Enterprise

Your enterprise isn’t growing? It’s time to seek expert advice

TAX

Examine business expenses including your cost of production, operational expense and other bills. FILE PHOTO | NMG

A certain business guru once observed that some people are so much used to common struggles in life that they don’t know any other life and do not look for any other. So they live all their lives accepting poverty and lack as part and parcel of normal life. It is not.

In business we have some people who belong to this category. To them, being perennially in debts, stressed out, always running up and down looking for lenders to give them money to pay others is part of business. It is not.

A business, like a child must start life small and pass through growth challenges and at some point reach maturity. Different businesses have different maturity time depending on factors that include the nature of business, level of preparedness and resources available.

If your business has refused to grow or you seem to be always struggling year in year out don’t assume it is normal. It is time you sought the help of a business ‘doctor’ or a specialist.

However, even before that, look at few areas that could be the problem. Some of them are:

First, your leadership, lifestyle and discipline. Some business owners are their own worst enemy. They don’t have skills required to run a business successfully in areas such as administration, finance, sales and marketing. Having a deficiency in any particular area is not a problem. It becomes a problem when you fail to seek help or hire a professional to or acquire them through learning.

Secondly, you could be either offering a product that customers don’t want or there are not enough customers in your target region. Alternatively it could mean you are not marketing it enough.

In this case the answer lies in understanding your customer needs. Establish the size of the market, your marketing ability and customer’s capacity to buy.

Thirdly, look at your commitment to the business and what you get out of it. Some people give too little to their businesses and get out to much to finance their lifestyle. When the business stagnates or fails they blame other external factors. It is recommended you open a separate bank account for your business and ensure you don’t mix finances. You should only draw a salary commensurate with your input into the business and its profitability. Few business owners do this. In fact some expect their business to sort out all their financial needs on the spot.

Thirdly, look how your money is spent. Examine business expenses including your cost of production, operational expense and other bills. You could be buying or producing your stock at high cost, denying yourself leverage in the market. You could be losing stock or spending money on things that don’t add value.

The list is endless. But as I said, it is a better idea to seek professional help. Ironically, some people who will not even buy a drug without consulting a doctor when sick think they can sort their business mess on their own.