It’s tough making a success of your business alone. So, why not partner with other businesses to help form a strategic partnership that benefits you both?

In this series, we’ll look at some key ways to optimize your business, exploring different avenues to evolve your enterprise and create a legacy you can be proud of.

Let’s take a look at some different options for exploring strategic partnerships.

5 ways to find your ideal strategic partner

Partnering with another company really helps you expand the reach and capabilities of your existing business. And by working with new people – and with a new audience – you also bring new ideas to the table and can begin to innovate in new spaces

Here are five ways a strategic partnership adds value:

1. Explore new markets

Partnering with complementary businesses gives you access to new industries, sectors and customer segments. It can be an amazing way to expand your market reach by working with a company that already has a profile in this space.

2. Boost your revenue streams

You can generate new revenue streams by offering joint products or services with your new business partner. You can also cross-sell to each other’s customer base, or explore new distribution channels.

3. Reduce your costs

Working with a trusted partner means you share resources, such as marketing, logistics or technology. This makes it easier to run campaigns and reach a new audience, while also reducing costs and giving your margins a boost

4. Get more innovative

With a partner on board, you can collaborate on new ideas and develop truly innovative products. You may also be able to access their technology, infrastructure and expertise to enhance your research and development (R&D).

5. Improve your brand visibility

Partnering with well-established brands gets your name seen by a whole new audience. It’s a great way to enhance your brand’s visibility and credibility, bringing in new customers and other potential partnerships with brands.

Talk to us about finding your perfect strategic partner

Creating a broad network of partners, supporters and new customers is an amazing way to optimize your business – and your potential to reach a whole new customer base.

Talk to our team about partnering with new strategic partners. We can introduce you to other companies in our network to find your perfect collaborators.

The following content was originally published by BOMA. We have updated some of this article for our readers.

Your people are one of the most critical elements in your business. But are you doing everything possible to provide a caring, supportive workplace that also drives the success of your business?

In this series, we’ll look at some key ways to optimize your business, exploring different avenues to evolve your enterprise and create a legacy you can be proud of.

Let’s look at ways to improve your employee experience and your connection to the team.

5 to improve your employee relations as an employer

Studies show that happy workers are more productive. Offering your people a working environment where they can flourish is part of being a great employer. But what are the key ways to build these employee relationships and nurture your team?

Here are five ideas for creating the best possible workplace for your employees:

1. Invest in your employee development

Make sure you provide opportunities for professional growth. Offer your employees access to training programs, workshops, conferences and mentorship programs. It’s a chance to enhance their skills, boost morale and make them feel truly valued as team members.

2. Create a positive work environment

Cultivate a workplace that feels positive and supportive of your employees. Be open and transparent with your communication, listen to employee feedback and have a strong focus on employee wellbeing. This includes offering benefits, flexible work arrangements and other team perks.

3. Recognize and reward your employees

When an employee goes above and beyond, make sure it’s recognized and rewarded. You could do this through performance bonuses, employee-of-the-month programs or even extra time off in lieu. Being rewarded, and feeling truly valued, can be an amazing motivator.

4. Empower employees to do more

One of the best things you can do for your employees is give them autonomy. Being trusted to come up with their own solutions, processes and ideas is key to making people feel as if they own their role. Employees feel fully involved in your progress and will help you push things forward.

5. Put wellbeing at the heart of your culture

Work can be stressful. But by paying close attention to employee wellbeing, you make sure no-one gets overwhelmed or left behind. Think about running free stress-management programs, offering mental health support and checking in with every team member on a regular basis.

Talk to us about your employee experience strategy

Making sure you’re a caring and supportive employer is vital to your business strategy. With a team who feel valued, nurtured and encouraged, you’ll all be happier and more productive.

Talk to our team about strategies for improving your employee experience

The following content was originally published by BOMA. We have updated some of this article for our readers.

The beginning of a new calendar year is an excellent time to review last year and reflect on what worked, what didn’t, what you’d like to change and new things you want to implement.

Take the time to review the year and acknowledge all that has happened, good, bad or indifferent. Examining the year with an objective perspective can provide valuable insights to prepare for the coming business year. Planning and goal setting will help provide a focus for your business efforts.

Your Yearly Business Review

• • • What were the most significant impacts on your business in the last 12 months? How well did you meet the challenges?
    • What worked well last year? What systems, technology, products or services were successful?
    • What accomplishments can you celebrate?
    • What situation, event or experience provided the biggest learning opportunity?
    • What is the biggest challenge or frustration you face as you prepare for the year ahead?
    • What did you most enjoy during the year? Do more of it. What did you least enjoy? Do less of it!
    • Analyse your financial reports. Are you earning what you’d like to? Is the business sustainably profitable?

Get Ready for a Great Year

While there are many metrics you could evaluate to track business performance, we’ve given you just a few ideas to inspire your business planning for a positive start to the year.

If you’d like to chat about what you can do differently this year to enable your business to thrive, book a time with us today.

The following content was originally published by BOMA. We have updated some of this article for our readers.

Being able to evolve over time is vital if you want your business to last. The market doesn’t stand still, so it’s important to diversify and to keep your offering fresh.

In this series, we’ll look at some key ways to optimize your business, exploring different avenues to evolve your enterprise and create a legacy you can be proud of.

We’ve got some suggestions on ways to diversify your business offering.

5 ways you can diversify as a small business

You may well have a product range and a customer base that’s ticking over nicely. But customer and market needs can change very quickly. Blockbuster, for example, had a huge international business, but the invention of on-demand movies killed that business in just a few years.

If you want to bake longevity into your business, it’s crucial to keep moving and reexamining the value that you bring to your audience.

Here are five potential strategies for diversifying your business:

1. Introduce new products or services

Expand your offerings by developing complementary products and/or services. This could mean bundling existing offerings, or creating entirely new lines to cater to existing and new customer needs.

2. Diversify into new sectors

It’s easy to get comfortable in your existing market niche. But you’ll find more opportunities by entering new, related or unrelated markets. This cuts your reliance on a single market, cutting down the risk of putting all your eggs in one basket. It also introduces your brand to a whole new customer audience.

3. Deepen your market penetration

Going deeper into your existing target market can reveal a whole new audience. Think about what you can add to make your offering more attractive. Put cross-selling and upselling strategies in place to increase the sales potential from existing and new customers and listen hard to customer feedback.

4. Expand into new territories

Having a new market to sell into is a great way to boost your sales opportunities. Find an international market that has a relevant customer demographic and tailor your products and services to this new foreign audience. Bear in mind though the compliance, customs and tax requirements of going international.

5. Form strategic partnerships

Your reach and revenue potential is greater when you collaborate with other businesses. Entering into a partnership helps you offer joint products or services, leverage your partner’s customer base, or explore new distribution channels. This could be a partner in your existing market, or in a complementary market.

Talk to us about diversifying your business offering

If your aim is to optimize your business, diversification is a real must. It introduces you to new sectors and audiences, increases your sales opportunities and reduces risk.

Talk to our team about ways to diversify your offering and add a new angle to your strategy.

The following content was originally published by BOMA. We have updated some of this article for our readers.

Recent years have been demanding and exhausting for many business owners. Are you one of them?

The challenges have been relentless, and we know many small business owners have had to navigate unprecedented challenges first because of the pandemic and then from inflation and other market impacts.

Burnout results from long-term stress and can manifest in emotional and physical exhaustion, which may affect your enthusiasm for running the business you once loved.

So, What Can You Do About it?

We understand that as a business owner, you have many responsibilities, and often you do everything on your own. So we know how hard it can sometimes be to keep on top of all your legal obligations.

The most important step is to acknowledge you feel burned out and need a break.

Take a break as soon as you can. Plan ahead for time away from the business. However, while getting some rest in the short-term will help, long-term stress will take commitment to recover from.

Strategies to Help Recover from Burnout

What can you do differently to avoid prolonging or retriggering the burnout?

• • • Delegate – Look at the low-value tasks you spend time on and pay someone to do them for you. This will free up time and energy.
    • Re-energize – If you’re struggling with a lack of enthusiasm or purpose, talk to colleagues or a business coach for support. If possible, connect with people in the same industry so you can share among others who may be facing similar challenges.
    • Stand back – Take an objective look at how much you are working and how effective you are. For example, is it time to streamline your work activities and put boundaries around working hours?
    • Reassess your goals – Do you have clear business goals for the short-term and long-term? Either set some realistic goals or revise them if they are too difficult right now.
    • Commit to some regular self-care actions – Think about what you love doing outside your business that is nourishing. Regular exercise? Time in nature? Going on a retreat? Learning something for fun? Improving your diet? Get an app on your phone that reminds you to take mini breaks throughout each day. Whether that is movement, mindfulness or music, use technology to help.
    • Celebrate milestones and achievements – When overwhelmed with stress or exhaustion, it’s easy to forget the positives. Remind yourself of just how much you have done in the last year!

Need Some Support?

You’ll be better able to face challenges, run your business well and assist others if you are looking after yourself well.

We’d love to help support you back to passionate engagement with your business. If you’re feeling burned out and need help in managing systems, technology, payroll or other financial and administrative management, talk to us today, and we’ll back your recovery.

The following content was originally published by BOMA. We have updated some of this article for our readers.