However huge the crisis – out of it comes the opportunity to change for the better

From crisis comes opportunity – the Chinese symbol for crisis contains symbols relating to both danger and opportunity – and I didn’t know that until creating this!

Motivational speaker, Jim Rohn, once famously said “You are the average of the five people you spend the most time with.” In that case, at a time of crisis, it’s probably a good move as a business owner to surround yourself with business experts who have experience in different areas and are positive influences.

Community

One of the real positives of the last couple of months has been the increased sense of community, both in business and in our personal lives. I’m proud to say that the #StrongerTogether community has provided, through Webinars and group interaction, the opportunity for over 400 business owners to spend virtual time with each other, to help each other navigate their way through the past few months. And it’s going from strength to strength as more business owners become aware of it and realise that collaboration and supporting each other will help everyone through this and the next chapter, and whatever challenges that brings with it.

Thankfully most businesses have, so far, survived. However, as we see lockdown restrictions starting to lift, there are still many complications being experienced. This crisis does not have clear stages, it is not black and white: some are still shielding, while others are back in the office. How do we know whether it’s the right time to pick up the phone and talk about resuming operations? Has the ‘new normal’ already started?

Out of small acorns

My original idea was to bring together a cross-section of trusted subject matter experts who would offer help and advice in many different fields, from finance, HR, IT, sales, digital marketing and process management to mental health, wellbeing and immunity, to help business owners give their businesses the best chance to survive. The Webinar (watch it on YouTube) and subsequent special focus sessions have helped more business owners than I could possibly have hoped for.

Now is the time to move from survival to revival so I was delighted to welcome back the unique team of experts in the Stronger Together Panel on Friday 12th June for another webinar packed with advice and guidance for business owners.

Below is the incredible group of business owners and an insight into their area of expertise. Together we showed you how both you and your business can be strong, healthy and ready to face whatever the rest of 2020 has in store:

Myself, Julia Blake on processes, systems and CRMs
George Swift, mindset;
Olly Church, mental health;
Jo Medhurst, wellbeing;
Tory Wagg, accounting;
Nicki Kinton MCICM (Grad), cashflow;
Andy Steer, technology;
Amanda Downs, sales;
Sarah Sangster , digital marketing;
Carolyne Wahlen, HR;
Max Dickins, using storytelling in your business

Transitioning from Survival to Revival

We discussed how we transition from ‘survival to revival’. It simply isn’t sustainable to continue in survival mode, to keep things on hold or to tread water in our businesses. We need to move forward.

Lockdown is lifting but the confusion over how to sustain a business during such times is as real as ever. We spoke to a small sample of business owners and the biggest issue for 70% of them is lead generation. Half also said they were still struggling with boundaries, routine and motivation because of home working and home schooling.

At a time where the future of the British economy is uncertain, and where our entrepreneurial spirit will form a huge part of the country’s recovery, the panel will share 3 top tips each plus their biggest takeaway from lockdown, to help us all.

Please watch the on demand Webinar and share with other business owners – you’ll come away with a clear view of how both you and your business can be strong, healthy and ready to face whatever the rest of 2020 has in store. Here’s the link.

Stronger Together on LinkedIn

The Stronger Together LinkedIn Group is going well with over 220 Business Owners who are serious about their businesses surviving and helping others to as well. Please join if you haven’t – there’s a wealth of knowledge, experience and wisdom to draw from and to add to, again we would be grateful if you shared this with anyone you think may be interested.

Help is here, please don’t struggle

Please reach out if you want to discuss how to take your business forward, we want to help as many business revive as possible, and if I can’t help then I will know someone in this fab business ecosystem who will be able to.

Take care, be productive and stay safe

Julia

How I can support you

My goal is to help you, as a business owner, to survive, revive and thrive by getting the most value out of your three most valuable assets:

Your contacts/data
Your processes and systems
Yourself

When you make the most of your contacts/data you are in the best place possible to increase your revenue. When you have efficient, repeatable processes in your business, you reduce the cost of sales. Both of these give the business owner more head space to focus on growing their business.

The overall result is an increase in net profit.

I’m always happy to have a chat – you can contact me at julia.blake@blakeconsultants.co.uk and sign up to receive my Growth Hacks Bulletin too 🙂

I have been working with CapsuleCRM for over 9 years and helped many clients increase revenue, reduce costs, make the most of their contacts, manage their pipeline and deliver great customer service.

I do this by designing and installing Capsule to meet the client’s needs, offering a bespoke CRM to suit their business requirements. Capsule really is a great solution for coaches, consultants and business owners and when it is integrated with Mailchimp and Xero you have really solid foundations in place to grow your business.

To find out more or arrange a time to discuss how I can help you, please contact me.

I look forward to getting to know you and sharing in your business journey.

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