Freelancing and consulting can often seem like an impossible juggling act, but if you keep these seven practical business tips in mind, your business will go from strength to strength.

Work out what you’re best at and express it clearly on all marketing material – niche marketing is a simpler and more profitable way to grow your business, rather than trying to be everything for everyone. The more detailed your customer avatar is – the simpler it will be for you to find them, connect with them and offer something of value. To start creating your customer avatar think of the following questions:

• Who is my ideal customer? Who would I like to work with?
• Are they able to pay my fees? Will they be willing to pay my fees?
• What problem do they have in life, that my offering will help them solve?
• Why is it important to get it solved?
• How many of those customers are out there in the marketplace?
• WHERE… (do they work? Where do they study? Where do they live?)
• WHAT… (do they eat, drink, read, listen to, are interested in?)
• HOW… (do they look for new products or services, do they choose their suppliers, do they pay the bills?)

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3-in-1 that work as One!

Over the past year we have been searching high and low for a super-efficient business system we can use in TJConsulting and offer to our clients. And finally, after trying and testing, reading 100s of reviews – it’s here.

It consists of 3 parts, but don’t despair – they all work as One, efficient, online, affordable solution. And they are…. Xero, Capsule and MailChimp.

Xero is the accounting system of the 21st century. If you are not an accountant and dread “reconciliation” or “P&L” – this is the system for you. It’s very simple to use, you can access it from anywhere with an Internet connection and it’s secure.

Capsule is an online Contact Relationship Management (CRM) tool that will integrate with Xero – so you only have to enter your data once. You can track leads and conversion, manage information, analyse sales and productivity, and (yet again) it’s very simple to use!

MailChimp is used to send your newsletters, mailshots and autoresponders. Without being repetitive – it’s simple, clean, straightforward. It can send regular newsletters and schedule a series of messages. MailChimp can integrate with a large number of social media networks, Eventbrite (for event bookings) and is a top-rated social media tool (according to mashable.com).

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One fifth of people now believe job prospects in Great Britain will be ‘good’ or ‘excellent’ over the next twelve months. The latest Consumer Confidence Index, released by market research company Nielsen and the British Retail Consortium, shows an increase to 75 – a ten point gain on the all-time low of 65 in April.

While it is still weak compared with the figures two years ago, it reflects slightly more people feeling positive about job prospects and their own finances.Justin Sargent, managing director at Nielsen, said that when confidence picked up between April and June there was a tangible change in the UK’s mood.

While concerns about the economy and job security are easing, concerns over debt and work/life balance are increasing. Debt is currently the biggest worry for 15% of people, up from 10% a year ago. And, as the pressure over job prospects remains very real and people in employment work harder, there has been a big increase in the number of people feeling that their work/life balance is their biggest concern (from 4% in October 2008 to 9% in October 2009).

There is evidence to suggest that lifestyles and habits have changed for many people, with 70% claiming that they have changed their spending in order to save on household cost.

Let’s first look at why we don’t like selling. Since our childhood we are afraid of people saying No to us. We feel it’s reflective of what we do, of how good we are, how competitive the business proposition is. Obviously it’s not the case. On many occasions that No would mean “not now” rather than “never again”. Some people go to great length to avoid selling however if you are in business you will have to sell at some point even if you hire a sales team and recruit a dozen of telemarketers.

Our behaviours are partly inherited and partly based on past experiences. We can’t change the past but we can change our attitude towards it. Successful people change their behaviour more often than those around them – and that’s what makes them outstanding. It’s especially important in the current climate to ensure that you change your attitude towards selling to gain more business. According to the recent statistics 95% of new businesses, set up this year, will fail before the end of the recession. And 30,000 closed down last year. If we fail to change and to adapt we could follow their fate.

You also need to account for the natural annual client loss which is estimated to be at 10-15%. So to ensure your income stays the same every year you need to find 10-15% new clients. Calculate yourself how many that would be for your business.

Here are simple ways to increase sales without selling:

• You can increase the number of your customers by asking your existing customers for introductions or referrals. You already know them and they know you. They do business with you and they think you are great. Why don’t they recommend you then to their friends and business colleagues? Following up on such “warm leads” is so much easier!
• You can increase the average invoice value. First you need to work out your current average invoice value. To do this divide your gross profit for the last 6-12 months by the total number of invoices issued. You can break it down even further by client and see who is your most profitable client. To increase the average value you can try bulk sales (3 for the price of X), special offers if buying extra products, small price increase for the most popular products.
• Small price increase for the most popular products. You may say that during the recession you can’t afford to increase prices as you will lose customers. That’s not entirely true. You may not be able to increase prices by more than 25% however small increase of 5-10% would be acceptable. Your customers understand that the cost of living and running the business increases even during the recession. It’s better to do a number of small price changes rather than one large one. Even if it’s only £1 but you sell 1000 of those items per month – you will get £1000 extra without any extra selling.
• Increase the frequency of re-purchasing. Look at your business statistics – which of your customers haven’t purchased from you recently (the meaning of recently could vary depending on your business)? Are they still in business? When did you last speak to them? It’s time to follow up! They are already your customers, so when you are calling – you are not selling. You just want to find out how they are, what they are up to, if anything’s changed as you haven’t heard from them for a while. Would they be able to recommend you? Or maybe provide a written testimonial? Is there anything you can adjust in your sales process to have them on board again?

It’s very important that you have your management statistics available and up to date in order to take such steps. If you don’t know how to produce the reports you need using your book-keeping system or if you would like to put a better system in place contact TJConsulting Virtual PA for a free consultation.

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Good luck!

1. Barter: try bartering goods and services with other businesses. You should try to trade for something before you buy it. Barter deals usually require little or no money therefore improving your cashflow.
2. Network: try networking your business with other businesses. You could trade leads or mailing lists thus cutting down on your marketing and advertising costs. You may also try bartering goods and services with them.
3. Wholesale/Bulk: you will save money buying your business supplies in bulk quantities. You could get a membership at a wholesale warehouse or purchase them through a mail order wholesaler. Networking with other businesses next to you can help reduce postage costs and share supplies bought in bulk.
4. Borrow/Rent: if you only need some equipment for a short period of time try borrowing it from someone or renting in a shop for a small fee.
5. Free stuff: researching sites on the Internet can help you find free software, graphics, online business services etc.
6. Auctions: online/offline auctions may offer better deals on business supplies and equipment compared with retail prices.
7. Plan ahead: make a list of supplies and equipment you will need in the future and keep an eye for big sales. Purchase everything before you need it while it’s on sale.
8. Negotiate: you should always try to negotiate a better deal before purchasing anything. Research a number of suppliers and have some figures at hand. Even if you don’t get a better price you may win something else: better payment terms, free add-on services, etc.
9. Search: never stop searching for a better deal of lower price and higher quality. You can use the results to approach your current supplier to start negotiations.
10. Reduce training costs: training can be very expensive. Offer employees incentives to pay for own training (or part of it) by giving them other perks like paid time off, additional leave, vouchers.