I'm not big on my work anniversaries or making much noise about milestone events – even though I recommend that clients do! I’ll tell them it gets you noticed. It’s free PR. It rekindles past conversations and sparks new ones. This week LinkedIn has reminded me that I’ve been in business for 14 years. I … Continue reading Time to celebrate?
Author: Grainne at All About Results
As an independent consultant, coach and trainer I specialise in helping small businesses become more confident, resilient and profitable. I left the corporate world in 2005 - KPMG and Mars Confectionery - having worked across finance, logistics, sales planning, sales and account management and, ultimately, sales training. Not many can claim that diverse a work profile!
From my experience of small businesses so much more can often be achieved with the resources they already have. Clearer plans, using accurate numbers to make good decisions, understanding and using team strengths, getting the most from marketing collateral and relevant, aligned job descriptions for all can all make a significant difference to business results.
I hand-hold, challenge, coach and train - the balance is different for every business.
Outside of work I look after my 2 teenage daughters and squeeze in time for Nordic walking, playing tennis and badminton.
There is a lot being said about the doom and gloom of January. People are lamenting the gaping emptiness without Christmas celebrations, the pressure to give up alcohol or indeed anything else you enjoy and the sheer darkness of the mornings. But I’m a big fan of January! I love how uncluttered it is. Family … Continue reading January is a great month!
It’s all too tempting to think that the biggest opportunity for improving your business is to get more customers. It might be the right decision – but not necessarily. So how do you know? Take the example of a general car repair garage which has seen a steady decline in sales. A typical, instinctive response … Continue reading How to identify your biggest business improvement opportunities
Nearly everyone is guilty of at least one of two time-management pitfalls: Under-estimating how long it will take to complete a task. Over-estimating how much time you have. I count myself amongst the many. Symptoms include a ‘to-do-list’ with the same tasks appearing week after week after month, and regularly lamenting, ‘Why on earth am … Continue reading Why 4 Week Planning is Worth the Time
It’s all too tempting to think that the biggest opportunity for improving your business is to get more customers. It might be the right decision – but not necessarily. So how do you know? Let’s take an example. Your business is a general car repair garage which has seen a steady decline in sales. A … Continue reading Why marketing might not be the right answer
There are traditionally two reasons why you would want to write a business plan: The first, to satisfy potential investors or future business partners that you have a well thought out proposition The second, to create a roadmap to achieve that success. While the first reason is externally focused, I think that the second reason, … Continue reading 7 Ways To Make Your Business Plan Work
It’s a question I have often been asked in the context of working with teams to improve their business development processes. 10 years ago I would have said that you can probably train most people in the skills to sell, however, that doesn’t mean they will use them. Negative perceptions of sales, an unwillingness to … Continue reading Can Anyone Be Trained To Sell?
Twice in the last week I have been served by people wearing earphones. Maddening! In both cases they were from small businesses rather than High Street names. One was the ice cream van man. That was particularly disappointing as the first ice cream of the season from a roaming van is still a mildly exciting … Continue reading OK to wear headphones while serving customers? I think not!
Last week I was a coach on a Global Business Partnering programme with a group of senior finance people. How is that relevant, you’re wondering? What struck me most, and it’s not exclusive to this organisation at all, is that the higher up the tree you go the less able you feel to lay bare … Continue reading The power of what you don’t know
I recently presented at a high profile networking event, full of women in business. The theme was, Achieving Your Extraordinary. My expectation was that I was being asked to talk about what it takes to run a strong and healthy business. After all, that's what I help people to do. But no, the brief was … Continue reading Why it pays to think extraordinary
