Archive for the ‘Product and services’ Category

Sorry – this offer has now expired!

Well, it’s my birthday tomorrow and whilst I won’t be sharing my age –

I am sharing part of my Step Up programme
FREE!

FOR 48 HOURS ONLY

AND… if you are one of the first 5 to apply there is a

BIG ADDITIONAL BONUS FOR TAKING ACTION NOW!

• Need to clarify what you want from your business and where you want to take it? You may be a new start up or have been established for a while and need focus and direction to step it up!
• Lost some motivation and want an injection of inspiration to propel you forward? The spark is missing and you need to reignite that fire in the belly.
• Want to stop procrastinating and take action? Indecision is getting you nowhere; you are getting frustrated and overwhelmed and need to do something about it.

Well not for long if you read on and sign up now for my

FREE birthday gift to you!

So what do I get for free?

FREE access to Module 1 of my online Step Up programme focused on determining ‘What Do You Want?’ from your business. The module will take you less than an hour to complete, at a time that suits you, but gives you clarity and focus on what you want from your business and a reality check on where you are now in building the business you want.

My clients tell me these questions really inspire them to think about why they went into business in the first place, how well they are achieving their goals and what they need to do differently to get the results they want.

The module will help you work out what is important to you, your priorities, and what you need to do to grow your business to suit your lifestyle. Writing down your thoughts brings your goals and aspirations to life and reignites that fire in your belly!

FREE access to the on line Step Up Accountability module in which you record the action you are committing to take to achieve your goals. The written word is powerful in propelling you into action and regularly checking your progress keeps you on track to meet your goals. Recording your successes inspires you to do more, to step out of your comfort zone and stretch for growth.

FOR THE FIRST 5 TO APPLY…….
FREE online coaching for 4 weeks!

You get me – giving you the support you need to take the action to which you’ve committed – a supportive yet challenging sounding board to inspire you into action.

Why am I giving it away?

Well it’s my birthday and I’m feeling generous! Plus, I really want more small business owners to experience the power of coaching to help you realise your goals, build your confidence to get out there and do it, and know that you don’t have to go it alone!

So sign up NOW and help me celebrate my birthday! Don’t wait as this offer is available for less than 48 hours!

REMEMBER if you are one of the first 5 to register, your commitment to taking action earns you an additional bonus of 4 weeks online coaching!

It’s only open until MIDNIGHT on my birthday
WEDNESDAY 17 OCTOBER SO SIGN UP NOW!

Just register below and I will be in touch. There’s no catch – I promise!

Solopreneurship can be lonely……and is one of the reasons that a lot of us like to network. But how open and honest are we when asked ‘how’s business’? It will probably depend on how well you know and trust the person who’s asking the question and whether they could be a potential client.

We love the flexibility running our own business can give us, but we all face challenges, some that inspire us and some that can daunt. That feeling of overwhelm can creep in, caused by being busy or when we’re looking to keep the pipe line flowing.

The key is to maintain control and to have the right people to turn to. Follow these 3 tips regularly to help minimise the overwhelm.

Make time to plan achievable tasks Allocate time in your diary to plan the following week’s activities – make sure everything you are doing is relevant and working towards achieving your business goals. Chunk them down so they are achievable and can be ticked off rather than over-run to the next week.

Do what you do best You know what you enjoy as time flies and you get the best results. Focus on your strengths and play to the strengths of others to get more done. The cost of outsourcing what you don’t enjoy will be worth it as it will take a weight off your shoulders and give you more space and time to maximise your potential.

Choose who you hang out with Negative nellies will bring you down so ditch them for success, action oriented individuals who will make time to listen, offer inspiration and encourage your success. Create your own board of directors to whom you can turn for expertise, advice and non judgemental support.

Why not hang out with me and other action orientated people on Wednesday 12 September and find out more about my coaching groups aimed especially at helping solopreneurs make time to focus ON your business and work through issues that may be preventing you from Stepping it Up!

Find out more and book your FREE place here!

Those of you who have met me personally will be only too aware of my contagious enthusiasm, and I am really excited about the launch of my second Step Up Forum coaching group in Kings Hill!

To help you understand the positive impact of group coaching, I am posting an excerpt of a blog written by Jade Pluck about my presentation on ‘Working  From Home’ at the West Kent Women in Business Group meeting. It really helps to demonstrate the power of group dynamics in questioning what you want, talking through challenges and finding inspiration and solutions. Couple this with surrounding yourself with the right people to move your business forward, and you are setting yourself up for success.

“We had one of our members Denise Molloy speak to us re Working from Home; this is a subject which plays an important part to most of our members, and what a fantastic session it was. I think we all got one or two things off our chest about the trials we face when working from home and you know what they say “a problem shared is a problem halved” and I think was the case.

So what did I take away from the session; well the most important thing when you are working by yourself is to have a Board of Directors, these could be people such as:

• People who you can talk to and who are supportive of your business and you
• Having someone you are accountable to therefore achieving the goals you have put in place
• Partner with people/associates who have the strengths you don’t

We also discussed what our “driver” is, now most of us have set up our business as we are passionate about it which is great and you can really tell the enthusiasm when we talk about what we do, but we all need to think what we want to get out of it, is it a better work life balance or to earn a bigger income to help support your family? Whatever it is really stay focused to make sure you get their (don’t forget your Board of Directors if you get stuck).”

dma’s Step Up Forum Coaching Groups are aimed at small business owners who primarily work alone, and I know that a feeling of isolation and overwhelm can take hold that leads to indecision and procrastination.

Joining a dynamic and supportive coaching group will give you a safe yet inspiring environment in which to brainstorm and work through areas on which you are stuck or want accountability to help you take action and step up your business.

To find out how you can start stepping up and to book your place on my free taster on Wednesday 12 September, visit www.stepupforum.co.uk.

My recent blog gave you some tips for loving face to face networking! As you know I network face to face quite a lot as it allows me to meet new people and build relationships with those I already know. It also gives me feedback about what business owners need.

What I am hearing is that many owner managers need support from others where they can share business issues and ideas in a confidential environment to help their growth. Networking alone does not meet this need as you could be with potential clients who want to know what you can do to help them and their clients – not what is preventing you from doing it!

If you want to grow your network and achieve better results through group accountability and support, dma’s Kingshill Step Up Forum will meet those needs for your business and personal growth – at a price you can afford!

LAUNCH OF KINGSHILL MONTHLY COACHING GROUP

Whether you want to move forward in small steps or leaps and bounds, dma’s monthly coaching group will help increase your knowledge and learning  in a safe and confidential environment that provides camaraderie,  fun and stimulus for growth!

Following the continued success of my Tunbridge Wells group, I am launching a second group in Kingshill. I am holding a free taster meeting on Wednesday 12 September where you can meet me and other prospective members.

Click here to find out more and to catch that EARLY BIRD BONUS for this week only…

In my last blog, I offered 5 simple steps to help you assess the fitness of your business before you start considering growth and even just to make sure it’s healthy.

A traditional SWOT health check will help you take a closer look. I offer a few questions under the four quadrants to get you thinking but you will think about a lot more as you work through this mini SWOT.

 Strengths of your business:
• What is your Unique Selling Point? What do you offer that your competitors don’t?
• What is your business good at? Where do you excel?
• What resources do you have in place that strengthens your business? Eg finance, people.
• What personal strengths do you bring to the business?
• How well do you know your (current and potential) customers?

Weaknesses of your business
• What areas of your business, service or product can be improved upon? Eg processes, people management.
• What are specific areas of challenge for you and the business and what impact do they have on your business?
• How much does your business rely on you or any other person? What if something happened to you?

Potential threats to your business
• Who are your competitors?
• How much don’t you know about your customers?
• What external threats are facing you? (eg interest rates, new competitors)
• What is the impact of these on your business?

 Finally, what opportunities are there for you out there?
• What are your competitors doing that you could be doing?
• What are the trends in the market place?
• What can you outsource to give you more time to plan and do what you do best?
• What technological advances could you be utilising better?
• How do you plan to keep ahead of the field?
 
Now to action!

What is the one thing you’re going to commit to do in the next 7 days that will take you one step closer to eliminating one of those weaknesses? I would love to hear about it!

Do you want support to STEP UP your business?

Join a monthly forum of success orientated Kent business owners ready to brainstorm and take action on issues preventing you Stepping Up your business! Click here for more information and to register your interest.

In my last 2 blogs I talked about the importance of being clear on your strengths and values to help give focus on what you want from your business – the real foundation from which to build upon the success of your business. Once you have this foundation, and before you start building further, you need to check what’s built on it already – your reality check or health check.

I carried out this check on my business when I realised that I was relying too heavily (and almost solely) on one income stream. I knew I had to make a shift to create a coaching business with multiple income streams to offer more diverse services to my clients and importantly to give me security of income.

Set yourself up for success

My business model is pretty straightforward compared to many small businesses that have a number of products and services. The following simple, yet key, steps will get you started on clarifying where you are, before you start setting goals for growth so you can set yourself up for success.

1. Know your financial position. Don’t abdicate responsibility for your financial security to your accountant, they will not want you to. Work with them to make sure you have an awareness of your financial situation, your break-even point for survival, your turnover, cash flow and the profit you are making. Ask for expert financial advice or help in understanding the overall picture and how the way you are doing business impacts the bottom line.

2. What is your current organisation structure? Are you clear who has responsibility for what – and do they have the authority they need to deliver?

3. Review what products and service you offer and to whom you offer them. Know as well as possible the profit margin you get on each service and product so you can make informed decisions if a product or service is worth providing.

4. Take a good look at your client base. Look at the profit, not just the income you get from each client to make sure they are worth keeping!

5. Finally think about the part you play in the running of the business and analyse it against your strengths and values. Is there a good match?

In next week’s blog I will be looking at a SWOT analysis with you. Many will have carried one out within their business and it is an invaluable tool for recording where you are now and planning for growth.

Do you want support to STEP UP your business?

Join a monthly forum of success orientated Kent business owners ready to brainstorm and take action on issues preventing you Stepping Up your business! Click here for more information and to register your interest.

Sounds like common sense I know – but having real clarity on your products, services and your niche market will provide a solid foundation for an effective marketing plan.

Integral to your business vision, must be clarity about what you have to offer, and to whom you are likely to sell it. Addressing the following questions will help focus you on what action to take before you are ready to invest in marketing.

Be aware if you are product or market driven:

• Do you have a product you want to get to market?
• Do you want to create a product that the market needs?
• Is it a combination of both?

Know your target market:

• What do they look like? Actually visualise and describe your prospects so you get into their head and see your company and services through their eyes.
• Where do they hang out? Where and how can you get access to your prospects?
• How much choice do they have? Which of your competitors can they also buy from?
• What is most important to your customers in the way they do business?

What products and services you have to offer:

• What solution do you offer your client? Focus on benefits not just features.
• What is your pricing structure? Know the profit margin for each product/service
• Is your pricing and profit margin dependant on your client eg residential or business, small business or corporate?

You may need to do more market research and scrutiny of your accounts before you can answer all of the above in detail. But once you have, you will be better positioned to write a marketing plan that ensures you reach a target market for whom you have a solution that they want and need to buy.

*****

Denise has designed a comprehensive coaching programme based on the work she does with her VIP clients. The programme may be accessed on line and/or through her 1-2-1 programme. Contact Denise for an informal discussion to find out more or visit www.denisemolloy.co.uk. Even better, come and meet her at Kent 2020 7 April at Detling Show Ground

For those of you that are local to Kent, please do come and see me at the Kent Business Show at Detling.

It will be a chance to meet you in person or an opportunity to catch up since we last spoke.

You will find me on stand 004c, where you also will have the opportunity to win a strengths profile and discuss the findings in a 1-2-1 coaching session to help you to maximise your potential and build your business success.

Entrance is FREE so do come along and network. Here’s the link

Hope to see you there!

Denise