Tips for Business Owners How to Keep Your Online Business Image Healthy

As the famous line goes, "It takes 20 years to build a reputation and five minutes to ruin it." For this reason and many more, there is often no worse feeling for an entrepreneur than to see the brand he or she spent years building tarnished by a bad review online.

Below are few things every business owner can follow in order to maintain their business image intact.

1.    Become transparent

One of the main cause of bad reviews is because of hidden or understated shortcomings.

Maybe a business doesn’t ship products as quickly as customers expect, or maybe a business’s return policy doesn’t allow for refunds and that fact is buried in the fine print. In any case, these businesses are often worried that customers won’t buy from them in the first place if they don’t hide their weaknesses. The result might be a slight bump in sales today, but disappointed customers won’t come back and will write bad reviews, resulting in fewer customers in the long term.

What we’ve seen work is a policy of transparency—businesses that end up getting the best reviews are those that make their weaknesses clear upfront, but explain them and then do their best to overcome them.

So if you’re a small business, you might explain that you’re an independent or family-owned shop and do your best to get orders out on time, but sometimes things can take a bit longer, and ask them to please excuse the delay upfront. That way, if you do get your shipment out on time, the customer is pleasantly surprised.

Businesses have found that being even a little more transparent upfront yields customers that are more forgiving, loyal, and likely to write positive reviews.

2.    Set up your online review profile before you get negative reviews

We all know that it’s impossible to please all our customers all the time. However, bad reviews do not have to hurt your business given the proper preparations.

So, instead of waiting for a bad review to appear and then scrambling to repair your online reputation, the best thing you can do is to get out in front of negative reviews by claiming and developing your online reputation as soon as possible.

That way, you can fill out all your contact information, tell your business’s unique story through text and pictures, and invite some of your customers to review your business. Having a well-developed online profile on review sites can be a valuable tool to help you generate new business, but also should your business receive a negative review, it can be read in the boarder context of your business.

3.    Be responsive

Businesses that respond to every review tend to get better reviews over time.

We recommend publicly thanking all reviewers regardless of how they’ve rated your business, because it communicates to existing and potential customers that you care, and it doesn’t just look like you’re doing damage control when you respond to a negative review because you’ve been engaging with all your customers all along.

Smart consumers can spot an engaged and customer-service oriented business from miles away, and are always happy to reward them with more business.

4.    Properly address negative reviews

For a small business owner, negative reviews can feel particularly painful and personal. However, if you respond the right way, it’s possible to not only prevent damage to your online reputation, but to improve it.

By engaging a reviewer and establishing a human connection, you can often help the situation and even change the customer’s mind. You’d be surprised how often a polite response to a bad review can result in the reviewer giving your business a second chance. If you feel like you can resolve a customer’s complaint, send a private message offering the resolution. Once the customer’s concern has been satisfied, politely ask the customer to reconsider their review.

If you are not able to resolve the customer’s issue, simply write a short and polite public response, thanking them for their business and feedback. If you can respond to the customer’s specific experience and mention any changes you may have made as a result, this could go far in earning trust and a second chance even if you are not able to resolve their issue.

Your response will also be read by other potential customers, who will be able to see your professionalism and commitment to providing all customers the best possible experience.

5.    Get free services as much as possible

Claiming and managing your basic business profile on review sites should be free. Avoid services that charge you to remove reviews or complaints, or otherwise promise to “manage your reputation.”

Also avoid sites that charge you by the number of reviews you collect and force you to collect a certain number of reviews in order to earn higher star ratings. These services are not aligned with the success of your business.

What Business Owners Need to know so That Shoppers Make a Successful Transaction

Think of this scenario --someone goes into a supermarket buy groceries. They fill their shopping cart with milk and eggs and everything they need for the week. They start heading for a checkout line, but that moment, their phone rings.

They answer the call, get distracted for a few minutes and just wander out of the store and drive away from the supermarket leaving the full cart behind. Have you ever seen something like this? Probably not. But the situation with abandoned carts in online stores is no different. According to a report, carts are abandoned about 67 percent of the time, on average. This number is too serious to just ignore.

Should you try to coax wayward shoppers back to their cart to finish their purchase? Or maybe focus on attracting new, more confident customers? To make the right decision, think of two metrics: retention rate and lifetime value. For an online store, it’s extremely important to do what you can to get people to finish their transactions.

Master the technical side

1.     Make sure your online store is fast. At every step, nothing should lag or freeze. Every second of the delay during the loading of a page increases the probability of purchase abandonment by 7 percent.

2.     Make sure your website has a convenient, mobile responsive design. Think about customers that will visit your site on smartphones. Perhaps, it will look like this:

It is unlikely that any mobile user will stay on such website for a long time. 

3.     Ensure the safety of a purchase. By safety, I mean not only an SSL certificate but also the protection of a site by a reliable antivirus. A customer should be sure that a purchase won’t lead to any issues.

4.     Make your cart easily editable. What if a customer suddenly decides to buy several units of a product? Or add another item? You mustn’t refuse them in such cases. Editing a cart should be as easy as adding goods to it.

5.     Use a cart that will remember its content. If your customer has put products into the cart, and then switched to another website, their order should remain active. It well may be that in a few minutes the customer will return and complete the purchase.

6.     Eliminate hyperlinks in a cart. Nothing should distract your customer from making a purchase. Hyperlinks may improve interlinking on your website, but they will definitely have an adverse effect on sales. You don’t want that, do you?

7.     Get rid of pop-ups in an order placement mode. Remember that any distractions can be harmful. If a visitor is already ready to buy and has opened a cart, is it worth offering them another product? There is no guarantee that he or she won’t start doubting and go to seek the advice of their other half (and then a phone will ring, and so on). Generally, cross-marketing can be useful, but everything should be used in moderation.

8.     Simplify the process. The fewer steps, the more chances to achieve the goal. Keep in mind 27 percent of buyers that refuse from a purchase because of a too complex ordering process.

Other best practices for online sales

1.     Offer a money back guarantee. Anything can happen. Your readiness to “forgive and forget” will be highly appreciated by a buyer. But before you promise a refund, think it through and make sure the specifics are easy to find on your website. Customers are more likely to complete a purchase when they know your return policy.

2.     Use visuals in your shopping cart. Instead of just showing a product listing, include an image of the item as well.

3.     Add the most recent review of a chosen product to an order placement page. Even if a customer is already ready to buy a product, they will be pleased to know that someone else is left satisfied with the same purchase.

4.     Integrate a purchase progress indicator. This is rather an optional, perfectionist-oriented feature. Similar to a progress bar when you’re filling out a survey—it might compel people who really don’t like to leave things undone. An incomplete purchase? Only in a nightmare!

5.     Offer a discount to customers that have left a cart. Send an offer with a discount or a free shipment option to their email. Such a gift can convince a buyer that doubts. 54 percent of buyers will finish a purchase if they are offered a discount while placing an order! Remember to specify how long the discount will be valid.

Try to evaluate your online store as if you were a buyer. When in doubt, ask for help from a professional digital marketer with experience helping people optimize their websites for sales.

Practical Tips on How to Cut Expenses on Your Business

As the owner of your own business, it's normal for you to look for ways cut costs and raise your profit margin. There are some obvious ways to save money. You’ve heard them all before—suggestions like shopping around for the best prices on everything from office furniture to cell phone contracts, barter for services with clients, and keep hiring to a minimum.

Check out below some of the creative ways to save money, which even some expert entrepreneurs can pick up a tip or two from.

Outsource front desk tasks

Rather than bringing on a full time employee to answer phones or handle emails, you can outsource these administrative tasks to virtual businesses. For example, you can hire a virtual assistant on a part-time basis to handle your emails. You can also outsource your receptionist position to handle your incoming calls, set a voicemail for you, and send you email alerts as specified. There are several pricing options to choose from, but compared to hiring someone full time, you’ll save money.

Try shared workspaces

If you’re just starting out, you could check out the possibility of renting shared workspace. A lot of cities are now renting out space within a building for this purpose, since nowadays so many businesses are run primarily by a laptop and smartphone. You typically have access to conference rooms so you can meet with clients and have a workspace where you can get online, make calls, and be productive.

It’s certainly cheaper than renting your own space and it’s a good way to network with other business professionals who use the office too.

Use cheaper phone options

Cell phone bills can be expensive, especially if you’re paying for several lines. While many businesses can’t survive without cell phones, there are ways to keep costs down. For instance, use long distance apps like Viber, which takes away from your data rather than your minutes. If texting costs are adding up, try WhatsApp, an app that enables you to text for free for the first year, after which it costs $1 a year.

You can also use Skype, which offers video conferencing, or GoToMeeting for conference calls. Both offer free options.

Practice energy efficiency measures

The majority of businesses are now focused on implementing measures that reduces the burden on the planet’s resources—and the savings soon mount up with minimal impact on cost. Here are a few ideas:

• Everyone knows the first thing to do is to replace old light bulbs with the modern LED equivalents. The cost has dramatically fallen in recent years, and these bulbs save 80% over their traditional counterparts.
• Keeping heating and cooling systems at optimal levels is an easy way to save 10% per year in fuel costs.
• Ensuring windows are closed, computers are turned off when not in use and all lighting gets switched off over night is another easy fix to save money.

When it’s all added up, these simple changes could save between 10—20% per year on fuel bills. In fact, they go further to say that these savings are the equivalent of increasing revenues by 5%!

Question every expense line

It’s easy to get sucked into buying the latest gadget, upgrading equipment, refurbishing office space, buying a new line of product or upgrading your company vehicle fleet. It’s far cheaper to maintain items that have been proven to work, but might just be last year’s model.

Saving money here is about being practical and almost Scrooge-like in your outlook. Resisting the temptation to add costs to your P&L each month can bring outstanding rewards at the end of the financial year.

Look at your largest costs first and see if savings could be made or a simple renegotiation in payment terms is available. A change in financing could free up cash for other projects. For example, leasing vehicles rather than purchasing them outright could be a solution in the right circumstances.

Improve productivity

For many of us, product and employee costs are the largest expense line. Improving the productivity of employees by squeezing more from less should produce profitability increases. You can manage this in several ways:

• Invest in tools and software that assist the employee with their work so that less people are required to increase output.
• Put off hiring new people when someone leaves or retires and redistribute their workload among existing employees. This saves salary costs as well as potential recruitment fees.
• Improve working conditions to match the culture of the company. Small changes in the environment often have a dramatic effect on staff morale.

If you have a very fast-growing business, this approach might not be feasible, but it’s wise to always question the need to bring additional FTEs (Full-Time Equivalents) on board. That’s a sign of good management and cost control.

Helpful Accounting Guidelines to Keep Your Business Healthy

When running a small business, you have to make sure you stay focused on accounting. If you don’t manage debt, receivables, and marketing expenses accurately, your company will sink before it grows.

You can save your company by implementing simple bookkeeping strategies. Here are five accounting tips to help grow your business.

1.    Weigh the options of bookkeeper vs. DIY accounting

Though entrepreneurs might feel ready to act as head of accounting, sales, and marketing at the same time to cut costs, it may help to hire a bookkeeper. It can help you to know someone with experience and deeper understanding is working on your books. To start, you can hire someone part time or as a freelancer, so you’re 

not paying a full time wage for these services.

2.    Don't allow clients to get away without paying their balances

Seeing a large amount in the receivables column is a good thing, but the money doesn’t really count until it is in your bank account. Don’t let clients avoid regular payments. Stand firm and insist you receive payment for past orders before letting them have more materials or services. The receivables department is crucial in keeping your company afloat.

3.    Keep accounts receivable payments separate from borrowed funds.

Small business owners need financial backing and/or loans for startup capital, marketing campaigns, and other initial things in the early days. To make sure the loans don’t appear in the receivables, use software that separates income from borrowed funds. Don’t lose sight of what is yours and what needs paying back.

4.    Calculate a minimum monthly profit.

When planning how much it takes to keep a small business running, the numbers can get complicated. Devise an accurate system of expenses and regular obligations so you know exactly the minimum income you need every month. Because income can be the easiest to calculate, make a strict target you’ll need to earn. Without that exactitude, accounting becomes confusing and your business can suffer.

5.    Detail daily expenses so you can budget for the coming weeks.

It’s a good idea for business owners to keep records of everyday expenses they incur in the company. Instead of calculating expenses every two weeks for payroll purposes, focus on every day or every week. This can help you have a better idea of where finances are each week and how much money you’ll need to budget for in the upcoming weeks.

How to Build and Retain Business Relationships With Millennial Customers

Millennials (18-29 years old), or the “always connected generation,” are 80 million strong. Their estimated spending is $600 billion and they are responsible for roughly 21 percent of consumer discretionary power—certainly substantial enough to warrant marketing attention from anyone dedicated to being successful.

For those who want to tap into this Millennial potential, there are four keys to building and retaining those customers: authenticity, digital messages, multi-channel marketing, and incentives and rewards.

1.    Authenticity

Authenticity will sell more than ads.

In a study held by the communications and public relations firm of Cohn & Wolfe, consumers consider a brand to be authentic when the company delivers on what it promises, protects consumer data, respects privacy, and interacts with their customers with transparency and integrity.

A brand’s sales pitch is of little to no importance to Millennials. They are concerned with the brand’s actions, realized quality, and community awareness. These traits can be referred to in a broader category deemed “Customer Service/Relations.”

2.    Digital messages

Millennials respond well to social media messages and marketing. The 62 percent of Millennials that won’t be inspired by a simple TV commercial are more likely to become loyal customers if a brand engages them on social media. A brand’s social media presence has become so important that we even have awards for the most buzz-worthy. In fact, the Shorty Awards is in its eighth year, and it’s only growing.

The Shorty Awards celebrates brands and people who have gone above and beyond to convey excellent content using social media. Platforms such as Snapchat, Instagram, Periscope, Facebook Video, and YouTube are being used to promote more than products or services; they are new formats that allow brands and people to connect, communicate, interact, and share.

3.    Multi-channel marketing

It isn’t good enough to have a presence on one or two social media platforms. There may be popular channels such as Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram, but great marketing occurs on as many social media channels as is necessary to reach the maximum potential target audience. Multi-channel loyalty works in the same way. Offering more than one way to build loyalty will draw a larger, more loyal audience.

Just as a broker suggests diversifying a financial portfolio, so should a brand diversify its marketing presence. Millennials are the most brand loyal generation; Elite Daily and Crowdtwist released a report revealing 50.5 percent Millennials claim extreme loyalty to their brands. When brands emerge on multiple social media platforms, they increase their visibility to the public. If the brand is authentic, people will take notice. Once a following begins, more people will flock to it and stand by that brand as “their” brand.

Many of the decisions we make are influenced by the people around us. Audiences will trust a brand that has been vouched for by family and friends, thus creating an online word-of-mouth marketing campaign that promotes itself. Multi-channel loyalty breeds a stronger connection with consumers, who in turn have a greater incentive to involve everyone in their social circle.

4.    Incentives and rewards

Millennials want more from their brand’s incentives and rewards as well. They want something that is shareable! When a brand offers an included and desired experience, it naturally generates organic exposure necessary to the social media platforms.

Brand loyalty relies on total brand equity—the brand represents a promise to customers and employees. Offering a strong positive experience to all parties involved directly results in the advancement of growth goals. Rewards should be transparent and simple to use to maintain loyalty.

Building and retaining loyalty with Millennials does not need to be difficult. It calls on brands to be personally available to their customers as well as define themselves through interaction in lieu of general claims.

It may be difficult to keep up with every new emerging platform, so focus on the platforms mostly used by your target audience. Millennials want to interact and create a story, not just make a purchase. So, give them an emotional connection, a chance to share, and in return, they will be loyal, share with their social circles, and remember the positive experience they were given.