As a business owner for the past fifteen years, with over 100 employees, I often get calls from friends and family members for advice.  Recently, I received such a call from a friend who owns a crime scene cleanup business in Florida.  His first words were “where’s the business”, to which I responded, “I don’t know where yours is, but I’m taking care of mine everyday”.  We continued on for about ten minutes, a little bit of chit chat, but primary business related conversation.  After we hung up, I sat and thought for awhile.  Why do some businesses succeed, while others fail?  I’ve seen my competitors fall by the wayside for years, yet I’m still doing well.  After about twenty minutes of reflection, I narrowed down the “keys” to success.

1. Offer a superior service at a competitive price
2. Make your company available to potential clients

That’s it!  I’ve known it all along.  I’ve practiced it all along.  And all along, I’ve stayed in business.

Now let’s break it down.

1. If you offer a superior service, it would be safe to assume that your employees and management staff are top notch.  You don’t cut corners, you never lie, cheat or steal and you follow up with your customers to see how your service can be improved upon.  You strive for excellence and settle for nothing but the best.  All of this is done for a price that is competitive with those who provide a lessor service.  As time marches on, customers and clients will talk and your company will gradually become the leader in its industry.
2. So you’re in the phone book!  Who uses the phone book anymore?  How do you plan to capture and capitalize on the attention you’ve garnered in steps #1 above?  Although your name may be passed around from client to client, I tend to bet your phone number and address aren’t.  So again, how will they find you.  Don’t get me wrong, the phone book is still a viable method of advertisement, but it shouldn’t be your only method. Here are some examples of things you should be doing:

• Send fliers and business cards to potential clients
  
• Advertise with Yellowpages.com and Cleanupdirectory.com.  Although Yellowpages.com is quite expensive, I know of several companies who swear by it and the business it brings to their front door.  Cleanupdirectory.com recently overhauled its directory and it appears to be one of the best in the industry.  Looking at all of the features offered for less than $8.00 per month, it gets my vote for the best “bang for your buck”.
• Create a website that gets noticed; not only by potential customers, but by search engines too
• Make sure your website is indexed by all the leading search engines
  
• Create a blog
• Join social networking sites and talk about your business
• Get out on the street and talk with people.  Get acquainted with those who may refer work to your company.

And probably the most important key to success, be ready to accept a customer’s call.  If you miss a call, or don’t respond to a call in a manner that conveys professionalism, you’ll be asking yourself “where’s the business”.   In addition, have a system in place to accept and respond to calls that come in after hours.  Far too often, a message won’t be left on an answering machine and again, you’ll be asking yourself . . .

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