I’ve lived through a number of economic downturns and recessions and after a while you start to accept the up and down cycles as normal. But the most recent developments regarding Lehman Brothers, together with inflation, the mortgage mess, gas prices-well you know the rest-is really a bit much.

Will things get better? Yes, but most likely after the election. Will there be some discomfort? Yes, there always is. I can remember waiting over an hour in the freezing cold in gas lines back in 1974 when I was barely out of college. Things got better then when it seemed they never would, and they will now. But at the moment it may not feel that way. So here is what you need to do to keep your business prospering.

• Don’t hunker down by resisting change and thinking that if you keep doing things the way you always have you’ll be fine. Be creative in developing new ideas, products and services
• Do increase-yes, increase your marketing. But only do marketing that gives you a direct return on investment. No marketing just to increase visibility or for branding purposes.
• Think strategically. Plan exactly how you will make money over the next year and make a plan including details like marketing, budget and financial projections. Sound hard? It’s really not. Every small or solo business that does this out performs their competitors by a mile.
• Be conservative with your cash-make sure your cash flow is good. No impulse buys right now. Spend money on marketing and necessary marketing materials, mentoring to learn ways to fastrack your business, and product development.
• Take higher priced services and information products and break them down into sequential, lower priced services and “knowledge nuggets” to increase sales, as lower ticket items will sell better right now.
• Work hard to increase customer service and customer loyalty by following through on what you say you’ll do and producing stellar results. Also provide personalized customer support.
• Develop strong referral and joint venture systems and strategies that will dramatically increase sales.
• Stay optimistic and focused - it won’t serve you well to spend time worrying and then going in ten different directions trying out would be opportunities. It’s a recipe for failure

If you want to know exactly how to implement this “recession proof” business advice, go to Maximize Your Profits Now and learn about a business mastery system that will help you create a solid 6 figure income and sail through this tough period with flying colors.

For almost every small or solo business owner I’ve worked with as a coach, how to keep a steady stream of clients rolling into their business is the main challenge . But not for all.

Some businesses seem to soar quickly. They seem to have a secret that everyone wants to know. They call me because they are growing so fast they need me to help them put the automated systems in place that will reduce their workload and give them their life back. This is not a bad problem to have!

The businesses that have a flood of clients with seemingly little effort actually have a lot in common because they have several or most of the following factors in place.  Any of these can be the key to astonishing business growth. Take a few of them together and the results are truly impressive. Here’s what they did:

• Found an underserved niche with a group of hungry buyers
• Found buyers who had money to spend and were willing to spend it
• Found a niche where competition was minimal or manageable
• Developed a repeatable system for connecting and selling to these buyers that worked again and again.
• Developed a compelling, benefit laden marketing message
• Developed joint ventures and strategic alliances to dramatically increase sales
• Developed a strategy to get repeat business.
• Protect their time relentlessly
• Outsourced simple tasks as soon as possible

As you can see, there is no real secret. Measure your business against this list and see what needs to change.

I’d like to invite you to a free tele-class, How to Fill the Client Funnel Now, on August 12^th at 4PM ET.  This content rich class will show you a business building system that is designed to stop you from worrying and feeling overwhelmed and get you feeling powerful and profitable.

If you sign up now, you’ll also gain access to my Maximize Your Profits Now videos.

http://maximizeyourprofitsnow.com/

I think this class could be a turning point for you.

We all have egos. How could you be a successful business owner without a certain level of self confidence? You make important decisions and take risks and you have to believe in what you’re doing.

However, that ego can get in the way when a decision you made turns out to be wrong. I’ve seen many business owners stick with something well after it was obvious it was hurting their business because they were too proud to admit it was a mistake. This happens in big corporations as well. Big companies continue to do things the way they always did them because, well, that’s the way they always did them. While the rest of the world moves forward, they remain the same until they become obsolete.

Whether it’s a product that bombed, marketing materials that aren’t working, or an employee that just isn’t serving your company well, you need to say “I made a mistake” and correct it. Maybe you even picked the wrong niche. It’s okay. Businesses re-invent themselves all the time. The marketplace constantly changes. It doesn’t mean you have failed, but that you have learned what doesn’t work.

I just heard a story on National Public Radio yesterday about Steve Jobs and Pixar. Pixar didn’t start out being the leader in computer animation which they are today. But when Steve Jobs (founder of Apple) saw an emerging opportunity to re-focus Pixar in that direction back in the 1990’s he jumped at it because he’s a brilliant entrepreneur.

No one likes to say they were wrong. But true leaders do so willingly, knowing that to waste even a day continuing to travel down the wrong road is costing them dearly.

I regularly speak and brainstorm with other successful business owners and there’s a topic that comes up over and over. Why do some people ramp up to success as fast as lightning while others work hard, seem to do the right things, but still struggle to make a living?

A major reason may be the business or niche you’ve chosen. I’ve always said that choosing the right niche is crucial. Your niche or target market needs to meet these criteria:

1. Your target market has unmet or undermet needs, challenges or wants
2. They are willing and able to pay for your products and services
3. They are fairly easy to reach

There are a few more things to think about though.

Is your niche oversaturated with competition? If it is you will have to fight to stand out in a huge crowd.  You will have to be a better marketer and have a fresh approach or great information and it will be harder to succeed.

Is your niche becoming extinct? There are industries that are shrinking and you don’t want to pour your passion, time and energy into trying to build a long term sustainable business in one of them. Just think of the newspaper industry, professional photography or  stores that sell or rent videos and CD’s as examples of a few industries that technology is slowly squeezing out of existence, or at least causing to stagnate.

If you are struggling now with reaching a healthy 6 figure income with your small or home based business, look at these factors and ask yourself honestly if any of them apply. If you find they do, don’t despair. You have a range of talent related to your core business. Just finding out what potential clients need in your industry and re-purposing what you offer to fill those needs can make a difference in the bottom line.

For example, say you were a wedding photographer who used to be able to sell expensive photo albums after a wedding, but now all your clients want is the digital prints. Ouch! What about expanding into video or taking professional photos for business websites. It’s a really smart idea to keep up with trends so you can offer services as the need first arises and before lots of other get on the bandwagon.

If your niche is saturated, think of an area of expertise that would set you apart, or concentrate on one specific sub-niche where you excel. Be more of a specialist than a generalist.  Everyone wants a specialist. If you had a broken bone you’d go to an orthopedic surgeon not a family doctor, right? Well your prospects feel the same.

If you’re not meeting your goals, take a few minutes to think about whether perhaps you’re just in the wrong business.

 Janis

; Add to Onlywire  

Does this chart look like your business model?

If so you have basically put a cap on how much you can earn and how successful your business can be. Yet so many small business owners use this model because they are afraid of either.

1. They can’t afford the help.

2. No one can do things as well as they do.

There was a time when I thought like this too. But when I started listening to mentors who’d made millions I came to realize that the only way to make a huge leap forward in my business was to get outsourced help. Outsourcing tasks is easier and cheaper than ever.

The truth about being successful is that you have 2 choices.

Choice #1 - Be somewhat successful and work long hard hours

Choice #2 - Be insanely successful and work a few hours a day

Now, give this some thought… which choice stands out to you as the clear cut winner here?

If you decided on choice #1 then you may just be a glutton for punishment and enjoy spending all day on your computer while sweating it out to make sure everything is done your way.

If you liked choice #2… well good for you, because that is the choice that will allow you to make more money - but even more importantly that choice will give you the time to enjoy your money.

So, how do you go about becoming insanely successful and working just a couple hours a day?  You leverage the skills and talents of others.

Once I learned how easy and inexpensive it is to outsource, my life changed and my business soared and I want to share that knowledge with you.

And finally an expert at outsourcing, someone that has made millions by doing it, is going to reveal to you EVERYTHING there is to know about outsourcing your way to incredible success.

You see, my colleague Jeff Mills transformed his own life from flat broke to Internet Millionaire by outsourcing, and now he is exposing his secrets to you. Any small or solo business can win from these strategies and resources.

Listen, if you’re prepared to explode your small business online income while putting in less time (a LOT less time), then you owe it to yourself to have a look at Outsource Secrets Revealed today:

http://www.shopgoldmills.com/cmd.php?af=760786

To Working Less & Making More,

Janis

PS - If you still think doing everything yourself is the way to go, then consider this… at some point you simply cannot do any more.  At some point you just won’t be able to produce any more… and then where will you be?  Best case is you’ll be profitable but stuck at a plateau.  Worst case is you’ll burn out and send your business spiraling downward.

You don’t have to do this… leverage the talents and skills of others to make more while working less!

http://www.shopgoldmills.com/cmd.php?af=760786