How to Motivate Employees

BUSINESS SHARING — Fri, 01 Jan 2010 10:24:00 +0000

In this recession, one of the most awkward things is for a business to stay afloat. If you read the papers or turn on the telly, there are incidents of companies closing down and many people being laid off. Such news events are very disheartening and since a proprietor of a business, you need to know the way to motivate your employees or just be part of the statistic.

So just how do you motivate your employees in these hard times? Well the first thing you need to do is communicate with them so they are conscious of the on-going financial status of the company. The bad news like sales are down is an eye opener because they know that the company is on a verge of collapse but there’s hope.

The hope is what you and they must work together for otherwise, your business will crash and they will be from work. This begins by setting a target and then planned with a plan of action. Perhaps the best solution is to cut cost and that means finding cheaper suppliers and reducing expenses. Retain mind that letting a few workers off is another alternative but you have these people so don’t axe them.

Another way is to come up with realistic goals like just what you should have on four weeks so your employees will get paid and the business is still profitable. As the owner of the business, you need the final say in these matters but it would not hurt to also let your employees surface with their own plan of action and meet the similar goals.

All work and no play will make things dull. To spice up things, add some fun into it by planned so with a rewards scheme which always inspires employees to do more. You don’t have to give a plaque of appreciation or something with monetary vale. What you can do is offer these people a free day meaning that a “day-off” from work apart form the leaves that they’re entitled to. Do not forget that the day off should be given with pay which makes it more interesting to get.

Since this is something that every employee may not be able to accomplish, find a way to reward everyone as well for all everything they’ve commit. A great idea are to host a barbecue at your place or a fun day where everyone is given free passes to a local amusement park. Consider these are just ideas so try to find a rewards scheme that is within just how much you can afford. The success of your business depends on the males and females that help you. So you experience things are doing and they’re up so far with what’s happening, it will in addition be a great idea to hold a meeting once a week.

While you are there, buy donuts and coffee. At the similar time, provide them with the floor so they are in a position to air out their concerns. Who knows, they could even need some ideas which you need never thought of before.Employee motivation is something you need to have as a way to your business to stay afloat. Printing that isn’t going to be easy but it might be done with their assistance.

Pete Boyd has been writing articles online for nearly 3 years now. Not only does this author specialize in diet, weight loss and fitness, you can also check out his latest website on folding patio chair and padded folding chairs.

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What Are The Best Pricing Practices For Small Business During An Economic Slowdown?

admin — Wed, 03 Dec 2008 21:32:00 +0000

In an economic slowdown your pricing is determined by factors like input cost of production or distribution channel cost etc. ….. which are primarily working on market factors. Generally one should be working on a reactive strategy of open price …. which allows for revision in product pricing over a shorter time period instead of quarterly or yearly market driven slashes or increases.

The important consideration is to try to maintain sales, even if some of them yield marginal or no profit (i,e, break even). In other words, so long as you are covering your costs, particularly fixed costs, then there is value in doing so.

However, unless you wish to become the low-cost leader going forward, then this low pricing may create a precedent which customers expect to continue, and it also may devalue the brand.

So pricing strategy must be decided carefully, with all things considered, including unintended consequences. And it may be better to have various incentives rather than simple price cuts in order to sustain sales.

In the article “Pricing in an Inflationary_Downturn”, McKinsey recommends the following actions:

-Watch for sudden shifts in price structure
-Adjust to changing customer needs
-Monitor customer-level profitability
-Update price sensitivity research

Many companies across the nation are on the verge of closing their doors and some have already started liquidating their inventory. This can be a great time to create opportunity for your business. Here are a few items to look at:

Item 1: Renegotiate Your Vendor Pricing:

Go to your current vendors and request price decreases due to the economy. You may be able to receive your inventory at a fraction of your old rates because of the risk of your vendors losing their business. Most agreements can be negotiated when financial conditions are more abundant ….. so this provides the perfect opportunity to turn the financial crises into an opportunity for your company.

Item 2: Create A Customer Loyalty Program:

Many companies started slashing prices to attempt to drive additional business to their company. However in researching the response of the consumers you may find them upset because if those prices were always available why did they not get them before. So you may consider creating a customer loyalty program ….. send a letter and give fliers to every customer saying that you want to retain them as a customer and are now rewarding them with a % off by signing up. What this does is make it look like you are giving an additional perk instead of cutting all your costs.

In any environment, it’s a best practice to price based on your customers’ willingness to pay. To the extent possible, strive to understand if and how your customers’ willingness to pay has changed and also how able you are to meet those customers’ needs relative to your competition. Unless you have a sustainably lower cost business model, you’ll want to avoid competing on price as a price cut is very easy for a competitor to copy but leaving you both with lower margins in the process. The airline industry comes to mind.

Are you in a position of relative strength? If so, that might allow you to innovate, differentiate your offering, and improve your value proposition based on shifting customer needs, thereby taking market share without necessarily changing your price.

If you find that your customers’ willingness to pay doesn’t cover your costs, you’ll have to re-examine your business model.

Keep in mind that there would be different answers for a lot of different situations. First of all strategies may be different in B2B than in B2C. Within each type the following factors will play an important role:

1. Company strategic posture – what you want out of the situation: sail through? Take advantage? Weaken competitors? Portray as socially responsible? Etc.
2. Financial strength/leverage available.
3. Brand positioning
4. Relationships with customers
5. Distribution leverage
6. Product category in terms of price elasticity
7. Cost cutting advantages available.

You should consider the above and more factors before determining how to price during a slowdown.

The only thing I would add is to caution that:

1.Understanding price sensitivity in the current climate is critical – price decreases may not have the expected effect and that’s an expensive mistake.

2. Be aware of potential changes in your value proposition as the market changes. Your product may now be perceived in a different way and the value you deliver will still be the ultimate driver behind what you can charge.

3. Price is a key positioning statement, not just a piece of simple mathematics. Think long and hard about how a price change will be perceived by your customer and the long, as well as short term effects a price change may have.

In the end cutting the customer’s price just for the sake of cutting their costs isn’t the answer. Lower your costs first ….. ensure your product/service maintains “value” …. and focus more on customer loyalty/retention.

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How to Motivate Employees

What Are The Best Pricing Practices For Small Business During An Economic Slowdown?