8 things you ought to do to improve your business in 2017!

As the year 2016 runs to an end, its time for us to focus on the incoming year with plans, strategies and prayers that would help us into 2017 and would also enhance our performance at our business. The world is moving at such a fast pace that he who holds back and does things the same way would fall back and find that people have overtaken him in more ways than can be imagined..

• Online Marketing: Now depending on the product or service you provide and the buyers whose needs you address, it just might be right for you to have a presence online and market your products there. Whether your product is tangible(can be touched or seen) or intangible( cannot be touched or seen) as long as your buyers go online via social media and use email, you ought to have a presence there and learn to market your stuff online. 
• Cash Cow Strategy: The cash cow strategy is a method embraced by organizations who have more than one product in the market. Those that have a portfolio of products would embrace the cash cow strategy when the do an analysis of the various products they market and see which one brings in the most cash. Once that is done, the strategy is to give the one that brings in the most cash more prominence in terms of accessibility innovation and promotions. The whole idea is to make sure the product is as close to perfection as possible so that it continues to yield the premium and it also entails taking a glance into the future and determining what the immediate and long term threats tot he product are and drawing up a strategy to deal with such situations. 
• Deals, discounts and options: In purchases of goods and services, the shrewd business person always looks out for special deals, discounts and options that would enable him save money or gain additional benefits. In seeking deals, discounts and options, there should be no compromise of standards and quality so as to ensure that integrity and customer care is not compromised. 
• Adding value to a product or a service is something we ought to strive to do in 2017 especially in an environment where you have competition. A little extra time spent in packaging, cleaning, talking to the customer assuring that he gets what he wants, how he wants it can make the world of difference on the long run! The principle is applicable to people who major in raw material production too. Can we engage in any form of processing that would make the product more valuable, durable and or give us extra income? We started experimenting with smoking our fish at the farm when we discovered that those who smoke it sell it for almost double the price we sell it. 
• Leveraging our networks: Many of us play roles in networks outside of our business that we are not exploiting. Friends, social societies, friends of friends etc. Don't forget to attend that party or gathering you were invited to. Your next client might just be lurking there. 
• Safe and secure investments are the secret weapons of enduring finances in 2017. The question on the lips of those of us who are in business should be what can I invest in, in the new year that would not be threatened by a turbulent economic situation? The answer is simple: Treasury bills and bonds that are backed by the might of a government. Most governments are into mopping up money in their fiscal strategies to control the amount of cash in circulation. The yield might be low but its safe.
• The watch word for business in 2017 should be lets minimize our risks and that would help us cut our losses. Make sure every risk is calculated with the worst case scenario clear in our minds. Its better to be safe than sorry. 
• Boundary hopping( see the article earlier published here) is when you seek to break into markets that have not been really exploited with your product. In 2017 we ought to find a way to exploit clientele that have not been on our normal list.Stretch your products as far as they can go, imagination and creativity could help you touch people that you never even thought of. The questions on our minds should be what can I add or remove from this product that would make it acceptable among a different class or group of people.

The power of positive self talk

Speaking to yourself out loud in an environment where there are people observing might be considered to be a dangerous, if not out of place trait. Those who catch you uttering exclamations to yourself might wonder if you have not taken leave of your senses. But it is a well known approach to engender self esteem and a positive state of mind to speak to oneself in a tone that is encouraging and up building. Positive reinforcement is a powerful strategy for strengthening ones mind, especially in a period of crisis when things are not going the way we planned them.
Psychological research has shown that it is the positive minded people who make headway in their chosen obligations. Such people are known to be so strong minded that no matter what people say about them they are not discouraged .They may not be able to control the environment they operate in all the time, but where they cannot get it under control, the adjust their thoughts and indeed actions to make headway and ultimately get close to the outcome that they desire in the course of things.
The process is a logical flow. Our thoughts determine our actions, our actions in turn out to get us to where we want to be or far away from our desired destination. There are very few actions taken by an individual that are not thought about first. If our thoughts help determine our actions, then those of us who want to succeed at what we do, ought to think about progress, success and all the positive thoughts we can muster to aid us in spurring ourselves into possibilities and progress we never imagined was possible. (Of course, that is not true) You imagined it and that is part of what helped bring it to pass! Remember the powerful thoughts are only part of the process. We have to back it up with action.
Therefore if you want a considerable change to occur in your life, begin by talking about what you want to happen to yourself and see what moves you can make that would take you closer to what you are talking about!

THE SELF MANAGEMENT PROCESS:

What am I telling myself?
What other meaning(s) have I attached to this situation?
How do I feel?
What do I fear?
What do I think it will look like?
What can I do to help myself?
IT HELPS TO ASK OURSELVES QUESTIONS SOMETIMES SO AS TO DEFINE OUR THINKING AND UNDERSTAND OUR DIRECTION