By Sharon Houlsey 1. Manage Accounts Receivable Be courteous, but firm with customers. Most small businesses do not have the cash flow that allows the luxury of providing lines of credit to their customers. Track accounts receivables closely, and follow-up on past due accounts. 2. Have A Plan Set goals, and have a plan with a time-line to achieve those goals. Support the plan with milestones and specific intended steps you need to take to attain the specified goals. 3. Analyze Data Determine what is working, as well as what is not working. Also, consider what may not currently be a priority, but should be! Why pay for advertising that does not result in sales? Analyze web logs and sales data, and determine your ROI (Return On Investment). Get rid of the things that are not working, and focus on the things that are 4. Adapt Be flexible, and adapt to changing market demands and news. Small businesses, because of their size, can normally adapt far more quickly to changing market needs. So seize those opportunities quickly when they arise in your market. 5. Test New Marketing Think outside the box and experiment with new marketing mediums and channels. Test new marketing initiatives to determine their effectiveness. By testing your marketing efforts, you may locate an under-served niche, which you can then take advantage of and claim as your own. 6. Spend Money To Make Money Many small businesses are reluctant to spend their money unless absolutely necessary. But in most cases, you need to be willing to spend money in order to make money. Just be sure to spend wisely, and reap the rewards. 7. Consider Niches Niche marketing can be very lucrative for small businesses. Larger companies normally go after the much wider "general" markets, while often ignoring those smaller niches, leaving them wide open for smaller businesses to take advantage of. 8. Communicate Communicate with staff and customers. Use multiple channels to get your message out. 9. Listen Listen to what your customers are saying about you and your products. Learn what they like, as well as what they don't like. Cater to their needs, and learn from them. 10. Build Your Brand Brand recognition is not built overnight, but a strong brand and brand recognition is worth its weigh in gold, and has the potential to sell products for many years. Make every effort to establish your brand in your marketplace. About the Author: Sharon Housley manages marketing for FeedForAll http://www.feedforall.com software for creating, editing, publishing RSS feeds and podcasts. In addition Sharon manages marketing for RecordForAll http://www.recordforall.com audio recording and editing software.
