If you cannot sail, float

Running a business is a tough job. About 80 percent of small to medium enterprises fail within the first five years. These failures are attributed to various factors including but not limited to poor structure and unavailability of funding. The numbers tell a sad story, but there’s still the 20 percent that succeed. Your business can bounce back and stay afloat with the following measures.

Secure your cash-flow

To state the obvious, money has to come in from somewhere. I steered clear of investors in the first few months after starting REACH by saving up for over 6 months. Depending on the kind of business you run, you might choose to go a different route to find some capital – this could be sourced from your family, investors or the banks. Business ventures all need funding. The next step, of course, is how you spend this money.

Track the numbers

How much are you spending monthly? On what? How has it improved your business? If your business is still budding, you really don’t need that fancy (and expensive) employee weekend retreat. Instead, push the money into building your team, your brand, rewarding loyal customers, your sales and so much more that’s crucial to your business thriving. And when your business yields those returns, then you can reward yourself.

How much did it cost you to acquire each customer? How long did it take to convert? Lucky for small businesses, many free analytics tools exist to do just that. Make it a habit to track and assess your efforts and respond to the numbers as soon as you can, afterall, numbers don’t lie.

You cannot grow what you do not measure.

Focus on quality

This applies to your product and your human resources. You don’t want to skimp on quality hires, just because you want to save money. Poor hires will drag you and your business down. Consider the money you spend, an investment in your business and watch your enterprise flourish.

The same goes for your product or service. Clients will always appreciate good quality because it translates into value for their money. Have a clear value proposition – even if you are in a saturated market, find it. Set yourself apart from your competitors and make sure your customers never stop hearing and experiencing why you’re better. Which would you rather have: a N500 pair of slippers you have to replace every week? Or a N1500 pair that lasts a year?

Tighten customer service

It might seem cliche, but the customer really is king. Never forget, your business exists to meet a need. Keep your customers happy and your business will stay afloat. If you’re at the stage of your business where you are the team, get yourself a free Customer Relationship Management tool that simplifies your work. You should be accessible, timely and must help them solve their problem.

B2B or B2C or B2B2C, remember that people buy trust. Build a relationship with your clients and show them that you’re paying attention. Like many things, people change, so as your clients evolve, let your service adapt to constantly meet their needs throughout the user lifecycle.

Above all, never forget why you went into business. Whatever the reason, let every step you take, keep you on the road to achieving that goal.

Kanu holds an MBA from Stanford University, a master’s in Journalism from NYU and a bachelor’s in Engineering from Calvin College. His career has included time at Konga, Amazon, The United Nations, Esquire, CNN, and Black Enterprise magazine. Armed with a strong conviction that you can live a great life no matter how much money you have, JR founded REACH Technologies, www.reach.africa. His company builds software to help young people and companies to manage and grow their money.