Tuesday, April 24, 2012

You Can't Take It Back

Yesterday, the local news reported that a woman who donated her kidney to her boss, and was subsequently fired by her 6 weeks after the organ transplant, wanted her kidney back.  No she can't have it back declared the judge. "You made the commitment to donate your organ based on your goodwill towards your boss and because you were let go, that is not a reason to get it back. Case dismissed."

In the same vein, there are some things in business that you can't get back either.

If you haven't trained that new desk employee how to be a problem solver and a marketing coordinator, you will end up with a "shoe sprayer".  No, you can't have that back.

If you haven't invested marketing dollars to promote your business, you can't have the lost sales back.

If you didn't plan your menu and cost of sales accordingly, no you can't have the dollars you left on the table back

If you have no outside sales effort that targets companies, schools, organizations, non profit groups and clubs then you can't have those lost sales back either.

If you're waiting for a new idea with years of proof positive experience that it works, then no you can't have the lost time you spent waiting come back.

If you rarely hold staff meetings and rarely inspect the service element of your business, then you can't have those customers, who left because of poor customer service, come back.

If your social media sites are not attended to daily, weekly and monthly, then you can't have those lost site visits, clicks and party reservations come back either.

If you are not constantly looking for new ways to improve traffic flow, lineage and revenue, then you can't have those lost games back either.

If you haven't invested in your facility, then you can't have those customers, who pass it by because it looks  shabby, come back for a wonderful experience.

If you don't get involved in your local community as a sponsor, a fund raiser or a member of a local group, then you can't expect these people to want to do business with you.

Bottom line; if you do nothing to get more business, don't expect your business to come back.