Mistakes are an inevitable part of business. Making progress is all about taking risks and learning from these risks, whether they pay off or not. However, there are certain mistakes many business owners are still making unnecessarily, perhaps without even realising it.
Here is the second set of common mistakes and how you can turn them into learning opportunities to grow your business:
Foster a strong business network
Never underestimate how invaluable your network can be. From suppliers, investors, distributers, manufacturers and business partners, to investors and consumers, you never know when a contact could become an asset further down the line. There are many networking events to choose from and while many may seem like a waste of time, sometimes it’s that one golden connection that makes all the difference. After all, it’s not about what you know, it’s about who you know.
What’s the competition up to?
Never blatantly copy the competition, but don’t disregard them either. What are they up to? What’s working for them? What isn’t? What changes have they made recently and have they changed back? If not, then whatever they’ve done is probably working for them. Always consider how your own business sizes up and what you could be doing to make it better.
Don’t be reckless, but don’t waste time
Every big decision in business is typically time sensitive and comes with a degree of risk. Always conduct your analysis of the situation so as to not go in blind, but don’t drag your feet and take too long to decide either. Many prosperous decisions come with a tight window of opportunity and need to be seized when the moment is right.
Always have a game plan
While it’s important to live in the moment, the same cannot be said for business. Considering the future is a core requirement of success and will prepare you for both challenges and opportunities that might come your way. Figure out where you want your business to go and make a business plan to make sure you get there. This could be to increase your conversion rates, generate a certain amount of new leads by the end of the month, improving efficiency or spreading brand awareness.
Even if you only implement half of these changes, you will have prepared you and your business for the future and any potential obstacles that emerge.
Paul Finn, CEO and Founder, WebsiteDesign.com.au
