20 rules in running a small business

Small business have become much more easy to handle than before due to the high level of digitalization and improvement in the human knowledge and understanding.

With digitalization task have become much easier to handle as well as solve to the delight of the business owner.

With the mass advantage of the modern era, business owners till have challenges of bring their business to the level of success that they want. This happens as a result of the way they handle/run the business.

Here are 20 rules in running a small business:

1. Avoid selling on credit: Selling on credit makes you lose products especially when credit sales are not kept on record, when this happens you will not be able to account for how much money is owed and how much profit you are making. When you sell on credit, it encourages the customers to keep on buying on credit. The best solution is to put a no credit sales sign e.g. NO CREDIT TODAY COME TOMORROW. 
2. Ensure that you keep your environment clean at all times. Clean environment attracts more people to your business because they believe that what you have is authentic and original. 
3. Ensure that you keep to time. Time could be in opening and closing of work hour, service delivery and being fast. This let the customers trust you more, and know that you are reliable. 
4. Ensure that people working for/with you are in good terms. Good terms being that there is no dispute between them and there is effective communication. 
5. Rather than say: 'It is not available', say: 'It has unfinished'. This would give customers the impression that you had the product but it has been sold out, even when you never had the product. NB: Ensure that the product is available next time time the customers ask. 
6. Clear the customers on any doubt they might have concerning a product, even if it is a product that they use often. 
7. Ensure you have knowledge on products you sell and services you render. 
8. Listen attentively to every of the customers (even the little ones) of what they want and what trouble or thought they have about the product. Make sure you get everything they said right and take it into account. 
9. Ensure that you have a friendly relationship with your neighbors and other business owners around you. You can achieve this by greeting each other, gisting or rather talking about issues that would be of interest to both of you. 
10. Ensure that you keep record of every product purchased, make calculations of how it is to be sold per unit, what expenses were made and finally the expected profit. 
11. In the case of you have other small businesses, don't mix up the account of both business. Keep separate account of each business you own. 
12. Ensure that you put on a smiling face when dealing with customers. 
13. Don't ever insult a customer, not even the most annoying ones. 
14. Be straight forward in every of your business deals; avoid beating about the bush. This would make you seem unsure, insecure and not confident. 
15. Deal with every problem like a challenge. Be resourceful 
16. Know your environment 
17. Ensure that the most regularly asked products are always available for the customers 
18. Give out bonuses to the customers when the need and resources are available 
19. In case of a product being unavailable and there is a similar product that offers the same service; Rather than let the customers go empty handed, convince them into buying the other related product. 
20. Ensure you have good attitude, behavior and character. This would aid a long way to the success of the business.