Real Life Real Faith May Issue | Page 5

Being Creative As a business owner, which depends on others to support my business, my mind is always trying to think of new ways to be creative. Creativity in any business is a must. As business continues to grow, creativity is an increasingly essential part of organizational success. Encouraging creativity is a vital function of good leadership in any organization. When the way we do business doesn’t bring us the customers we want, we have to think of other ways to reach them. My business caters to authors, authors who want to market their books. But even when authors know they need to market and promote their books, money is always an issue. So what do I do? How can I still increase my sales without giving my services away for free? Over the course of time, I’ve have to offer specials as an incentive to attract customers. Specials are good when you want to reach new clients and draw old ones back in. The great thing about specials is that there is an expiration date! Paulette Harper is the business contributor for Real Life Real Faith Magazine When an idea comes to mind and I see it won’t cost me too much to implement, I usually run with it. A special not only reaches old clients but it gives the opportunity for new clients to try your product or services. It’s a win−win for everyone. The client gets the product at a lower price and tries out your services and the owner makes some money. Now it might not be the amount you desire but at least a little something coming in is better than nothing. How creative are you? What have you tried that has been successful? Here are a few things to consider: 1. I researched other business that was doing the exact same thing as I was. Check out other business and see how others are operating. You might get some new ideas that you might want to implement. 2. Seek out people and build relationships. Build a network of thinkers by reaching out to people with varied backgrounds, education and professional experience and whose ideas you admire. The light just might come on when talking to others who have worked their business for a good amount of time. 3. Move out of your comfort zone and try something new. Expose yourself to others and their way of doing business. Be around other people who are movers and shakers. visit pauletteharper.com