If you truly want to have a successful small business operation, organization should be first and foremost on your mind.
Unfortunately, too many small business owners get so tied up in the daily grind that organization oftentimes gets thrown out the window. As a result, their businesses become less and less organized by the week.
So, if organization in your small business has been absent in recent times, now would be a good time to sit down and figure out what to do about it.
Remember, successfully running a small business oftentimes involves working much more than the standard 40 hours a week. That said you can make the hours seem a little less taxing when organization is a top priority.
As 2017 gets set to unfold, take the time now to see if you’re as organized as you should be. If not, now would be a good time to make organization a key focus over the next month and headed into the New Year.
Don’t Take Organization for Granted
So that you are able to maintain your focus on organization, remember these four tips:
- Time management – This is one area that too many small business owners simply drop the ball with. While you do not (and typically can’t) have every single detail of your work schedule down to the exact moment, do your best to properly manage time. If you have employees under you, make sure they also utilize time effectively. One of the biggest threats to the success of a business is wasted time, be it by the owner or those working for him or her (see more below). You might even be best-served by taking a few time management courses (encourage employees to do this too). Such courses can help you better understand why this facet of business is so critical;
- Employee productivity – When you hire people to work for you, you’re not planning on adding the roll of babysitter to your title. Remember, these are adults (at least that is the goal) that you’re hiring. They should be old and wise enough to properly manage their time while on the payroll for you. That said you should make sure they have the proper tools at their disposal to do just that. Whether you are looking at audio dictation for a more organized business or using products to streamline billing and accounts receivable (just to name a few), there are so many products out there that help make for more productive workers. Meet with your employees on a regular basis (once or twice a month should do it) to see where productivity may be an issue, looking for ways to improve it.
Avoid Overlooking Customer Feedback
- Customer feedback – Do you truly care what your customers have to say? If you do, then you are a good small business owner. Without your customers, you of course would not have a business. That said some running companies forget at times about their customers and their needs. As a result, those customers go somewhere else. Survey your customers on occasion, asking them what they like and may not like about your business. In doing so, you can better tailor your business to what they want and need;
- Check out the competition – Lastly, while you never want to entirely duplicate what your competition is doing, check them out from time to time. See how organization fits into their daily regimens. Doing so will allow you to copy some of those techniques and plans, allowing for a more organized approach on your end.
Running a small business headed into 2017 is a ton of responsibility, but it is certainly something you can be good at.
When organization is a prime focus of your business, the rewards can be plentiful.
As a small business owner, what makes your company as organized as possible?
About the Author: Dave Thomas covers small business topics on the web.