To summarize "Business is NOT easy", 6 months went by with lots of changes, we have recently got a Management Consultant on board, a product from IISC to support the Environmentally friendly efforts of Blorebuy. We have an extra eye looking at the problems in GREEN Business.
Difficult Times Persists:
We are going through the phase which any company would go through, the budgets and credits. Customers would ask credits but company budgets would not permit for such credits. Analyzing the same lead us to decide on "not giving credits" which in turn made us loose few orders.
The number of orders are also decreasing since October, We have decided not to find reasons on having less order, but to to put in more efforts to get orders.
BLOREBUY needs encouragement and support.
Monday 23 November 2009
Monday 4 May 2009
March and April (Ups and Downs)
After few Insults and Sacrifice, March 09 turned out to be a good month
for sales, there was sudden surge in sales. The order were from unexpected
leads. Though there was good sales, it came with its own list of problems.
These problems were lot more tougher to solve.
Problems:
1) Payment - The payment policy was 50% Advance and rest on Delivery of the product.
I did manage to get advance from customers, but collecting the balances is a lot of struggle.
I have now changed the company policy to get 75% advance and rest on delivery, there is a risk of loosing order but it looks like mandatory policy to survive for long time in business.
2) Issues with product usage conditions - One of product had a requirement for standard power, unfortunately there was power fluctuation (Outside the normal range) issue, this lead to issues for one customer. A new circuit has been designed to prevent problems like this in future.
Learning:
1) Be Strict with payment terms, if this policy is not strict, you may have to face huge problems in future. I have learnt it from few lakhs heavy cost but useful.
2) Clean manual explaining the product working conditions is necessary, but explaining the condition is even more necessary.
APRIL 09 - Very bad month for sales, i was expecting it to be a great month, but did not work as expected.
Problems:
1) Analyzing the reason for fall in Sales, i understood that i spent most of April 09 on execution of orders from March and Payment collection task from March.
2) Did not generate any leads during March 09, which lead to drop in sales.
Learning:
1) By 23rd of April 09 i realised that i did not contridute to marketing of the product but just was focusing on payment collection.
2) Allocate few hours each day for marketing, or else the next month would end up tough.
Also seeing the positive signs of March 09 i have decided to move to a bigger office, not sure if it is risk. I have started to feel the need for a bigger office. I feel it difficult to analyze if i have made the right move, atleast it would give me more reason to generate order to meet the increase in expenses.
for sales, there was sudden surge in sales. The order were from unexpected
leads. Though there was good sales, it came with its own list of problems.
These problems were lot more tougher to solve.
Problems:
1) Payment - The payment policy was 50% Advance and rest on Delivery of the product.
I did manage to get advance from customers, but collecting the balances is a lot of struggle.
I have now changed the company policy to get 75% advance and rest on delivery, there is a risk of loosing order but it looks like mandatory policy to survive for long time in business.
2) Issues with product usage conditions - One of product had a requirement for standard power, unfortunately there was power fluctuation (Outside the normal range) issue, this lead to issues for one customer. A new circuit has been designed to prevent problems like this in future.
Learning:
1) Be Strict with payment terms, if this policy is not strict, you may have to face huge problems in future. I have learnt it from few lakhs heavy cost but useful.
2) Clean manual explaining the product working conditions is necessary, but explaining the condition is even more necessary.
APRIL 09 - Very bad month for sales, i was expecting it to be a great month, but did not work as expected.
Problems:
1) Analyzing the reason for fall in Sales, i understood that i spent most of April 09 on execution of orders from March and Payment collection task from March.
2) Did not generate any leads during March 09, which lead to drop in sales.
Learning:
1) By 23rd of April 09 i realised that i did not contridute to marketing of the product but just was focusing on payment collection.
2) Allocate few hours each day for marketing, or else the next month would end up tough.
Also seeing the positive signs of March 09 i have decided to move to a bigger office, not sure if it is risk. I have started to feel the need for a bigger office. I feel it difficult to analyze if i have made the right move, atleast it would give me more reason to generate order to meet the increase in expenses.
Tuesday 3 March 2009
Insults and Sacrifice
Its again a long time ago since the blog was updated. January and February was better than December and November last year.The business is picking up, but i am going through few though paths, meeting people who are very insulting and learning how to handle such people.
Whenever it is luxury product which is being sold, there is lot of convincing
that should be done. In India, most of luxury product is bought by either Politician
or Celebrity.
I would like to share a horrible experience with one of the politician named Sridhar Reddy, he actually is not a politician himself but some "CHAMCHA" for an MLA, meaning a person who says yes to anything that the politician say. I was selling my Nano technology unit Water Softener unit which is actually a costly unit, this person does not know what it is, but he wants it cheap about 90% discount to what i am offering ha ha... they even tease you / your product multiple times..You feel insulted when you speak to such people and wonder why r u standing in front of few idiots who has enormous amount of stolen money at their disposal. It took to 2 days to digest this customer.
How to handle such idiots who know nothing of the product but want that product at discount:
Based on the Advice from few business man, on how to handle these people there are few suggestions
1) Increase the price to Twice or thrice of the actual price and bring it down when they bargain, i feel it is a sort of cheap technique which people use in streets.
2) Don't sell products to customers who don't understand it even after explanation, i feel it is a good idea but it is difficult decession to loose a big order when you start a business, i have decided to ignore the order, may be a fault, but can't give up my Self esteem.
3) Understand that these CHAMCHA politicians as people who are Brain damaged, ignore their insults, if they give advance take it and execute the order or just leave the place.It is sure that they wont pay you the balance. Don't undertake the order without 100% advance.
Now, the next time i meet such a person i know how handle them. But these people can be very influential and can get you many orders.
Insults, upsets will happen in a new product selling business, but it is learning path.
Hope it is useful for someone.
Whenever it is luxury product which is being sold, there is lot of convincing
that should be done. In India, most of luxury product is bought by either Politician
or Celebrity.
I would like to share a horrible experience with one of the politician named Sridhar Reddy, he actually is not a politician himself but some "CHAMCHA" for an MLA, meaning a person who says yes to anything that the politician say. I was selling my Nano technology unit Water Softener unit which is actually a costly unit, this person does not know what it is, but he wants it cheap about 90% discount to what i am offering ha ha... they even tease you / your product multiple times..You feel insulted when you speak to such people and wonder why r u standing in front of few idiots who has enormous amount of stolen money at their disposal. It took to 2 days to digest this customer.
How to handle such idiots who know nothing of the product but want that product at discount:
Based on the Advice from few business man, on how to handle these people there are few suggestions
1) Increase the price to Twice or thrice of the actual price and bring it down when they bargain, i feel it is a sort of cheap technique which people use in streets.
2) Don't sell products to customers who don't understand it even after explanation, i feel it is a good idea but it is difficult decession to loose a big order when you start a business, i have decided to ignore the order, may be a fault, but can't give up my Self esteem.
3) Understand that these CHAMCHA politicians as people who are Brain damaged, ignore their insults, if they give advance take it and execute the order or just leave the place.It is sure that they wont pay you the balance. Don't undertake the order without 100% advance.
Now, the next time i meet such a person i know how handle them. But these people can be very influential and can get you many orders.
Insults, upsets will happen in a new product selling business, but it is learning path.
Hope it is useful for someone.
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