A meeting of one...

Yes, it can be lonely at the top.

We often get feedback from clients that some of the key value we deliver is being a sounding board, a support, a professional companion for their person at the top when they can’t turn anywhere else.

Whether you’re the MD of a large business or a solo-operator running a business from home; if you’re a leader you probably know how lonely you can feel.

We all know that communication within any business is hugely important, so what happens if you are an owner-operator or a sole Director? Maybe you are the next generation taking over a family business and are struggling to implement change. Maybe you have a Partner but neither of you have any skills in he problem areas you are experiencing. Whatever your circumstances having a business without excellent communication is a problem.

There is always a need to exchange ideas and to get the opinions of others within business and for many this simply is not possible. Many of the clients I meet along the way need just this - someone to run ideas by and to offer feedback.  Many just want the reassurance that their ideas are sound and on the whole, a chat over a coffee or on the phone is enough.

In many small businesses there is rarely a need for a management structure, it is often the owner and two or three members of staff and this can be a very lonely role for the owner. They can often be reluctant to discuss business problems with staff as it can cause undue worry and concern, this is certainly the case with financial problems. 

If these scenarios resonate with you then why not contact us? At the very least we will meet up with you (for free) and talk with you about why you think we may be able to help and we will offer you our initial advice. It may be there is nothing to be gained for you in working with us, it may be that we have some great ideas that you want to try out. But we can be your friendly ear to listen to your thoughts and offer some suggestions and there is certainly nothing to be lost. We do have a few clients who pay us a small retainer to attend a monthly business review meeting. There is rarely a defined structure but more of an owner led review of the past months' successes and challenges and we work together for an hour or two to create plans and discuss opportunities for growth. We are not "nine-to-five" - we understand that the best time to meet is often not during the course of a business day and therefore meeting at weekends or evenings do not increase the cost. 

At SalesFriend we like to work with our clients over a long term plan and our lives are not centred around making money! If there is a long term opportunity for us but with little or no capital available now then that is never a reason for us to say no. It could be true that if you have cashflow pressures or are lacking sales then now is exactly the time to talk :)