Hello there!
In today’s newsletter, we will look at some common annoyances that can negatively impact small businesses.
While they may appear unimportant initially, they can escalate into major obstacles that can disrupt your operations and even ruin your reputation.
“Thank you for calling XYZ’s dental office, can you hold please?”
This was what I was asked to do when I called to schedule a dentist appointment earlier in the week.
Responses like these are like a pebble in my shoe. Tiny little annoyances that can get bigger and bigger the longer you wait.
A pebble in the shoe can mean many things for different people, but what we can all agree on is that they are tiny little discomforts that can cause excruciating pain.
Don’t believe me, try walking around with one in your shoe.
This experience made me reflect on how the smallest changes can make a world of difference if we just take the time to figure out where the pain point is, who it’s affecting and how it can be resolved.
When you take a step back and take an overview of your business, you should be able to locate where in your business there is room for opportunity. However, it’s not possible to do that if you’re constantly IN your business doing ALL THE THINGS.
As you grow, you’ll notice that you have less and less time for those minor, but very important details. If left unnoticed, those pebbles can eventually grow into boulders, then at that point you may need some TNT explosives to break it down.
Whether these pebbles are affecting your workflow, customer service or quality of work, you need to put people or systems in place to remove the pain point.
In the case of the dental office, they needed to hire more help during their peak hours to reduce the wait times. They’re not saving money by only having one person at the front desk, they’re losing clients who did not have time to wait.
When I talk to small business owners it’s usually because they’re interested in getting some help with these pebbles. Some of the common ones that I encounter are:
1. Inefficient System Processes
A lot of time is wasted in your business if your workflow processes are broken. I know it can be inconvenient, but It’s important to take the time to alleviate these problems early on while it’s still manageable. Find those repetitive tasks that are taking too much time and see if they can be automated and streamlined.
2. Lack of an Online Presence
Regardless of how you feel about social media and being online, we live in a digital age and it’s one of the easiest ways to engage with your target audience. Many entrepreneurs ignore or avoid this small detail as they deem it unimportant.
It’s not necessary to be everywhere. Just be somewhere.
Choose that one social media platform and stick with it. I like LinkedIn because I can make genuine connections on there, and the platform is more aligned with the type of work that I do. Whether it be YouTube, Facebook, X, Instagram or Pinterest, choose the one that works best for you. Whether you want to believe it or not, people are searching for you online and if you don’t have an online presence, you’re losing out on revenue.
3. Slow Response Times
If you have 14,000 emails in your inbox, how are you even finding the important emails that require a response? Many entrepreneurs put off getting their email inbox under control. If you don’t have the time, make sure to outsource that part of your business so that you’re not missing out on business opportunities.
Here’s the bottom line:
As technologies become more advanced, we are going to have to cope with temporary discomfort to mitigate long-term pain.
Chuckle of the day! 😂
Why did the pebble go to therapy? Because it had too many issues to keep in its shoe!
Shamayne Brown is a virtual assistant and the founder of Camp Virtual Assistance.
She works with solo professionals and small business owners who are ready to invest in their business and need the support that she offers.
She specializes in creating email newsletters as well as other admin and creative design tasks.
Click here to connect on LinkedIn.
Click here to set up a discovery call.
