You’ll score if you make the most of Friday afternoons while your competitors are sipping cocktails, writes Allon Raiz.
On my way out of the office last week, I bumped into an entrepreneur who’d started her first quarter on one of our business growth programmes.
I asked her what the biggest challenge was that she was facing. With a pained expression, she replied she was really struggling to get new clients.
I asked what her plans were for the rest of the day, to which she replied: “I’m heading home after we close at 1 because no one does business on a Friday.”
It really concerns me when entrepreneurs are so comfortable about closing the office earlier on a Friday because they’re under the impression that no one does business anyway.
There is a myth that productivity levels are at their lowest on a Friday because staff are focused on their weekend plans, and many businesses have shortened their working hours because of this. This is a wasted opportunity!
Friday is just as important as any other day of the week to get new business in. When you see an opportunity on a Friday, jump at it even if it’s 4.59 in the afternoon.
“If your largest competitor closes their office at noon today,” I asked her, “shouldn’t you be jumping at the opportunity to engage with their customers who are still at the office working? These customers could potentially become yours.”
As an entrepreneur, you should wake up every Friday morning more determined than ever to squeeze out as much business as possible on that day - hence why I refer to it as Squeezy Friday. Make the most of every opportunity, even if that means working while your competitors are out sipping cocktails.
In doing so, you could end off your week with two new deals in the pipeline.
Don’t stop squeezing
From October to December, the tempo of many businesses starts slowing down significantly because everyone is tired. Staff have applied for leave and are finalising their December holidays, and their focus gradually shifts into holiday mode as they become less productive in the office.
The December/January period is commonly known as “dead time” because not much happens on the business front until early February the following year.
From now until the end of the year, there are endless opportunities out there which you should take full advantage of - especially when your competitors are in holiday mode.
Just as you need to squeeze out as much business as possible on a Friday afternoon, so you should continue to push harder in these next two and a half months to secure more clients.
Make sure you do the following:
1. Double your current sales activity targets or triple them.
If you usually make 10 calls a week to new clients, double this to 20. Set reminders on your calendar to alert you to follow-ups with clients.
Keep calling and push harder to get those new deals through that have been on your target list for months. December is an opportune time to contact potential clients, especially if your competitors are closed for the festive season and their clients need to continue running their businesses.
2. Be hyper-focused on your competitor’s clients.
When your competitor is planning his trip to Mauritius, he’s probably not contacting his clients as often as he usually would, or even at all.
Be proactive and contact his clients. Tell them about your business and what it offers. There is a good chance that they’ll decide to rather do business with you.
3. Offer newfangled specials.
At the end of every year, retailers advertise cliched “festive season deals” which customers now anticipate. These cliched offers are not always powerful because every other retailer has an identical deal.
Have another look at your product offering and develop a fresh special. For example, if you usually offer a four-day workshop twice a year, look at offering a “lighter” version of that workshop over two days, at a reduced rate.
4. Experiment with new products.
If you have a new product in mind, but are unsure as to whether it will be a success, this is the ideal time to launch it. If your product doesn’t succeed, learn by trial and error and make the necessary adaptations from the feedback. If it’s a success, start thinking of ways to maximise its potential in the upcoming year.
5. Go into analytical mode now.
Look back on the past nine months and analyse your product lines. Identify the products that performed well and achieved the highest profits, and analyse whether these figures match the predictions you made for 2016.
Use this nine months of information to strategise and develop new ways of looking at your company and products, and plan better for next year. It’s too late to only start doing these analyses in December, because by that stage, you should already have your plan in place for the next year.
If you are guilty of closing shop early on a Friday, change this habit immediately and instead create urgency to jump at opportunities. No matter how tired you are feeling at the end of the week, and at this time of year, keep squeezing because you’ll see the results in the long run.
* Allon Raiz is the chief executive of Raizcorp.
* The views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of Independent Media.
THE STAR