A business coach with more than three decades of experience in business has created ten New Year’s resolutions to help business owners maximise the value of their company.

Paul Limb, of ActionCOACH Bolton, draws on his extensive time as a business owner, managing director, sales manager and team leader, to share advice with others. His goal as a business coach is to help entrepreneurs achieve their dreams and their businesses to harness opportunities, avoid common mistakes and to achieve their growth objectives.

He has been particularly active during the coronavirus pandemic, which has put a strain on many businesses, gifting coaching sessions and free webinars to over 500 business owners, and here he outlines his New Year’s Resolutions for all business owners hoping to maximise their company value in 2021.

1 Stop chasing revenue

Maximising income is not a sure path to success, especially if it comes at too great a cost. It’s more important to be efficient and build healthy profit margins.

2 Start surveying your customers

True insight into your business comes through the eyes of your customers, as theirs is the crucial opinion. The Net Promoter Score methodology is a fast and easy way to collect feedback, which you can use to identify and strengthen your weaker areas. Better still, it’s also a good predictor of your company’s growth in the future.

3 Sell less stuff to more people

Too many products and services on offer and not only will you find it impossible to manage, but your customers will be overwhelmed by the choice. Some of the most valuable businesses in the world achieved their success by identifying their niche and conquering it.

4 Drop the products or services that depend on you

You can’t build a valuable business by offering a range of products and services that are too reliant on you to deliver them.  Not only does this tie your growth potential to your finite amount of time and resources, but your operation must be able to succeed without you for it to be of value to potential investors or buyers. It sounds like a bold move, but cutting things that require you to produce or sell them can actually set you free.

5 Collect more money up front

Income makes all of what we do possible, yet most business owners are shy about talking money with customers. But by asking for payment up front you can turn a negative cash flow cycle into a positive one, lessen your stress load and boost your business’s value.

6 Create more recurring revenue

Another great way to boost cashflow and create a more predictable revenue stream is to offer goods and services on a subscription or recurring contract basis. Less stress for you, your customers appreciate the clarity, and overall you build a more valuable business over the long run.

7 Be different

If you’re not different enough from the competition, there’s no reason your customers shouldn’t buy from them instead. Once you’ve identified what makes you unique, use it in your marketing and be relentless in highlighting this advantage.

8 Find a backup supplier for your most critical raw materials

We’re living in a world where long-term plans are out of the window, and we don’t know which challenge is coming around the corner. With this in mind, it’s best to have back-up plans in place should any of your key suppliers fail you. Consider placing a small order to establish a commercial relationship and diversify the sources of your most-difficult-to-find materials. Don’t risk another organisation’s shortcoming becoming your downfall.

9 Create an instruction manual

As I’ve highlighted before, your business shouldn’t be limited by your own ability to invest time and energy. You can create more free time, reduce stress and unlock the potential of your business by documenting your most important processes and enabling your employees to do their work independently.

10 Teach your employees to fish

Now go one step further. Empower employees to realise their potential by cultivating a team full of individuals who think like owners. Encourage them to answer their own questions without coming to you. Start by asking them: “What would you do if you owned the business?”

For more information, visit: https://bolton.actioncoach.co.uk/ or email bolton@actioncoach.com for more details on accessing support.