Business Essentials

How effective really is your website? If you haven't thought about it that much, then you're not taking advantage of one of your best sales tools. Irwin Hau is the Director of web design agency, Chromatix, he also understands that a great website is more than just design alone. He matches the psychology of consumer behaviour with the magic of web tools to create a first-rate customer experience &n...

If you ask questions and listen to the answers, you will learn what your customers want. Selling becomes easier and you don’t have to talk so much, says sales expert Colin Pearce. Colin has been training salespeople for many years and has a bag full of tips on how to sell more, easier and faster. Talking too much is a bane for many salespeople, and it's their "overselling" which often puts p...

Who of us in business doesn't want more time in our day? One way to get it back is by shortening the time spent in meetings. Is that possible? It is if you follow some of the tips in Donna McGeorge's book, 'The 25 minute meeting: half the time, double the impact'. She says we can't do without meetings, but we can do without the time-wasting aspects that infect a lot of them. Business Essentials Da...

When Amantha Imber, Organisational Psychologist & CEO of Inventium, eliminated management, she found that her workforce was happier and productivity increased. The idea sprung from research she did on "holocracy", a flat, self-management system where decision-making is vested in each person. They haven't looked back since the system was implemented three years ago. Business Essentials Daily is...

Yes, it's true we can all learn from our own mistakes – but sometimes it's better to learn from others' mistakes. Alan Rodway has a list of common mistakes he sees in business. Alan takes us through poor choices that abound in decision-making and planning. A common thread in these mistakes is using a traditional and default way of thinking by avoiding new ideas, not engaging with different p...

In just seven years, Four Pillars Gin has grown from zero to becoming one of the world's most recognised gin distilleries. Stuart Gregor and his partners have built a world-class gin label from their base in Healesville, just outside Melbourne. Their gin varieties have won countless international awards and the admiration of a suite of potential buyers. In 2019 they sold 50% to multinational bever...

While the economy continues to take a pummelling and businesses struggle to forge ahead, is there any room for optimism at the moment? Former politician and barrister Victor Perton certainly believes so – in fact, he says it's undeniable that an optimistic attitude can lead to opportunity and, therefore, business growth. As Director of The Centre for Optimism, Victor shares his tips on how t...

Resourcefulness has been called upon in ways we couldn’t have expected, during the COVID-19 pandemic, and it should have a direct impact on your hiring process. Shira Levine, Customer Engagement Strategist at Fanchismo, says it’s the trait she most hangs her hires on and explains how to spot it. Business Essentials Daily is produced by: SoundCartel soundcartel.com.au +61 3 9882 8333 Se...

Failure isn't something we should avoid at all costs – on the contrary, failure is a powerful force on the journey to success. Entrepreneur and key-note speaker, Gabe Zichermann, says if you don't feel the fear of failure, then you're not pushing yourself hard enough. In other words, fear often indicates you're on the right track. Business Essentials Daily is produced by: SoundCartel soundca...

Avant Group is a specialist consulting firm that provides services to organisations to help them apply for and then maintain compliance of government grants and funding. They’ve delivered over $150M worth of funding to Australian businesses since 2012.  Kate Whitehead, MD of Avant Group and a government grants funding expert, explains why businesses shouldn’t be gun shy of grants...

One of the biggest differences between professional football and business is football's focus on talent and teaching. As an AFL CEO for close to 25 years, Cameron Schwab saw first-hand how elite sport focuses almost entirely on the players and how they work together. Cameron, founder and CEO of designCEO, reckons that a lot of business leaders don't go deep enough to improve the performance of the...

Your staff look up to you for direction, encouragement and inspiration. Your leadership qualities will directly affect the way they work. So, how do you become a better leader? Corporate psychologist Rhonda Andrews examines the three characteristics which shape true leadership: emotional intelligence, social intelligence and technical competence. No industry has a monopoly on true leadership &ndas...

Less than four weeks to go! And it’s tax planning with a difference in the lead-up to this very unusual end of the financial year. Government subsidies, working from home arrangements – what can be claimed as you get your tax affairs in order before June 30? To ease the burden, Michael Jones, tax specialist and partner with national accounting firm Mazars has put together his top ten t...

If you've never seriously considered "mums" as a potential market before, think again. You might be surprised by the spending power of this enormously influential group. Katrina McCarter says most businesses would benefit from having a strategy to target this powerful group of spenders. For example, women are starting businesses at much higher rates than men and are purchasing services and product...

Stand-downs, shedding jobs, reducing staff pay – there are so many hard decisions for employers hoping to see the other side of COVID-19. And navigating the employment rules ain’t easy. So, what’s key to keeping you clear of the Fair Work Commission? Business Essentials Daily is produced by: SoundCartel soundcartel.com.au +61 3 9882 8333 See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy in...

Despite the upheaval from COVID-19, can businesses find opportunities in the current crisis? Indeed they can, insists sales guru, Sue Barrett, who has specific ideas sales people can implement right now in their businesses. She also has tips on how to keep you sales team engaged and productive while they're working remotely. Business Essentials Daily is produced by: SoundCartel soundcartel.com.au...

How would you like to be on the front page of the paper without having to pay for it? It starts with having something to say. Nicole Ashby's heart was racing and her palms were sweaty when she first spoke on radio about the impact of a fly-in fly-out workstyle on the families left behind. That was the first of many hundreds of media interviews she performed as Founder and Director of FIFO Families...

It wasn’t all that long ago that you could rely on what worked in the past to take you into the future. But, with the rate of change in technology, you can't necessarily rely on your past strengths. That's according to business futurist Gihan Perera, who says the biggest change to your business will potentially come from outside your industry and from businesses that might not even exist tod...

Apple worked hard to keep things simple - we see it everyday in its products and its success. From the man who named the iMac and who was integral to Apple’s ‘Think Different’ marketing campaign, Creative Director Ken Segall spent 12 years working with Steve Jobs and experienced first-hand his obsession with keeping things simple. Ken wrote about it all in his book ‘Insanel...

Through no fault of their own, some businesses are struggling to fulfil contractual obligations as a result of COVID-19. Can businesses be still expected to uphold contracts written before the crisis? Lawyer Grant Guenther outlines some options, including force majeure and doctrine of frustration . Also Grant explains what businesses should be mindful of when drafting new contracts. Business Essen...

Becoming an authority in your field of expertise and making a heap of money in the process – now that’s not so easy. Why not shortcut the process and learn the lessons of a master at the game? Tom Matzen has spent years perfecting the art of guaranteed scalable success and he loves sharing his lessons with other aspiring entrepreneurs. Reference Entrepreneur Empowerment Institute Schol...

Former AFL footballer Wayne Schwass has spent decades dealing with depression and anxiety and so he knows first-hand the debilitating effects it can have on one's personal and professional life. Today, Wayne's a mental health advocate through his organisation, PukaUp, helping to spread the word and provide support about mental health issues in the workplace. He tells his own story and what can be...

Engaging with your audience is imperative at the best of times, but during the worst of times, what’s the best way to continue to do that? Here are 6 ways that businesses can engage their customers during the coronavirus, that can be done right now and at low cost. Reference Shira Levine - 'Six Reasons to Engage Your Customers During the Coronavirus' https://bit.ly/2TeH9nq Business Essential...

Despite the gargantuan efforts of government and businesses alike, COVID-19 will inevitably cause some businesses to fall over. What can you do as a business owner to avoid that happening to you? Insolvency expert Andrew Spring has some wise and sanguine advice, and he starts by suggesting you have a very honest conversation with yourself about how the crisis is affecting you. Then start planning!...

One of the massive challenges presented by COVID-19 was the surge of workers fleeing the office environment to start working from home. How have we done? Well, we can give ourselves a big pat on the back, says technology commentator Trevor Long. But we’ve also learned a lot of lessons and the world of work will never be the same again. Business Essentials Daily is produced by: SoundCartel so...