Here, Ruta Gabalis, CEO of business consultancy Aeroblue, offers five support strategies to company owners who are beginning to realise their business is failing.
All businesses have their ups and downs but if you think that your business may be failing it is important to act fast. Startups are particularly at risk, with half failing within the first five years.
However, it is not only startups that are at risk, five large retailer companies have failed in January this year alone.
To prevent a business from failing, the necessary financial, operational or management improvements must be made. This is in order to deliver profitable growth or set a course for a maximised profit on exit.
The following five tips could help you make some crucial decisions.
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View your business objectively
This is easier said than done when you are emotionally invested in your business. Objective thinking plays a crucial part in understanding why your business is failing which will enable you to amend the issue. Adapt your perspective from a business owner to a shareholder, you will then begin to view your business as a product and see evident issues that will be able to be resolved.
Enlisting the help of people that you can trust to offer constructive feedback is also highly recommended. Consider your business as a whole; the service you offer, pricing, demand and quality of your service or product.
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Employees
Your employees can offer a unique insight into your business that you may not have noticed or been exposed too. Allowing employees to voice their opinions anonymously will allow them to speak honestly about their opinions and experiences.
However, there is no need to suggest to your employees that you think your business is failing, or beginning to. Just ask for their thoughts on what the business could do to improve.
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Seek professional opinions
In addition to employee opinion you should certainly seek the help of a professional to achieve the most efficient and immediate results. With years of experience, turn around specialists will be able to consider your situation from a professionally informed perspective.
The experts will offer the necessary guidance and support needed during a very stressful time. A dedicated specialist will be able to share their knowledge of financial operations and an extensive level of experience in business psychology practices.
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Do not neglect your social media
Social media can play a huge part in the success or failure of a business. Offering a direct way of communicating your business and getting people talking will generate buzz and in turn, generate sales.
Remember to be consistent and frequent on social media, it will pay off.
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SEO is key
Search engine optimisation (SEO) will enable you to optimise where your business ranks on Google searches. The first three pages of Google is the ideal placement for your business to be seen by potential customers.
To improve your SEO, upload a weekly blog. Search engines view this as consistent content and you will then rank for the words that link to your business.
At Aeroblue we pride ourselves on the services that we provide and value the businesses we work with. When a business decides to seek help from us we vow that if there is no recovery then there is no reward, (no fee).
Ruta Gabalis is CEO of business consultancy Aeroblue
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