the business owner could change hats several times. As a business grows, the amount of time spent wearing each of the hats changes.
Here's an overview of the hats defined in Ray Moore's book 'Can You Step Up To The Growth Challenge?' Pick up a copy on the Fluid Business Coaching shop: fluidbusinesscoaching.com/shop
The Worker
The Supervisor
Agrees their activities with the Supervisor and gets on with their daily work tasks – doing the do!
Agrees their tasks with the Manager and, in turn, ensures they delegate activities to others (setting, agreeing and aligning the priorities of their reports to achieve their plan). In addition, they get on with their ‘real work’ – doing the do!
The Manager Agrees their milestones (budgets, plans, targets etc.) with the Director and, in turn, delegates tasks to others (setting, agreeing and aligning the priorities of their reports to achieve their plan). In addition, they get on with their ‘real work’ – doing the do!
The Owner Sets the objectives of the business (the End in Mind). They inspire and enrol the Directors and agree and ensure the direction set is aligned to the vision, then regularly monitor the progress made against the plan. In addition, they set their own priorities and spend a proportion of their time getting on with what they see as their ‘real work’ – doing the do!
The Director Sets the direction of the business that will achieve the objectives set by the Owner. They set and agree the Manager’s goals to ensure they are aligned and regularly monitor the progress made against agreed milestones. In addition, they set their own priorities and spend a proportion of their time getting on with what they see as their ‘real work’ – doing the do!
Which hat fits you best? Do you know if that hat in line with the size of your business. To truly understand your mindset, head over to:
fluidbusiness.co.uk/levels-assessment Assess yourself and your business to discover how your mindset needs to grow as your business evolves.
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GET YOUR SALES ENGINE
REVVING
THE TRANSITION GUY 8 | FBM SPRING 2018
PETER BOOLKAH
In most businesses one of the biggest challenges is getting consistent sales. We’re going to take a closer look at Peter Boolkah's five-step method to get your sales engine revving – giving you a healthy and predictable stream of sales. Stage One – Identify who you're selling to This is the most important part of the process – identifying your customers. The challenge here is that there are so many people that have slightly different needs. Many businesses try to appeal to everyone, without identifying what makes them different from their competitors. If a business tries to be all things to all people, the chances are, they are going to be nothing to anyone. An example of great targeting and defining your ideal customers is from a company called Southwest Airlines – an American airline and the first low budget airline that came in existence. They operate on the principle of three Fs – lots of flights, low fares and lots of fun! Southwest Airlines’ target market was originally the business owner or the businessperson that had to do a lot of commuting for their job. They'll be doing the short hops between US cities and don’t want to pay the earth for their tickets. Southwest Airlines know who their customers are what they're offering. Interestingly, they're the only American airline that's made a profit for the last 20 consecutive years. However, their business model doesn’t appeal to everybody and you usually get the quality of service you pay for. But the company’s awareness and acknowledgment of their target market means that they’re not afraid to turn away people that don’t fit the criteria. In response to a complaint about the lack of professional service, the CEO responded by saying "I'm sorry, you will be missed." How often do you turn away a customer? Take check and make sure that you're not selling to people that do not fit your marketplace, service or offering. Stage Two – Customer journey Have you considered the journey that your customers go through to purchase from you? This is the decisionmaking process and the journey that leads to a sale. Do they visit your website? Come into your store? Do they do research? And, most importantly, can your customers find you when they do their research? You need to get into the psyche of your best clients and understand how they make their decision. It’s important to understand the external influencers that could have had an impact on their decision. Without defining your
customer journey you won’t understand it and your team won’t understand it. Stage Three – The sales process Start by creating your sales process and identifying who is responsible for which part. Avoid the process becoming mismatched, but also avoid having one person doing the entire process if that doesn't play to their strengths. The most important part is to have the process clearly defined so that other people can pick it up. Linking back to stage two, the sales process and journey needs to be clearly defined. In a lot of the businesses the entrepreneur is the ‘chief salesperson.’ They’re the founder of the business and tend to be great at selling and over the years they’ve identified what works in the selling process. However, without clearly defining this process for all to see, their employees are unable to replicate their success. Stage Four – Don't be afraid of scripting Scripting may sound like a formal process, but you need to share the process that you go through. You may have a completely different process for different scenarios so that you can take the customer on a specific journey. But, because it’s not scripted or written down, none of that logic is placed anywhere. Because it isn’t placed anywhere, sales people don’t know what to follow. The journey isn’t completed and each customer experiences a varying journey. Scripts are there to enable salespeople to follow the logic and keep them on track. It’s not something permanent, but will help your team get to that level where they're just unconsciously competent. Stage Five - Training A lot of companies fall down because they believe that a sales course will transform their team into a fully-fledged salespeople. This isn’t the case. It’s about asking the right questions, reading the body language and being able to listen. There are too many attributes to list what makes a great salesperson. It’s unlikely that you’ll become an expert salesperson without doing thousands of hours of practice, reading many publications on body language or watching webinars and listening to the latest thought leaders. The reality is that sales is changing as quickly as the world around us. We need to fit the world and adapt our style and technique to the evolving market. Peter adds new business ownership content to his YouTube Channel weekly. Just search for The Transition Guy.
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How to build the right team It takes a combination of sharing company values and getting results
A
business is only as good as the team members that work within it. And, more and more companies looking for a competitive advantage are realising that their team plays a major part in this. Managers and business owners often complain that their team don't perform or behave exactly as they'd like. Which prompts the following questions: • • • •
Who recruited the team? What process was used to determine the right people to recruit? Who is responsible for getting the team to do what they’re supposed to? What is the reason that they’re not doing what they’re supposed to?
As the business owner, you have to accept responsibility for the team you have. But what makes a successful team? The phrase 'on the bus’ is often used to describe an engaged team. So what determines whether they are ‘on the bus?’ There are two aspects to consider; does the team member get results and do they have the values? Consider your team and where they fit into the matrix.
Great results Shares the values
Poor results Shares the values
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Great results Doesn't share the values
Poor results Doesn't share the values
If they have the values and get results, then the course of action is crystal clear. Look after these people. They are great team members and should be developed, promoted, rewarded and generally encouraged within the business. It is equally easy to understand that if they don’t have the values and don’t get results they should be exited from the business immediately. The next category, have the values but don’t get results require some attention. Basically they need to be developed, trained, helped to perform where they are. If this doesn’t work then they may be repositioned within the business to an area where they can get results. If this still doesn’t work then they will have to be delicately exited from the business and helped in their pursuit for alternative employment. The last category is the most difficult to address. These are the people who get results but don’t have the values. Business owners can be worried about dealing with them as they bring in the most business, so feel that the normal business rules don’t apply to them. They feel that they’re above all of that and can get away with murder. The only way to deal with this group of people is to exit them from the business (at our convenience) as they are like the rotten apple in the business that will turn the others bad. This is quite frightening for some as they worry how they will replace the income of business. The most important thing here is that it needs to be dealt with sooner rather than later as leaving the situation or failing to deal with it will just result in a much larger problem later down the line. Remember there will always be people out there that can get results and share your company's values.
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"You have to accept responsibility for the team you have."
MAKING THE MOST OF YOUR TIME At Fluid Business, we know a lack of time is something that plagues all business owners. Even if you're not the owner of a business, we're sure you there's been a day when you have said the phrase -
"There are just not enough hours in the day." Time is something that everyone perceives differently, but everyone seems to agrees that we need more of it! In this article, we're breaking down how you can manage and use your time more effectively in order to get more done. From our experience and from speaking to numerous business owner, we've discovered the three reasons why you don't have enough time are that: 1. Inefficient and unnecessary processes 3. You're not focusing your efforts on the right things 4. Lack of communication and delegation with your team It sounds simple, but think about where time is being wasted. Is there a process in your business that is no longer necessary or required? Conduct a ‘spring clean’ of all of the existing systems, processes and activities carried out in your business. Organisations that have been running for some time will have a number of mini systems and processes. They were 12 | FBM SPRING 2018
probably set up to sort out an exceptional situation which is no longer relevant but is still carried out. Write down a list of all your systems and processes. If you don't know them all, speak to the people that do know. Then, ask yourself, what would happen if this was no longer done? If the answer is nothing - stop doing it! Next, let's discuss communication. When you went through your processes did you discover any tasks that you regularly complete that could be completed by others in your team? If you did, get into the habit of delegation and communicating with your team to free up more of your time. The next part of making the most of your time is a short exercise that will help you to visualise where you spend your time and the value you're adding to the business. Step 1 Think of all the tasks you usually do each day and plot them onto the time management matrix on the opposite page. Then think about the amount of time your spending on each tas. Step 2 As you complete the matrix, ask yourself if you're the only person that can complete the task and why. Is it because your team hasn't been trained, or are you unwilling to delegate?
TIME MANAGEMENT THE DO'S AND DON'TS While there is no 'one-size-fits-all' method to increase your productivity and improve your time management, there are some do's and don'ts that can be used to streamline how you use your time. Do... Track your time - Be consciously aware of how long you are spending wearing each of the 'hats' (page 6-7). Keep a time diary and understand where you're spending most of your time - is it in the right place? Prioritise - Categorise the tasks that you spend time on - are they urgent, important? Remember that to fit everything in, you need to prioritise the important tasks that are most valuable to the business.
Not important
Important
Urgent
DEMAND
DISTRACTION
Not urgent
DIRECTION
Important tasks are rarely urgent, and urgent tasks are rarely that important. Tasks with the top priorities are those that add value to your work and those tasks are the ones you should concentrate on. Learn to visualise your time with our time management podcast.
DELUSION
Is a lot of your time spent on Delusions, Distractions and Demands? Remember that sometimes you need to invest time in training in order to save time in the long term. Step 3 As the owner of the business, you should be focused on the long-term direction and strategy of the business. Athough it's still important to be in touch with the day-to-day activities of the business, this isn't the best place to spend your time. After all, that's why you hired a team! Now start to adjust the way you work and factor in time to train and delegate the tasks you would usually 'just do.'
fluidbusiness.co.uk/036
Don't... Waste time on unnecessary tasks - always ask yourself, "Am i the only person that can complete this?" If that answer is yes - Why is that? if the answer is no, then delegate the task to someone else. Multitask - if you're doing several tasks at one, you can't and won't be fully concentrating on getting them done properly. Do one thing at a time and do it properly. Multitasking also means things might not get finished - make sure one thing is entirely done, before moving on to the next. FBM SPRING 2018 | 13
4
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WAYS TO BOOST YOUR SERVICE DELIVERY
FBM SPRING 2018 | 15
One of the key drivers of business is ‘Delivery.’ This refers to the consistency and quality of your products and/or services and is usually a focus for business owners. However, for most business owners the priority is driving sales and finding new clients. This can lead to your current, most valuable clients being forgotten. You’ll be aware that there are some customers that are more valuable to your business (your ‘ideal’ clients). But are these clients aware of all the products and services your business offers? Maybe you’ve told them, or mentioned it in the past. But do they have a full understanding and awareness of everything your business offers?
you offer or the way your product makes them feel. Once you distinguish your target audience and their expectations, your business can continue to provide a consistent experience.
Consistency To consistently provide your customers with excellent service, it's important to set specific standards. Get the processes involved in the service delivery down onto paper and share it with all the members of your team. It can be used as a guide to help them during uncertain situations and help to ensure that things are standardised.
Training
It’s a well-know fact that getting new clients to purchase from your business is much harder than selling to your existing clients. So what are you doing to identify new opportunities with your existing clients? Getting a true understanding of your customers will help you to sell more. The more you know about their needs and the products or services they use, the easier it is to see opportunities for your business.
People aren't mind readers. If you want them to do something in their role, talk to them, get their opinion and feedback. Spending time and money on your team is essential for business growth. With the correct training and development, your team will be better equipped to carry out their role.
Know your customers
It's not unusual for a customer to have visited your website and checked out your social media before making a purchase in your physical store. And, there are different ways to buy - online, website or by phone. It can be a challenge to ensure consistency across all of these channels.
Understand who your customers are and their specific needs so that you can cater to them. To meet their expectations, research everything you possibly can about them. Talk to them and get their feedback every time they come in contact with you. Another important thing to remember here is that every customer has a different reason to buy from you - make a point of exploring that reason. Once you understand why your cusomers buy from you, you can optimise this. Some might be making a buying decision based on price, others might like the service that 16 | FBM SPRING 2018
Cross-channel customer experience
Customers can get confused or frustrated if they receive a different service and treatment from different branches or channels from the same company. Your processes need to be streamlined across channels, which comes back to writing down your processes and training your team, so that you can provide the customer with the best cross-channel experience.
Take some time to get to know your clients. Analyse the products/ services your customers currently purchase from you and what they use, but purchase elsewhere. Talk to your customers and let them know exactly what you offer. You might notice a spike in sales as your customers become aware of the wider range of products and services your business offers. And, even if some decide not to purchase with you now, your business will become a suitable alternative if something changes with their current supplier. The key benefits of getting a true understanding of your clients, and for your clients to have a true understanding of your business are to: • • • • •
Build better relationships with key decision makers Improve awareness of current clients needs Meet client needs more effectively Profile/segment your target audience Increase the effectiveness of marketing
Ray Moore FBM SPRING 2018 | 17
COMMON SENSE is not so common after all
H
ow many times have you looked at a problem and just known the answer? It just seems so obvious! So why is it that those that work for you just don’t seem to see the obvious solution to a problem?
For those of you that started your own business it may be that you put it down to your experience that you have built up in the cut and thrust of business. So, when one of your team confronts a problem it is just quicker for you to tell them what to do or even to sort out the problem yourself. Think about your own experiences for a minute and consider those things that you do the best and that you find difficult to explain to someone else. These are your blind spots. You may show someone how to do something but on further questioning you cannot see why they just don’t get it. You are blind to why they can’t see it as to you see it. To you it is so clear and seems like ‘common sense’. In reality, these blind spots are what you take for granted. To you it may appear so simple but do you really understand what you do? You may have repeated a task so many times that it has become so routine that you don’t have to think about it anymore. The real problem though is that if you can’t get someone else to do a routine task as well as you then you are destined to do that task for ever. Imagine two friends started a growing bricklaying company that now employs over 100 bricklayers. One looks after the sites and the other focuses on sales.
As the business grows, the number of sites increases but the site foreman constantly miss quality issues. Poor quality lead to complaints from clients and the threat of loosing contracts. So the owner steps in and manages the sites as he felt he could not trust the quality checking role to his site foremen. It soon got to the point where the owner was running around trying to keep on top of more and more sites, ignoring the fact that he had some very capable foremen who could have helped him. However, soon the owner became the bottleneck and it was not long before clients started complaining about the delays. When the owner was asked how he knew when a piece of work (say a wall) was good or not, he replied that “he just did”. With a quick look he could easily tell if it was right based on his 30 years of experience in the building industry. However, after some gentle questioning, he realised that, in that single moment of looking at the wall, he unconsciously asked himself on average fifteen questions. When he finally took the time to understand what those questions were, it became easy to write them down and systemise his process of quality checking. By answering those same fifteen questions the foremen could carry out the task as well which freed up the owner’s time for other matters. Recognise your blind areas and use the same thought process to work out what questions you ask yourself in that moment. Watch out for the tell tale sign that ‘you just know.' Question everything that you see as common sense. Written by Ray Moore for thelevelsblog.com
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INTRODUCING THE
LEVELS ASSESSMENT® ARE YOU WONDERING WHERE YOUR BUSINESS IS AT? ?
ow re? H
Whe ? o Wh
When?
What Next?
The Levels Assessment® is the first profiling tool that lets you find out exactly which areas of your business you need to focus on in order to achieve sustainable growth. By harnessing the power of the Levels Framework your answers to our 28 questions will generate a report that is unique to your business. Discover which areas of your business are out of balance, why you are experiencing pain points and how to take the next steps to get your business to where you want it to be. Find out more at www.fluidbusiness.co.uk/levels-assessment
revised editions
DISCOVER PROVEN, NO-NONSENSE BUSINESS STRATEGIES
" " "A must-read for any business owner! What Ray Moore does is fundamentally describe what every business owner must go through to succeed. He provides light at the end of the tunnel and the 'levels' that we undertake to get there. Business education at it's finest. Read it."