What You Don’t Know Can Hurt Your Business
There are lots of things we don’t know. Sometimes we don’t know it’s going to rain – until it does. And our umbrella is at home. Maybe we don’t know that the food is too salty – until our family starts to complain. Or maybe we forgot that the time of a meeting was changed – until we arrive one hour late.
For some things in life and business – what we don’t know CAN hurt us.
However, there are a few things that we simply HAVE to know to start and grow a successful business.
I was recently in Wabash, Indiana working with Deluxe. We were there filming a special “look back” episode of the Small Business Revolution: Main Street and to share ideas and advice with small business owners at the Deluxe Marketing Outpost. Over the course of several days, we met with small business owners who expressed their frustrations with not knowing enough about marketing and more.
If you are a small business owner, here are a few areas where what you don’t know can hurt your overall success.
[Tweet “4 #business areas you MUST KNOW in order to be #successful.”]Operations
It is important that every business owner knows the basics of running the day to day operations of business. Legal issues, how to hire, employee management and finance are all core competencies that every business owner needs to know and understand.
Technology
You DO NOT have to be a technology geek like me. However, you should have an appreciation for how technology can help your business. Ensuring your company is secure, has the best hardware and is using the cloud efficiently are a few things you should keep in mind. If you have no comfort with technology, then find a good technology consultant to partner with that can help.
Marketing
Marketing is one of the most important aspects of your business. Without customers, you don’t have a business. Marketing is how you get and keep customers. It is so critical that you have a great website, social media presence, and blog. A strategy to reach out and “touch” your customers through education is essential. This is best done through a regular email newsletter.
Finance
Unless you are an accountant, bookkeeper or just a real lover of numbers, finances can be a challenge for even the smartest business owner. I struggle with understanding finances quite a bit. Knowing your numbers and being financially savvy is an essential part of business growth. Being able to know your profit, your gross revenue, your customer acquisition costs and cost of goods sold are some of the things that every business owner needs to understand to be effective in business.
Your businesses finances tell a story. If you know how to understand numbers you can “read” your business and make necessary shifts and changes to it.
While this list is by no means an exhaustive list of the “pillars of business,” it is a great starting point to keep handy. You should be an expert in the core products and services you sell and work with experts who can assist you in the other areas of business where you struggle or simply don’t have the time or expertise to handle yourself.
Should you build your own website? Should you create your own logo or other creative material? Not unless it’s your expertise. Otherwise, it’s best to partner with a professional who can help you.
You want to work with a partner who can assist you in the things you do not know and don’t even know what to ask.