What Goes Into Building An Award-Winning Business.
What Goes Into Building An Award-Winning Business.
By Said Ul Amin | Submitted on January 09, 2023.
14 strategies we attribute to our recent Business Excellence Award.
Out of the blue, I received an email one day from the Abbotsford Chamber of Commerce informing me that we had been nominated for a 2016 Business Excellence Award.
Say what?
Once I got past my shock and disbelief that they had the wrong Susan... it started to sink in that someone out there thought we were worthy enough of this nomination. Wow, what an honor!
Part of the nomination process consisted of a 30-minute interview before a panel of 3 judges. Imagine being forced to brag about yourself for half an hour! Talk about squirming in my seat!
Fast forward to last week where the awards ceremony took place. To my relief, our category was first so I could relax for the rest of the evening.
To be honest, I wasn't too worried - I knew the odds of winning were only 1 in 7 so I waited patiently for the winner to be announced, not at all expecting it to be ours. shall be.
But it was so! We were declared winners!
say what???
Shock and disbelief washed over me again as I took a moment to think about what had happened. Walking across the stage was quite a blur but I managed to make it without climbing the stairs to receive my award.
After winning this wonderful honor, I reflected a little more about the interview with this judge and how he judged us to be the winner among the other worthy nominees in our category.
With this in mind, I would like to share some of the attributes that I believe helped us win this prestigious award. Without further ado, here's what it took me to build an award-winning business:
1) Be passionate about what you do.
We are not the first business I have built. From making craft pieces to painting a faux finish, there are many other jobs. But no matter what I did, I was very excited about it.
Don't waste your time trying to run a business just to make money. You will tire of it very quickly and it will be difficult to sell.
But when you're passionate about your work, others will immediately notice and be drawn to you like a magnet.
2) Love working with the people you serve and offer exceptional customer service.
One of the true joys I get is knowing how much we can help the new business owner get their online presence up and running. Being a part of their joy in seeing their dream become a reality gives me equal joy.
If you avoid answering the phone or answering emails because you're afraid to talk to a client, you need to adjust your marketing so you're working with the right people. I am interested.
If you don't like who you're working with, it's hard to build a successful business that needs to satisfy your clients by making customer service the #1 priority. And that means answering the phone, responding to emails promptly, and treating each person as if they were your only client. And when you're attracting your ideal client, it should be easy to do.
Make your business about them, not you. Just remember, if you don't have clients, you don't have a business.
3) Know your stuff.
Before even thinking about starting a web development/digital marketing business, I made sure I got the education I needed first. I attended the Vancouver Film School in their multimedia program and later graduated with a Bachelor of Business Administration with a concentration in Computer Information Systems (with an A+ GPA).
Not to mention the countless online courses I've taken over the years to ensure my skills are kept up to date with this ever-changing industry.
Sadly, I see a lot of entrepreneurs who want to start a business without a lot of skills or experience and then wonder why they are struggling.
Reading a book or taking an online course may not be enough to reach award-winning status. But if you're passionate about building a successful business, you'll find a way to make sure you're as qualified as you need to be.
4) Be determined.
Is working 15 hours 6-7 days a week enough? Yes, that's what Daniel and I do every week. We have to do to accomplish points 2 and 3 above.
Making sure your clients are properly cared for takes a lot of time and effort. You also need a level of commitment to "whatever it takes".
Maybe you don't need to work such long hours like us and trust me, we are constantly working to reduce this kind of volume but until then, we can ensure the success of our business. Willing to do whatever it takes to make it. You are?
5) Be harmonious.
viscosity takes multiple conformations when streaming successful patronage. For me, it's harmonious with my communication, my brand, my social media presence, my newsletters, my platoon operation, and the position of quality we bring to our guests.
Do I occasionally miss? Absolutely. But being harmonious in these areas is veritably important to me, and I do what needs to be done to be the stylish I can be for my platoon and my guests.
Without thickness, it's hard to make brand ministers( like those who nominate you for awards), pious platoon members, and a steady inflow of guests.
Whatever commitment you decide to make, stick to it and you will be surprised how effects start to go your way.
6) compass yourself with a devoted and knowledgeable platoon.
I started as a one-woman show. Because of my educational background, I was suitable to design, make and vend a website veritably fluently. I'm what you would call a" generalist", someone who knows a lot about a lot of effects and is an expert in a many areas.
But my one- woman show was not erecting a successful business. Especially in this technology driven assiduity. It snappily came apparent that my chops were only going to get me so far.
So my first hire was someone who could address my biggest weakness. Warren was a pupil at UFV and applied for my part- time programmer position. He was the perfect complement to our company and the moment he came on board, I was relieved of the need to make the entire point. I can also take that time and concentrate on erecting the business rather.
When it comes to running a business, it's hard to try and do everything yourself. Sure, hiring involves costs, but if you hire smart, keep an eye on your nethermost line, and know when to let go of people who are not serving you well, your business will pay off. It'll grow important faster if you try to struggle. yourself with everything.
This content is good of an entire composition in itself so I encourage you to read How to Take Solo Entrepreneurship to the Next Level to learn further.
7) Make honesty, integrity and gratefulness a part of your diurnal life.
It's sad that I indeed need to list this specifically but I have been in the business long enough to know that not everyone follows these rules.
To me, it's a no- brainer- I am not sure I could live any other way?
But judging by the stories I hear from new guests about how their former web inventor treated them, it seems numerous people need to be reminded of this.
No business can thrive without honesty and integrity. And a little secret gratefulness won't only ameliorate your business, but also your entire life. Try it and see what I mean.
8) Be patient.
Every business, including ours, has ups and campo. The key to success isn't letting those" campo" get in the way of your enthusiasm. Pick yourself back over, learn from whatever assignments you had to learn, and keep moving forward.
still, we wouldn't be award winners!
If we had just left a$ 20 credit on our credit cards at Christmas just many times agone.
9) Invest in your business.
erecting the company has been one investment after another. It noway really ends.
There's always a commodity that needs to be worked on. Then's a short list of my recommendations on where you need to invest in your business
Branding and Website
Marketing
Education
erecting a platoon
10) Understand that you're running a business, not a hobby horse.
I suppose this is an important distinction and one numerous entrepreneurs aren't making.
I've always seen my company as a business and this is largely due to my business mind and business degree.
But for people who plutocracy passionate about commodity and dream of making plutocrat from it, it's hard to know how to turn that dream into a business.
They blindly plutocrats they suppose plutocrats do on their own, to save plutocrats( or not spend plutocrats they do not have) and stop for the stylish.
still, I am adding another business investment to consider as your top precedence a business trainer or tutor, If this sounds familiar. as soon as a hobby horse. else, you will presumably just end up running a hobbyhorse.
11) Set up an organized business structure.
I've worked with numerous guests over the times. Some surprise me with how systematized and systematized they are. And others, well, not so important.
Having a systematized business structure in place is the only reason I have not gone crazy with my diurnal workload.,
These are the tools we use to be more systematized, alive, and less stressful.
12) Get comfortable with dealing.
The deal is a dirty word for numerous entrepeneurs and business possessors. me also. I detest to suppose myself as a" deals person" but at the end of the day, if we are not dealing with our stud with, w toe does not have a business.
Now that does not mean you need to come to a face huntsman. Far from it.
Flash Flashback trait# 1 about being passionate? This is what you need. People will trust and respond to your passion. But be careful, occasionally the passion can be too violent and will push people down.
Find your sweet spot of what resonates with your ideal guests with and keep working on it. But accept the fact that you are dealing your stuff and learn some strategies that fit your personality and comfort position that will work.
13) Give back.
Giving back is an essential trait when erecting a successful business. We give back in numerous ways, for non-profit's ideas to consider that we do
- Offer blinked rates for non-profits.
- Volunteer your services for community groups
- shoot cash donations to good charities you believe in.
Make purchases that support good causes.
- contribute door prizes and/ or silent transaction particulars for fundraising conditioning.
And help your guest whenever you can.
14) Be accessible.
When new guests communicate me because they are frustrated with their current web inventor or marketer, the most common complaint I hear is that they have a new get a hold of that person. They either take ever to answer an dispatch or noway answer their phone.
I suppose I am going to write a book on how not to run a successful business grounded on this alone. It boggles my mind when I constantly hear stories like this. How are these people running a business with similar poor service and availability?
I've a policy of responding to emails within one day of damage. I frequently exceed this policy but on occasion, the phone volume gets too high and I'm delayed in responding. Same thing with the phone. However, we do, If we're available to responders. However, we'll call the person back right down, If we are not.
Being accessible gives our guests peace of mind. They know we watch enough to take care of their requirements in a timely manner promptly.' said Knopf.
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