Business Plus Baby

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In a world where most industries are having to compete against tough competition, it is the restaurant sector that takes the top spot because that market is ferocious. There are just so many options available to the consumer, so many places that offer fantastic food, atmosphere, and value, which is why sustainable success comes down to very small distinctions, and one of the most important is your customer service.

That’s right. Forget about trying to make your eatery stand out through the menu you offer, the decor you install, by protecting your furnishings or through the story you want to tell and start focusing on the service you offer. That is what will keep people coming back and see your existing customers become your best advocates.

You may have the most incredibly talented chef, the most daring wine consultant and a decor to die for, but it will all fall short without great customer service. So, without further ado, here is how to up your service game.

Give Your Employees What They Need

The best way to improve your customer service is to give your employees the training they deserve; the kind of training that will set them apart from all the other competition around you. That means teaching them about what is on your menu, what wines go well with what, how to use your new epos system to full effect, how to engage with customers, how to spot food critics and the importance of knowing who your most loyal customers are. It is a lot to learn so if you really want this training to stick, your best bet is to make this training fun and engaging. It will be so worth it though.

Add A Smile To Your Uniform

No outfit is complete without a smile. That is a fact. It is also something that you really need your employees to understand because there is nothing worse for a customer to see when they walk through your doors than an unenthusiastic employee who ignores them at first. Instead, make sure your customers get the best experience from the very moment they walk into your restaurant. Have your employees welcome them with the biggest smile they can, have them fuss over your customers, engage with them and be impossibly friendly. Have them ask their names too because, as Dale Carnegie will attest, there is no sweeter sound than a person hearing their own name.

Image: Alexander Dummer

On The House

If there is one thing all people love it is a freebie. It is going somewhere prepared to pay full-whack and then getting the news that you won’t have to because you are getting a complimentary this or a discount on that. It is the secret weapon that can get you an incredible amount of service points. It doesn’t have to be anything big, just a free dessert or drink or an amuse-bouche. Even the littles gesture like this will set you apart from the crowd of restaurants vying for your business. It will make your customers feel appreciated by you and that will have them think of your place the next time they want to eat out.

When you wake up with a to-do list that you can’t even see the end of, the last thing you have the energy for is deciding what to wear. Getting dressed has become an extra chore and you’ve begun wearing black every day to mourn the death of your motivation. Good news: you don’t have to update your garms to revitalize your work wardrobe! The addition of a few simple accessories can take your style from lost to girl boss in seconds. Are you ready to own the work day again?

Brighten Up

Monochrome days are behind you, but that doesn’t mean you need to wave goodbye to your LBD. Simply add a pop to your outfit with a bright bag, hot heels and some colorful jewelry to tie the whole ensemble together. Once you witness the head turning power of a confident color, you’ll never go back to black!

Look a Million Dollars

Metallics work like magic! Whether it’s a statement necklace or a cute clutch, dazzle ‘em with shiny accessories. Metallic accessories are almost as versatile as your monochrome go-to’s so you’ll be sure to get plenty of wear out of your purchases. Plus, everyone deserves to sparkle!

Take it to Print

Add some texture to your outfit, prints are in! The easiest way to tap into this trend is through your footwear. Swap your black boots for a pair of snakeskin shoes or your ballet flats for leopard print pumps. Don’t be afraid to mix and match with patterns in other accessories such as your purse or a statement scarf.

Give Yourself Some Structure

Want to wear your fave floaty dress or new printed maxi skirt in to work? Who says you can’t? Add some contrast with structured accessories such as a Tumi briefcase, sharp glasses and simple strappy shoes to keep things smart and sophisticated. Show that you mean business!

Go Glam

Take inspo from our main gal Carrie and go Sex and the City on your wardrobe! Hot pink, faux fur and ruffles are just the beginning of your accessory obsession. If you’re not ready to step straight on a catwalk after work, it’s not enough! (This is obviously office dependent, I’m not sure the law firm would be quite so relaxed about this new interpretation on the dress code).

Layer Up

Add another dimension to your outfits by layering accessories. I’m talking cute collars under dresses, statement jackets and stacks of bangles. Pair necklaces of different lengths to make a collection that looks like it was SUPPOSED to be worn that way. Why only wear 1 when you can wear 3!?

Casual Fridays

As the new reigning accessories queen, don’t forget you can also use accessories to tone down your work wardrobe. Invest in some casual shoes and a cool jacket to take your best looks from brunch to boardroom!

What are you waiting for? It’s time to own those accessories!

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If you have been running your small business for a while now, you may have gotten into the swing of things and managed to maintain a steady flow of profit and income. In order to grow your empire and increase your profitability as much as possible, you need to be able to make changes to your business. Here are some simple ways you can boost your business and take it to the next level.

Up Your Marketing Game

It isn’t enough to simply post some social media posts and become the next multinational corporation; it takes a lot of learning, trial and error and know how to market your business in a smart way. Start off by using a site such as Google Trends: https://trends.google.co.uk/trends/ to monitor what’s popular in your industry and the wider world. Social media is about creating content that people can relate to, so checking for trending topics and posting in accordance with these will get you noticed and up your engagement within the community. The frequency of your updates is important too. Being able to post consistently will keep your brand in the public eye and allow you to be remembered.

Boost Your Funding

If you want to grow your business and rake in that extra profit, you will need to make some adjustments to your equipment and facilities. To do this, you may need to add additional funding to the pot in order for you to be able to hire extra staff, rent a larger office space and invest in new technology to make your work more productive. Companies such as https://smallbusinessloans.co/working-capital-loans-small-business/ will give out short-term loans for small businesses to allow you to up your standard of work and enable you to make more profit.

Hire More Staff

It’s great to be able to run a successful one-man show in your pyjamas. However, there will come a time where your time is limited, and it will stop you from completing the volume of work required to take your business to the next level. Hiring an extra staff member will take the pressure off you and allow you to concentrate on creating as much product and provide the best service for your clients. Before you decide to hire a staff member, you will need to make sure you have the funds and workload for them to complete. It would be advisable to hire someone who is a specialist in their trade, such as a logistics or marketing professional to take the duties from your workload and possible even perform them more efficiently for you.

Rent A Larger Office Space

The best way to motivate yourself and your workers to produce the best quality of work for your customer base are to have an all-inclusive premises to complete every step of your business. Having a building with all of the facilities under one roof makes communication between different departments much quicker and enables you to buy the best equipment for your staff.

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One of the most important things that you as a business owner can be doing these days, is to make sure that your business is staying on top of all of the latest technology and how it can help your business to thrive. For one thing, technology is ever-changing. So what you have now could become quite quickly outdated. For another, it helps to keep your business modern which can result in some modern millennial customers. But how can you make sure that you’re staying on top of all of the latest trends and keeping your business in the 21st century? Here are some handy tips and tricks to inspire.

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Join Social Media

Social media is a must for any business these days. It is used as a great way to interact with potential customers, as well as provide customer service and resolve queries. But is it better to be on all channels or just a few? For starters, you want to do your social channels well. So picking four to work on is a good idea. Choose the top two that your target customer base use and make them amazing. Choose another two that you will run, but won’t be updated as much. Still check it regularly, but push promotions and more time into the most popular two. Instagram and Snapchat can be good if you have a younger customer base. Twitter is better for business to business work, and Facebook is generally for a slightly older customer base. So evaluate and see what will work best for you.

Go Contactless

If you are a retail store that can’t offer contactless payments, then it is time to step things up. More and more people, especially millennials, are only going out with their phone, as they expect to be able to pay using Apple or Android pay in retail outlets. So if you are still on a cash-only basis or aren’t offering contactless, then it is time to make some changes. You can even get gift cards, like the NFC Cards, that can be used in a contactless way too. So keep up to date with technology and make an effort to make changes as it evolves.
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Have a Responsive Website

Because we have so much at our fingertips, literally, we are becoming a people that lack patience. So if your website doesn’t load well, isn’t responsive, or isn’t even available on tablets or mobile devices, then it is time to make some changes. Potential customers can quickly lose patience if a site isn’t loading and click away from your page. So get your site in check, and it can do wonders for your business.

Use a CRM

If you don’t have any CRM software currently (customer relationship management), then it is time to get one to keep a database of your customers. You can solve many a problem with CRM too. You can follow up with customers, email them, and let them know their order is coming. So for a modern customer service journey, it is essential.

Advertising is crucial if you want your business to succeed. It helps get the attention of buyers and keep your consumers well-informed about the services or products you are offering. It can also become a tool for you to effectively compete with other companies. Regardless of what you offer or provide, be it a necessity or luxury, relying simply on simple word-of-mouth or one-time announcements will not guarantee a stable stream of customers. Your next step is to look for other ways to promote your business to let your potential customers know about the benefits of the products or services that you can supply them.

Market Your Business

There are many ways you can publicise your business or company – it can be through social media, blogs, google Adwords, YouTube or your local press. Marketing your business is one of the biggest challenges that you have to face, especially if you are just starting or if you lack financial resources. The best thing to do is to opt for a cost-efficient, yet very effective, way to begin your advertising campaign –  and that is by handing out flyers.

Why You Need Flyers

According to research, people still prefer to receive something in their hands, something they can save for future use if they don’t necessarily need it on the spot. Flyers are more practical than many other ways you can market your business. They are usually printed in colour, so they can easily catch the reader’s attention. You can also put more information about your company, and coupons, promotions and upcoming events on both sides of the flyer. Make sure to put a catchy and appealing headline and include a clear and concise value proposition for your consumers, so you can convince them to use your product or service.

By handing out flyers, you will have the chance to explain in detail the benefits of your product or services and answer enquiries in real-time. There will be face to face communication between you and the consumer, so you will be able to get genuine reactions, which is very effective when it comes to improving your business to meet their needs. Flyers are also easy to produce. Planning and preparation will not take months and you can immediately make changes should the need arise. If you are thinking of the best places to hand out flyers, the answer is in populated areas that have heavy foot traffic such as malls and street markets.

A professional flyer printing company can provide you with helpful suggestions based on their experience and can even help you decide the layout after you have checked the content and theme of your flyers.

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