Diva Sales Tips

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1. Protect your life-force as the precious nectar it is–schedule your weekly massage/acupunture/chiropractic appointment; delegate as much as you can right away (don’t wait for ‘someday’); and be extraordinarily vigilant with your time–use the word ‘no’ a lot.

   Thank you, as always, for your newsletters, Miss Sales Diva!

   Blessings for all the new–and seasoned!–entrepreneurs,
   Gwynne

   Comment by Gwynne — August 25, 2010 @ 11:29 am

2. I offer some suggestions from my two unique perspectives. First from the perspective of an entrepreneur who has built a business from scratch, and made tons of mistakes (errr , rather, encountered many many many growing and learning opportunities), and secondly as a business consultant who works with clients providing them with solutions to their financing requirements.

   I would advise new entrepreneurs to tackle their business finances early, diligently, and head on.

   How?

   Write a business plan (it’s hard, very hard, but incredibly important), write a really conservative cash flow and budget, know all your costs (those you are paying now, and those you will have to pay later, like licenses, fees, taxes, overhead, payroll WCB etc), hire an accountant, PAY TAXES IN INSTALMENTS SO YOU ARE AHEAD OF THE GAME.

   DONT assume that you are making money, just because you have revenues. You must be brutally honest about the state of your company – you will thrive if you have up to date information about your financial situation, and can tackle challenges immediately rather than deferring them for ‘later’ (and we all know later never comes….cookies, maybe, but later, never.)

   Take off the rose coloured glasses, face facts, and rise to the challenge – it will be worth it!!!

   Comment by Angela Armstrong — August 25, 2010 @ 11:56 am

3. My advise is make sure you have really thought about the impact that starting a business will have on your life circle beyond the business. Everyone will be impacted, family, friends and in particular those close to you. The reality is that no one really believes it until they have started a business and seen the impact themselves, so not sure if anyone would ever follow this advise. Talk to as many people as you can about your business idea and really LISTEN to what they have to say, especially the comments you view as negative. If you decide to proceed, I guarantee it will be the wildest ride you have ever been on.

   Comment by Angie kouritzin — August 25, 2010 @ 12:46 pm

4. My best advice is REALLY think about what you are doing and how much you are willing to give up to get it. Although you dream about working from home and spending more time with your family, usually the opposite is true, at least for the 1st few years. Ask yourself, I’m I willing to stay up until 3 or 4 a few nights a week to get done what I need to? Am I willing to work my butt off for free? Is my husband willing to pick up where I have to leave off to focus on my business? If it’s worth the hard work and missed soccer practices, then go for it. If not, then rethink it. Ask other entrepreneurs for the honest truth about what they have had to sacrifice to get where they are. And if in the end you weren’t successful…how would you feel?

   Comment by Sundi — August 25, 2010 @ 1:04 pm

5. Hello!

   I’m giving this piece of advice because I’ve already made the mistake and learned from it.

   Decide what systems you are going to need and then right from the start begin with software that incorporates them all so that you don’t end up like myself with 6 different systems that didn’t talk to one another. It causes so many lost details and mistakes to occur and eats up so much time. If you have a smooth running machine that you grow with it saves time, money, stress and so much more. Even if you don’t need all of the features to start it is WELL worth it to begin with the end in mind. And it’s NOT expensive.

   For example: I started out with Quickbooks. As we grew I needed a customer relations manager (crm) and then a shopping cart. Well, I wanted to send broadcasts, you know newsletters and things to keep in touch with my customers, so another system. Then I wanted an affiliate program. Well you can see where this is going. It was a nightmare and as I tried to find someone who could pull all of the systems into one I was at a loss. I got one quote for $15000 to network it all together and I was really stressed to the max.

   I did finally find a very cost effective system, all in one piece of software that is even more than I dreamed. The only difficult part is the learning curve. Our office now has to learn a new system. In the long run it is amazing and everyday we all say how much it eases our jobs. AND! by the time I canceled my other systems and the fees attached I was paying less!

   So, when it comes to all the systems that will run your business and make it successful begin with the future in mind.

   Hope this helps!

   Linda Napier
   Owner
   Tension Management Institute

   Comment by Linda Napier — August 25, 2010 @ 1:57 pm

6. I would advise what I myself am currently doing. Take a step back and get coaching advice and mentoring from women in business to help determine what it is you really enjoy doing so that you don’t waste time and energy on dead end ideas or businesses that are just not right for you. (Been there done that). We all want to jump in and go with all we’ve got, but it’s not the wise way to do things. We as women tend to find it frustrating to have to take it slow and wait for the right timing, but it really is (unfortunately, and we don’t like to hear it, believe it or admit it) the right and best thing to do. Find out what you’re really passionate about and enjoy doing that would be a good and profitable business, and then find out if it’s wanted!

   Comment by Kathrine — August 25, 2010 @ 5:11 pm

7. Make sure you really LOVE what you are doing. It is very rewarding to own your own business but it’s also a LOT of work!

   Comment by Marcie Paige — August 26, 2010 @ 10:26 am

8. Know your strengths and weaknesses. Spend time determining which area(s) you do not know/excel in, then make it a goal to either learn it, improve upon it, or hire/barter with someone else to do it for you. There are many aspects to running a business including bookkeeping, sales, marketing, PR, etc. There are many resources available online and offline to become knowledgeable in most of these areas. Word of caution: Don’t fall prey to scammy programs! Everybody and their grandmother is on the internet selling how-to information and “coaching” or “tutoring” programs, or they are recommending someone else’s information program (and getting paid to do it). Research. Research. Research.

   OH! And good luck and don’t give up!

   Comment by Gayle Wheeler — August 26, 2010 @ 2:43 pm

9. Have a plan, don’t be stubborn about getting help from experts from the get-go, and hire the best staff, without exception or compromise.

   Comment by Kristi Shmyr — August 27, 2010 @ 12:15 pm

10. Persistance is the key to every goal and you must really love doing whatever it is that you are doing.

    Comment by Angela Boyle — August 28, 2010 @ 11:30 pm

11. Considering I am still considering myself a newbie entrepreneur, I will share my biggest problem, which can act as a “What not to do” for all other newbies.

    My biggest issue, and I simply cannot stop committing this crime, is biting off more than I can chew. I began taking on clients before I had a website, business license, business card or even a dedicated email address! I cannot stop myself from bringing in new clients and I KNOW that I am not taking steps in their correct order.

    I’m just so excited to get started!

    So, my biggest piece of advice to New Entrepreneurs is to set the foundation before building your walls. Even if you just can’t wait to have those clients throwing all that money at you, the best thing you can do for yourself and for them is to make sure you have all the basics in place to keep a successful business running smoothly.

    If, like me, you jumped in the deep end without your water wings, stay positive and learn how to float. Before you know it you will be a champion swimmer; you just went about it a bit backwards.

    Good luck!

    Monique Nelson
    The Modern Business Consultant
    monique@themodernbusinessconsultant.com

    Comment by Monique Nelson — September 8, 2010 @ 3:35 pm

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