If you find that your marketing team is not achieving desired results, you may need to follow a strategic marketing planning process that is firmly rooted in a marketing audit to remedy that. Contrary to popular thinking, marketing is not just some random activity. It’s not something you wake up from any side of the..
Read moreDeveloping a Strategy
Are you having problem meeting customer needs or implementing a marketing plan? Perhaps it’s time you constitute a strategy team within the marketing unit or ensure that the organization’s strategy team has representatives from the marketing unit. Whichever you decide will depend on available resources. The strategy team is responsible for developing and overseeing the..
Read moreDeveloping the Business Plan
‘’By failing to plan, you are planning to fail.’’Benjamin Franklin , Inventor and Business man By this time, much of the initial analysis required to write your business plan has been concluded. All that remains is to put together what has been developed into a well-written plan that communicates your intentions to internal and external..
Read moreThe CEO’s Guide to Effective Business Models
“I started the business with a simple question: How can we make the process of buying a computer better?’’- Michael Dell, Founder of Dell Computers A feasibility study should be conducted to determine the likelihood that your business idea will be successful. While it is not a checklist, a good feasibility study tests the different..
Read moreConduct initial market research
’The aim of marketing is to know and understand the customer so well that the product or service sells itself’’ Peter Drucker, Professor and Father of Management Market research is the commercial equivalent of ‘’looking before you leap.’’ Having hit on your ‘’eureka idea’’, you cannot immediately rush to the marketplace to implement. You need..
Read moreCreate a goal-setting system
“If you want to be happy, set a goal that commands your thoughts, liberates your energy, and inspires your hopes.''—Andrew Carnegie, steel industrialist Successful entrepreneurs are characterised by a high need for achievement. You can’t afford to be complacent and passive if you want to make a success of any entrepreneurial venture. Craft a vision..
Read moreKeep abreast of innovative ideas and new trends
“If you want to succeed you should strike out on new paths, rather than travel the worn paths of accepted success.''John D. Rockefeller, industrialist, cofounder of Standard Oil Co., and philanthropist” I was looking through the brochure of a prestigious European business school when I spied the phrase ‘’The more you know, the more you..
Read moreIdentifying Key Business Success Factors
Having identified factors that lead to business failure, it is only logical to identify factors that enhance business success. Integrity: Every business thrives on the reputation and goodwill of its customers. Good reputation is built when the business fulfils its promises to customers. In that connection, efforts must be made to provide services or supply..
Read moreAverting Business Failure
In the real business world, it is not smooth sailing, which is why many businesses fail. There is the risk that a business, especially a new business, will fail which will make the entrepreneur suffer the loss of the capital invested in the business. It is therefore very important for the business owner to be..
Read moreThe Small Business Entrepreneur
Law firms. Restaurants. Consulting firms. Fashion boutiques. Schools. While the technology enterprise aspires for growth and the social enterprise is geared towards impact, the small business enterprise is built for stability. A good example of a small business is a nursery and primary school. Schools are the quintessential small business and their owners are devoted..
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