The SME Guide to Improving your Cash Flow
Useful insights to help you manage and improve your business’s cash flow and increase profits.
4 things to give up to be successful
Success isn’t simply a product of doing more — gaining more skills, more education, more certificates or promotions.
What makes entrepreneurs ‘entrepreneurial’
“Entrepreneurship is a way of thinking, reasoning, and acting that is opportunity obsessed, holistic in approach, and leadership balanced for the purpose of value creation and capture”
Avoiding liquidation: what SMEs can do to prevent collapse
In the three months ended October 2020, there was a 33,2% rise in business liquidations, according to Stats SA.
Rule #1 :: Don’t sell
As we lead up to #SalesIndaba this week, let’s get an insight into a few key tips from the world’s top sales superstars.
Digemy – disrupting conventional learning in favour of mastery
Kobus Louw is the Founder and Managing Director of Digemy. He explains that it is a unique adaptive e-learning platform aimed to disrupt the conventional e-learning model that focusses on completion and “passery”, and transform it into a model focussing on knowledge and mastery.
How body language can help your sales
55% of your sales message is conveyed through body language, 38% through the tone of your voice and a mere 7% of your message is the actual words you speak.
3 conflict resolution strategies for small businesses
Conflict is inevitable wherever there are people who interact with each other. This is because people may have different perspectives on a situation due to their life experiences, culture, values, and beliefs.
8 savvy ways to cut costs in a small business
At a time when many small businesses are struggling to stay afloat, cutting costs can boost their chances of keeping their doors open. We have a look at eight ways to cut costs in a small business.
3 reasons why social commerce is important for your online business
One buzzword that you may have noticed getting a lot of attention lately is social e-commerce. But what exactly is this new trend and why is it something that you should care about?
Adaptation is key to survival for South African SMMEs
While market shake-ups often lead to innovation and the birth of new industries, very few expected the past year to be as much of a game changer for business. Sure, the national lockdown has hit everyone – businesses big and small.
Protecting your online brand is paramount
Social media is revolutionising brand growth and consumer engagement, therefore highlighting the importance of a brand protection programme.
Ever wondered how entrepreneurs in South Africa are going to benefit from #5G?
MTN Business Head of Enterprise for Fixed Solutions, Priashan Pakiriy explains in his recent interview with the Big Business Show. Watch the highlights below.
He who conquers himself is the mightiest warrior
It is inevitable as a business owner that at some time on your journey you will hit that “T-Junction” or worse the “Brick Wall”.
This “life happening” and “what to do now” are not taught at Business School.
3 smart consumer habits every SME should know about
With the development of new technologies, consumers are much smarter than they were before and it is time SMEs acknowledged this.
Consumers are concerned about green trends, fair trade, collaborative consumption and business models of shared responsibilities.
Keep reminding yourself that “Cash is King”
Cash flow is the lifeblood of every small business.
The daily pressure of doing business is challenging enough, however this type of pressure is generally positive. A cash flow crisis is negative pressure.
5 Tips for Growing as an Entrepreneur
Going places means stepping out of your comfort zone.
You’ve probably heard the saying “If you’re not growing, you’re dying.” That’s because the world is in constant flux. If you stand still for too long, you’ll be left behind.
4 Ways Small Businesses Can Compete Against the Major Competitors
For a small business to strive and win competitors in an industry, use these strategies.
Moving into a new city or job can be daunting, the hassle of finding accommodation, the stress of moving personal items and most especially the people or city accepting someone new might not be pleasing.
The 8 Best Pieces of Business Advice I’ve Received In The Past 6 Months
Words of wisdom from business leaders.
My job involves interacting with dozens of business visionaries on a regular basis. I’m constantly meeting with vendors, potential partners, customers and new employees. I take something positive away from every exchange. It’s usually a tidbit on how I could run my department more efficiently, manage talent more smoothly or tackle a business challenge from a fresh perspective.
Is Your Social Media Content Attracting Leads? 4 Ways to Bolster Your Strategy
You may think your followers want one type of content when really they want another.
Digital marketers often identify social media as one of the best forms of content marketing, but it can often feel like we’re just going through the motions. If the social media content isn’t attracting leads, what good is it? It’s likely you just need a quick boost in strategy to make sure your content is appealing to your target audience and getting inbound requests and messages.
7 Things Millionaires Do During Tough Times
Financial advisor Jeff Rose comments on an article featuring money advice from self-made millionaires.
Jess Rose reviews and comments on “7 Smart Money Moves Self-Made Millionaires Make in Challenging Times,” an article published on Grow from Acorns, a financial knowledge and personal wealth site.
Find Opportunity in Failure
Documentarian and entrepreneur Soledad O’Brien on dealing with the unexpected.
As a news reporter, Soledad O’Brien knows that not everything goes the way you hoped it would.
An interview subject bails on you, a story you traveled great distances to investigate doesn’t pan out — every day comes with new and unexpected challenges.
Carla Hall Wants Entrepreneurs to Get Comfortable Being Uncomfortable
Food Network and podcast host Carla Hall’s advice for entrepreneurs: It’s okay to not know everything!
When she was a contestant on Top Chef, food entrepreneur Carla Hall recalls a defining moment that changed her outlook on the show — and life. She was standing at the judges’ table and her heart was beating out of her chest, sure she was about to be sent home. “And then I just had this thought,” remembers Carla, “Wait, nobody has ever died here.”
How Do You Know If You Have a Good Idea? Try These 3 Tests.
Here are three ways to test your invention ideas.
That’s the million-dollar question, right? But does anyone really ever know? I’m not sure.
5 Ways to Differentiate Your Products and Services in an Oversaturated Market
Defining what makes your offering different will determine your success.
Type your product or service into a search engine and you may get millions of results. The truth is, the market is oversaturated in some areas, such as finance, wellness and digital retail.
Why Right Now Is the Best Time Ever to Start a Business
Macro-economic uncertainty is creating opportunities entrepreneurs have not seen in decades. Seize this extraordinary moment.
“I am really concerned about starting a new company right now. I think the world is too unstable and it’s just too risky,” a very close friend of mine was relaying to me the other day. “I have a job. I don’t want to voluntarily quit, have my company fail and then struggle to find something on the other side.”
What ‘hurts’ your business? Find out with the Maslow Pyramid of SMEs
Do you want to know what problem you should focus on right now to solve in your company?
Recently Mike Michalowicz , one of the most prominent authors on entrepreneurship and small and medium-sized enterprises ( SMEs ), launched his new book Fix This Next , which we could translate as Solve This First .
Mike is the author of best-selling books such as The Pumpkin Plan , Profit First , Surge , among others.
Personally, he is one of the authors that I recommend the most for the powerful tools he creates and proposes, always taking into account the very particular context of SMEs.
Barack Obama, Richard Branson and Mark Zuckerberg All Swear By This High-Performance Habit
It actually involves doing less, not more.
In his bestselling book Willpower, psychologist Roy F. Baumeister points out that one of the biggest threats to our self-control and goals is decision fatigue.
With deeply limited time reserves and demands to make important decisions quickly, entrepreneurs and politicians face pressure to be “on” all the time, every time, even though these expectations are often biologically unrealistic.
3 Tips for Keeping Your Startup Dream Alive From a 5-Time Founder
After starting five different companies, I found these are the fundamentals to startup success — every time.
From Elon Musk, to the family ice cream shop on the corner by your house, all businesses start with a dream. Keeping that dream going through the long hours, disappointments, naysayers and logistical challenges, however, is the tough part.
Knowing that 20 percent of small businesses close up shop in their first year and that the majority (65 percent) don’t make it past a decade, how in the world can you stay energized and positive for the long haul? After going through the startup process five times, I’m convinced it takes these three pillars.
Be Purpose Driven
Actor/Producer and founder of The Honest Company Jessica Alba encourages businesses to include giving back in their business models.
As the founder and CEO of Bear Bull Traders and Peak Capital Trading, I’ve taught thousands of new traders how to trade the market and make the right decisions for their trading venture. These traders come from all walks of life and from countries all around the globe. I’m honored to bring such a diverse group of people together for the purpose of building better lives through trading.
Do You Have Any of the 5 Traits Shared by Successful Traders and Entrepreneurs?
By Andrew Aziz
As the founder and CEO of Bear Bull Traders and Peak Capital Trading, I’ve taught thousands of new traders how to trade the market and make the right decisions for their trading venture. These traders come from all walks of life and from countries all around the globe. I’m honored to bring such a diverse group of people together for the purpose of building better lives through trading.
Sasfin obtains nearly R1bn to provide loans to SA entrepreneurs
By Adriaan Kruger
Sasfin is set to announce that it has received a R600 million guarantee from a European Union (EU) financial programme, as well as R390 million in funding, to provide loans to smaller businesses and entrepreneurs. In total, Sasfin will be able to provide nearly R1 billion additional funding to small businesses and women and youth entrepreneurs in SA.
