by Samuel Gitukui

When conducting market research, many entrepreneurs have fallen short of creating products that customers really want. Thus, the business doesn’t achieve momentum. In fact, very often startups fail.

One of the reasons why this is the case is due to confirmation bias and positive test strategy.

Let’s understand the two, shall we?

Confirmation bias is when you go out to perform market research and instead of being open to information that may not agree with your beliefs, you instead search for information that confirms what you think.

On the other hand, positive test strategy occurs when instead of asking objective questions, we design questions that are meant to give us the answers we are looking for.

These two psychological problems need to be overcome if you are to take your business to the next level. Let’s find out how.

1.      Develop hypothesis from your assumptions

Every entrepreneur finds themselves making assumptions about their customers and what they need from the business and its products. However, nothing beats real, genuine and objective information.

Instead of guessing what your customers want, find out the truth and one way to do this is to turn all those assumptions into hypotheses and then search for answers to those hypotheses.

For example, suppose you assumed that when you lower the price of your products, customers would buy more resulting in an increase in revenue. Turn this into a hypothesis that states, if you bring down price, there will be an increase in sales.

If you assume that being active on social media will create customer trust, the hypothesis to this would be, if I answer customer questions on social media, there will be an increase in revenue and customer trust.

2.      Testing the hypothesis

The next step is finding out whether the hypothesis is true or not. If you are testing customer reaction to price reduction, lower the price and see if there are more sales after a predetermined time span.

If on the other hand you are testing customer loyalty through social media engagement, track a number of specific customers who you reply to and see whether they make repeated purchases over and above the customers you do not reply to.

3.      Ask quality questions

The right questions will help you overcome confirmation bias as well as positive tests strategy. The trick is to avoid leading questions such as “did you base your buying decision on the price?”. Instead ask “what was the main reasons why you made the purchase?”

In this way the customer is far more likely to provide you with the whole truth instead of answering a direct question. You might find that what you were assuming is far from the truth. While you might think that price was the main reason the customer bought more, you may find that the quick delivery and fast response was actually the determining factor.

Simply put, you cannot just make business decisions based on what you are thinking as the possibility of error is high.

by Samuel Gitukui

One of the most important pieces of information to any startup trying to introduce a new product into the market is how large the market is.

In fact, if you are looking for investors, they will want to know how viable your business idea is and one of the ways to determine this is by understanding the potential market size. After all, a product that caters to a small market is riskier than one that serves the needs of a larger market.

To understand the market size, an entrepreneur can hire an expert. However, this might end up using a lot of resources that could otherwise be focused on production and marketing.

Take for example a product that is meant for grooming dogs. National surveys could tell you the number of households that own dogs. Say for example there are 54 million households that have at least one dog. Is this the size of the market?

The short and simple answer is no.

First, it is virtually impossible to market the product to all 54 million households. Second, some dog breeds have shorter fur and require less maintenance than others. You might need to narrow down your analysis to houses that have specific breeds.

Other considerations could be the location of the potential market. In the end, you may bring the number down to 15 million households that could use your product.

Let’s take a look at some important considerations when determining the market size in greater detail.

1.      Is the market big enough?

When conducting market size research, you might find that the potential market is simply too small to dedicate limited resources. You might then focus on searching for a bigger market allowing the business to avoid the risks involved in venturing into something that is not worthwhile.

On the other hand, it is possible to conduct market research and discover that the market is far larger than you would have otherwise expected. You can then focus your resources to this market.

2.      Do you fully understand your target market?

One major benefit of conducting market size research is that you will likely come across other highly useful information such as the price sensitivity of the potential customers or their spending habits.

You can then use this to design your product and tailor your marketing strategies accordingly.

3.      Would you get into business with yourself?

That is if you were a potential investor and an entrepreneur came to you with a similar proposal, do you have the required information to enter into business and turn the idea into a successful enterprise?

If you have any doubts, then perhaps you should do more research.

Make sure you have hard, concrete information and not just assumptions. Investors want to be convinced that you’ve made the necessary and thorough preparations. They are likely going to pick up on the fact that you lack sufficient knowhow to start and run your business so make sure you conduct the necessary research and analysis. 

by Samuel Gitukui

Every entrepreneur at some point will do market research. If you are on the verge of opening your startup business, the question becomes, have you done market research and better yet have you done it the right way?

The importance of conducting market research cannot be overemphasized as the entrepreneur can only make the best decisions with the right knowledge. Getting data about your target market is one thing, sifting through it to come up with a reliable conclusion is entirely different.

One of the biggest mistakes that business owners make is assuming that if they come up with an idea and build a business around this “great” idea, that customers are naturally going to come. It is no wonder then why many startups fail to survive their first few years.

Consumer research is a necessary factor to ensure your business not only survives but thrives.

But where do you start?

Suppose you have a product. Ask yourself, does it offer a solution or alleviate a pain or problem? This is called a pain point study and your goal should be to find it.

For example, if customers want a competitor’s product but it has already sold out, does your product help solve their problem?

Finding data should not be a painstaking experience. After all there is the internet. Use it to find the keyword that your target audience uses to search for their products. The internet will also help you find out what solutions your competitors have come up with.

Put yourself in the shoes of your customers. What blogs do they read? What companies are they following? what are they saying in the reviews that they leave? All this information will help point you in the right direction.

I don’t want to say that you must hire the services of a professional when conducting market research. As a startup, you will probably have limited resources. However, if you can, then the prudent thing to do would be to indeed hire a professional.

Professionals have more experience and are better equipped to notice trends. A customer who is being interviewed as to why he bought a deodorant may have heard another customer say that the reason he bought was that the product is effective at offering 24-hour protection. However, the customers' true reason for purchase would be because he liked the smell. That is why professionals are needed.

And back to where we started shall we? Now with all the data in front you, where do you begin?

It is difficult to draw conclusions if you do not understand your target audience, how they feel, think, behave and the motivation or the why behind their purchase decision.

Once you understand these, then you can sift through the data and identify patterns that confirm what you probably thought. Also, you may learn something new about your target market which you can then exploit and create a product that best offers a solution to their problems.

What to do when you don’t have the cash for market research

Now we know that market research is crucial but what if you simply do not have the funds to hire a market research company considering that some might charge you thousands of dollars?

The only other rational step is to perform the research yourself. Start off by identifying and visiting the places where your target market hangs out such as forums and discussion boards. Quora, Reddit, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram are excellent places to begin.

Google will also give valuable insight as well as providing great secondary data on your target market.

Now that you’ve found your target audience, see how big the discussion forum is. Is it comprised of a few members or are their hundreds of thousands of people talking about the same thing? This can help you gauge the size of the potential market.

Second, read through what they are actually talking about. You will likely notice their complaints and their pain points. With this information you can create a product that best alleviates their problems.

You can also use the knowledge to not just create the ideal product but also tailor your marketing strategy. For example, by taking note of how the customers are expressing themselves and which words they are using, you can use these same words in your marketing to reach out to them and grab their attention.

Join the conversation and offer advice as to how best to deal with the problem. It is better if you can show proven results and then add a link to your website where they can go and purchase your products.

The advice you offer will get the people in that forum curious. They will trust you which increases the chance of them clicking on the link.

A point to note is that you should avoid spammy links. These will lower the groups trust in your advice, causing them to click less and significantly lower your chances of making a sale.

Another major benefit of directing customers to your site is that you can also offer them even more content which they can access by submitting their contact information such as an email. This provides you with a great avenue to reach out to potential customers directly by tailoring ads specifically to them.

Make use of Google Analytics to see how many people are visiting your site. Next compare this with the number of visitors who are providing you with their emails. If the conversion is decent then you know your idea sparks interest and customers will be willing to buy from you.

This is how you can conduct market research without worrying about hiring a third-party research agency and spending a fortune which you would have otherwise directed to product development and marketing.

How to spot a business opportunity in the market

So, you’ve managed to come up with a business idea, one which you think will take over the market. With guts, a little bravery and touch of wit, you can turn your idea into a thriving business.

And the great news is that it doesn’t matter if the market is dominated by big players. Have the right information with you and you can compete for a share of that market as well.

But how do you come with a good business idea in the first place? Granted you may want to have your own business running but how do you decide what to sell?

The first step is understanding that it’s not going to be an easy task entering into a market with already established big players. You will need to be able to find opportunities in such a market and gaps waiting to be filled.

Understanding that the road is going to be tough will help prepare you mentally for the challenges ahead and keep you motivated even when you feel like giving up.

Research is key to identifying such market gaps and they will help you set foot in a seemingly unconquerable market. From there your business can set root and grow.

Data should be the backbone on which your business supports itself. Making assumptions should only be a guiding principle for coming up with hypotheses. It is the data itself that is going to reveal the true nature of the market.

You cannot just assume that one thing is happening because of another reason. You need raw, old-school data to confirm what you are thinking otherwise your whole enterprise will be based on guesswork.

Once you sit down and analyze the information you’ve gathered, you may notice a gaping hole in a market that you may not have noticed otherwise. And not only do you stand to find missed opportunities, but you will also come across problems that you were not aware of before.

Beware of vanity metrics. These are results that give you the impression that you are indeed successful but in reality, it doesn’t reflect in your revenue. For example, you might have a business website that attracts a lot of traffic. However, while this may fool you into thinking that customers are interested in your products, the conversions continue to remain low.

Again, the right data will tell you everything you need to know. Never be afraid to let your research take you into unknown territory in your quest for information. Once you are out of the rabbit hole, you will be smarter than when you went in.

When it's all said and done, getting into a market with already established brands is by no means an easy task. It will require perhaps even greater determination than with the average entrepreneur. The trick is to know how to approach it with the right mindset. Get this right, gather information and analyze it well and you may find a gap just waiting to be filled.

And those big players, your competitors have something to offer as well.

Why copying your competitors is not such a bad idea

Copying your competitors doesn’t mean you do what they do, steal their strategies and plagiarize their work. No sir! Then that would be unethical and to a certain degree illegal.

However, look at things from a different angle. Your competitors are selling what you aim to be selling. The fact that they are doing a far better job than you means that they know something you don’t.

If you were to sell your products in the same way they did, you would make money. And this is exactly why it is important to keep an eye on your competition.

Do not study one enterprise but several businesses in your field that are doing well. You will notice patterns and similarities which you can incorporate in your own business.

One of the main benefits of studying your competitors is that you get to learn about some mistakes they make and avoid these with your business.

Take for example a situation where your competitor invited potential clients to an opening of a new location. They wrote a 5-page campaign detailing why people should come to view the new place. During the day of the event, no one shows up.

This could have been due to the fact that your competitor didn’t offer a good incentive on why people should go or because the 5-page campaign was just too long for people to read through. It could actually be both those reasons.
Now you know!

If you are planning to invite potential customers to your store, at least now you know what NOT to do. Competitors can help you avoid certain pitfalls.

But avoiding pitfalls is not the only thing that you stand to gain. You will also learn about what makes your target audience tick.

Take our earlier example and this time assumes your competitor invites the target market to their new premises by offering a 15% discount on all items on offer. They also design attractive postcards instead of the 5-page campaign.

When the time comes, the new business premises is simply flooded with customers. Now you know what interests your target audience and you can employ this strategy in your next marketing campaign. Again, you will not be plagiarizing but learning the concept and applying it.

Another great way to keep an eye on your competitor’s marketing strategies is to subscribe to their mailing list. You will be acting like just another potential customer and you have a direct view of what they are sending or offering your target audience.

You may notice that certain advertisements are similar even while they are not exactly the same. Designs and approach are similar due to the simple fact that such strategies work.

With this information, you can then tailor advertisements in a way that will best reach out to your audience. And you know you can trust this method because it has been proven to work.

When to do market research

The question as to when is the right time to do market research might seem simple and straightforward. “At the beginning before you launch your business” is the obvious answer many people would give.

However, to ensure that your business stays afloat longer than its first year which many a startup business has been unable to do, you need to conduct research at every stage of your business development. Plain and simple!

The first time you perform market research is when you are seeking to identify a gap in the market. This should be a pain point or a problem that has not yet been solved. Once you find this gap you will have that aha moment and immediately begin thinking of a product to fill that gap.

Ideas are great but they need to be backed up by real, concrete evidence otherwise all you will be working with is a hunch. As we’ve continued to say throughout this post, information is key. Aim to conduct secondary market research which will give you a good introduction into the market.

Then go ahead to perform primary market research by interacting with potential customers either through social networks or direct meetings. It will provide you a clearer view of what the market looks like.

Ask yourself if you can actually create a product that will be accepted by your target market. This stage is critical because there is really no need of coming up with a product where customers have no use for it and are not willing to buy.

Simply put, the target customers should need your product.

And how do you know that your product is needed and customers are willing to buy it? By having both quantitative and qualitative data.

The third stage is product improvement. Once you have come up with a product and customers have started to show a liking to it and are making purchases, it doesn’t mean the end of doing market research. There is still a lot that can be done to improve customer experience and make the product even better.

By interacting with your customers, you can ask direct questions on how they feel about the product and what can be done to improve the user experience. Often, they will be willing to give their personal opinions on the matter which you can use to your advantage.

The last stage is where you scale your production and sales. Many businesses have failed trying to scale too fast and lacking the right information on the market.

Just because people are buying doesn’t mean you should immediately start to mass produce. Research more on the market size and see if there is still a large portion of the market that has still not yet been served. Sometimes you might come across other information on a different gap which you can then use to differentiate your product.

Scaling needs to be gradual as it often means greater expenses in hiring more staff to work on increasing production and operations, so make sure it happens at a rate that the business can manage and sustain.

The Linguistic Aspects of Brexit Part II
English Language, Europe, Empire, EU, and the Exit
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by Summer Worsley
 
In our previous post, we looked at the origins and the use of the word Brexit. We also remarked on the efficacy, or not, in the framing of the language used in the campaigns and debates around Brexit. There's been a lot of jargon used to sway opinion by politicians, the media, and everyday citizens on the street.
 
In or out, remain or exit, stay or go–they are all very simple, but polarising and divisive terms. Such terms raise questions, not to mention barriers, about self and other. Whichever side of the divide you sit on, the lexicon has created a shift and uncertainty around individual and national identity.
 
Obviously, there’s the “us versus them” aspect of Britain in relation to other countries in the Europe Union. There is also the internal cultural divide and opposing values amongst people in Britain who wish to remain, and those who wish to exit from the EU. Whether you’re a Brexiter or Bremainer, the implications of Brexit are just around the corner. Shifts in economic, political, and physical boundaries and borders are nothing new and will continue to happen.
 
People are pondering whether the English language will remain in use by the EU, or even stay as one of the official languages without Britain as a member. Then there are those in the camp acknowledging that some are in favour of the retention of English as a working language within the EU. In addition, spoken and written English is now, more than ever, firmly entrenched in Europe as a second language in general.
 
This post is going to explore a little what has happened in the past where English has become a dominant language. We’ve taken a look backwards at the English language in order to look forward. It's no linear journey by any means. The spread of the English language is more akin to navigating a complex roundabout. Not so different from the EU perhaps, with multiple inroads and exits.
 
English as a language is really somewhat remarkable. Especially when you take a look at the way it evolved, spread, and is currently utilized around the world. Language shifts can happen gradually with socio-cultural changes. Significant changes can also happen dynamically through the planned introduction or exclusion of another language.
 
Brief Origins of the English Language 

Firstly, let’s not forget the origins of the English language actually lie in Europe. Yes, that’s right!  In the Indo-European language family, English evolved from the West and North Germanic tribes the Angles and the Saxons in the Middle Ages. Over the next few hundred years, it developed to include words and phrases from Latin, the Vikings, and the French-speaking Normans.
 
English Language and Colonization
 
Go forward another five hundred or so years, and the reach of the British Empire spread the English language far and wide. British colonies included North America, South America, Africa, The West Indies, India, Asia, and the Pacific. The Empire eventually fell, but the language remained. With new idioms and Pidgin variations, yes, but as an English-based language nonetheless.
 
In many colonized countries there have been moves over the past few decades to revive indigenous languages. In New Zealand, Te Reo Maori was marginalised in the 1800s with the arrival of Europeans. A hundred years later, in 1987 Maori became an officially recognized language within New Zealand. English remains the main language spoken.
 
Post-Colonial English
 
There is a flip side to the spread of colonial English to other countries and cultures. One of the counter-effects of England’s colonial days is the backflow of other languages and phrases into Britain. Think about the Americanisms that soon began creeping back into the lexicon from “the new world”, and still do.
 
People who were once the “other” from the colonies, or their descendants, immigrated to post-colonial Britain.  What was once “different” is now commonplace and considered cosmopolitan or as a matter of diversity to be celebrated. A case in point, London’s Notting Hill Carnival first started to encourage cultural unity with the West Indian community in the 1960s.
 
English Language and the EU
 
Following two attempts in the 1960s, England first joined the European Community, as it was then in 1973. A multi-lingual body, there are currently 24 official languages of the European Union. No one language has weight over another, and the EU publishes official information in all languages.
 
However, at any given time there may be two or three main lingua franca used by the EU. French and German were the most used languages by the EU during the 1960s and 1970s.
 
Since the 1990s, the top three lingua francas have been English, French, and German.
English was the most spoken language during EU plenary sessions in 2012. This goes for written communication and information disseminated via the EU websites as well. Depending on the content, the language on EU websites is one of the official languages, one of two or three languages, or English only.
 
Back to Brexit 

Language is power. Being able to speak in your own language is empowering and evokes a sense of nationalism and pride. 
 
After Britain exits from the EU, there will be two countries remaining who list English as one of their official languages. Yet these countries, Ireland and Malta, have Maltese and Gaelic as their official languages within the EU. Proportionately, both countries are very small, representing just 1% of the EU population. So not likely to hold much sway.
 
The EU language policy encourages multilingualism. It prioritizes and supports the learning of at least one or two second languages in all member countries. In the UK, foreign language policies differ. Scotland, Northern Ireland, and Wales all have strategies inclusive of other languages. In England, there is no current language policy. However, the British Council’s 2017 findings support foreign language learning in post-Brexit Britain to help create global citizens.
 
Yes, the UK is a diverse multilingual society, however, teaching English as a second language is a big business, in Britain and abroad. If you land on the British Council’s home page, the focus is very clearly on learning English to live not only in Britain but to take the tongue and teach it around the world. This is seen by many as not so much a result of globalisation, but a form of linguistic imperialism which echoes colonial rule.                                                                                                                                                                
 
Proponents of retaining English as a working language within the EU parliament, do so for reasons of both neutrality and practically. What’s more, many European nations have, and are, invested in teaching English to their populations. The English language could well remain as one of the main languages used in the EU, and as a common second language among European people. So, what if the English language remains as a lingua franca in Europe post Brexit?
 
Euro-English? 

Will this lead to the rise of a new form of Euro-English? Articles from academics such as Marko Modiano believe so.
 
Euro-English may not technically be a described language variety yet, but there are a few specific Euro-English forms and constructions on the rise. Some of these were noted by linguists as early as 1992. There are changes to lexis, adjusted standard phrases, as well as differences in case, morphology, and other formal aspects. A few examples include:
 
●      hop over - To refrain from doing something.
●      to salt - Overcharge.
 
●      I am coming from Sweden.
●      We were five people present.
 
●      Interchangeability of the relative pronouns which and who.
●      Rising use of the plural marker -s on singular nouns.
●      Lack of adverb marker -ly.
 
 
Given that we already have formal variations with American-English, Australian English, Canadian English, and many others, it’s more correct to speak of Englishes.
 
As L2 European speakers increasingly use the language among themselves, Euro-English is not so much a possibility as it is an inevitability. That is if English remains prominent.
 
Do you have any thoughts on the matter? If so, we’d love to hear them. Drop us a comment below.

by Samuel Gitukui

The savvy entrepreneur knows the importance of defining the target market. It allows the business to reach out to a section of the market that has the best chance of buying its products or services.

But there’s a problem.

While many business owners will tell you who they sell their products to, they often do not understand their target audience.

What do they love and despise? What problems do they face? What changes would they prefer in the current products that they buy? What challenges are they facing on a day to day basis?

These are just some of the questions that when answered, would help entrepreneurs understand how their target audience thinks.

In other words, their psychology.

Let’s learn a few tips to better understand the needs of your target audience.

1.    Get rid of assumptions

This is a mistake many business owners make. For example, if you develop and sell products for middle-aged women. Simply assuming what they would like based on their age alone is not enough.

Assumptions are never a good criterion for making business decisions.

Instead, get real, concrete evidence of what such a demographic likes by interviewing them directly.

2.    Go through previous studies

One of the most cost-effective ways to obtain information on the market is reading through findings and research done by those that have come before you.

The information, however, needs to be up to date and should be relevant to your target market.

3.    Come up with a persona

This persona should be a reflection of what your average customer is going to be. It is a fictional creation of gender, age, likes, education, method of thinking and lifestyle.

You can then imagine what would be most attractive to them and make better decisions.

4.    Do your own research

Now that you have secondary data, what you now need is primary information which you obtain yourself.

You will do this by going to the customers and interviewing them on large scale about the type of products that they need.

Make sure you obtain enough information to make the best business decision.

5.    Conduct small-scale research

Unlike the big scale research above that is quantitative in nature, small-scale research is qualitative.  This means asking questions from a smaller group of your target audience and giving them time to provide you with longer more in-depth answers.

This allows you to learn more about how they think. An example of a question you would ask is, how do you feel about the product?

6.    Study your competitors

Find out how other business in the same niche as you are marketing to the audience. They will already have conducted their own market research and came up with a strategy.

By analyzing their marketing campaigns, you can learn how to approach the target audience in the most successful way.

The great thing with studying your competitors’ actions is that the strategies are tried and tested.

by Samuel Gitukui

In this day and age, businesses are facing even greater competition. While this is good news for the consumer as they have their pick of the best products available, businesses which cannot compete soon face closure.
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And that is why target marketing is important.

Suppose you want to venture into an industry that is dominated by large firms. How does your small business stay afloat?

One very effective method is to define your target audience and tailor your marketing efforts and resources to this market.

We are not saying you discriminate. No sir!

What we are saying is you are focusing on a demographic that has a higher chance of buying your products.

Some businesses enter the market with an “anyone can buy my products” approach. If you were asked who you sell your products to and said, “anyone who is interested”, then this is a very generic answer.

Let’s find out how you can define your target audience and tailor the best marketing pitch for your company.

1.    Analyze your client base

Take a moment and study your current customers. Ask yourself, why do they buy from you? What are they looking for? Are there any common characteristics among them?

More often than not you will begin to notice patterns and similarities.

Then try and find how you can get more clients with similar characteristics.

2.    Study the competition

Businesses that are in the same industry as yours and are doing better must be getting something right. Find out what their marketing campaigns are like.

This is not so that you can copy their every move, but by studying what they are doing, you might notice a gap in the market that they are missing and take advantage of it.

What do you stand to gain?

Well, for one you will have less competition.

3.    Study your services or products

Once you have defined who you need to market to, the next step is to analyze what your business offers. Put down a list of all the benefits that come with purchasing your services or products.

Take for example a graphic designer…

He is likely going to target businesses looking to advertise and increase their customers base. Some of the benefits that such businesses stand to gain is high-quality graphic design solutions.

This would make the business appear professional and reliable which will, in turn, attract more customers.

4.    The demographics

Figuring out who is interested in your products or services is only the first step. The next step is to dig a little deeper as to who is most likely going to buy from you and this will be based on demographics.

Such demographics may include age, gender, marital status, income level, education level and occupation to mention a few.

5.    Final evaluation

You’ve managed to define your target audience… it’s time for a final evaluation. 

Is the target market large enough to give you good business? Are they going to benefit from the products or services? Will they afford the products or services? Are they easily reachable with the tailored message?

These are just some of the questions that will help you decide on your chosen target market.

by Samuel Gitukui

We are approaching the new year and many people have already set their new year resolutions. Is yours to grow your business? Let's find out how you can get funding to move your enterprise to the next stage.

As an entrepreneur, at some point, you were faced with the task of funding your business. And if you considered the option of investors, then you know that getting someone else to commit funds to your business is not easy.

It is not surprising to secure a meeting with a potential investor, thinking that the fact that you’ve managed to get them to sit down with you means that getting them to fund your business is a sure thing, only to come out of that meeting disappointed.

The main objective with investors is to make money. This means that they have their own methods of judging and avoiding risky ventures. If you want to be successful at getting investors to provide you with the cash you need, you need to be proactive and know how they think.

1.    Know their background

Most investors will not get into a business that they don’t know. This is why it’s important to contact only those that are aware of your type of business and how it functions.

If your business is centered around transport, then find an investor who has experience with the transport industry. They will be more willing to work with you and will also advise you on how to avoid certain pitfalls.

2.    Learn about their previous investments

You could say this point complements the first. Someone who has never invested in chemical supplies before will not be aware of the nature of the business and the industry in which you work.

Even with the best pitch, the investor is still not going to be willing to take the risk. However, if they have previously invested in your type of business, then you can catch their attention with a convincing pitch.

3.    Stage of growth

Note that investors will have their own preferences before they can fund your business. The stage of your business growth is just one of them. Is it a startup or has your business been running for quite some time now? Does the investor have a minimum revenue requirement? Such questions should be running through the mind of the entrepreneur before making that pitch.

This means doing the right research about your investor before sitting down for a meeting.

4.    Investment amount

How much do you want for your business? Is it $1,000 or $10,000?  Find out how much money investors are willing to put into any investment and work from there.

You can’t ask for a million dollars from an investor that is only willing to put in $10,000 into a business.
5.    Returns
Before an investor can put in money into your business they will have their rates of return. Is it double or 5 times the amount they gave you? Learn this and decide whether the investor is the right fit for your business.

Make sure that you are willing to work within their terms.

6.    Investor time frame

Investors have a time frame on when they should expect a ROI or return on investment. Again, make sure that you are willing to work with the terms of the investor.

But how can you learn all this?

Doing proper research is paramount. Also, during your meeting, you can ask these questions. This will help you figure out whether the investor is a good match for your business.

by Samuel Gitukui

Entrepreneurship is one of the most rewarding endeavors that anyone can ever undertake. Millennials continue to thrive by starting their own business and companies. Some are successful, some not so much. With the digital age of information, there are plenty of business ideas that are coming up.

This means that it's not surprising to see entrepreneurs who are operating more than a single business. the challenge comes in how to separate your time and manage them both.

Let’s consider a few tips that one can follow to ensure that all your businesses are getting enough attention to thrive. And with the new year just around the corner, we are going to make sure that all of your businesses are operating at full efficiency.

1.    Remain flexible

Nothing is constant and the business environment is always changing. It follows then hat a closed mindset will be kicked out of business. Instead, learn to be flexible and to meet the changes as they come.

Adapt and be willing to rethink the original business idea in order to accommodate the changes. This is how you remain ahead of the game.

Often businesses that started well and were thriving find themselves out of business simply due to the inability to keep up with the competition. Change is inevitable and adopting a flexible mindset will ensure that your business remains stable even during the rough times.

2.    Provide a solution

The trick to remaining in business is to be able to provide a need to your customers. But how do you find this void in the market?

Proper research into the workings of the market will tell you where there is a missing link. With this information, you can go ahead to create something that fills the void.

Often this need will be necessary and clients will keep choosing your products over the competition because you are providing something that is rare and that the competition doesn’t offer.

3.    Get the best team

When running multiple businesses, you need to know that the people working for you can be trusted with performing their set tasks. After all, you cannot have all the time to run the businesses on your own.  This is why it's important to get qualified professionals working for you.

There will always be those moments where the business meets challenges. What if you are at the other business premises and an urgent matter arises? Does it mean that you are the only person who can handle it? The right team will be in a position to handle most of the challenges and leave the absolutely crucial ones to you.

4.    Know when to say no

Managing more than a single business may leave you with so much work that the quality of output starts to drop. This is the time to say no to more tasks. You would rather have less business that you can handle and provide high-quality output than have too much and fail to deliver.

Second, your relationships may start to suffer where you are spending too much of your time working and less of it with your loved ones. The solution is to determine your priorities and work on these.

by Samuel Gitukui

The business world is seeing more and more freelance workers. In the recent past, the trend has been and continues to be on the rise. In fact, expert prediction says that this isn’t something that is going to lose momentum any time soon.

Freelance work spans across plenty of different professions from architects, accountants, and bloggers to journalists and even nannies.

Things are different now with the advancements in information technology which makes it that much easier for freelancers to get clients.

But regardless of the nature of the job that freelancers are involved in, one thing about them remains true, they are very much interested in not only acquiring clients but retaining them as well. That means providing quality work and keeping their clients happy.

And this is where the challenges come in. If you are a freelancer, let’s find out how you can maintain regular happy clients.

1.    Being dependable and reliable

Studies have shown an increase in the number of companies that now hire freelance workers to get their jobs done over the more traditional employer-employee setting where the recruiter has to go through a rigorous process to identify the right candidate for a position.

There is a concern however that since freelancers work on their own terms that they could be a bit unreliable and even flaky. And there is a good reason to think this way.

However, while this might have been the case in the past years, it is certainly not the case now as freelancers make it a priority to provide quality work on time.

As a freelancer, you should aim to deliver good quality work to your clients. Once clients see that you can be trusted, they are far more likely to come to you with regular tasks.

2.    Use your flexible time correctly

Speaking of time, freelancers seem to have it made. There is less commute time and more time to work on tasks. The downside is that some freelancers may take too long to complete a task or even reply to a message.

Ensure that this is not the case with you. Messages should be replied fast and tasks completed within the agreed timeframe.

It gets frustrating to an employer when a freelancer is taking too long to reply or send the completed tasks. In the mind of the employer, you would seem unreliable and less trustworthy.

Make sure you strive to provide the best to your clines.

3.    Be flexible

It’s very simple for freelancers to find themselves locked in a box where they provide the very same service to their clients.

However, it is always beneficial to show your clients that you can work on other tasks as well as long as it is something that you can perform.

As opposed to just handling in your work and waiting for the next time that you get asked to perform a task, you can get to know your client at a more personal level by asking them if there is anything else you can help them with.
By following the steps above, you will resonate well in the minds of your clients and the next time they have a task, you will be the first person they will contact.

by Summer Worsley

Since the neologism ‘Brexit’ was first coined in 2012, it has gained a lot of cultural currency rapidly. So fast, in fact, that in 2016, when Brexit was added to the dictionary, the OED called its rise to prominence “impressive”.

Brexit is not confined to European and UK newspapers. Use of the term has been recorded in foreign-language news publications across the world. It seems the lexeme is on the tip of everyone’s tongues.

With that in mind, in this post we’ll take a look at some of the linguistic aspects of Brexit.

“Brexit means Brexit” - Theresa May
Despite UK Prime Minister Theresa May’s somewhat ambiguous statement that “Brexit means Brexit”, the word does have a deeper meaning.

Economists first started using the term to denote a British exit from the European Union.

Britain or British + Exit from the EU = Brexit

They modelled the portmanteau after 2010’s Grexit:

Greece or Greek + Exit from the Eurozone monetary unit = Grexit

The OED’s definition of Brexit is a little fuller than the above. For the lexicographers, Brexit means:

“The (proposed) withdrawal of the United Kingdom from the European Union, and the political process associated with it.”

The extended definition continues:

“Sometimes used specifically with reference to the referendum held in the UK on 23rd June 2016, in which a majority of voters favoured withdrawal from the EU.”

The OED also notes that the more accurate ‘UKexit’ didn’t hold much sway with language users. Nor did ‘Brixit’.

Word Class
Although Brexit started life as a noun, it is increasingly being used as a verb, as the OED’s extended definition of Brexit as a process would suggest. (Note though, at the moment the OED defines it solely as a proper noun).

Let’s have a look at how it functions in each word class.

Noun - “The report warned that Brexit would reduce the EU's potential GDP”

Verb - “The UK will Brexit in 2020”

Third-person simple present - Brexits
Present participle - Brexiting
Past and simple past participle - Brexited

Adjective - “The Brexit referendum”

There aren’t a lot of instances of adverbial use; can something be carried out Brexitly? But given how active the Brexit lexeme is, this may change. Perhaps it will come to mean doing something begrudgingly, or with “Bregret”!

Productivity: The Brexicon (Brexit + Lexicon)
Brexit as a lexeme has spurned a lot of other new words, many of these are used frequently, including:

Bremain - Britain + Remain, a antonym of Brexit. And by extension, Bremainer.
Brexiter - A Brexit supporter. Linguist Graeme Davis also makes a distinction between Brexiter and Breixteer.
Bregret (or Regrexit) - Regret over the leave vote.

Lesser items in the Brexicon include:

Brexchosis - Double portmanteau coined by Boris Johnson.
Brexiety - A state of anxiety over Brexit.
Brespoke - A bespoke exit deal.
Brexodus - The exodus or departure of both EU and UK citizens from the UK following the vote.
Brexthrough - A breakthrough in exit talks.

UK newspaper The Independent has put forward a more complete, and oftentimes hilarious, list here.

Who’s In and Who’s Out
Brexit has been polarising, to say the least with Brexiters and remainers taking a firm stance on either side of the issue.

The Brexit vote, and the accompanying clamour of voices focuses attention on language and the discursive construction of patriotism, that is how we linguistically construct our allegiance to a given community. In this case, in or out.

The leave campaign's simple slogan “take back control” might be jingoistic and misleading (political slogans often are) but it proved to be effective. In contrast, the remain campaign never really coined a powerful slogan, “Britain is stronger, safer and better off in Europe” just didn’t have the teeth, or the spin possibilities, that camp leave’s slogan had.

Vote leave relied on emotion, the use of “control” here implied that the UK was/is out of control as part of the EU. Associations of foreign bureaucrats as puppeteers “controlling” the UK rose among the public. As too did anti-immigration sentiment.

Enough has been said about the rise of populist politics and rhetoric recently that we won’t add to the discussion here except to note that language is a powerful tool indeed when wielded for a specific means.

Weighing In
“Hello, I am from Britain, you know, the one that got tricked by a bus” - Aher Shah

Post-vote, people on both sides of the debate signal their preferences through Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. These micro-blogging platforms provide an outlet for people to express their community, be it in, out, or apathetic.

Jokes have been aplenty. As too have the memes. An oft-seen signifier on the remain side is the EU’s circle of stars on a blue background. Some remainers favour a Union Jack as cover images or profile pictures.

Outside the digital realm, people have been spotted wearing their preference with t-shirts emblazoned with text such as “All I want for Christmas is EU” and “Brexit people scare me”.

Linguists and sociolinguists alike have been weighing in too with what seems like a whole field of study springing up around the issue. If you’re interested, this lecture from Veronika Koller at Lancaster University on Brexit discourse is a good start.

We’re sure the academic debate is going to continue for a while yet. After all, Brexit is the kind of event that gives discourse analysts a lot of work to do!

Have you noticed any interesting uses of language to do with Brexit? If so, let us know in the comments below.

by Samuel Gitukui

In the modern business era of high competition, it’s a no-brainer that customer experience is one of the main ways to develop loyal customers. In fact, many companies go above and beyond with new technologies and processes to make sure that the customers have a good service.

But is it working and can businesses link their customer experience strategies to increased revenue?

The short and simple answer is that while there is indeed some proof, the bigger picture is that there is really no predetermined method of finding that out.

But what does this mean?

Well, most businesses are now aware that good customer experience is important, but this is solely based on thinking. This means businesses are spending millions on customer experience methods and strategies hoping that they will turn their customers into loyal buyers.

In all this, something seems to be left out and most entrepreneurs seem to not pay much attention to it—employee experience. To really succeed in customer experience, the employees need to love their jobs. Simply put, employee experience equals customer experience.

Let’s discover more.

Your Business is its employees

People often talk about things like the company policy and the company culture. However, they seem to forget that the business is really made up of people. It is the employees that perform all the tasks from sales to manufacturing to serving customers.

This is why employee experience is so important. Employers should realize that people are not just legal entities who are there to simply complete a task.

The closest people to your customers are the employees

Have no doubt about it. It is your employees that are dealing with your customers on a daily basis. They hear their complaints and are the first to offer solutions to any questions.

Your employees are also the best source of information about customer experience and will help pass this information to top management.

Employee experience equals customer experience

Many businesses spend a lot of their money on making sure the employees provide the best experience to customers. Not only that, but part of that investment will go towards ensuring that the employees themselves don’t do anything to mess up customer experience.

Employees will give customers what they themselves have and little more. If their experience is lousy, they will simply lack the motivation to provide a better experience to the customer.

Your employees will help build your brand

Let’s dissect this a bit, shall we? The business brand is a promise to deliver a certain quality of service or products to your customers. But how do you deliver the best service when the people delivering that service, the employees are dissatisfied with their jobs?

Your employees deliver your brand. So, make sure that they are in the best position to.

We are not saying that you should completely ignore your customer experience processes. What we are saying is that to be most efficient at it, employee experience should be a priority.

by Samuel Gitukui

As an entrepreneur, you want your business to grow and naturally, getting more salespeople should translate to getting more clients, right?

As much as this is hard to argue with, you also want to ensure that your sales team is highly capable, highly efficient and are all up to date with the most effective strategies. You can’t just have each member of your sales team approaching the market differently.

A well-defined strategy for acquiring and retaining clients is essential.

Let’s take a look at a few steps to build an effective and efficient sales team from scratch.

1.    Have the right product for the target market

It doesn’t matter how talented your sales team is. If your product doesn’t satisfy a need or a want, then customers are simply not going to be interested.

If you are a startup, a safe way to approach the market is to gather a small group of customers that you can contact easily to get feedback and create a product according to their interest.

Once you are confident that the final product is satisfying the customers you can then scale up and expand your sales team.

Imagine having many people selling a product that customers are not overly excited about. Eventually, the business revenue will decline.

2.    Get a strategy that can be easily scaled up

In business, things are not as black and white as they may sometimes appear. Take cold calling, for example, one of the reasons it is not a favorite of many is because research shows that it has around a 1% success rate. Social marketing, on the other hand, has a good 15% success rate.

However, the question now becomes, which of the two strategies is easier to scale up? Without a doubt, it is far easier to use different technologies to scale up cold calling. This is not easily done with social marketing.

Entrepreneurs with such knowledge should be quick to educate their sales team. The salespeople will then know how to approach the market every time they go out fishing for clients.

3.    Get the right Salespeople

As an entrepreneur looking to increase the size of their sales team, you might be tempted to hire anyone with previous experience in the sales and marketing field. This approach is too generic.

Instead what you should aim to do is to get someone who has the skills that are needed in your particular line of business. Think of it this way, if your business requires rapid-fire transaction sales, the salesperson needed will be different from one needed in a complex organization where business relationships are needed.

4.    Improve the post-sale experience

A lot of emphasis is placed on making sales that people forget that the post-sale experience is equally as important. How you handle a buyer will remain stuck in their memories for a good long time. If the experience is good, then they are very likely to come back. And if it was less than ideal, then you will not remain in their favor for long.

Once you have set the above steps in place, then you can go ahead and scale up your sales team and watch your business grow.

by Samuel Gitukui

A question that is very often in the minds of sales executives is which of the two between email and phone calls offers the ultimate outreach medium.

Salespeople are often on the go and find it convenient to reply to emails quickly through their mobile phones. Indeed, emails are a necessary and all-important tool during marketing. It is the most widely used form of communication and in fact, studies show that by the end of 2018, there should be roughly 3.8 billion email users.

But what about making phone calls?

This is the thing, they are absolutely crucial as well. You simply cannot depend on email alone and expect to efficiently reach out to your customers.

Which of the two methods to use will very often depend on your audience and how best to connect and communicate with them. let’s find out more!

The Phone Call

There are certain situations that simply call for the use of telephone conversations. This method allows you to humanly interact with your audience. You can get valuable feedback that you wouldn’t normally get with an email conversation such as judging the authenticity and commitment of your client.

It is also an excellent way to build trust. The best time to make a call to your prospective client is:

•    when you are looking for a quick answer
•    when you are trying to explain a complicated process
•    when the client prefers phone conversations
•    when you want to connect more and create a relationship and
•    when you need to deliver bad news

The Email
​
Sometimes you may have many clients and you can’t possibly make phone calls to all of them for every minor detail. Email is a good way to ask quick questions that are not urgent. Prospective clients may have a busy schedule and may not be in a position to pick a phone call. Email provides an excellent alternative.

The best times to use email includes:

•    when you are making a follow-up
•    you need a quick answer to a query
•    when there is a need for written proof or
•    when you need to communicate with many people.

How to choose the best outreach method

Now that we know that both of these communication methods are essential during marketing, the trick is to be able to analyze the situation and determine which of them to employ. This is how.

1.    What is the objective?

This is the first question you should ask yourself. Are you in the process of closing a huge deal? Then making a phone call is best as opposed to sending an email which may actually look rather lazy.

If on the other hand, you need a short response which is not very urgent, then an email will work just fine.

2.    What does the prospect prefer?

If you already know the prospect well and they have shown a timely response, then using email is a good way to reach out.

In case you have just only recently met the prospect and are trying to build that rapport and relationship then a phone call should suffice.

   Image via Know Your Meme

English, like all languages, is riddled with twists, turns, and unexpected idiosyncrasies. Many of which trip up native speakers and second-language speakers alike.
 
Prompted by a series of now-viral memes in which several women talk about how good it is to smell a man’s colon, we decided to delve into a few of the most common mistakes people make in English.


1. Malapropisms - The Specifically Pacific Ocean

A malapropism is when an intended word is misused, thereby giving the sentence an entirely different (and sometimes nonsensical) meaning. Often this is because the words that are mixed up have similar phonetic features.
 
Have you ever heard someone explain a predicament using the word “pacifically”?
 
“I pacifically wanted no cheese because of my lactose intolerance.”
 
The part that’s even more comical about this specific malapropism are the correction attempts. To pacifically do something means to do so in a tranquil, calm, collected manner. But it would seem that the Pacific ocean has robbed it of its meaning.
 
To summarise:
 
●       Pacifically isn’t a real word (Proper Noun)
●       Specific is a real word (-ly)
●       Pacific is a real word
●       pacifically is a real word.
 
2. Double Negatives

You’ve probably heard the phrase “Two wrongs don’t make a right” before. When applied to the English language this means that double negatives are a “no-no”. In writing at least.
 
Prior to the 16th century, double negation was actually a common element in English speech and writing. Just as it is in many languages. In fact, it is more common for a language to display negative concord than not. It wasn’t until the first prescriptionist grammarians began rallying against double negation that it was viewed as “poor” English.
 
Applying basic rules from logic to language, it was decided that two negatives make a positive. This is overly simplistic and language is too nuanced for statements such as this. Nevertheless, the rule stuck.
 
Today, many varieties of English, including AAVE and several UK varieties, make use of negative concord as standard practice; which should go a long way toward proving that it’s not actually such a bad thing.
 
But old habits die hard and the double negative is still viewed as poor style in written English.
 
❌I don’t want to do nothing today.
✔️I don’t want to do anything today.
 
❌We don’t have no more money
✔️We don’t have any more money.
 
3. Preposition Use

Prepositions are used to highlight the relationship between an object and subject. When speaking, however, we don’t realise that some words already have built-in prepositions. Here are some examples:
 
Approach (come near to)
❌ Don’t approach to that building
✔️ Don’t approach that building.
 
Attack (go and fight against)
❌ They launched an attack against the enemy
✔️ They attacked the enemy.
 
Leave (depart from)
❌I left from Germany last week.
✔️I left Germany last week.
 
Reached (to arrive)
❌ We reached at the doctor’s office early.
✔️ We reached the doctor’s office early.
 
4. Awkward Idioms

Idioms are used when we want to take a break from ordinary speech and spice up our routine. These cleverly constructed phrases can tell an entire story in one short breath. But when idioms and phrases are misused or said out-of-context it can prove to be a somewhat embarrassing situation.
 
Here are a few common examples:
 
 
❌To all intensive purposes
✔️To all intents and purposes
 
❌Butt naked
✔️Buck naked
 
❌Hunger pains
✔️Hunger pangs
 
❌Extract revenge
✔️Exact revenge
 
❌It peaked my interest
✔️It piqued my interest
 
❌Per say
✔️Per se

5. The Your vs You’re Tragedy

Poor “your” and “you’re” are so commonly mixed up and misused that an entire article could be devoted to the subject alone.
 
If you’ve spent any time on social media you have probably spotted this common mistake many times. You’ve probably also spotted the commenter who wants to correct the error and the subsequent “grammar nazi” jokes that arise.
 
Here’s how the your vs you’re thing works:
 
“Your” should be used to show possession.
“You’re” is always a contraction for “you are.”
 
❌You’re life is your life, live like there’s no tomorrow.
✔️Your life is your life, live like there’s no tomorrow.
 
6. That vs Who

Okay, humans aren’t objects so this one is easy to remember. The general rule of thumb is that “who” is for people and “that” is for objects.
 
❌There have been people that have passed this test many times
✔️There have been people who’ve passed this test many times.
 
That vs Which is a whole other beast and is to do with restrictive clauses. Generally speaking, British English is kinder to the writer or speaker who isn’t sure which word to use. For more info on that, check here.
 
7. Apostrophe Placement

Yes, apostrophes are aesthetically pleasing to the eye. But we can’t always just throw them at the end of a word and hope for the best. Many people make the mistake of using apostrophes in the place of a plural ending.

Apostrophe Dos and Don’ts 

●       Do use them to contract words such as do not, can not, should not, have not, etc.
●       Do use them to show possession or ownership
●       Don’t use them to pluralise a word.
●       Do remember that “it’s” always means “it is” and never marks the possessive.
 
❌The duck’s are swimming in the pond.
✔️The ducks are swimming in the pond.
 
❌It’s mechanism is complex.
✔️Its mechanism is complex.
 
8. The Infamous There/Their/They’re

Like its cousin the “Your vs You’re” tragedy, the misuse of there/their/they’re is abundant. This is perhaps unsurprisingly considering each sounds very similar.
 
Without getting too complicated, let’s break this one down:
 
“There” is to do with location or an event in time.
Look over there!
There is a sale at the mall tomorrow.
There’s my hat!
 
“They’re” is always a contraction for “they are”.
They’re going to the movies tonight.
They’re hilarious.
 
“Their” is used to show possession. It’s kind of like the modified version of “they”.
Their class schedule is very busy.
Their ice cream was delicious.

9. And We Can't Forget About Our Homophones To/Two/Too

Who would’ve thought that there would be a homophone for signifying numbers, prepositions, and excess at the same time? Clearly English did… To that end, let’s take a look at how to use these little words right.
 
To and too specifically are used interchangeably in today’s society. But the good news is that “two” is rarely misused, mostly because it has a ‘w’ in it and is a number. 
 
The rules are fairly simple for this:
 
“To” is used to make the infinitive verb form.
To swim, to run, to walk, to eat, to sing, to look, to watch.
 
“To” is also used to mean going “towards.”
I am going to the movies.
Want to go to the park?
To boldly go where no man has gone before**
 
“Two” (2) refers to the number itself.
Two cups of ice cream, please.
You need a number-two pencil for this exam.
 
“Too” mean "also" or represents an excess of something.
I like pizza too.
That is too much sugar!
 
And that’s enough grammar for one day! Did we miss anything? Any common mistakes that you see a lot? Let us know in the comments below.
 
 
**Don’t worry, we won’t go into the split infinitive!!
​

by Samuel Gitukui

Starting a business is never easy. As an entrepreneur, you need to be willing to go the extra mile. This means waking up earlier than usual, and sometimes working more hours.

Maintaining this lifestyle can often cause stress that is detrimental to one’s health.

That is why it’s important to maintain a healthy entrepreneurial lifestyle.

Let’s take a look at 5 ways to ensure your body and mind are always ready to deal with the rigors of the next business day.

1.      Exercise everyday

Working out every day will help to keep your mind revitalized and fresh. The resulting positive outlook on life is a major determining factor on successfully accomplishing your daily tasks.

Considering all the challenges that entrepreneurs face on a daily basis, any morale boost is welcome.

Most people who exercise in the morning find that they approach the day with zest and have an improved ability to solve problems.

2.      Eat healthy

Making small positive changes to your diet can bring a lot of benefits to your health.  Take soda for example. You can replace it with water and make huge improvements on your body’s overall health which can also help you lose weight by reducing your sugar intake.

Instead of buying processed foods, why not carry a healthy meal to the office which includes nutrient rich foods and have this in place of fries and burgers.

Being healthy means you are better able to deal with the challenges of the day and you can concentrate on moving your business forward.

3.      Take time off

There is no denying the fact that managing and running a business is stressful. To prevent you suffering from burnout, you need to take time away from the business to relax.

As much as you need to put in the time and effort as an entrepreneur, you should also know when it’s becoming too much for your body to handle.

Watch a movie, go to the golf course or engage that hobby that you like. Every once in a while, take a vacation. Some really great business ideas were thought of when on vacation.

4.      Maintain a schedule that works for you

An excellent way to keep everything on track is to maintain a schedule. When you have a plan of how your day will start and everything you need to do before it is over, you are more likely to finish what you need to get done.

Maintaining your schedule for the first few days is always the most difficult part but once you start to get used to it, everything gets easier. Think about setting an alarm at 5.00am every day. Getting out of bed might be difficult initially but soon your body gets accustomed to this and you will find that you naturally get up during this time.

5.      Managing the stress

Stress goes hand in hand with managing a business. And the more the business grows, the more the entrepreneur has to deal with. The good thing is that it is possible to manage your stress levels.

Stress if left unmanaged can have negative consequences to your business. Find a way that works for you and apply it when running your business.

by Samuel Gitukui

Ask any experienced entrepreneur and they will tell you that one of the best ways to get consistent customers is through referrals.

In fact, top performing sales people are aware of this fact and include it in their sales pitch. Surprisingly, some sales people are afraid to ask for referrals even after learning the benefits that they bring to the business.

Think about it for a second.

What do you have to lose if you asked for referral? I’ll, tell you—zero. On the other hand, not asking means failed opportunities, and missed customers.

Simply put, referrals are an excellent way to optimize your sales. So, cast away your fears and let’s find out 3 ways entrepreneurs can take advantage of referrals.

1.      Ask for introductions

The best and most effective way to get referrals is to avoid asking for referrals. Wait, what?

What we are saying here is that simply asking customers for referrals can come out as a bit ambiguous as they may not know exactly what you mean.

Instead ask your customers and prospective clients to introduce you to a few more people in their field. This is much clearer for them and will help them understand exactly what you want.

As long as you are maintaining a good conversation with them, your customers should be more than willing to connect you with other people they know.

2.      Ask for 1 a day

Take time every single day to ask for a new introduction from any of your customers, friends or family. there is a high chance that they know someone who would require your products or services.

The good thing is that this is a relatively simple thing to do and will not take too much time. In fact, 15 minutes a day is all you need to get a new referral.

Asking for one a day may not sound like much, but imagine how many you will have received by year’s end. Well, 250 referrals by the end of the year can translate to a full sales pipeline and decent revenue.

3.      Hold events

One of the single most effective way to network with big players in the same industry is to hold an event. Choose a good venue and ask your customers to connect you with some of the big performers in the business.

Here you will be using your client base to get your name recognized as another major upcoming player in the industry.
When you finally invite these high-end clients, ask them to bring along their networks. Ensure you offer value in the information you pass across. Entrepreneurs can boost their business image and make lasting connections with important industry shakers.

You stand to gain bigger clients that will propel the business to the next level of growth by ordering large quantities of your products.

Referrals are a great way to boost your sales, keeping the client pipeline full and maintaining regular business. So why not implement it today and reap the rewards!

by Samuel Gitukui

Research has it that sales reps make an average of 46 calls each day. If, however, they do not produce any substantial results, it may feel like a demoralizing waste of time.

To increase the odds of making conversions, the phone calls need to be made to qualified leads. But I’m afraid things don’t get any simpler.

What exactly is a qualified lead?

In fact, most companies lack a proper definition of this term. For those that do work with a definition, 53% of phone calls leads to a first discussion. Compare this to 34% for those that lack a definition and the significance of it becomes clear.

It all comes down to the nature of your business. A qualified lead is an individual who is already showing interest in the services or products of the company without even getting a phone call. These are guys who have put a product in their wishlist in case of an ecommerce store or have recently done a Google search.

Once the business identifies such leads, the next thing is to provide their contacts to the sales team. In this way, the sales reps avoid barking up the wrong tree.

This is how.

1.      Use geotargeting
Geotargeting allows businesses to sift through many people and connect with only the ones that show genuine interest in the products or services of the company.

Think of it this way. Assume you were offering dental services in your city. Instead of focusing on the entire city, you could narrow down your leads to individuals that are just 30 or 45 minutes away from your clinic.

Targeting people that are more interested in your products mainly due to the area they live in is another way that geotargeting can assist businesses create qualified leads.

2.      Send personalized messages

With the advancements in communication, businesses have no excuse to sending generic messages to leads. There is simply enough information out there to research on a lead and send a more personalized message.

In fact, personalized messages have been shown to increase conversion rates by 10%.

3.      Use simple language

Many sales people might think that using complicated language makes them look more professional and better informed, but their efforts amount to little if the target customers don’t understand half the words that are being spoken.

Customers should understand the worlds easily to be able to see the value that the service or product you are selling adds to their lives. Otherwise, everything may sound so complicated that the lead avoids any communication with the company.

What’s more, the leads that remain are likely to be unreliable.

4.      Add gated content to your website

The information on your business website should be valuable. Once clients see this, they will be more willing to answer a few questions and offer their email address for more information about why your products and services will add value to their lives.

Sales reps can then use the information to contact a customer. The trick here is striking the right balance between valuable free information and gated content.

Ultimately by following the steps above, cold calling will result in better conversions and improve the businesses bottom line. 

by Sarah O.

How do you view your business?  Are you looking through the binoculars of society?  Are you viewing with the eyes of scrutiny, looking ONLY at the monetary figures that your business may be acquiring?  The society we live in today is ever fixed primarily on the financial aspects of a business and it seems that, this is how businesses are unfortunately measured.  You may have noted yourself that, you might just be viewing your business in the same light.  Well what can be done about it?

According to adequate research, there are many ways to measure the success of your business.  Have a look at some ideas:

1.  Your Network Flow

If you manage your business online, the amount of traffic you receive from visitors may tell you just how well you are doing…or not.  As this platform serves as a means of communication between you and your customers – this could be a way of measuring your success and to see just how well you are doing, if at all.

2.  Feedback

If you are providing specific services to people and you have a system whereby you have allowed your customers to give their thoughts and comments on your business and its services, you can use this feedback to help you gauge how well you are doing as a business.  Granted, it may not be to the fullest degree that you will gain a full coverage of the public that make use of your site, but it will provide you with a guesstimate of what you are already doing and how you can better your performance.

Since you will receive both negative and positive reviews, make sure you take note of all comments and adapt it to see how it can benefit your business.  It becomes a great measuring tool in your communication with your audience and how much you value what they have to say which in turn again, will determine the success of your business.

3.  New Customers

Are you receiving an influx of new customers your way?  Customers that want to do business with you and that are interested in working with you - this is a sure way that allows you to measure the success of your business.  The reality is that if you are under the frame of a successful business, this is recognised and noted by other businesses who then want to ‘come under your umbrella’ as it were, to engage in business activities.  At this point, in their eyes – you are successful. 

In doing this, they bring in new clients and customers who are then added to your list and your business is then promoted.

4.  Profit

For the masses, this is a general way of knowing whether your business is successful or not.  Your yearly, monthly profit margins are to be considered.  If you have more coming in, then for sure your business is doing well.  For many people, this is a very important and crucial way of determining the success of your business because it means that your business is not only profiting but also allows you to continue to provide the service or product that it is already giving.

5.  Reviewing Your Current Market

Is your business expanding?  Does your business allow you to dive into different markets?  You will need to keep up to date with the various markets to ensure that your business stays afloat and stays current to attract new customers and to retain your current customers.  If you are able to introduce new products and items to remain fluid through your market – this may be something that will help your business and you can review how that would affect your business, which will then in turn allow you to determine how successful you are.

6.  Performance Reviews

Are you reviewing your business performance yourself?  You might initially think that the success of your business lies externally.  This is not always the case.  As the business owner, you would need to take it upon yourself to conduct performance reviews to ensure that your business is staying in the direction that it needs to stay in.  This will allow you to check your objectives, your targets and your goals and you will be able to see if you are reaching them.  This contributes to your success in an internal way – and this is a very different approach that some may not even realise. 

Measuring the success of your business involves honesty.  It involves being able to decide whether your business is really doing as well - as it might appear.  You might wonder though, how would you measure business honestly?  Well, after reviewing the many different ways of measuring the success of your business,  I can say without a doubt that the best way to do this is to examine your business yourself. 

This is YOUR business…

If in your mind and your eyes, you feel that you are successful – then that is what you have made it.  YOU are successful.  It’s true that the examples above do aid in analysing success, but it only does so from external angles and even then - you just cannot always be certain.  The reality is that, success really is what YOU make it.  You can be given advice and you can receive the best of feedback and criticism but if you know in your mind that you have given your best and you see that you have progressed from when you first began, then you have succeeded.

Please DO NOT allow anyone to tell you otherwise.  Let me remind you again – This is YOUR business.  Success is from within and no one can ever take that away from you.  This means that even if you receive negative reviews and words from others, your passion for what you love motivates you to continue.  Do make use of the tips above, they still remain very helpful.  Use it as a guide but don’t ever forget that success depends on you, not on anyone or anything else.

by Samuel Gitukui

As an entrepreneur, the lightbulb suddenly lights up in your mind and you get that eureka moment, the time you finally get a business idea that could work.

Since you are a careful individual, you ran it past your friends and family and they all seem excited at the prospect.
And then the inevitable happens. You realize that you lack the required funds to actually turn the idea into a tangible business; you will need funding and crowdfunding; angel investors or venture capitalists are options that you must very well face.

Crowdfunding comes with platform fees and angel investors are not easy to come by. Even if you find one, there is no guarantee that you will get them to invest in your startup.

Then there is the third option that promises some hope, venture capitalists. However, it comes with a long process without any guarantees. In fact, self-funding and borrowing from family and friends are the two main ways through which startups are funded. Even still, VC funding remains among the most popular method to secure funds for business ideas.

Very few businesses manage to secure VC funding and the numbers get even lower when the business is at the seed stage.

The good news is, there are other options available that most entrepreneurs may not be aware of but offer great alternatives funding the business idea.

Let’s find out!

Incubators

Note that these do not actually offer funding but rather mentorship and guidance. Unlikely as it may appear, incubators are an invaluable source of launching your business off the ground.

Most will offer office space on tenure for between 3 to 6 months but the business enjoys the direction of more experienced individuals that will help avoid common pitfalls.

Corporate Venture Capitalists

No, these are not the same as VC funding. Here the startup is funded by large companies and has the benefit of offering entrepreneurs more freedom in running the business compared to getting the funds from a VC.

However, the company will expect to be involved in strategic decision making and the entrepreneur needs to be willing to accept the fact that their options are limited here.

Peer-to-Peer Lending

Here borrowers and lenders find each other through an online platform. The borrower creates a profile and receives an interest rate and rank. Lenders can then decide if they want to invest with the borrower.

This is another quick alternative to get funding for the business startup with loans anywhere from $1,000 to upwards of $35,000.

Taking a Microloan
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Microloans are a simpler and effective method of getting funding for your startup. Most offer loans in the range of $500 to $50,000. However, in the US the average is around $13,000.

These loans can take the stress out helping entrepreneurs concentrate on actually getting the business running.

Purchase Order Refinancing

Here the startup is able to accept large initial orders. The funding company will send the money directly to the supplier and the profit starts flowing immediately to the business.

This type of funding depends on the company that has made the order with the business and is easier than bank financing.

by Samuel Gitukui

Everyone experiences off days when their motivation to work simply isn’t there. You might feel frustrated, groggy and while that voice at the back of your mind is telling you to get grinding, your body simply wants to laze.

For those who have the slightest will to push themselves to work, they won’t be operating at maximum efficiency.

But there is a way around this!

Let’s find out 5 top tips on how to boost our motivation to work.

1.      Remind yourself of your goals and visualize

Research has shown that reminding yourself of your long-term goals puts you in the mood to achieve them. However, our minds are designed to focus on small term goals.

To keep yourself motivated, visualize your long-term goals and work your mind backward to the small steps that are required to achieve the big goals.

2.      Simply begin

Once you start on a project, keeping the momentum going. it far easier than trying to convince yourself to do it when you haven’t already begun. Instead of thinking too much about the task ahead, focus on actually beginning the task ahead.

5 minutes into the project, you just might find that you are looking forward to seeing it complete. The sooner you begin, the sooner you will complete the task.

3.      Add a timer to your schedule.

Everything is so much simpler once broken down into smaller bits of tasks. You can do this by setting a timer where you will work for just a set amount of time and then take a break.

You will be looking forward to the breaks and by focusing on the short task ahead keep you motivated. Suddenly the task doesn’t look so huge anymore as you are only focused on the next bit of work time

4.      Let others know

One of the most effective ways to keep yourself motivated on a project is to speak about your plans to your peers. You will want to prove to them that you’ll indeed do what you said which will push you towards accomplishing your goals. Nobody, after all, wants to be looked at as a failure.

You can even take things a notch higher by letting the whole office know about your plans. This is sure to keep you motivated.

5.      Improve your “self-talk”

Self talk is the internal dialogue that you make with your mind. It can be positive or negative and this has a great influence on your motivation.

If you are not used to telling yourself things like “I can do this” then start now and you'll quickly notice how effective it is.

6.      Make a list
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Write down a list of all the things you want to accomplish during the day including small tasks. Then set out to complete them one at a time. Each time you finish a task, cross it off the list. the feeling of accomplishment of finishing one task will motivate you to finish the next task.

by Samuel Gitukui

When you first hear the world co-working, the thing that comes to mind is a group of freelancers sharing office space on second hand furniture.

Think again!

Modern co-working has seen great improvements with amenities such as a fitness center, coffee and tea places, bars and cafes and high-tech security.

Freelancers and remote workers now come together to share working space that is also comfortable. Some of the best services can be found here, something that has caught the attention of large companies and enterprises.

This is why.

1.      It is now possible to recruit form anywhere in the world

Companies may not be in a position to have all their personnel working at their headquarters. Coworking provides an alternative where the organization can still find the best services from anywhere in the world and hire.

As opposed to a freelancer working from home, co-working provides a similar social setting to that found in the office which has been showed to improve motivation.

Regular interaction with peers and like-minded individuals is fun and enhances the quality of their work life. There are also amenities similar to those found in at home.

2.      There’s better creativity

Research has shown that co-working can boost creativity. Stepping away from a bureaucratic setting to a freer and more relaxed atmosphere breathes new ideas and life into the work.

And by interacting with others with different skills sets, co-workers learn how to do things better and more efficiently. Updated companies are aware of this and its one of the reasons they seek the services from a co-working environment.

3.      Companies can expand with minimal hassle

Think of a company that seeks to venture into a new market place. How simple would it to start of with co-working facilities and employees? The answer…very simple.

There’s a lot saved as opposed to renting office space and conducting the recruitment process.

In fact, moving to a new geographical area often begins with a few individuals who then grow to 5, 7, 10 and so on. Co-working takes advantage of available space until the number of employees grow to where getting office space is inevitable.

Often a team of co-workers will include 2 to 20 people.

4.      Its cost effective

Okay granted, co-working is more expensive in terms of office space compared to more traditional settings. However, it is cost effective as many an organization has found out.

Normally a commercial lease is between 3 and 5 years. This can prove beneficial for organizations that are not sure how long they will need the space. Often companies rent more space that they initially require which is inefficient.

Co-working is flexible. Most co-working organizations have memberships between 30 days and a year. Companies get the chance to easily scale down or up as need be.

And remember what we said about coworkers being comfortable in their work environment? They are more productive and can be retained for longer which saves the company the expense of recruiting more workers.

by Samuel Gitukui

Social media has revolutionized the way we interact and communicate with one another. And with technology, it is now possible to access data on different areas.

Social network platforms can be a great way to develop a large fan base which provides you with a business opportunity by directing sales to your followers. And this is how…

1.      Make Sure All Your Profiles Are the Same

Whether its Facebook, Twitter or Instagram, it’s prudent to maintain the same handle on all of them. it may seem like something small but this is a significant branding strategy that over time produces big results.

Customers are able to find you through the different platforms and associate content with your individual brand. Once you have gained the trust of your followers, your business can reap massive rewards.

2.      Re-post Testimonials and Content About the Product

Trust is something that is not very easily established especially with the advent of social media due to a lack of physical presence. It is also one of the most important things that drive sales and helps to maintain a loyal customer base.

By re-posting what other people are saying about the product or service you are selling, you develop trust and are actually getting most of the work done by other customers.

Clients simply love reviews and will actually seek them out. You can even create an incentive for customers to leave reviews by providing giveaways.

3.      Target Your Customers

While maintaining a social presence on most of the main platforms such as Facebook is great, it is even better to have a strong presence on the ones where your clients are most active on. It’s all about focusing on the right platform by creating messages that will resonate well with your customers.

In other words, in order to drive sales, you need to speak to those who mainly buy your products and this means finding them first.

4.      It’s Time to Speak Their Language

One of the best and main ways to connect to your clients is to speak like them. This means using their language and vernacular.

It is especially important when asking someone to buy your products, tag friends or leave a comment.

Once you establish that connection, it makes your target audience more receptive to the marketing messages that you send.

5.      Always Leave a Link

Businesses should strive to make it simple for their following to make a purchase. Through social media, the best way to achieve this is by leaving a link that directs people to your products. If the process of making a purchase becomes difficult they will quickly move on to something else.

Put links in the content that seamlessly take your readers to your website with as few as one or two clicks. If it’s more than this, the conversion rate may be low. Features such as Instagram’s product tagging make it simple for businesses to perform well through social networks.