No Matter the Business, Certain Principles Apply

Since starting my consulting business, Hospitality Works, in 1987, I have come to realize something: Most of what I’ve learned can be applied to almost any business in almost any industry.

Maybe you’re trying to help your music retail business climb out of the red and back to profitability. Maybe you are wondering how to improve your social media reviews. If you hone in on one or more of the following three key principles, a business like yours can make a course correction, improve its operations, and start making the numbers look better.

1) Invest in great service

A lot of businesses attribute negative reviews to their staff having a “bad day.” In actuality, it all starts with service.

If a customer to your store is left waiting, if the salesperson is talking on his or her cell phone, if the billings are incorrect, business is being driven away before a potential customer even gets to see you, and there will be a one- or two-star review on Yelp or Google. A music-related company can avoid this by investing in service training, along with training specific to their industry, and weeding out employees who can’t meet the standard. Of course, the best employee would be the one with a musical background.

Another mistake is not having enough staff to provide good service. Controlling costs is one thing. Serving customers badly, or not serving them at all, by skimping on staff is a recipe for disaster.

2) Watch the numbers and devise an action plan if they’re not adding up

It’s true no matter what business you’re in: the numbers are what will help you grow (or lose) a business. A owner who is investing in a business that is outside their expertise must trust their partners, but only up to a point. As the old journalism motto goes, “If your mother says she loves you, check it out.”

If a retailer thinks, “Our business is going gangbusters, but we’re still losing money,” something is wrong. This could be problems with how the books are kept, problems at the bank – or even a dishonest employee embezzling funds. Profit-and-loss statements have to be reviewed at least every 30 days, and if you seem to be doing good business but are still losing money, start trying to find out why.

Beyond that, though, you must devise a strategy for addressing the issues. One way to get the information is to access and study all of the business’ accounts.

3) Share information with staff

A lot of business owners like to keep information about the business close to the vest and not share it with their employees. This is a big mistake. A business owner should meet regularly with staff, let them know how the business is doing, and get their ideas on how to improve. “No secrets” is my operating strategy.

Can following these three principles guarantee a business or investment will succeed? No, because there are a lot of other factors, such as a tight labor market, the economy, and technological trends that are not in an individual’s control. However, the odds can be improved by applying these simple precepts.

All business is the same. If everybody is focused on the right things – costs, revenue, customer service – the business, itself, doesn’t matter and the bottom line will bring music to your ears.

Izzy Kharasch is a consultant and founder of www.HospitalityWorks.com. He works with all types of businesses and is offering a free consultation by emailing him at Izzy@hospitalityworks.com