10 Reasons Why You Should Automate As Much As Possible In Your Business

One of the biggest problems with businesses today is that many of them fly by the seat of their pants, with no discernible organization or direction.?

This creates a great deal of havoc, uncertainty and wasted time. Fortunately, there's an easy way to overcome these issues, and that’s the subject of this report.?

What we’re going to look at are several steps that you can take to make your business run more efficiently.?

Step 1: If you bought a business, look for any manuals that will show you what to do. If these exist, they will make your life much easier.?

If not, interview the former owner(s) and staff to learn everything possible about the business and how it functions. Document everything. This will serve you well over the course of time.

Why document everything??

To save you from wasting valuable time. Consider this: If you don’t write everything down, your staff will have to come to you every time they want to do a task that they haven’t been taught (or have forgotten).?

This splits your focus, drains your energy and robs you of efficiency. By writing everything down, it’s easier for you and your business to function.?

Step 2: Think about how you want to present the information. Do you want to create checklists, manuals, videos or a combination of these? This is important to think about before you begin.

Step 3: Create a logical flow of events, where each step moves seamlessly into another.?

If you jump around in your presentation, you'll confuse your audience and you could lose them completely. A great way to keep things on track is to use a list method, like this report.?

Another method is to use a storyboard. This is a technique used in the animation industry, where you sketch out the process with images and text on paper. If problems are found, they can be easily corrected.?

And once you're done, all you have to do is transfer the storyboard into a checklist, manual or video.??

Step 4: Write as if you're speaking to a ten year-old. That will make it easier for people to understand. And one more point: Avoid jargon unless it's absolutely necessary.

Step 5: Don't assume that the reader knows the subject. Make sure that you reveal every single step, regardless of how trivial it might seem to you. If you miss an important step, your entire training process could fail.

Step 6: Use plenty of illustrations, photos or screen shots to tell the story. Don't make the assumption that text is enough. It’s not.

Step 7: If your business is really complex, consider using video. Video is one of the best teaching tools, because the viewer can play it over and over again, until they "get it." And once they do, they own it.?

If your business runs from multiple locations, you might want to host your videos with YouTube, Tube Mogul, Vimeo or another free video site.?

For high quality, you might want to check out the Amazon S3 service. Another option is to create DVD’s of your videos for each location.?

Step 8: TEST EVERYTHING! Don't assume that you got it right the first time.?

By testing, you'll find out if the process works, or whether you missed a step or two. This is crucial to your long-term success.?

Step 9: Make sure that all staff members learn all aspects of your business. In case of illness, staff members can fill in for each other, if necessary.?

Step 10: Make backup copies of everything and store those copies both on and off site.?

In Conclusion

When you implement these steps the payoff will be a business that runs like a well-oiled machine.?

And a bigger payoff will come if you decide to sell the business one day.?

With everything written down, you've created a turnkey business, one that will have greater perceived value in the eyes of a potential buyer and you'll be able to ask for a higher price.