Business News Australia.com.au

Managing phone calls when working part time

Do you want to create a perception of being available full time whilst working part time? Here are a few tips on managing phone calls and emails that have served me well along the way.

At some point in your soloist journey, you may want to create a perception to your market of being full-time, whilst only working part time. For most of us, this perception of availability is important as it’s linked to feeling credible and legitimate as a business.

I have been in this phase twice during my personal journey.

The first time was during the start up phase, when I held down a four day a week normal job whilst building my coaching business.

Secondly (and currently), following the birth of my first child I chose to take six months maternity leave from clients and then only return two days a week.

One of the challenges has been keeping on top of and managing phone calls and emails when working part-time, while still create the perception that I’m a full-time business.

Here’s what I do.

Managing phone calls
1. If an unknown number calls your mobile when you are home with children, let it go to message bank, although try and answer the call later that same day.

2. Structure times that you can return calls in peace and quiet. If you still have your “office job” this might be at lunchtime. If you have children it might be during their sleep time. Or respond via email instead.

3. Consider a Virtual Phone Number - this can be especially helpful if you work from home and don’t want children picking up a business-related call. A virtual number can be as simple as a voicemail that then sends an audio file to your computer. Or you can have a service where a person will answer the calls for you.

4. Set realistic yet professional standards for returning calls. Your voicemail might let a caller know that you are currently unavailable however you will return their call within 24 hours. That will reduce the pressure you feel to call back straight away whilst making the caller feel they will be taken care of.

Managing emails
1. I never let business emails leave my inbox after 7pm or on weekends. I don’t want my clients to think I am always available and I want to project an image of a business that operates in business hours. Does this mean I never check emails after 7pm or on the weekend? No … but what I do is draft all my replies, save them in my draft folder, and then hit send the following morning.

2. Block out set times to respond to emails as you will be more efficient working in a block of time instead of constantly jumping in and out.

3. Consider having an auto-responder that will outline what response time will be to emails – 12 hours, 24 hours, 48 hours … the number doesn’t really matter. The important factor is creating expectations for the people emailing you that you can easily meet.

Only being available part-time as a soloist can definitely feel like a juggling act. The clearer you can be with yourself about standards and processes, the easier it will be.

Do you have any tips on managing phone calls and emails when working part time?

Post them via a comment.

AUTHOR -
Linda Anderson is a Certified Professional Coach dedicated to helping people live bold and rewarding lives. Linda has an energetic and direct style of coaching which suits people who like to be challenged.

http://www.flyingsolo.com.au/

Business benchmarking is a powerful tool used by managers to help answer questions such as:

-does your business achieve the same level of profit as other businesses in your industry?
-does your business spend too much (or too little) on rent, advertising and wages?
-is your business performing as well as it should?

Benchmarking data can help you to:

-calculate financial ratios.
-analyse business performance
-compare the results achieved by your business with other similar businesses, and
-conduct a “what if” analysis.

Using a benchmarking approach, you will be able to:

-find out how well your organisation is performing by comparing it to other similar organisations
-measure and improve the performance of your business in key areas such as sales, profit and expenses
-identify the strengths and weaknesses of your business
-highlight opportunities for making your business more competitive.

How are benchmarks obtained?

Business benchmarks are produced from financial surveys of Australian industry and professional sectors. The benchmarking data used on this site has been supplied by FMRC Benchmarking and is the latest available data for these industry sectors. Clients should be wary of evaluating business performance using outdated versions of benchmarking data.

Benchmarking uses prominent financial indicators to evaluate business performance but these are not exhaustive. Many other indicators can be used to determine business performance and clients are encouraged to make use of these in addition to benchmarking. The statistics reported in these benchmarks cannot be considered to be representative of all the enterprises in a particular sector; rather they provide a guide to evaluation of an individual business or practice.

Who do I contact if I would like more information?
http://www.business.qld.gov.au/dsdweb/v4/apps/web/content.cfm?id=3216

Here is an interesting video tutorial regarding Twitter for business. Enjoy!

Twitter For Business - Information - Mark Shaw

Sourced from - http://www.youtube.com/user/yourBusinessChannel#p/u/248/WEnM_2O0akY

Tips for using social media websites

The explosion in popularity of social media websites has created many new ways to advertise your business, but it can be difficult working out how to take advantage. Here are a few tips to get you started.

Understand the different types of social media websites

Here’s a summary of what the different types of social media websites do.

Social bookmarking: A social bookmarking site allows you to add your favourite websites so that friends and other users can see them and comment on them. Delicious and Digg are two examples.

Social networks: These are social media websites that work around building communities. They allow you to create or join groups, make contacts and communicate in a variety of ways with the other people in your network. Some of these sites are specifically targeted at certain groups of people. For example, Linked In is purely focused on business networking.

Social media: YouTube and Flickr, are the two most popular examples. They allow you to create a page or “channel” of videos or images. Other users can “follow” your channel and contributions are often ranked by popularity.

Blogs: A blog (short for web log) in its simplest form is a journal. Blogs traditionally have one small article or “post” per day, which is archived as time moves on. The social aspect of blogging is the comment function, which allows a visitor to write a response to any of the posts in the blog.

Micro blogs: Twitter is the best example of this relatively new medium. Twitter lets you post very short little text messages “tweets”, telling your friends or family what you are doing. For example, “Just had a great coffee..” or “In an interesting conference.” Twitter lets you to follow other people’s tweets, and allows you to manage your tweets from your mobile phone or hand held device.

Forums: These have been around for a long time. They are websites that allow discussion on particular topics. The small business forum at flyingsolo.com.au/forums/ is a great example.

Do some research!

Have a look around at some of the different social media websites. Read what other people are saying and see how they are contributing. You need to have a think about which ones might be suitable for your business. Are the participants likely to become your customers? Might they be potential suppliers or perhaps they could offer you advice?

A great way to promote yourself and your business as an expert in your field is to join a forum that relates to your business. For example, a landscape architect might start participating in a gardening forum by answering questions and helping people with useful advice. This situation puts the landscape architect in direct contact with people who are thinking about improving their gardens.

Don’t forget to set up your forum profile and signature so that people can contact you easily.

Blogs are probably the next port of call. Commenting on blogs is another way to build your online reputation and generate interest in your business. Again, making sure that people can find a link to your site from your comment is very important.

If you have the ability to create videos or audio pod casts, then a site like YouTube or blubrry.com could offer some great promotional opportunities.

Where should I start?

Create a list of social media websites that you are going to participate in. Start with two or three and make sure that you give them some genuine attention. Set aside at least an hour two or three times per week to network in your new world of social media.

You’ll be surprised at the results. Do it for a week and let us know how you go.

Source : - http://www.flyingsolo.com.au/
Author - Tristan Boyd http://www.flyingsolo.com.au/p288748406_Tips-for-using-social-media-websites.html is a website and internet marketing specialist.
Through his business, Boyd Design, he provides cost effective and powerful solutions to SMEs and soloists.

Source : http://www.flyingsolo.com.au/

Oh you’re so excited! The phone’s rung and the potential client wants you to do a BIG project for them. If they accept your proposal, that’s the rent and food for the next six months, plus a holiday, and that new computer.

You spend hours on the phone with your potential client, answering questions and giving advice. You call in your team of solo alliances and suppliers that will be needed, to help prepare a whiz-bang proposal. They happily give their time on the promise of a “big” job.

Finally, you’ve dotted the I’s and crossed the T’s, and maybe prepared charts and graphs. Your team has spent time and money creating some slick computer linked examples of what they can do. You put the proposal in a smart presentation folder, say a blessing, and courier it in with copies for all concerned.

Now comes the eager nail-biting wait for some response.

But nothing!

In spite of your emails and phone calls, no response. Not a word. Finally, either directly or through the grapevine, you do get a response with one of the following reasons for your failure to get the job:

Someone else got the job. Maybe it turns out yours was the third “compulsory” quote called for and the result had already been decided.

The client decided to do the job, or part of the job, in-house after all. More than likely using all your information and expertise.

They are not going ahead at this time and were just looking to see what was possible. Chances are no-one mentioned this was just an exploratory tyre kicking exercise.

Full of impotent rage and disappointment you spit chips and wipe the egg of your face when you confront your disillusioned suppliers.

Has any of this every happened to you? It’s happened to us and so we don’t get caught again, we’ve introduced some guidelines and policies for dealing with potential clients.

Questions to ask:
How many quotes have been called for and have they all been given the same brief? If at all possible find out who are your competitors.
Do you have a budget in mind? This gives you the opportunity to state your rates.
When are you thinking of doing this? If the answer is too vague, time to be wary.
You will need a policy in place before you start the bidding conversation with your potential client. Then you will know when to draw the line around the value of your time and information.

If there is a lot of brain picking going on, decide on and give a clear indication of how much advice preparation work you are able to do as an initial proposal. Then if they want more detailed information, but are not yet willing to commit, you have to start charging.
Find out exactly what the initial brief is and don’t over-deliver unasked for with bells and whistles in the hope of making a great impression.
With small business clients, talk budget and what you charge early in the conversation and before you get into an informationfest. Find out if they can afford your rates and, if not, refer them on to somebody else. This could save you a lot of time dealing with enquiries that are simply not your market yet retain good will.
What are your tips to avoid wasting time on jobs for potential clients that are never going to happen?

AUTHOR
Wendy Buckingham (http://www.flyingsolo.com.au/p179032142_Wendy-Buckingham.html) is a writer, speaker, coach and author of the Ready Set Goal Series. She is also co-owner of Class One Productions, a leading Australian producer of audio/video programs for business education.

It’s not easy to think about ideas as property, but for some businesses it’s vital. Most of us have had an idea for a new product or service only to dismiss, postpone, or neglect it. Sometimes we later find that others had the same idea, but took it to market before we did. By that time, it is too late for us to take advantage of the idea.

Ideas are relatively easy to come by, but inventions are more difficult. It takes knowledge, time, money, and effort to refine an idea into a workable invention, even on paper. Turning an invention into an innovation - a new product accepted by the marketplace - takes a lot of effort and a little luck. There are substantial barriers in the path of those who pursue innovation. Overcoming them requires careful planning and plenty of input from others.

Hundreds of thousands of inventors and innovators file each year for protection under U.S. patent, trademark and copyright laws. However, it can be hard to decide which of the three vehicles is most appropriate for the protection of a particular invention. Although a single product or service may require a patent, a trademark, and a copyright, each category protects a distinct aspect of a creative work or expression.

Patents, copyrights and trademarks, as well as know-how or trade secrets, are often collectively referred to as intellectual property. Many firms have such property without even being aware of it or of the need to take measures to protect it.

Many people’s notions of intellectual property are unrealistic. Some believe, for example, that simply having a patent on a product will enable one to succeed in the marketplace. Consequently, they may spend thousands of dollars to obtain the exclusive rights to market something that no one wants or can afford to buy. Others may decide that intellectual property protection is not worth the trouble.

People who may not be interested in protecting their own rights must still take precautions to avoid infringing on the rights of others. This calls for more than the avoidance of copying. Some copying is unavoidable; but one can easily infringe on the rights of others without deliberately imitating specific features of goods or services.

Source : http://www.lupra.com/
Lupra.com is a non-profit website that contains hundreds of articles about doing business online and many other business-related issues.

Are you looking at buying a small business? Perhaps you are a business owner looking to snap up an additional business or are craving an escape from the rat race. Either way, there are seven sins all potential purchasers must avoid…

1. Love

It’s easy to put on rose tinted glasses and fall in love with a business. Whilst it’s important that you love what you do, when buying a small business it’s vital to separate fantasy from reality and look at the cold hard figures. The tough love comes when you have to place head over heart…and make the decision on whether or not to proceed.

2. Dishonesty

We all go into things with the best of intentions, but can you see yourself in the business in six years or even six months time? It’s hard to stay passionate forever, but if there is any danger of you having a change of heart it’s a sure-fire way to kill your business stone dead. So whatever you do, be honest with yourself.

3. Ignorance

Would you employ someone to fly a plane without training? No! So would you expect someone to be able to run a business with no knowledge of the business’s industry? Believe it or not countless numbers of people buy small businesses without any experience. Ignorance is bliss anywhere but in a small business! If you want to run a book shop go and work in one first, if you want to run a restaurant learn to be a waiter. If you want to fail, walk blindly into a small business – the bliss will fade pretty soon!

4. Greed

If the first thing you look for in a business is the net profit, a world of disappointment awaits you. You must view the business in totality – how it fits with your lifestyle, how well you are suited to it and how it will work for you in the future. Money is a drug that can make you happy, but it will only numb the pain temporarily if you aren’t doing something you enjoy.

5. Narcissism

I once knew a small business owner that bought a chain of cafes because he thought it would make him look like Jamie Oliver and help him to pull chicks. It didn’t work, and after six months neither did his chain of cafes. Everyone thinks it’s cool to run your own business, but if you’re doing it to pamper your ego, you’re doing it for the wrong reasons.

6. Sloth

Finding a good business is hard. Finding a lemon is really easy! Sticking your head in the sand and not performing rigorous due diligence will lead you straight down Lemon Street to the best lemon in town. What will save you from buying a lemon is if you are stringent with your research. Get out and ask questions, do surveys, speak to neighbouring businesses, talk to the council. Get a tight fisted accountant and an anally retentive lawyer (that won’t be hard). You can never do too much research when buying a small business.

7. Trust

“Oh the vendor told me it’s one of the best businesses he’s ever seen”, “They don’t have proper accounts because they make so much money in cash”…beware! The vendor and the agent are not your friends, they are out to sell a business and this should be remembered at all times.

Family and friends, whilst appreciated for their loving support, will only say nice, encouraging things to you; so please don’t buy a business based on what your mum saw on Dragons’ Den.

What lessons or observations about buying a small business have you got to share?

Source - http://www.flyingsolo.com.au/

Author - Craig Reid of -  www.ninjaconsulting.com.au - Sydney, NSW

Tasmanian business women are invited to participate in Regional Women in Business Week, running from 13 to 22 August. A range of events is being held across Tasmania and includes a virtual chatroom conference.

Events during the week are on a range of business topics and industries including:

• networking
• innovation
• business and life success
• handmade arts
• farming.

To download the full guide of events, and for more information, visit the FarmPoint website.
more news…

Eligible small businesses only have two weeks left to submit their applications for round three of the Textile, Clothing and Footwear (TCF) Small Business Program.

The program is competitive and merit-based with a maximum of $50,000 funding available for each project. To be eligible, TCF small businesses or consortiums must have fewer than 20 employees, and manufacture their products, or design products for manufacture, within Australia.

Applications close at 5pm (AEDST) on 15 February 2008. For more information and to download an application form, visit the AusIndustry website or phone 13 28 46.

Launched as part of Workplace Safe Week in Tasmania, the Get moving at work Kit provides information on how you as a business, can take action to get your workplace fit, healthy and productive. 

Produced by the Premier’s Physical Activity Council with assistance from WorkCover Tasmania, the Kit can assist your businesses in addressing health and wellbeing issues and includes information on:

• how to get started
• looking at your bottom line
• health and wellbeing programs
• resources and case studies.

For more information on the Kit or to obtain a copy, visit the Get Moving Tasmania website.