Fluid Business Magazine Winter 2019/2020

FLUID BUSINESS THE MAGAZINE FOR BUSINESS OWNERS Winter 2020 Winter 19/20

Weather the Storm WINTER IS COMING FOR YOUR BUSINESS

HOW A CRM SYSTEM CAN BOOST YOUR SALES

IMPROVE YOUR TEAMS PERFORMANCE

HOW TO GET READY & BEAT THE CHILL

KICK START YOUR BUSINESS IN 2020

WITH THIS ONE SIMPLE IDEA

P.16

P.14

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FLUID

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HELPING BUSINESS OWNERS DO MORE Hassle free help when you need it!

FROM OFFICE ADMIN TO MARKETING AND SOCIAL CONTENT OUR ASSISTANTS WILL TAKE CARE OF IT, LEAVING YOU FREE TO FOCUS ON YOUR BUSINESS

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Weather the Storm 04 05

The Fluid Book Club

14

Literary inspiration from the Fluid Business

Find out if a CRM system is worth the time and

Coaches

effort for your business

Coaches Q&A The coaches share their expert knowledge by

16

Should I Retreat When The Market Slows Down?

18

The Best Interview Question To Ask

Be A Better You Why Your Marketing Message Should be

20

simple practise

Why The Follow Up Is So Important

Keeping Up The Cashflow Sufficient funds are a vital part of business

22

Your Circle Of Influence Manage your concerns by bringing them into your

success

12

How A Daily Huddle Helps Your Team Raise engagement levels on a daily basis with this

Simple

10

Be A Better You Why You Should Fail Fast

Or is there opportunity to be had?

08

Winter Is Coming For Your Business How to prepare yourself for an economic downturn

answering our question of the issue!

06

Do You Need A CRM System?

circle of influence

Marketing Strategies for an Economic Downturn Four outstanding ideas to help keep the sales coming in

24

10 Ways to Defeat a Downturn

27

Surprising Stats

And how to fix it

A fun look at business related numbers

Welcome from...

NATALIE HARIRAM Managing Director, Fluid Business Group

Although it's nearly the end of January I think there is still just about time for me to wish you all a Happy & Prosperous New Year!

Despite many business owners feeling optimistic now that Brexit is making some progress there will be times when circumstances outside your control will have a massive impact on your business - this issue is dedicated to helping business owners weather the storm and come out the other side ready to grow.

2020 is certainly shaping up to be a challenging time but we firmly believe that there are many things you can do to ensure your business is in as good a state as possible to weather any storms ahead.

03|

FBM Winter 2020

The Fluid Business Book Club Looking for some literary inspiration?

This issues top picks from the coaches

Ray

7 Habits of Highly Effective People Steven R Covey

Andy

The Coaching Habit Michael Bungay Stanier

A brilliant book but not for everyone.

For me, it's on my regular re-read list.

Every read gives some more insights.

If you haven't read it yet give it a try

The Tipping Point Malcolm Gladwell

A 'how-to' manual that genuinely makes a difference to managers and teams.

Fantatical Prospecting Jeb Blount

An easy read highlighting the magic moment when an output trend moves

This book clearly explains the why

from steady to a step increase. It

and how behind the most important

also covers 6 degrees of separation;

activity in sales and business

the importance of connectors and

development prospecting.

much much more.

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FBM Winter 2020

Peter

The Jelly Effect Andy Bounds Like throwing jelly at a wall, poor communication never sticks and when times are tough you need to ensure your message is crystal clear

Blitzscaling Reid Hoffman Blitzscaling is the process of massive growth in an uncertain environment. Learn to think in an unconventional way & turn business models on their head.

Coaches Q&A How do you bounce back from adversity?

Ray Moore - Founder & Managing Coach We all deal with pressure in different ways but ultimately, you must look after yourself so that you can look after others.

So, take time to sharpen your saw and ensure you are emotionally strong

to

fight

(see

my

book

recommendation

7

Habits

of

Highly

Effective People).

Be open and discuss the issues with energy giving people. Do not be an island or spend time pity partying with energy vampires.

Finally, be prepared to take the learnings and change.

Peter Boolkah - Business Coach Whatever your initial reaction, the challenge is to turn a negative experience into a productive one—that is, to counter adversity with resilience.

Mental resilience is what's going to get you through the tough times and out the other side.

It can be hard to muster this resilience for many reasons: Fear, anger, and confusion can paralyse us after a severe setback and turning to the wrong people for advise can also hinder our progress.

Andy Sleet - Business Coach For me this is about accepting where you are, what's happened and then making up your mind that you're going to deal with it.

I really believe in mind over matter - keeping a positive attitude at all times will pay dividends in the long run.

Don't wallow in the situation you're in - that's defeatist. Pick yourself up and decide you're going to move on.

05Â |

FBMÂ Winter 2020

Should I Retreat When The Market SlowsByDown?

Andy Sleet Whether we like it or not, we have to accept that

Many such businesses cut their team to the bone

many businesses have recently put the brakes on

(only retaining those they absolutely need) which

their

means

spending

due

to

the

uncertainty

of

the

that

they

have

time

Brexit, Christmas, General Election, or any other

they're more likely to start missing deadlines.

it

is

quite

paralysing

for

and

spend

communicating

event,

customers

to

general market place. Whether it is the dreaded

random

with

less

as

a

on

result

many

businesses as they just want these type of things

These pared down teams can often be so hungry

out of the way before they decide if they spend

to jump on any new leads that existing customers

money or not.

feel neglected and not as important as they felt before.

As a general rule, this means that as there is less money being spent, most businesses are retreating

We

all

know

and cutting costs to ensure that they survive until

thought 'they just don't seem to care about me any

the spending starts again.

more'? I'm sure if I asked the supplier they would robustly

But is this a blessing in disguise for the more forward thinking and progressive companies?

this

defend

feeling.

the

fact

How

often

that

have

they

do

you

care,

however it's not so much about whether or not you actually care, it's more about how your customer actually perceives how much you care.

I think so, let me explain.

When

so

many

focus

tends

to

companies be

are

retreating,

concentrated

on

their

'internal'

factors within their own business, i.e. where can I

Here's where the opportunity lies for the forward thinking,

progressive

business

owners

amongst

you.

make cuts?, how can I save money?, where can I stop spending money?

Firstly I'd like to explain why the opportunity exists.

Let's

look

the

may

customers. Let's look at why this is.

nationally or even internationally.

FBM Winter 2020

and

for

at

how

market

the main people that lose out are their current

miles

look

your

customers will travel to use your service, for some it few

we'll

of

their 'external' focus is not so sharp. In this scenario

a

this

size

place.

be

do

potential

This means that whilst their major focus is 'internal'

06|

To

at

others

it

far

your

may

be

What we'll do now is look at how much money

Let's use the figure of 5% to demonstrate the

is spent on the type of product or service that

point and update the pie chart example.

Your Market Share 5%

you provide within this range.

This is how far your customers will travel to use your product / service

Your business is located here

Your Potential 95%

This is the size of your potential market

To do this we need to look at multiple factors

This shows that there is 95% of the current

like;

market

being

serviced

by

your

How many competitors do you have?

competitors. This means that 95% of potential

How big are these competitors in

customers may not be feel like they are being

comparison to your business?

looked after by their current suppliers and as a

What is their turnover?

result may be tempted to look elsewhere for a

Armed with this information we should be able to

currently

have

a

stab

at

what

the

size

of

solution.

the How can we take advantage of this if we are

potential market is.

making It's not imperative to do this 100% accurately

cuts

in

things

like

marketing

and

customer care?

but a rough idea should be good enough. This can

now

be

looked

at

in

terms

of

what

This

is

the

time

when

we

should

look

very

percentage of that market place we have as

carefully at the marketplace and make plans

our current share.

to target potential customers to let them know we are here and ready to help them.

When this is done properly in the SME market arena the general outcome I find, with almost

In summary, it's possibly the worst decision we

every client, is that their market share pales

can make if our whole focus is internal. We

into

need to have a very forward thinking outlook

insignificance.

Invariably

fraction of one percent.

the

share

is

a

and maintain the external focus to thrive.

07|

FBM Winter 2020

Be a Better You Why Your Marketing Message Should Be Simple Your

customers

do

not

want

to

burn

a

lot

of

Imagine

a

brand we

that

says

exchange'.

'trust

What

is

does

the

calories in order to understand what you offer.

commodity

that

What do we mean by that?

mean? How are you going to solve my problem?

How are you going to make my life better?

Thinking and processing information requires an incredible expense of calories. You have to burn a lot of calories to think and process information.

How are you going make me money? How are you going save me money?

None of that is explained. You need to explain that very, very clearly so they don't have to burn

That's

why

message

creating

where

a

people

very don't

clear have

marketing to

think

to

any calories to understand what it is that you offer.

realise what you offer actually works better than if

Clarify your message and more customers will place orders

you get cute or clever.

Why The Follow Up Is So Important A follow up is something you do after you talk to somebody about a product or you have a meeting.

And

we

think

you'll

agree

if

you've

ever

had

a

meeting with somebody and they don't follow up

Create a follow up routine, a sort of checklist, that you go through to make through to make sure that you are securing that customer.

pretty quickly it's likely you won't do business with

It needs a deadline within three days of meeting

them.

with somebody to follow up. Do not fire off an There's a number of reasons for this but the main

email

or

send

one is that our minds quickly move on to something

proposal.

else.

In order to get that sale you've got to be a

you've actually thought through this a little bit. If

little like a kite string on a kite - you need to bring

you're actually trying to change the direction of

the person back closer to that deal before their

a

mind starts wandering and they go elsewhere.

matches in both design and thought, the degree

Do

company,

a

PDF

something

follow

up

with that

with

a tells

a

professional the

person

proposal

that

to which you want them to put effort into this.

The

other

reason

that

you

want

to

follow

up

promptly is it tells them that you care about them

You want to make sure the customer realises

and you aren't too busy. A quick follow up, lets

that they are getting your full attention and a

customers know you are actually on it.

follow up is a great way to do that.

FBM FBM Summer Winter 2018 2020

06 | 08|

Keeping UpBy RayThe Cashflow Moore Taken from 'Can Your Business Step Up To The Growth Challenge'

There are hundreds of sayings, some cheesy, some

During a period of growth, it can too easily be

clever,

consumed. Frankly, it’s a lack of cash flow (not

about

money

and

its

importance

but

it

really is a vital element of any successful business.

profits) that can kill a business. Building longterm sustainable cash flow is one of the vital

It’s the lifeblood of any enterprise and one I’m sure

ingredients in taking your business up the Levels.

you feel you have the greatest understanding of –

To

money. You’ve seen your business make a healthy

financial information and all the elements of your

profit

business that will enable you to adapt when it

last

year

so,

of

course,

you

know

what’s

going on, where the money is going and where it’s

achieve

this,

you

must

invest

in

proper

needs to.

coming from, right?

There’s that word again – investment – and I can Well, it would be great if this was actually the

imagine

case, but incredibly this is an area in which many

what it’s going to cost you! Well, let me answer

business owners just don’t have their fingers on

that. What it will cost is probably a bit of a dip in

the pulse. Many have no system of producing or

profits to begin with but what it will bring is long-

analysing monthly accounts and the health of the

term sustainable wealth. Remember, you

business is largely judged by the current bank

have

balance or level of surplus.

period of growth so the expenditure has to be

to

once

set

again

out

the

you’re

stall

trying

before

to

calculate

you

enter

a

made up front. The return on that investment will We know already that maintaining a surplus

come

alone is not enough to keep the money aspect

barrier.

of your business in balance.

FBM Winter 2020

10

when

you

break

through

that

Level

3

Let’s look at what else you need to be thinking of

–

your

physical

machinery

and

assets

such

infrastructure

as

as

property,

well

as

Key Questions To Ask Yourself & Boost Cashflow

the

less tangible assets such as your brand and

What

marketing.

support the business?

To enable you to switch from focusing on the

Do

short

bank

manages accounts and reviews them on at

balance) to a more long-term financial focus

least a monthly basis? Or do you rely on an

(sustainable cash flow), you are very likely to

accountant to give you the news every six

need to improve on the financial information

months or so?

term

(the

here

and

now

of

the

financial

you

have

structures

a

are

system

in

in

place

place

to

that

you have available. That might mean boosting your team by employing a financial expert or

Are your management information systems

training

up

strong enough to identify the facts so that

almost

definitely

an

existing need

employee an

but

it

will

investment

in

infrastructure too, perhaps involving a whole new

IT

system

to

produce

the

reports

decisions

can

be

made

on

those

rather

than opinions?

you

need. It may seem like a big cost, but think

Do you understand what is going on in all

about it. If the result is that you now have

the different areas of the business?

detailed information that allows you to make the

best

financial

decisions,

then

that

Have you achieved clarity about what has happened within your business in the past?

investment will soon prove worthwhile.

an

Have you identified clear trends so that you

investment rather than simply a cost is what

can have confidence in the future of your

will enable your business to achieve a passive

business?

Learning

income

to

that

see

all

secures

expenditure

everyone’s

as

future

and

keeps the cash flow… well, flowing!

11|

FBM Winter 2020

Marketing Strategies for an Economic Downturn There have been many reports on the state of

Don’t Arbitrarily Cut Your Marketing Budget

the UK economy and differing predictions as to how the trading environment will look in 2020.

Marketing is typically one of the first places business

Even

if

doesn’t

these matter

predictions —

the

are

good

off,

times

it

really

can’t

last

owners

are

some point in your business’ lifespan.

short term.

It's critical to focus on profitable effectiveness

Ultimately

the

– rather

downturn

weaker

economic

“growth”.

principle

of

After

all,

opportunity

the cost

cut

when

slashing the marketing budget in a downturn will

empty

to

looking to trim costs. It’s well documented that

forever, so it's likely you’ll face a downturn at

than

tempted

only

help

defend

brand

profits

will

and

in

emerge

far

less

the

very

from

the

profitable.

Building and maintaining a brand, as well as

mandates that one pound spent on one thing

customer

cannot be spent on another.

and trust is one of the best ways to reduce risk during

Recessions

have

a

nasty

habit

of

destroying

unprepared or ill-equipped businesses. In the

service,

economic

that

consumers

downturns. This

recognise

is

why,

in

each recession cycle, companies with a strong brand presence have come out on top.

last one, more than 400,000 small businesses went

bankrupt

or

permanently

closed. If

you

Cutting

the

marketing

budget

during

a

want to prevent your business from suffering the

recession is a gut reaction many inexperienced

same

recession

business owners (and even experienced ones!)

marketing strategy now — not when the stocks

make. If your competitors are cutting budgets,

dip, not when a recession is formally announced

you’ll see an even greater long-term return on

— now. That way, you’re ready for pivots and

your marketing investments.

fate,

you

need

to

craft

a

budget shifts when the market slides.

Instead

of

objectively

12 |

FBM Winter 2020

making look

at

deep where

reactionary you’re

cuts,

spending

money and what kind of return you’re getting.

Understand Your Customers Behaviour

Focus On Existing Customers

The

Regardless

success

of

your

recession

marketing

strategy will hinge on this because it's vital you

biggest

understand

your

potential

both

customers

downturn. them

how

your

will

existing

behave

and

during

a

People change as the world around

changes.

What

your

target

of

asset

existing

your

industry,

during

a

customer

your

brand’s

recession base.

will

Even

be

during

normal trading conditions it is so much cheaper to keep a customer than convert a new one.

audience

needs in one decade may not be the same in

Make

the next one. Prevent sales disaster by really

focused

diving into your target audience and finding out

customers. This bedrock of customers will repay

their motivations and behaviour trends during

you

an economic downturn.

reviews, especially if you can use analytics and data

Consumers

of

any

product

or

service

will

sure on

in

your your

the

to

marketing most

form

show

valuable,

of

how

strategies

are

happy,

loyal

recommendations

you’re

and

benefitting

their

company during tough times.

prioritise purchase decisions by sorting products

Boost Conversion Rates Tweaking and Repeating

and services into one of four categories:

Essentials

are

necessary

for

survival

are

indulgences

You can’t force people to alter their spending

whose

immediate

purchase is considered justifiable.

Postponables

are

needed

or

Testing,

or

perceived as central to well-being.

Treats

by

habits. The best you can do is to figure out the formula that nudges them further and further

desired

items

along the buyer’s journey.

whose purchase can be reasonably put off.

Expendables are

perceived as unnecessary or

unjustifiable.

The

only

efforts,

way

to

do

tweaking

this

your

is

by

tracking

campaigns,

your

changing

your strategy when necessary, and repeating The

trick

to

downturn

successful

lies

in

advertising

consumer

during

psychology

a

the process.

and

emotion. A recession is a testing time for most

Tracking

consumers,

of

granular information about the performance of

surface

each of your marketing strategies allows you to

fear,

worry,

there’s and

often

stress

an

undercurrent

beneath

the

and

capturing

which alters normal buying patterns. By tapping

see

into

competitors don't.

and

appealing

to

the

emotional

side

of

opportunities

and

more

accurate

problem

and

areas

your

your customers you have a better chance of connecting with and persuading them that your

It's essential to test new new strategies and

product

evaluate old ones. Once you’ve got your results,

or

category.

service

remains

in

the

Essential

repeat

the

process.

What

you’re

doing

is

refining your recession marketing strategy and distilling

it

performing you

need

to

only

include

campaigns. to

drop

the

Sometimes

everything

and

very

best-

you’ll

find

pivot—and

that’s okay. The business owners and marketing managers that thrive in recessions are the ones who are adaptive and able to change easily.

FBM Winter 2020

13 |

Do You Need A CRM System?

It's the start of a new calendar year and the time

What can a CRM System do for my business?

that so many businesses will be looking ahead and planning what they want to achieve next.

I

think

here

the

question

should

be

switched

around and be phrased more along the lines of Maybe there will a New Year's Resolution or two

'What do you want a CRM system to do for your

mixed in with that and we all know the potential

business?' as modern systems can help in so many

pitfalls

ways.

there!

With

Brexit

now

well

and

truly

underway it's be more important than ever that we look

after

our

current

customers

and,

The classic definition of a CRM System is:

simultaneously, apply the same care to the new

A technology for managing all your company’s

leads that come into our business.

relationships and interactions with customers and potential customers.

Anyone

that

has

ever

had

to

do

outbound

The goal is simple: Improve business relationships.

telephone sales to get leads will know how hard it is and how precious each one is, so they deserve

A CRM system helps companies stay connected

to be looked after and handled very carefully.

to customers, streamline processes, and improve profitability. When people talk about CRM, they

I'm

amazed

at

how

many

companies

I

start

are usually referring to a CRM system, a tool that

working with either have no formal system at all or

helps

at

management, productivity, and more.

best

note

an

antiquated

approach

that

spreadsheet

even

they

or

admit

is

'post-it'

with

contact

management,

sales

totally

inadequate for the job.

A

CRM

solution

helps

you

focus

on

your

organisation’s relationships with individual people I hear horror stories of how many thousands of

— including customers, service users, colleagues,

pounds of potential sales are lost because leads

or

are forgotten or not followed up.

them.

14 |

FBM Winter 2020

suppliers

—

throughout

your

lifecycle

with

This can include finding new customers, winning their

business,

and

providing

support

I've heard they're a waste of time

and

additional services throughout the relationship.

Many business owners have horror stories of CRM systems that have been expensive and 'haven't

My belief is that this is the first essential part in

worked'.

providing

early

the

management

business

information

leader to

make

with fact

the based

This

was

interactions

different

systems

my

experience

-

got

I

my

claiming

too

way

that

with

my

through

they

were

5 all

business decisions. Here are a few of the major

useless.

It was then that I came to understand

features that a CRM System can provide

what the common denominator was in all these experiences....... ME.

Contact & account management

I tried to implement them all myself learning how

Quote and Order management

to configure them and making an extremely bad

Opportunity Management

job of it.

Sales Process Automation

Subsequently I now have a CRM system

that was set up and configured by an expert to

Campaign Management

meet

Customer Segmentation

my

business

needs.

Yes,

it

seemed

expensive but it was up and running in less than

Call Centre Automation

two weeks and started delivering benefits from

Service Automation

the start.

Task Management

The payback on the implementation

costs was less than 2 months.

Which CRM system is best for my business?

I'm worried that my team won't use it There are so many different systems that offer such a wide range of functionality that it can become a bit confusing deciding which will best suit your business.

This is a thorny issue that I'll have to address head on with you. You are the leader of your business and understand exactly what is needed to run a proper business, we cannot compromise on client

The first thing to do is to decide on the outcomes you want from the system and my suggestion is to think at least 5 years into the future. Too many businesses implement a system which is fit for purpose today because it's cheap and then find they have a harder job changing it down the line when it's no longer fit for purpose.

satisfaction otherwise our clients will vote with their feet.

It is therefore not acceptable for anyone in the business

to

ignore

or

not

embrace

it.

CRM

adherence must become the law in your company otherwise

your

customers

customers

leaving

you

to

will go

suffer.

68%

elsewhere

do

of so

through 'perceived indifference'.

Here's a list of possible considerations although the list is by no means exhaustive What are the growth plans for my business? What will the business

look

different

like

products

in or

5

years

time?

markets

/

Selling

what

tech

on

line

Will the system deliver a benefit to the business?

/

changes

affect me Where am I missing opportunities in my sales process and

Almost definitely, 96% of businesses started fail within

10

years

of

their

conception.

There

are

what would help me prevent this

many contributing facts to this statistic however a

What do I want in the way of reports?

major

What information is key for me to see on my dashboard?

factor

is

the

lack

of

care

with

the

customers and leads.

What are my business processes and how do I want the business to work?

Where will I need to access the data? mobile, office,

If you're interested in a CRM system or to understand if your current one is optimised to suit

Who will need to use the system?

your business get in touch with by emailing Andysleet@fluidbusiness.co.uk

15|

FBM Winter 2020

Winter Is Coming For Your Business.

Are You Prepared?

By Peter Boolkah

In this article, I will explain the term ‘economic

have experienced since The Great Depression.

winter’, cover how it can affect your business

The GFC was an economic winter and it was a

and how you can best prepare.

global phenomenon. Many businesses failed and the ones that survived hung on by the skin of their

Firstly, to illustrate what I mean by the phrase

teeth.

‘winter is coming’, I am going to use a seasonal

Predicting the Next Big Freeze

farming analogy:

In 2009, we entered a spring. We started the road Spring:

During

spring,

farmers

and things start to grow.

sow

the

seeds

to recovery; businesses began to take off again

Without seeds there

and the economy started to improve. That spring,

can never be any crops.

however, was eleven years ago and experts today will argue that we are now, as a season, in late

Summer: Summer is when things start to take

autumn. If you look at the economy, business has

off;

been buoyant; a lot of companies are the best

their

crop

is

nice

and

healthy

and

everything blooms.

they've

ever

been,

and

markets

were

at

their

peak. Interest rates are at near lowest levels ever Autumn: Autumn is when the crop is harvested,

and because of that, people and businesses are

and farmers can reap what they have sown.

borrowing up to their eyeballs. The problem with that, is at some stage interest rates are always

Winter: Winter is a bleak and nothing grows. To survive

it,

farmers

need

to

have

going to rise.

harvested

enough crop in autumn to get them through the

Autumn is the beginning of the ‘cooling off’ period

season.

and in the UK, this is already being reflected in the property market. We have seen some decreases in

An Economic Winter

property

Think back to 2007 and 2008, when we had The

indication that we're heading towards a winter.

Great

Also

Financial

Crisis.

This

was

probably

the

worst hit to businesses that people alive today

16 |

FBM Winter 2020

with

Brexit,

valuations,

the

both

whole

business

has taken a knock.

which

is

ongoing and

often

an

debacle

consumer

early

that

is

confidence

The Seasons in Business Terms

Tips to survive

Economic Spring

One

As

a

business

owner,

when

you’re

out

there

in

thing

I

always

suggest

to

the

business

owners I work with is to keep 10% of your turnover

spring, you need a lot of capital in your business

available

in

liquid

cash

in

the

bank.

Doing

so

because this is when you're experiencing growth.

affords you the flexibility to make sure that you are able to hire people etc and you have the

Economic Summer This

growth

which

is

is

cash to get you through.

further

when

expenditure.

compounded

you

You're

are

at

growing

in

summer,

your

maximum

The second thing I always recommend is to start

fast

and

looking at your balance sheet. If you needed to,

are

extremely busy. That growth costs a lot of money

could

you

as you’ll need to hire people, buy products and

balance sheet today? So many business owners I

invest in equipment to keep up with demand.

come across put all of their profit back into their business.

access

Investing

the

in

cash

your

tied

up

business

is

in

your

a

good

Economic Autumn

thing to do, however, I've come across businesses

In autumn, business should be quite stable. There

that

up

in

will be growth, but not to at the level that you will

machinery and stock. In an economic winter, a

£4

have

million

seen

in

the

previous

seasons.

Autumn

is

have

as

much

balance

as

sheet

is

£4

million

worth

tied

nothing;

if

you

about reserving some capital and building money

can't access the money quickly, it’s of little use.

within the business. You need to build what I call a

Also, if you’re in a situation where you need to sell

‘fortress balance sheet’; a balance sheet that can

off

survive winter.

balance sheet will never generate

Economic Winter

To put it simply, if you need cash to continue to

Many

companies

make

a

loss

in

an

economic

winter. In this season, the banks will not lend you

stock/machinery

in

a

hurry,

a

£4

million

£4 million.

trade and everything on your balance sheet is tied up, then you’re going out of business.

money are easily as the other seasons. If you don't have the capital reserves behind you, it's going to

Winter is Coming for Your Business.

kill your company.

Are you ready?

Interestingly, there

that

there

are

are

still

a

lot

of

struggling

businesses

to

recover

out from

How many of you reading this are balance sheet rich and cash flow poor?

2009. They made it through the Great Financial

What do you need to do to change your liquidity?

Crisis but they haven’t managed to rebuild their

What's your strategy going forwards to make sure

capital

that when winter comes, you are protected?

reserves.

They're

still

trying

to

work

themselves out of a hole, which is a dangerous position to be in. What do you think will happen to

If you cannot answers these questions or find your

those

answers to be weak you need to act now.

companies

when

the

next

winter

This time, they won’t survive.

comes?

Ignoring such a situation could see your business being buried.

Could your business survive an economic winter?

Winter

does

not

pass

overnight. On

average,

recessions tend to last anything between 12 and 18 months. Could your business survive that long, in the wilderness?

17 |

FBM Winter 2020

Be a Better YOU Why You Should Fail Fast We all know that failure is a part of business. It's a

Call them and say, 'Hey, I totally let you down

part of life. But when you do fail do you think to

and

yourself 'Oh, this is exciting'? You don't, and we

Here's what I have learned. I hope you can learn

think the reason you don't is because you don't

something too'.

I'm

so

sorry.

It's

a

learning

curve

for

me.

believe it. But failure is really good.

But make sure you move on and do it quickly. Do Now you don't want to aim to fail, but when it

not fall apart when you fail. It is a part of figuring

happens, you actually want to embrace it. Failure

things out.

is how you figure out what not to do.

You can't fall apart every time you fail, you have to just say to yourself 'That didn't work, I need to

You were not born a successful person. You were born a person who could figure things out.

do it this way'.

And when you actually fall down and wallow in And really where you're tempted to fall apart is

pity at your failure, you stop doing the thing you

when

were born to do, which is to figure things out.

there's

relationships

involved,

you

let

somebody down or you frustrated a team. You need

to

learn

to

mitigate

that

as

quickly

as

possible.

Always ask what you can learn from a failure and then take action on that learning as fast as possible.

The Best Interview Question To Ask We're actually talking about the question that you

and find the specific characteristics in a person.

would ask somebody who is applying to work for you.

Asking for stories relating to your company values can

tell

you

very

quickly

if

they

do

live

those

And there's lots of those questions that you want

values and also that if you choose to hire them

to ask that, that really tell you whether or not that

they

person is qualified for this position or not.

have and you'll know that you're hiring someone

know

what

kind

of

company

culture

you

that has a good chance of fitting in.

One question that a lot of people don't ask but that is actually very important is to ask for stories from that person about how they have lived out your company values.

Obviously to do this well you've got to know what your company values are and then you need to try

18 |

FBM Winter 2020

The interviewee knows what kind of behaviours they need in order to work in your business.

So before bringing somebody on to your team find out if they will be able to live out your values.

19|

FBMÂ Winter 2020

How a Daily Huddle Improves Team Performance

By Peter Boolkah In

tough

times

it's

even

more

important

to

Those

niggly

The huddle must always be conducted standing up,

a

great

daily

a

to ensure that people don’t get too comfortable

business. All too often we talk ‘at’ each other

(which can prolong the meeting) and are able to

and consider that to be communication. To a

get straight back to work afterwards.

degree,

I

guess

it

is,

but

it’s

perhaps

in

is

biggest

The Productivity-Power of the Daily Huddle important

huddle

the

opportunity to deal with them as they arise.

so

the

be

feel valued.

is

and

can

killer

communication

teams

problems

ensure your team are throughly engaged and

Effective

of

little

not

as

What is discussed at a Daily Huddle?

purposeful as it should and could be.

The Daily Huddle should only take 5 to 15 minutes

What is a Daily Huddle?

out of your day, depending on the size of the team.

A Daily Huddle is part of the ‘meeting rhythm’

Smaller

mentioned in the book "Scaling Up" by Verne

around the huddle but as a company grows, they

Harnish and it’s all about communication and

tend

quick synchronisation.

sometimes

companies

to

be

may

run

have

the

whole

departmentally

inter-departmentally

if

there

team

and is

a

crossover between team roles.

It’s about getting everybody on the same page and

ensuring

that

members

of

your

team

let

‘What’s Up?’

each other know what they’re up to. The huddle

The first thing you need to focus on in the huddle is

is also about healing relationships.

everybody’s

‘what’s

up’

or

‘what

is

everybody

working on’? When people in a company don’t Have you ever been part of a team where the

communicate properly there is a danger that work

relationships within are quite fractious? A team

will be duplicated; this is inefficient and can be

that has fragmented into smaller groups and as

embarrassing if it involves your customers.

a result, tiny issues don’t get dealt with until they escalate into bigger problems.

20|

FBM Winter2020

At the end of the working day, it’s great practise

Solving the Stuck

to write down your ‘what’s up’ for the following

The third thing that Daily Huddle’s are invaluable

day. Everybody should know at that stage what

for, is knowing when your team members are stuck

their priorities are going to be, and this practice

with a task.

ensures that you are ready to go the following morning.

When you bring out the ‘stucks’ in a huddle, you often find that another team member has got a

A Metric Update

solution to the problem or if they haven’t, they

The second thing that you need to do at the Daily

know somebody else that has.

Huddle is to have a metric update. This is where you will discuss where you are against your short-

It’s

all

term priorities and KPI’s.

going

about to

getting

hold

you

the

stuff

back,

out

dealing

there with

that’s it

and

moving forward.

As well as being an acronym for key performance indicator,

KPI’s

are

also

about

keeping

people

It’s that simple!

informed. They can tell you if you’re on target and if you’re going to make it. If you’re not, they let

A

you know in good time, so that you can change

keep

course

targets.

or

do

things

differently

to

get

back

on

quick-fire, your

5

– 15-minute

team

on

meeting

track

to

which

achieving

will their

track before it’s too late.

21 |

FBM Winter 2020

Your Circle Of Influence

by Ray Moore

For most business owners it is so easy to get caught

aware of the things we can and cannot impact (our

up in the daily grind and then have no time to look

Circle of Concern) and concentrate on those that

at

we

the

business

from

the

outside.

Without

this

reflection it is so, so easy to get caught up in the

can

proactively

influence

(our

Circle

of

Influence).

repetitive daily doing, banging our heads against the same brick wall without getting the appropriate

If we plotted all our concerns in the area bounded

level of results.

by

these

two

concentric

circles

(see

diagram

below) it would become clear which issues were Albert

Einstein is

widely

credited

with

saying,

outside

our

Circle

of

Influence. These

are

our

“The definition of insanity is doing the same thing

distractions and sappers of energy unless we can

over

bring them within our Circle of Influence or expand

and

over

again,

but

expecting

different

results.”

it to incorporate them.

It’s only when we stop banging our head against that brick wall that we notice it has given us a headache! To get rid of the headache, we must

Concern

focus on what needs to change so that we can move forward again.

Influence Businesses

operate

within

an

environment

influenced by many factors which can distract and impact us personally and commercially. It is human to worry but the key is to take time to become

22|

FBM Winter 2020

Stephen R Covey’s concept of The Circle of Influence and the Circle of Concern; from ‘7 Habits of Highly Effective People’

Our Circle of Concern

15-year-old, Greta Thunberg, to bring the dangers

Contains all those issues and worries that in the

of climate change to the global audience. She did

cold

not allow her age or location to stop or deter her.

light

business

of that

pending

day

we

may

have

be

government

the

no

control

general

legislation

over.

In

economy;

and

policy;

technology change; competitor activity……

Within

a

year

she

has

expanded

her

Circle

of

Influence to bring focus and attention to the public and political leaders globally. These are two great

The list is endless and over the last three years the

examples of what can be achieved when we focus

spectre of Brexit has been and continues to be a

on expanding our Circle of Influence.

major distraction.

In business it is so easy to worry and focus on those

Our Circle of Influence

things

Contains all those issues and worries that we can

considering what we can do to increase our Circle

impact

of

of Influence. Don’t allow them to become excuses

experience;

to avoid the important things that we either don’t

either

example

it

directly

may

be

or

indirectly.

our

customer

As

way

marketing; investment; production etc.

outside

our

area

of

influence

without

know how to deal with or perhaps just don’t want to face.

The

key

is

to

expand

our

Circle

of

Influence

to

encompass all those items in our Circle of Concern.

Where is your focus? How much time is focused

Let’s look at this by way of two examples;

inside or outside your Circle of Influence?

1.

Band Aid (1984)

The

plight

of

Take time to list out all those concerns that are

starving

children

in

Ethiopia

was

currently

holding

you

back

and

shine

a

light

on

certainly in Bob Geldof’s Circle of Concern but as a

them. Which important areas are currently outside

pop artist not within his Circle of Influence until he

your area of influence and what strategic changes

decided to raise money using his contacts in pop

could you proactively make to bring them within

music.

your

The

rest

is

history

but

without

that

desire

and

circle of

influence or

can you expand your

Circle of Influence to incorporate them?

passion to expand his Circle of Influence Band Aid and

the

charitable

works

since

would

not

have

If not, then let them go!

happened.

Like Bob Geldof who can you enrol to generate 2.

Climate Change (2018)

momentum or like Greta Thunberg push the norm

The impact of global warming to our world should

and

not

be within all our Circles of Concern and we can

prejudices.

be

limited

by

past

expectations

or

impact it within our Circle of Influence by recycling, switching to electric cars etc, but it has taken one

23|

FBM Winter 2020

10Â Ways To Defeat A Downturn During times of economic uncertainty or recession

1.

Evaluate and eliminate excessive debtÂ

it's easy to panic. Panic, which is fear-driven and not based on fact but on emotion, has tremendous power,

the

power

to

change

the

direction

of

business. But do you want to give in to panic, throw

your

hands

in

the

air

and

accept

self-

destruction, actually accelerating it, becoming a

If you took on debt when your revenues were much higher you may not be able to service this debt

debt can be worked out but the key is to be quick and upfront about your challenges in order to

part of the panic, stimulating more?

if your your revenues have dropped. Any

avoid

it

spiralling

out

of

control.

Try

to

deleverage before the downturn really takes hold There's

an

alternative

to

panicking.

We

can

confronting change, and change is an opportunity

Look beyond layoffs

2.

for advances. Now you have the choice to take advantage of change it or allow yourself to be

It's often tempting to look cutting the size of your team

buried by it.

as

a

quick

win

but

this

may

be

counterproductive. Look at how you can use your Most

firms

because

suffer

during

demand

uncertainty

about

(and the

a

recession,

revenue) future

primarily

falls

increases.

and But

research shows that there are ways to mitigate the damage. One key difference demonstrated by successful

firms

contingency

plans

scenarios

allows

is or

preparation. preparing

companies

to

for

teams better and reduce operational overheads before cutting the numbers. Hiring and training staff is expensive and layoffs harm morale at a time when you need teams to be as productive as possible.

Making alternative

recover

3.

Track your finances daily -- and start today

quicker

after a recession.

Install a key performance indicator (KPI) system to track your business and have daily, weekly and

Here are 10 rules of engagement that will help you successfully recast your business and succeed in the new economy:

monthly

financial

reports

issued.

Follow

profitability per job, per week, per client and per product / service. Use these indicators to focus on

your

most

profitable

products

or

services.

Remove anything that does not bring in a profit.

24|

FBM Winter 2020

Reduce inventories & overheads

Resist profit-eating sales and discounting

4.

7.

Look for items that do not move or turn frequently.

Don't give away your product; instead, compete

That's where your cash is locked up -- in your cost

with

of

niche,

materials,

labour

and

so

on,

waiting

to

be

service,

quality

ensure

your

and USP

uniqueness. is

clear

Create

and

have

a a

turned into cash after it’s sold and the receivables

competitive advantage. The big box stores cannot

collected. Having too much cash invested in stock

compete with you, especially on service. This is

can result in a huge cash drain.

the key small business competitive advantage.

5.

Train and cross-train your staff

If

every

job

or

task

is

learned

by

8.

at

least

one

Expand geographically if possible

Internet

marketing

niche item or service. Find what you do that is

the task can leap in and complete the work. This

unique and promote it everywhere possible.

and

production,

greater

an

expertise

or

a

productivity

remains high despite the absence of a key player.

Smoother

create

anywhere,

away, the other person cross-trained to perform

downtime

can

you

especially

disruption,

you

take

additional person, when the primary task holder is

limits

if

can

productivity

9.

Invest in technology

and

happier customers mean a better bottom line.

It’s tempting to think of a recession as a time to batten down the hatches but downturns actually

Review your marketing and reduce spending on traditional media 6.

appear

to

encourage

the

adoption

of

new

technologies.

Opportunity cost is lower than it would be in good

Focus on your existing clients first- it's far cheaper

times.

to

company has every incentive to produce as much

ensure

they

remain

loyal

than

to

earn

new

When the economy is in great

shape,

a

customers.

as it can but when fewer people are willing to buy

The internet is your friend! Internet marketing will

what you’re selling, operations need not be kept

save many companies - it's cheaper and quicker

humming at maximum capacity, which frees up

to

operating

promote

yourself

online

than

via

traditional

budget

media outlets. There are many businesses on the

dampening

sales.

internet

technology

costs

making

profitable

hits

out

products, services and entertainment.

of

niche

to

fund

For less,

IT

that in

a

initiatives reason, sense,

without

adopting during

a

recession.

Focus on quality

10.

That’s what wins in the long run. Never forsake quality for speed or cutting costs.

25|

FBM Winter 2020

26|

FBM Winter 2020

Surprising Stats

A fun look at numbers in business 66% of owners personally juggle three or more business areas in their day-to-day, including marketing, sales, and customer service.

Regret

17% of UK SME owners regret taking advice from friends or business gurus.

49.8%

of entrepreneurs rely on word-ofmouth referrals to acquire new customers.

26% of UK SME's would close if a key person became ill or died

47% of UK SME's believe we'll have a cashless society in the next 5 years

Entrepreneurs are twice as likely to suffer from mental health afflictions than the general population

44% of British consumers brought something on their mobile phone in Q1 2019 27 |

FBM Winter 2020

Source: Salesforce blog | Fundera | Drip | Shopify | Hitachi Capital Invoice Finance | Legal & General Business Protection | FSB

30.07% of business owners don’t pay themselves.

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