SCORE Small Business Blog

Professional Service Firms

1. Keep Sales Relationships in Place. Keep in touch with clients. Find out about their needs for the year. Even if they are scaling back, your ability to stagger projects, package a project into modules and target payments to aid their budget cycles is crucial. Keep the clients you have even if the pace of sales slows, so when things turn upward–you are still a preferred vendor.

2. Cut costs now. Don’t let any costs creep up on you. Now is the time to tighten your budget at least 10 percent. Where to start? For example, you may have Internet service from a cable company. By stepping your service down one-level in speed, you may be able to reduce costs $20 per month.

Retailers

1. Move January Inventory Quickly. Post-holiday season is here. Bargain shoppers, and gift certificate reedemers may not linger–so go ahead and cut prices to move inventory.  A stale sales floor won’t move your merchandise. Work diligently to keep your windows updated and rotate merchandise to help foot traffic shoppers see fresh merchandise.

2. Slow Inventory Orders & Add Selection. Retail therapy will revive. In the meantime, look at placing smaller volume orders & adding more diverse selections. Your suppliers may work well with you on this, so that they keep your business. Shoppers impulse buys may be triggered by fresh merhandise & changing displays.

Manage with Insights from a Mentor

Why does SCORE mentor at no charge? We have a network of business experts who volunteer their time as mentors. Free & confidential. Ask SCORE for advice.  

• Cut expenses
• Project sales
• Evaluate cashflow
• Explore financing  

-Christine Banning, SCORE
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