Busy times can be the enemy.....

 I have had some interesting conversations with various franchisees over the last few weeks.

 And, in all honesty, not necessarily good ones!!

Here is an email to read and reflect on…………….

 We all need reminders, including me…

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  You will appreciate that running your own business is a tough gig and we all want to find the magic something, the one thing, that will make it all good.

 Success is about a constant turn of the engine to keep moving forward even if there are a few bumps in the road.

 The reality is there is rarely a magic one thing that will help makes things easy. (I really wish I had a magic wand 😊).

 Doing the necessary things can become repetitive or even boring, or we can become lazy or reach a place of “comfort” and stop doing things because we don’t think they are important..

Making your life easy is by doing the things that aren’t always easy.

As I once heard – “do the hard things for an easy life, or do the easy things for a hard life.” It’s your choice…..

In most cases a few basics – that when done well and consistently – will help you get more work and make life easier. 

• A sign written vehicle – your van is a key marketing tool. [It is also a mandatory requirement for operating your franchise – you have been warned.] No excuses please!! 

• Updating the Ops system with for all customers as soon as the lead comes in AND completing the Ops system as soon as you finish the job – by immediately providing the customer with a clear communication, information, service report (with pictures) and invoice you stand head and shoulders above the majority of your competitors. It is a differentiator for you and, will help you in so many ways in terms of running your business properly. 

• Asking for reviews – all the top performers make sure they get genuine reviews. If your webpage(s) don’t have a review from the last few weeks then don’t be surprised if your call volumes fall and / or your rankings go down. (same applies to Checkatrade) 

• Collecting money from customers – don’t wait for the bank transfer cos you want to save the credit card fees. Whatever your preferred method make sure you have funds in your bank before you leave the customer (domestic). For commercial customer you may have to agree payment terms although some will pay as you go if you push enough. And from what I have witnessed, taking cash is one of the EASIEST ways to lose control of your business and be constantly poor!!! 

• “If this were my house?” – if you are not making genuine recommendations for things that will help a customer then you are leaving money on the table. Try using the “if this was my home / my mums house then I would recommend xxxxxx”. This is not upselling, this genuinely doing your job of “keeping your pest free” or “keeping you safe”. Your job is to recommend, the customers job is to say “yes” or “no”. 

• Spending time and / or money on your marketing – it starts with knowing your numbers, having a plan and staying focused on the plan.

I could go on but these are by far some of the biggest reasons why you may not be producing the results you want or need. Or, more importantly why you may see a drop in your current results.

So why am I sending this email? – because I am seeing a emerging pattern of;

Things going well à  the basics drop off (note - probably because “why do this stuff when everything is going so well?”) à and then the business not doing so well and people struggling. Then the excuses…………!!

 And here is the rub…. Businesses quite often suffer most when things are busy – when you have lots of work and can earn ££££’sss. That can be the time the issues start to manifest, and the consequences of which are felt weeks or months down the line.

Ask yourself, are you following the same road…?

And I lied when I said there wasn’t one thing that could make life easier….

There is à the discipline to do all the simple and boring things (as listed above) every day no matter how you feel. SIMPLES!!!! 

Or employ someone to do the tasks you need if you can’t or won’t do them.

On a final note to close, there are many external factors that can have an impact on your business; cost of living, competitors, weather, the government, social media noise etc…. but none of these are in your control.

Focus on the basics above that are in your control and you can achieve the results you want / need. 

And don’t forget we are always here to help and support – just reach out if you need / want it.