The road to business growth is never without hurdles and the same key challenges face many business owners. Read on for Bill’s insight into the five biggest challenges to business growth and his strategies to mitigate them.    Challenge to Business Growth No 1: Lack of a Growth Plan  If you don’t have a plan…

For ambitious business owners, the dream of expansion, increased market share and sustained success is a goal they always have in their sights. In amongst strategic planning, goal setting and operational excellence, one of the linchpins of success is a strong and cohesive team.  As organisations drive forward, the importance of nurturing and fostering a…

Mastering the Art of Business Award Applications: A Guide to Gaining Recognition  Award season is high profile in the early part of the year. From the BAFTAs and Oscars, to technology, art and business awards, there’s no doubt that winning awards significantly raises a person’s or business’s profile. Enhancing credibility, winning awards opens new doors…

Thomas Edward Lawrence, or Lawrence of Arabia as he’s better known, said, “All people dream, but not equally.” Dreaming is essential to achieving what you want, but it is just the first step of many. There are four other steps to complete before you can succeed; this is known as the Formula for Life Success,…

Receiving a business award is, without doubt, an exciting time in a business’s lifecycle, but they offer more than just recognition for a job well done. The evaluation and application process can shape the future of your company, help set goals, increase visibility on the national and even international stage, as well as help attain…

Knowing how to build your business network can significantly improve your success. A supportive network of personal and professional relationships can ensure you reach your business goals, discover new opportunities and lead to new clients or customers. However, networking takes time and requires effort. You can’t build a strong business network overnight; you must carefully…

Did you know businesses with a business plan grow an average of 30% faster than those without?  However, many business owners get caught in a vicious cycle of working IN their business rather than ON it. Working IN your business, instead of ON your business, is problematic because it means you have little time to…

So, you’re considering business coaching? You’ve probably done some research and have come across several articles about business coaching and its effectiveness.    Some people will say how much business coaching has transformed their business, while others will say it didn’t work for them, but who do you believe?    Before you decide how effective business coaching…

Whatever business you run, whether you sell products or services, there is an abundance of business support and advice available to you. One of the many forms of support is business coaching. However, finding the right business coach for you and your business can be daunting due to the number of coaches to choose from…

With over 109,000 businesses and a gross value added (GVA) total of over £69 billion, Leeds is the largest contributor to UK GDP in the Northern Powerhouse and the largest regional economy outside of London. Unsurprisingly, Leeds is home to a huge variety of industries, including manufacturing, healthcare and innovation, financial, digital technologies, and creative…

Business coaching does work for business owners, and it has many benefits, but it’s not for everyone. For business coaching to be effective, you need to have an ambitious mindset, be open to someone else sharing their ideas about your business and be willing to implement positive changes. Finding the right business coach and type…

The answer is…the approach varies from coach to coach! Here at Bill Squires Business Coaching, we know that most people haven’t experienced business coaching, so to demonstrate the value, we start coaching you as part of our On Boarding Process (OBP) from your first meeting with Bill. After all, how do you know what it…

When you’re considering buying something, you want to know the approximate price of it before you do any further research. We know this applies when considering investing in business coaching – you want to know how much it costs and what drives the price up or down.  Firstly, it’s important to understand what you’re paying…

Many of the people we speak to, no matter their specific goals, usually want to create more time for themselves. Of course, creating more time is not possible. We all have 24 hours a day and seven days a week, but it’s all about how we use the time and managing it effectively.   You must…

As we move into a new year, it’s natural to think about what you want to achieve in the next 12 months. Consider what you want – ten more leads or the time to spend with your family, the house or the holiday you want? For most, personal goals i.e., the time, house or holiday…

To accurately assess your company’s performance, you must analyse the right data to provide an insight into the economic health of your business; it also allows you to identify how well your team are performing. If you implement a new strategy or launch a new product/service, analysing the data from before and after the change…

A perfect storm is occurring, causing rising pressures for business owners. The cost of raw materials, energy and fuel are increasing. Therefore, some customers feel nervous about spending as they’re uncertain how the current climate will impact the money in their pockets. Despite these challenges, your business can still THRIVE…  Six things to do to…

Introducing the Ladder of Success (and how it can help with the challenges you face)  The Ladder of Success is a fantastic tool for determined people such as yourself to identify where you are on your journey. You can use it to understand what stage you’re currently at and then identify what more you can…

Introducing the Magic Matrix  What is the Magic Matrix? (And why should I create one?)  The Magic Matrix is a table which allows you to reflect on the clients/customers you have and what services you deliver to each one. It is a fantastic way of spotting opportunities to cross-sell your services to your existing clients/customers.…

If you want to achieve something, you need to have a plan because a goal without a plan is just a wish – as Winston Churchill said, “He who fails to plan is planning to fail”.   A plan is a list of actions which need to be done in a particular order so that a…

A loyal client/customer is a person who comes back and buys again and again. There are varying degrees of loyalty (more about that later), but first, let’s look at why your business needs loyal clients/customers …  You need loyal clients/customers as it is five times more expensive to target new clients/customers than to retain your…

As a business owner, you will know that no two clients are the same. Your clients will differ because of their business model, operations, and behaviour. When focusing on improving your business, it’s important to recognise the different types of clients you have and categorise them to maximise your efficiency and time. We recommend splitting…

Have you ever wondered if how to deliver a proposal to win clients? When frequently delivering proposals to leads, you must find a method that works for you and your business. To help you discover a successful approach, we’re sharing our tried and tested way of delivering proposals to solicited leads.   Picture the scenario,…

Recently, Bill has had many conversations with business owners across a range of industries on LinkedIn regarding the current challenges that SMEs and their teams are facing. These conversations have been insightful, so we decided to share the most common causes of pressure to reassure you there are others out there in a similar position!   …

When running your own company, different tasks often pull you in many different directions, and it can often feel like your to-do list is never-ending. This pressure, coupled with the temptation to do extra hours of work here and there, can cause more harm than good… When we have long-term involvement in demanding situations, it…

In our previous blog, we shared how you can identify your most successful and cost-effective lead generation strategies; if you missed it, make sure to head back and read that blog before getting started with this one.  Once you’ve worked your way through the steps in that blog post, you’ll have a comprehensive list detailing…

As the year draws to a close, it’s the ideal opportunity to take time and reflect on your lead generation strategy so that you only take the best practices forward into the new year. As a business owner, you need to have an understanding of which channel is bringing in the most leads and which is giving you the greatest return on investment. Whilst investigating this, there’s the added incentive that you’ll be able…

The end of the year is just around the corner, and at Bill Squires Business Coaching, we encourage the people we work with to put time aside for regular reflection so you can achieve your business goals.   Reflection gives you the chance to pause amidst the chaos of running a business, untangle your thoughts and sort…

Reminiscing on Bill’s Big Bash The evening of Tuesday 14th September marked the first post-Covid face-to-face networking event for many as my clients and friends came together to attend Bill’s Big Bash. Bill and the team organised the event to celebrate the success of our clients (and let’s just say we certainly did that!) We…

It’s easy to understand why, as busy business owners, we often neglect to analyse how our business is performing. Unlike answering an email or making a sales call, there is no immediate benefit to doing it.  But that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t; knowing your business value is important. Conducting a thorough analysis of your business…

Despite the temptation to do everything yourself as a business owner, knowing how to focus and divide your time is key to running a successful business. But with so many areas of your business demanding your time, how exactly do you determine which tasks are best delegated and outsourced to reduce the overwhelming tide of…

Being a business owner comes with many challenges. You have to plan and strategize You have to market and promote You have to wrap your head around finances You have to train and manage staff All this alongside the day-to-day operations can feel overwhelming. Right? With a business coach, you can overcome these challenges and…