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Case Studies |
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Customer: Stevens Cleaning Services Owner managed by Mark and Freda Stevens and set up four years ago. They offer both domestic and commercial cleaning services, carpet cleaning and oven cleaning. Key plans for the business include growing turnover fourfold in the next five years. After 3 months: The business has grown steadily during its four year existence and employs 20 people. They service a road base of domestic and commercial customers and are currently seeking to employ 2-3 more people. Mark and Freda are determined to expand their range and are undertaking a big marketing campaign with a 14,000 leaflet drop. By being encouraged to be more proactive in developing ongoing customer relationships, Mark has realised the power of customer lifetime value and the benefit of added value offers to attract new customers. Customer: Autoscribe Ltd A well established and respected software development company specialising in laboratory information management systems. They have been operating since 1981. Key development plans include growing turnover by 20% or more over the next year by increasing marketing efforts on other Autoscribe products designed for customer services management and training as well as extending the current laboratory business. After 1 month: The Managing Director wanted to develop the support service side further in the USA and Europe as well as the UK. Whilst he is out on the road, face to face with customers, he needs to ensure that all is well at home and manage a cash flow that is a combination of a long sales cycle and invoices that need to be settled. After 4 months: By the end of July, Autoscribe's sales are up 84.5% compared with 2004, mostly due to sales in the UK and US; and revenue for support services were up 15.8% on 2004. Due to the long sales cycle, Autoscribe's core market offering operates at the extreme end of the high priced/low frequency purchasing spectrum. For this reason, Brian is encouraging Autoscribe to promote more vigorously some of their other management information tools to the existing customer base. New enquiries have increased substantially this year, mostly due to the major overhaul of their website. Customer: Life Sparks Ltd Run by Kirstin Thyer and Gwendoline Tregunno, Life Sparks offers a range of coaching services that cover personal well-being, work/life balance, nutrition and specific coaching to help individuals achieve success. Key plans for development include expanding the client base. Demands on cash flow are one of the key challenges that the business faces during this phase. After 1 month: Kirstin and Gwendoline are already benefiting by learning to focus clearly on their service offering. This has had such a positive impact that they are able to move forward and work in their areas of true passion and belief-a key success factor in any entrepreneurial business. After 3 months: The Brian James Group was keen to involve Kirstin's expertise as a success coach in its Live Event Programme this year. This is part of a twelve month business development programme that started with a three-day residential course. The event was a great success and, as a result, Kirstin is involved in some of the private follow-up work. She is also busy promoting well-being events, part of Life Sparks' holistic approach to life and business success. After 4 months: After conducting its own research, Life Sparks has discovered key reasons for small to medium-sized business failure and have developed a seven-step coaching model to diagnose and assess options with practical steps needed to achieve a positive outcome. Customer: Bracknell Engraving and Trophy Services A well established business run by father and son team, Mike and Graham Codd, specialising in supplying trophies and awards to sports clubs, associations and the corporate market; engraving metals, laminates, crystal and jade glass and a grange of promotional items. Plans include growing turnover threefold in the next three years by expanding the customer base through the website and by developing relationships with large corporate businesses in the Reading, Wokingham and Bracknell areas. After 1 month: Focusing on a range of marketing strategies that will add new dimensions to their business, BETS have installed a new contact management system, undergoing a data cleansing service to refresh the information already stored. A well-maintained database is a prized and valuable asset to any business. BETS is creating new alliances, maintaining regular contact with existing customers, developing their range of offerings and establishing an effective web presence. After 3 months: BETS have developed a new and unique range of products to appeal to a different clientele. BETS is growing its customer base selectively and offers a referral programme to its best customers. Brian is also working with BETS on developing and issuing a newsletter and the BETS website is having a major overhaul. It will be transformed from an information area to a fully interactive e-commerce site. After 6 months: BETS' website is live and attracting sales <www.trophiesandengraving.co.uk> Customer: Abracadabra Cleaning Services James Holt is owner of Abracadabra Cleaning Services , based in Reading , Berkshire. James established the business four years ago, providing domestic and commercial carpet and upholstery cleaning services. Since that time the business has grown substantially and James now employs several people. The business has doubled in turnover over the last year or so, as we have been working with James providing ongoing business advice, coaching and mentoring. Quality and efficiency of service is of great importance to James and has been a key to his success. About 18 months ago James upgraded the primary method of cleaning to using a van mounted system. This means that clients receive a much improved cleaning result as well as quicker drying times and less disruption. This has enabled the work to be completed almost twice as quickly as before. James has recently invested in a second van containing a van mounted system. The system is so powerful that two operators can run off it at the same time without compromising the cleaning result. This is particularly beneficial for commercial clients where very large office spaces are required to be cleaned. James explains “Using both vans we can now have three operators cleaning different areas at the same time which means that even very large office spaces can be cleaned much quicker and therefore with much less disruption to our clients”. James is very committed to leading the way in terms of the technical knowledge and capability of his staff. All employees have attended intensive IICRC training schools. This is an important differentiator with competitors. IICRC standards are so high Abracadabra are currently one of a handful of companies to hold certified firm status in the south of England . As the customer base grows, more work is coming from repeat business and referrals from existing clients. James also advertises in Yellow Pages and Yell.com to attract new clients. James plans to continue to grow turnover and profits to support his growth plans whilst delivering excellence in customer satisfaction and an unrivalled position in the Berkshire area. Contact James Holt of Abracadabra Cleaning services on 0800 5872413 or visit their website: www.cleanmyhome.co.uk |
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