Recession Proofing
Introduction
Whilst the current recession is impacting most small businesses, we will focus on the economic stresses which
are unique to your own business. The general (or macro) business environment will be an important factor,
but some businesses are thriving in the current conditions whilst others have gone out of business.
The important thing is not to become a helpless victim of the environment, but to change your own
environment so that you start trading on your own terms.
If you find yourself in a situation where sales are steadily dropping, income is down and costs are going up,
with no obvious solution to hand, you should examine the following areas of your business:
- How much money do you have coming in (Income)?
- Where is it coming from?
- Where isn't it coming from?
- Where could it come from?
- How much money do you have going out (Expenses)?
- Why is it going out?
- Is it giving a return?
- Why not?
- How much of a cash reserve do you have?
- What is the relationship between fixed and variable costs?
We will
We will help you to gain a better understanding of where the actual problem lies, doing in depth research,
examine your sales and how you collect your income (e.g. do a lot of people owe you money, do you send out regular
invoices?). We will also examine your costs - do you conduct your purchasing as effectively as possible,
have you got any unproductive assets (e.g. people, machinery, equipment, land) and how can they be better utilised?
Whilst some of these can be universally applied, we understand every business is unique and as such, we
will tailor the solution to your business. You can typically expect us to work on the following areas,
focusing on those which will be most effective for you:
- Conduct a thorough research programme focusing on your finances and marketing activities
- Analyse the results to determine the cause of your cash flow problems
- Highlight new markets or opportunities which could be targeted
- Create a plan of action to tackle your current cash crisis
- Work with you until the corner is turned
Deliverables —what you will get from this
- More customers
- More income
- Reduced costs
- More cash in bank
- Peace of mind
- Ability to think ahead again