Category: Leadership

Leadership by Reginald Chan focuses on thought leadership, ways to become a leader and helping one to become a leader. This is a leader in the making group.

  • 4 Things You Should Consider Doing If Your Small Business Is Not Doing Great At The Moment

    4 Things You Should Consider Doing If Your Small Business Is Not Doing Great At The Moment

    The economy has been going through a rough patch for quite some time now, and it’s affecting many businesses. It’s important to stay positive during these turbulent times and do your best to take care of your company in any way possible. Here are four things you should consider doing if your small business is not doing as well as you want it to.

    1. Develop A Digital Marketing Strategy

    Social media is a great way for you to bring more traffic to your website and gain new customers. A digital marketer will be able to create ads targeted at the right kind of viewers, which can increase your sign-ups for webinars, product trials, newsletters, etc. With a white label agency that covers your digital marketing activities, you won’t have to worry about having enough resources to make your marketing successful. Social media marketing is one way to promote your company without spending too much money, and you can combine it with Google Ads and SEO. Promotions are one way to bring people to your site, but another is by making use of social media platforms like Instagram and Facebook. You should set up accounts on these platforms if you don’t already have them, and post regularly about what’s going on with your company. Be sure to reply to comments made by customers whenever possible, as this can go a long way towards building trust between you and them. Not only that, but it will help you keep track of what customers are saying about your business so that you can make any necessary adjustments accordingly.

    Google Ads 

    One way to go about it is by making a Google Ads account and targeting your advertisements at the right people. This can be done by creating highly relevant ads which will appeal to your target audience. Your ad can show up in search results when people are looking for what you have to offer, or when they’re watching videos on YouTube or checking out websites.

    SEO 

    Another way to bring traffic to your website is by optimizing your site for search engines. This will make your website show up higher in the search results, which will mean that more people will see it. SEO can be a bit difficult to do on your own, but there are plenty of online resources and courses out there which can teach you how to do it yourself.

    2. Improve Your Primary Marketing Strategy

    There are many ways for you to bring targeted visitors to your website, but one of the best is by offering freebies or discounts on coupons. You should use this strategy during slow seasons since people will be more likely to visit your site when they know they can get a good deal. You can also offer your products and services at a discount to people who are referred by their friends. This will encourage them to tell their friends about your company, and it will help you to build a loyal customer base.

    3. Streamline Your Operations

    If you want your small business to be successful, you need to keep an eye on the numbers. You have to make sure that you are always generating revenue, or else it will be difficult for your company to stay afloat. Perhaps you’re not charging enough for your products and services, so consider increasing your rates just a bit. It may shock some of your customers at first, but they will come around once they realize how much better your products are now that you’ve improved them. Also, try to cut costs in your business by making use of cloud-based software. Not only will this give you access to great tools which will keep you organized, but it will also save you money since you won’t have to pay for licenses or equipment which is unnecessary. 

    Hire The Right People

    The success of any small business rests on the shoulders of its employees, so make sure that they are doing their jobs effectively and productively. An efficient office can prevent the loss of customers who would otherwise be left with a poor impression of your company. When people realize that there’s a problem with customer service or the quality of work being produced, they’ll go elsewhere instead of sticking around and trying to work things out. On top of low-quality work, you also don’t want to hire people who are not properly suited for the job. Employees who do not enjoy their positions will end up leaving at some point, and they’ll take all of their hard-earned knowledge with them. Not only that, but your company may end up facing lawsuits if your employees violate certain laws like copyright infringement or sexual harassment.

    4. Outsource Some Operations

    When you outsource some of your operations, it can give you more time to focus on making improvements. You must be able to take care of your business whenever there’s a problem or opportunity. You can easily outsource customer service or IT support so that the professionals handle any issues that come up while you’re focusing on growing your company. This will ensure that there is always someone available who can help when problems arise.

    Outsourcing Accounting

    When you’re outsourcing accounting, it means that you are allowing a specialized firm to handle the financial side of your business. This frees up your time so that you can focus on marketing and managing your operations. Your accountant will ensure that everything is done efficiently and correctly. As a bonus, it will also give you more time to spend with your family or other activities which bring you joy. Also, you don’t have to worry about the security of your data since these firms use the latest technology to protect your information.

    When your small business starts struggling, remember these tips about what you can do to save it! These are things you should consider doing if your small business is not doing great at the moment. If things aren’t going well and you think you need an outside point of view, get in touch with an agency and see what they have to offer!

  • Be Prepared: Here Are The Steps You Need to Start a Business in Delaware

    Be Prepared: Here Are The Steps You Need to Start a Business in Delaware

    Delaware earned its official nickname as “The First State” for being the first out of the 13 original states to ratify the U.S. Constitution way back on December 7, 1787. Fast forward to the present, Delaware has gained quite a reputation as the number 1 choice for everything from big corporations to startup entrepreneurs when it comes to where they want to start their respective businesses. No wonder more than 66% of the Fortune 500 companies have chosen Delaware as their legal home!

    Delaware is truly a business-friendly state and its laws offer a lot of attractive benefits for companies of all sizes. Case in point, registering a business is fairly easy in Delaware plus there are certain tax advantages only available in the state. 

    If you’ve been wanting to begin your own entrepreneurial journey, read on and we’ll share with you several useful pointers to help you learn more about company formation in Delaware. 

    Some interesting facts about Delaware’s corporate laws

    Known as a “tax haven,” what sets Delaware apart from other states is that first and foremost, state-registered corporations that do not actually do business there are not required to pay any taxes. Moreover, shareholders who do not reside in the state also do not have to be taxed at all.   

    So yes, a corporation’s directors, officers, and shareholders do not even have to be Delaware residents. Businesses also aren’t required to disclose the names of their directors and officers. Moreover, state laws permit an individual to be a company’s director, officer, and shareholder at the same time, which makes this ideal for small startups.

    Delaware also has the Court of Chancery, a dedicated court that specializes in handling business-related cases. The court has offices in three locations across the state, namely New Castle County, Kent County and Sussex County. 

    And as mentioned above, required paperwork is usually processed quickly in Delaware.

    The documents and requirements you need to form a Delaware business

    To get started in your company formation, your first step is to decide your business’ entity type. You can file as a domestic corporation, exempt corporation, foreign corporation, limited partnership, limited liability company, limited liability partnership, partnership, limited liability limited partnership, or statutory trust. 

    You can seek advice from a legal professional or a certified public accountant familiar with Delaware company formation laws to learn which entity best suits your business.

    Next, you need to choose a business name. This really has to be done right because selecting the wrong one can possibly lead to future problems. To make sure your chosen name is still available in Delaware and in your area (if you’re located outside the state), you may do a quick search on Google and other search engine platforms. You could likewise check with the Department of State: Division of Corporations’ business name database. Remember that you want to use a unique business name since having something similar with another existing company may eventually cause conflict.  

    Once you’ve cleared a name, you can now proceed with registering your business. When forming an LLC, you will be asked to complete the Corporate Forms And Certificates For A Limited Liability Company with the Delaware Department of State Division of Corporations. To incorporate, you have to file the Corporate Forms And Certificates For A Corporation (Articles of Incorporation) with the same agency. 

    Also, keep in mind that having a registered agent who lives in Delaware is a must for all businesses. This agent, who may be an individual or a business entity, will represent your company in the state and will forward legal documents you may need.  

    All types of trades and businesses in the state also have to get a State of Delaware Business License issued by the Delaware Division of Revenue. Go to the state’s One Stop Business Licensing and Renewal service for this.

    If you are operating with employees, you should also file registration with the Delaware Department of Labor’s Division of Unemployment Insurance and the Division of Workers 

    Compensation. Otherwise, you can skip this part.

    Lastly, you will have to create a bank account for your business and obtain business credit cards from the bank of your choice. This will help you keep your personal money separate from your company’s finances and will also help you down the line if you want to boost your credit profile to apply for loans.

    Best of luck in your Delaware company formation and we wish you success with your venture!

  • Client Relationship Management Tips For Businesses

    Client Relationship Management Tips For Businesses

    Building a good relationship with clients is one of the most essential factors for sustainable business growth. Most businesses focus their resources on acquiring new clients. However, not many understand that businesses do not necessarily need new clients to gain new projects. They can rely on retained clients to keep their project pipeline full and still get new clients through referrals.

    Mind you, retaining clients is also quite challenging. And if not done carefully, you might lose a significant bit of the efforts and money you put in landing that killer client. This business relationship requires serious efforts from both you and the client, just like a successful romantic relationship. With that said, let’s understand client relationship management (CRM) and its importance, and then we’ll dive into some very useful tips.

    What Is Client Relationship Management?

    The interactions of a company with clients and their approach to building a positive working relationship are referred to as client relationship management. When you have a good system in place, you’ll be able to significantly generate ongoing business, client retention, and brand reputation.

    You can incorporate data analysis which can help you big time to understand and improve the relationship with your clients, and then leverage CRM to increase the profits. CRM has a major impact on the goodwill of the company, which also determines the ability of the company to retain or gain new clients. You can break client relationship management into four distinct parts:

    1. Understand what your clients want from you
    2. Delivering those requirements with responses to additional queries
    3. Finding out what a client needs even before they know it
    4. Work of targeted interactions that highlights the client’s requirements

    Benefits of Good Client Relationship

    The benefits of maintaining a good client relationship go far beyond just running your business. It can help you in improving relationships with current customers, finding new ones, and retaining the ones you’ve worked with in the past. As we discussed above, it’s somewhat like a romantic relationship, you have to show that you care. There are many ways of doing it, one of which is sending personalized thank you cards for business, which will paint a positive image of yours in your client’s mind. Now let’s look into a small list of benefits you’ll get by maintaining a good client relationship.

    Enhances Customer Service

    The efforts you put in managing client relationships also improves the standard of customer service you provide. When you provide a personal touch to your clients, you get a broader perspective and treat them individually rather than as a group.

    The system allows you to determine the standard of service you are going to provide based on the priority level of the client. This will make your company more understanding and responsive, and as you improve these, your client services quality will also skyrocket. This means that the instances of client agitation and frustration will reduce significantly.

    Find New Clients

    Finding new clients is always a challenging task for businesses. However, by implementing a CRM system, you can effectively help yourself in new client acquisition. With its help, you can keep a track of your existing client base, and determine who are the people or businesses that you should target.

    When you are running a client acquisition campaign (a never-ending process), you need to be in touch with your prospective clients consistently. A good client relation system will ensure that you can do this without forgetting about any client.

    Optimize Marketing Approach

    By using client management software, you can easily understand the needs and behavior of your clients. This is beneficial as it allows your business to determine what is the correct time to introduce your product or new services to your clients. Client relationship management can also provide much-needed information to the sales team for tailoring the marketing approach.

    When you follow an optimized and tailored marketing approach, you can save a decent sum of money by only targeting the clients who would be interested in working with you. This means that you would be able to utilize your resources in a much meaningful and efficient manner. For example, before sending a proposal, make sure that the client you are sending it to will be interested in considering it.

    Some Tips to Manage Client Relationship

    For businesses to succeed, management of client relationships is essential. It covers all the aspects of interactions that a business has with its clients, whether it’s related to sales or services. Here are some tips for you to be better at client relationship management.

    Communication is Crucial

    Whenever you’re doing business, efficient communication should always be a top priority of yours. This is something that often falls by the wayside when everyone in the team is focused to get the work done. You must take some time out to be clear and consistent with communication throughout the project.

    However, difficult conversation with a single client should not come in between you and your productivity, nor should it affect your personal time. But if you’re always available for the client, it appears to them that you are truly concerned about their work. You can take communication a step further by ensuring that clients can be open and honest with you about their opinions.

    Speak the Language of Your Client

    Sticking to a tool where you feel most comfortable is not something that’ll boost your business heavily. One common factor between successful companies is that they can adapt easily to the style of their clients, formality, and preferred communication method. For example, if you prefer email to be a more convenient method of communication, but your clients are more used to video conferences, then switching to video conferencing will have a good impact on your relationship with them.

    Address the Need of Client Proactively

    Irrespective of your role in the relationship with your client, it is part of your job to be accountable for addressing their pain points and helping them in tackling the problems. There is a high chance that your clients will not be aware of their actual needs. They might be struggling with something that they have no idea about, but it’s your job as an expert to find those issues even before they do.

    Moreover, once you have found any issue, reach out to the clients with a solution and without any hesitation. You can even conduct research on finding the issues that the client is not facing at present but might face in the future. This way, you can demonstrate your dedication and competence to your clients.

    Treat Your Clients as an Individual

    It is essential to maintain a healthy professional relationship with the client. But acknowledging that you see them as an individual can take your relationship to a different height altogether- it will be worth more than just a paycheck. However, the extent to which you can carry this personal-professional relationship depends completely on your industry and your client’s personality.

    If you know that your client is a middle-aged parent, you can ask them how their kids are doing. For clients who value emotions in the business, you can consider sending letters or thank you cards, which will also help in creating a positive image of you. For some clients, you can even consider sending news in emails about their favorite field, celebrity, or sports.

    Wrapping It Up

    A good customer-client relationship requires significant time and effort from both sides. If you wish to see your business succeed, managing client relationships is a non-negotiable aspect. We have seen above how beneficial this relationship can be for both parties. Moreover, you can follow the above-mentioned tips to manage it correctly and bring the best out of you and your clients.

  • Understanding How Search Engine Optimization Can Help Your Business Grow

    Understanding How Search Engine Optimization Can Help Your Business Grow

    Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is critical for your website to rank well in the search engine results pages. SEO is a process of improving your website’s visibility on search engines by optimizing its content, code and other factors to make it more “visible” to the search engine algorithms. It takes time to see results, but long-term success is virtually guaranteed with proper SEO. This article will explore how you can use SEO to help grow your business!

    What is SEO?

    SEO is a way of thinking and an iterative process that requires tinkering and testing over time to increase the rankings of your website on search engines. It doesn’t just involve simply placing keywords in strategic places: it involves creating useful, high-quality content and building backlinks from other websites which will make Google see you as a trusted source of information. If you are in Australia and are not familiar with SEO, you should look for a local SEO in Sydney that specializes in SEO. If done correctly, SEO can lead to your website ranking well in search engines for clients looking for the services or products that you offer. Having a strong online presence is vital in today’s connected world – more and more people are using the internet to carry out their research before making a purchase.

    Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is critical for your website to rank well in the search engine results pages. Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is a process of improving your website’s visibility on search engines by optimizing its content, code and other factors to make it more “visible” to the search engine algorithms. It takes time to see results, but long-term success is virtually guaranteed with proper SEO. This article will explore how you can use SEO to help grow your business!

    SEO in Digital Marketing

    SEO is a part of a bigger picture called “Digital Marketing” – a manner of using digital channels to promote your products and services. Some examples of these channels are:

    • Search Engine Optimization 
    • Pay-Per-Click Advertisements (via Google, Facebook, etc)
    • Social Media Marketing
    • Content Marketing (producing high-quality, useful content to engage your audience)

    Out of all of these digital marketing channels, SEO offers the most opportunities for achieving long-term success. Merely spending money on PPC or social media advertising without incorporating SEO into your strategies is akin to shooting yourself in the foot.

    Does Search Engine Optimization Work?

    SEO can be a slow process, but it’s been proven time and again that investing in SEO pays off tremendously over the long run. If you take a look at the screenshot of the Google keyword planner below, it’s easy to see how competitive “SEO” is as a search term. And yet, despite there being so many people looking online for SEO services, organic search still comprises roughly 35% of all traffic on most websites! This means that if you invest in SEO correctly, you have a very good chance of being one of the “big winners” who gets a high volume of visitors from Google.

    What is Your Goal?

    Before moving forward, it’s important to establish your goals first! You need to set specific goals for yourself and create SMART (Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant and Time-bound) objectives. If you don’t know where you want to go, it’s going to be extremely difficult to get there! Your goal should also be according to your overall business strategy and be closely related to the main activities of your company. For example, if you provide services for local clients such as plumbers or electricians, instead of branding yourself as “XYZ Plumbing Services” – try branding yourself as “Your Local Plumber” and create websites targeting specific geographic areas that will serve your products and services to people who are looking for them.

    It’s important that your website looks good on the outside as well as the inside – search engines will judge your website by its code and content alone. In order for your website to look good, you need to use tags (like <h1></h1> or <p></p>) to clearly define the structure of your website. Also, images need alt-text and links need anchor text so search engines will know what they are linking to. SEO needs to be thought of as an iterative process that requires tinkering and testing over time to increase the rankings of your website on search engines and reach more people. Because it’s an iterative process, there is no “best practices” list that you can just follow – what works for others may not work for you!

    What Can I Expect from SEO?

    The amount of traffic you receive from Search Engines depends on your industry and the keywords you choose. If you want to be a monopoly in your industry, you need to rank well for very specific keywords related to your business! It’s important that before investing too much time into SEO that you understand what kind of traffic you expect from it. For example, if you’re looking to drive people from Google directly into your e-commerce business within 24 hours, you’re going to have a tough time ranking for competitive keywords! It’s important that you set realistic expectations and understand that the process of SEO takes time.

    Backlinks: The Foundation of Google Rankings

    Websites often refer to each other using hyperlinks. Websites link to other websites because they have similar content, because they have a connection via a blogroll or simply because it’s a popular website that everyone else links to. A “backlink” is a link from another website pointing towards your site; i.e., if this article had a backlink pointing at your business website, it would be an example of how my business is able to effectively use SEO. Google gets its ranking ability from the number and quality of backlinks that your website has acquired. Quality is important, because Google doesn’t like wasting their time indexing websites that aren’t going to bring them business! Sites with high-quality backlinks tend to rank higher than sites without many links pointing at it.

    Search Engine Optimization is more important than ever before for businesses of all sizes. Although it can be a slow process, SEO will ultimately result in more traffic from Google and increased sales. It’s important that before you start investing into SEO that you have clear goals set out for yourself with specific “SMART” objectives!

  • 2 Essentials For Successful Online Businesses

    2 Essentials For Successful Online Businesses

    Online business isn’t always as easy as some people make it out to be, and without a well-designed website and proper implementation of marketing strategies, your business could go unnoticed by many possible customers. This blog post will include two essential things that all online businesses need to do for their business to be successful and profitable.

    Brand Awareness

    Brand awareness is critical for all online business owners because you want your customers and potential clients to find you easily when they need the service or product you offer. An easy way of building brand awareness is through social media and trade shows.

    Social Media

    Social media allows you to reach thousands of potential clients that are looking for the services or products that your business offers. You can start by setting up a Facebook page, Twitter account, and Instagram profile. By doing so, you will be able to connect with many people all over the world. However, the best way to ensure that your social media is on point is by hiring a social media manager to deal with all the tasks associated with social media.

    Trade Shows

    Another great way to build brand awareness is through trade shows. By doing this, you will meet new people interested in your business and who want to learn more about the services and products you offer. When attending a trade show, there are many things that you need to keep in mind, but the most important one would be the display. Infinity Exhibits is a company that specializes in trade show displays and will be able to provide you with the best advice on how to capture the attention of the audience while at these shows. Again, this is a great way to get your business noticed!

    Customer Service

    Customer Service is the first thing people notice when they interact with your online brand, and not in a positive way if you don’t have good responses prepared ahead of time! Whether it’s through social media, email, phone calls, or live chat, make sure there are always real people available to answer questions 24/365 days from anywhere at any time. People want someone who can empathize with them and understand exactly what they need before offering solutions to help resolve issues as quickly as possible. This shows that you really care about your customers and their well-being.

    A great strategy to help improve customer satisfaction is a FAQ section where you can provide information on common questions and concerns and add any relevant information that you think is important for your customers to know. You can make this section easily accessible by adding it as a link in the header menu of your website or having it on every page of your site with an icon.

    These are just two of the many things that all online business owners need to do in order for their businesses to be successful and profitable. Of course, having an online business comes with many challenges, but there are so many different ways to overcome the troubles your company might face!

  • The Most Effective Ways that Your Business Can Keep an Eye on the Competition

    The Most Effective Ways that Your Business Can Keep an Eye on the Competition

    There are a lot of people who will tell you that it is important to put yourself at the forefront of everything you do and not compare yourself to others, and whilst this is solid advice in some aspects of life, it does not translate to the world of business. In any business, it is an absolutely crucial component to keep a steady eye on your competition, as you will need to know who your competitors are and what it is that they’re up to. Most importantly, this makes it easier for you to identify opportunities. This is one of the best ways that your business will be able to stay ahead. 

    Also, having a bit of healthy competition is good for your business, as it will make you better at your job and more proficient when it comes to running your business. You are going to work harder and give your all to everything you do. So, how can you keep an eye on the competition? This article will discuss that in more detail. 

    Check Out Social Media 

    Social media is unapologetically honest in some aspects and a bit more clouded in others; however, people are never shy to share their thoughts about products and services. As such, keeping an eye on social media is an excellent way that you can look out for what people are saying about your competition. It is also an excellent way that you can stay up to date with market trends as you will literally be able to see what is trending. For example, retro games have been making a comeback recently (which you can read about over here on Arcade Punks). If you follow people on social media who discuss these kinds of topics, you will be able to stay up to date with these developing trends. 

    Reviews 

    Customer reviews are also a place where people are incredibly honest and so, if your competitors have Google, Facebook or Trustpilot, then you should be able to check out their reviews and get the low down on what it is that they’re offering. You are going to be able to learn exactly what it is your competitors are providing that customers engage with; how good their pricing is and also what their weaknesses are. You should be able to capitalise on all of these when it comes to moving forward with your business in the future. 

    Newsletter 

    A lot of organisations send out newsletters as this is a great way to make customers feel like they’re part of a community and also a great way to make people more likely to engage with a business’s services as well. The way that they ensure client retention is by giving updates on the business and what they are offering. So, if you also subscribe to these newsletters, you will get direct insight into your competition and what they are currently offering customers. You should make a note of things that your competition is doing that you believe to be something that you could expand on.