Critical Survival Strategies

You have to keep an eye on critical activities to survive in business. Most of the time you probably complain that there are not enough hours in a day to do everything that you have to do. One of the business owners that I work with has a great saying...what is the least amount of things that I have to do today before I leave for home. He writes them down and does them all...before he goes home. Sometimes that lets him go home early (although rarely in the busy times) and sometimes he stays late to accomplish everything that has to get done. However, it gives him the peace of mind that he is doing what he has to accomplish every day.

After taking care of the customer, the most important thing that you have to do is bill for your work. If you collect COD, that’s easy. You bill and collect for their work immediately. However, many companies must bill. If possible, bill on the date that the work is finished. If you don't bill, you don't have a chance of getting your money. And, the longer you wait to bill the more likely a customer is to "forget" about how long the technician was there, what he did, etc. and question your bill.

After billing, the next critical area is collections. Take the time to call customers who have not paid within 30 days. If you don't become the squeaky wheel then you will be put at the bottom of the list for payment. Sometimes when it gets busy we don't take the time to do this very important thing because cash flow is usually good and it hides that fact that some customers are not paying when their bills are due.

Next, watch inventory control. Inventory is a bet. Make sure that you are betting right.

Finally, realize that everyone has a tendency to get grouchy during the busy times. Field labor is tired because they have to work over time. The office has more paper work to do. The telephones ring non-stop. The best thing that you can do as an owner is to keep your good humor, remind your employees that it won't be busy forever, and ask them not to complain the next time it is slow.