It’s easy for a business owner to get caught up in the day-to-day running of their business as opposed to focusing on business growth. For many SME business owners it is simply not possible to put working for the business aside, so we’ve compiled a list of tips to help you use technology or people to spend less time on being your own employee and spend more time on being an entrepreneur.
Are you spending too much time working in your business instead of on your business?
This month’s blog is all about how to save TIME and MONEY so that you can work ON your business instead of IN your business.
1. Choose suppliers who offer quicker forms of communication channels
No one likes dealing with help desk queues. Choose suppliers that offer various forms of communication channels that save you time and money on making calls to them. WAPPoint is the only card facilities service provider that offers not only social media and email communication channels but also offers a website online chat service or a WhatsApp service that you can subscribe to to get any answers you require 24/7!
2. Implement Automation
Many platforms offer automation. Put things like email responses, sales follow up triggers and sales closing on an automated schedule, allowing you to be more organized and to give your customers answers to their questions in real-time or aiding sales completion in real-time. WAPPoint can help you setup automated eCommerce payment systems for your social media campaigns or website online purchases so the sales can literally come in while you sleep! www.123Media.co.za is a fantastic bulk email application that you can use for email automation and follow up marketing which could potentially increase your sales by 20-30% and save you a lot of money in hiring sales people to do this for you.
3. Keep your Data in The Cloud
Using cloud based services to store your data can be a very effective way to save time and money. Not only can you access your data from anywhere in the world but this could also allow your employees to work from home or give you the opportunity to make use of consultants rather than hiring people full time. Depending on the type of cloud service you choose, you could also reduce or eliminate capital expense, licensing fees, maintenance costs and more. WAPPoint clients automatically get access to cloud based transactions reporting & financial records which can be easily accessed 24/7. Unlike most suppliers who only offer printed cash-up/settlement reports from the card machine, our cloud based reporting allows you to download a csv transaction report and import it directly into your accounting software to save you money where your bookkeeping is concerned. If you have multiple branches / businesses or you run a franchise / multiple agent based business, you will love our multi-tiered platform which allows you to view everything from the top or break the information down into a per branch / franchise or agent basis.
4. Go Paperless
Your business can greatly benefit from going paperless. Not only is searching through electronic records easier but you also save money on office supplies, filing systems, paper and ink. Did you know that WAPPoint, in its initiative to save the environment, was the first company in the card payment services industry to offer a paperless online sign up and contract process? Banks love paperwork and most merchant agreements today are still between 15-30 pages long.
5. You get what you pay for
Or as the Afrikaans expression goes “goedkoop is duurkoop”. Many business owners choose the cheapest suppliers and later end up regretting their choice because it ends up costing them twice us much later on. It’s vital that you consider not only price but also service quality and the length of time you will need to work with the supplier and ensure the best fit for your business long term. In our industry there are so many affordable choices of card payment services but some only offer one type of product which means you will end up needing a new service provider when your business grows or goes through a dip. Having a service provider like WAPPoint which offers every payment terminal under one roof and every type of contract choice i.e. rental, rent-to-own or outright purchase with the flexibility to allow your business to grow / change, can save you a ton in the long run. Check out our previous article on this topic for more info: https://www.wappoint.co.za/the-service-triangle/
6. Look after your staff and use their strengths correctly
If your business suffers from a high staff turnover and your staff don’t seem intrinsically motivated or dedicated to your business, it’s possible that you aren’t utilising your staff’s talents correctly and this is causing you to work harder in your business. Losing great staff actually costs your business an average of their salary times 1 year! If this sounds like your business, we recommend that you read a book called “Now, Discover Your Strengths” by Marcus Buckingham, Donald O. Clifton. By learning about the 34 themes or talents that people have and asking each of your team members to do the Gallup strengths test, you may discover that you have placed them in positions that require them to work on their weaknesses instead of using their talents. Once you have them all correctly placed and you introduce this methodology in every new hire, your business will begin to run itself with a highly motivated workforce. This will help you to let go of the duties that you believe no one can do as efficiently as you because you’ll discover that the right employees may actually perform these tasks better than you.
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