2024 Business Success: Key Insights for Perspective Shifts!

As we have entered a new year with financial instability being a key marker for consideration, business owners are seeking expert advice as to what they should be doing differently.

While diverse assumptions are circulating on social media, here are five sound recommendations that are well supported by some of the leading business minds that you should consider.

Diversify Your Income

While you may be focussing on services that were trending when you first established your business, in this financial climate it is a smart financial move to also review the possibilities of diversification.  Diversifying your income streams can provide you with an additional layer of financial security and open growth opportunities. 

• Review the services you provide and expand your offering with additional services that your clients may appreciate. 

• If you are providing facial treatments consider, diet, nutritional support, massage, stress management modalities, cosmetic tattooing and of course cosmetic injectable services if you don’t already provide these.
• With the onset of mental health issues on the rise, look at modalities that support mood enhancement and lowering stress levels. 
• Consider modalities such as music therapy and inhalation of evidence-based essential oils that enhance the elevation of dopamine and endorphins. While these are simple strategies there is evidence that they work. 
• In reviewing the studies, you will discover that the citrus family are an excellent option.  Oils such as orange, grapefruit, bergamot, and neroli offer excellent mood-enhancing benefits. 
• Other oils include frankincense, rosemary and ylang-ylang.  Just make sure that are pure and unadulterated for optimal therapeutic benefits. 

• Make sure you also expand your retail sales to support these additional services. 

Nutritional products, weight-management support products and body products are now in high demand as part of the rise in consumer self-care. Make sure you also capitalise on this revenue stream.

Pursue Your Passion

While you may be offering a variety of services, choose to specialise in what you are truly passionate about. It’s a chance to explore your interests, express your creativity, and build something that truly excites you, as this will make it easier for you to excel in this area and become your competitive advantage.

As an example, if you are offering skin treatments and you have suffered from acne in your own life, expand your knowledge in this area.  You will find that this will come easily to you and your level of compassion for people who suffer from these ailments will be substantially higher for someone who has no clue what it is like to suffer from such a condition. 

Tap into what you can relate to and pursue this area professionally with greater intensity and passion and establish a reputation as a real expert and authority in this area.

Learn and Grow

• Explore ways to enhance your knowledge and improve your self-esteem and confidence.
• Grow your knowledge in better managing your stress levels, enhance your health and focus on the joy of living and on things that you can be grateful for. 
• Expand your professional skills in new and better ways of providing your services, as well as grow your knowledge in business principles, as these will enhance both your personal and professional development.  
• Determine, plan and invest in these areas, as they will improve your capacity for more creative thinking and productive output.

To downsize or to expand – what will best serve you?

As a business owner, you need to carefully review your risks and look for ways to minimise them. 

• When fear strikes many revert to downsizing by releasing staff without replacing them. 
• While this may be appealing, as it will allow a business to save on wages, it will also potentially diminish the level of revenue that the business can achieve with fewer staff. 
• This is why if you choose this option, it is advisable to carefully conduct a financial analysis and assessment and consider restructuring your business’s service provider model.

If you are challenged in finding the right staff, consider changing your business model. 

For example, you can replace a staff member with an independent contractor who can also introduce their external clients to your business. 

For businesses who have extra rooms, consider sub-letting a room to a professional who can complement your services and you can benefit theirs as well. 

Please note that this arrangement needs to be secured through a correct contractual agreement, you can access these specific forms here

When managed well, this option can lower the business owner’s stress levels, while adding passive income through this shift to their business model. 

Invest in an External Financial Safety Net

• Explore ways of making your money work more efficiently for you.  
• If you do not have a financial planner, this may be a good time to consider making an appointment to discuss with a qualified professional, as a good one can be worth their weight in gold. 
• A well-qualified financial planner can review your current debts and make expert recommendations for more efficient ways of amalgamating them to save you money. 
• They can also review potential business restructuring to legally improve your tax burden.  They can also provide you with investment recommendations that would best help you improve your financial status in ways that you may not be aware of, while also advising you on how to minimise any risk.

The key is to work towards creating greater stability and enhancing your income in ways that will best benefit you. If you need help reach out to APAN for support on our hotline.