Let’s Talk Business

1

Let’s Talk Business Back To Basics Business Solutions - Support for Small Business

Volume 2 Issue 18 - May2014

Inside this issue

Cover Story - The Federal Budget …............…..........2

The Eight Values of an

Employer of Choice

Dr Tim Baker ……...........…3

Biz Snippets …………….......4

Considering Exporting?

Dennis Chiron .......... ...........5

The Importance of

Maintaining Composure

Geoff Butler ………………..6

Investing in Rental Properties

Jo-Anne Chaplin ………......7

“…. The Smartest Person in

Your Business ....”

Dan Buzer ………………….8

Facebook Strategy

Karen Ahl ……..…………...9

Objections are the Lifeblood

of Sales

Peter Nicol ………………..10

Use of Machinery

Ron Court …..…….….…...11

Key Risks You Must Consider

Before Moving to the Cloud –

Part 1

Karen Davey-Thorpe …....12

EOFY Financial Tips 2013 -

14

Paul Gillmore ….................13

Creative Leadership ……....14

LTB Objectives …..........…15

How Much Has The Federal Budget Impacted on Small Business?

Let’s Talk Business

2

The Federal Budget and Small Business

What’s in the Budget for small

business? It seems that there’s not

much at all, And the onus is on

business owners to take advantage

now of incentives set to disappear at

the end of the tax year, or so the

Sydney Morning Herald seems to

suggest.

However, this budget isn't as bad as

Labor appears to be claiming and the

Liberal heartland will privately think.

It's undoubtedly the toughest budget

since John Howard's post-election

budget in 1996, but it's hardly

austerity economics, says Ross

Gittens, the Sydney Morning

Herald’s Economic Editor.

But, this budget is Abbott's admission

that his claim to be able to balance

the budget without increasing taxes

was no more than wishful thinking.

The Liberal heartland, however,

schooled for years to give its

selfishness free rein, is having trouble

facing this reality.

An unprecedented $80 billion cut to

health and education spending over

the next decade leads a list of tough

savings measures affecting age

pensioners, seniors concession card

holders, family payments and people

on the disability support pension in

the Abbott government's first

budget…. States Mark Kenny, Chief

Political Correspondent with

Business Day.

Larissa Ham of The Age points out

that the Federal Budget has some

winners and losers. But a budget

deficit of $19.4 billion was always

going to mean that there would be

little or no good news for small business

owners, despite Treasurer Wayne

Swan’s emphasis on job creation.

In truth, small business will be left

wanting from the lack of any significant

measures designed to make doing

business easier, reduce costs, improve

education, skills and training, or support

business and consumer confidence.

Almost everything had been

regurgitated as part of the government’s

plans to “support business to innovate,”

as most measures had already been

announced, including the $500 million

investment in Industry Innovation

Precincts and the $1 billion “Plan for

Australian Jobs”

These measures were put forward as

“part of our plan to support and create

jobs, building on our loss carry-back

and instant asset write-off reforms for 3

million small businesses” not yet

legislated from last year’s budget.

Peter Strong, executive director of

peak body The Council of Small

Business Australia says while no one

likes to pay more, many of the proposed

changes are “not unreasonable” given

the austere nature of the budget.

“I don’t view it negatively at all. What

does annoy me is the negative talk from

the government – there’s no need to talk

things down,” says Strong.

Those in the business of freight (for

example) such as transport companies –

have already copped a blow with the

announcement of a rise in the fuel

excise rate, which has been locked at

38.1 cents a litre since 2001.

The Federal government is expected to

increase the fuel excise in line with

inflation twice a year, which will fund

$80 billion of new roads. Treasury Joe

Hockey says the massive

infrastructure exercise will in turn

create tens of thousands of new jobs.

But the jump at the petrol pump will

also hurt many businesses – either

directly or as a flow-on effect to

customers, says Pitcher Partners’

partner Theo Sakell.

During the election campaign, the

Coalition announced that the company

tax rate will drop from 30 per cent to

28.5 per cent from July 1 next

year. However, a 1.5 per cent levy will

be applied to taxable income

exceeding $5 million.

Sakell says the reduction means small

enterprises will have more money to

reinvest in their own business growth.

Small businesses should also be aware

of a number of tax deductions that will

disappear or reduce at the end of this

financial year.

The NAB’s View is:

Overall, the Budget is moderately

positive for SMEs. The creation of a

Single Ombudsman should ensure

easier Government access for SMEs,

reducing red tape. Further, reductions

in the company tax rate should lead to

higher profitability for some SMEs, as

they will largely be spared from the

Paid Parental Leave levy, which will

impact larger businesses.

Let’s Talk Business

3

Every organization these days - big or

small - wants to become an employer of

choice. Many claim they are and in

reality few can be considered as such.

In today’s skills' short marketplace,

many employers are adopting an

employer of choice strategy, offering a

variety of employee benefits in an

attempt to attract and retain quality staff.

A lot of these companies are doing this

in a superficial way. It is often more

about image than substance. The

majority of today’s employees are not

influenced by employers’ shallow claims

of being an employer of choice. It is not

as simple as offering prospective

employees trinkets.

In plain terms, employer of choice

means a business that is a great place to

work. If companies don’t genuinely act

to become an employer of choice then

good employees will simply vote with

their feet and move to a forward thinking

employer who offers them what they

want. Being an employer of choice is

more than marketing gimmickry.

The essence of becoming an employer of

choice is the quality of the employment

relationship, or psychological contract.

The traditional employment relationship

which has arguably been hugely

successful for over 200 years since the

Industrial Revolution is a hindrance in

climate of complexity, accelerated

change and uncertainty.

Employers of choice such as Google and

SAS have created a culture that is based

on a new employment relationship. It is

more collaborative and open than the old

'them and us' relationship we have all

witnessed and probably been - or are -

part of. This new employment

relationship is based on the changing

needs and interests of employees and

organisations.

My research has defined eight values

of this new relationship between

management and labour. The table

below summarises this relationship:

The New employment relationship

model

On the left-hand column are the eight

values. The middle column represents

the appropriate mindsets for

progressive employees and the right-

hand column represents the mindsets

of the business owner who is an

employers of choice.

The new employment relationship is

still based on a psychological contract.

But the mindsets are diametrically

opposite to the old them and us

relationship.

Business owners and managers

would do well to embed this new

thinking in their companies. Most

businesses are in flux between the

old and new employment

relationship.

Dr Tim Baker is the author of a new

book - Attracting and Retaining

Talent: Becoming and Employer of

Choice which will shortly be

published through Palgrave

Macmillan

(www.winnersatwork.com.au).

Dr Tim Baker

Managing Director

WINNERS AT WORK Pty Ltd

www.winnersatwork.com.au

www.about.me/tim.baker

tim@winnersatwork.com.au

Telephone. +61 7 3899 8881

The Eight Values of an

Employer of Choice

Let’s Talk Business

4

THE NEW FIRM

A young businessman

had just started his own

firm. He rented a

beautiful office and had it furnished

with antiques. Sitting there, he saw a

man come into the outer office.

Wishing to appear the hot shot, the

businessman picked up the phone

and started to pretend he had a big

deal working.

He threw huge figures around and

made giant commitments. Finally he

hung up and asked the visitor, “Can I

help you?”

The man said, “Yeah, I’ve come to

activate your phone lines.”

NEW SECRETARY

The boss was very

exasperated with his

new secretary. She

ignored the telephone

when it rang.

"You must answer that telephone,"

he told her irritably. "Okay," she

replied, "but it all seems so silly.

Nine times out of ten, it's for you!"

THE NEW BOSS

A company, feeling

it was time for a

shake-up, hires a

new CEO. This new boss is

determined to rid the company of all

slackers. On a tour of the facilities,

the CEO notices a guy leaning on a

wall. The room is full of workers and

he thinks this is his chance to show

everyone he means business!

The CEO walks up the guy and asks,

"And how much money do you make

a week?"

Undaunted, the young fellow looks at

him and replies, "I make $600 a

week. Why?" The CEO then hands

the guy $600 in cash and screams,

"Here's a week's pay, now GET OUT

and don't come back!"

Feeling pretty good about his first

firing, the CEO looks around the

room and asks, "Does anyone want to

tell me what that slacker did here?"

With a sheepish grin, one of the other

workers mutters, "He's the pizza

delivery guy."

Murphy's Law: If something can go

wrong, it likely will.

O'Toole's Rule: Murphy was an

optimist.

Advertising is the art of convincing

people to spend money they don't

have for something they don't need.

If advertisers spent the same amount

of money on improving their

products as they do on advertising

then they wouldn't have to advertise

them.

You've got to go out on a limb

sometimes because that's where the

fruit is.

When a politician is in opposition he

is an expert on the means to some

end; and when he is in office he is an

expert on the obstacles to it.

(1918) Will Chesterton

Seen at a Car Dealership: The best

way to get back on your feet: miss a

car payment.

On a Fence: Salesmen Welcome! Dog

Food Is Expensive!

On an Electrician's van: Let Us

Remove Your Shorts

In a Podiatrist's office: Time Wounds

All Heels.

-----------------------------------------

NOT YET

READY FOR

BUSINESS AT A

NEW STORE

Two businessmen were sitting down

for a break in their soon-to-be new

store. As yet, the store wasn't ready,

with no inventoried stock and only a

few shelves set up.

One said to the other, “I bet any minute

now some idiot tourist is going to walk

by, put his face to the window, and ask

what we’re selling.”

No sooner were the words out of his

mouth when, sure enough, a curious

tourist walked to the window, had a

peek, and in a thick accent asked

“What you sell?”

One of the men replied sarcastically,

“We're selling ass-holes.”

Without skipping a beat, the tourist

said, “You doing very well… only two

left!”

HUMEROUS SIGNS

QUOTES & QUIPS

Let’s Talk Business

5

Considering Exporting? Pricing Your Product for Export

Dennis Chiron Marketing Means Business

0451 184 599 www.marketingmeansbusiness.com

dennis@marketingmeansbusiness.net.au Skype: dennis.chiron2

PRICING - How do you price your

product for export?

One way to find more customers is to

expand your geographic market you

are targeting. Have you considered

selling overseas? It can be an

excellent way to dramatically

increase sales.

Firstly, you know how to price your

product for the local market. Is it

priced to what the market will bear?

Is it calculated on a ‘cost plus’ basis?

Is it the cheapest, or is it the most

expensive? Does it provide good

value for money?

Whatever your pricing strategy, I’ll

bet that price is not your only

marketing advantage. Other features

of your product rank equally with, or

more prominently, than price!

Yet, local manufacturers seem to

have a real hang-up about price when

it comes to export markets.

Obviously, price is a significant

feature. However, for most

manufactured goods, price is not as

important as service, market support,

customer support, or value for

money.

Consider your own purchasing

decisions. How many purchases do

you make on price alone? Would you

import a product simply because it is

cheap?

If you did, would you expect it to be

high in quality? Probably not … Yet,

time and time again, we think that

overseas buyers will only purchase

our products if we supply them at

bargain basement prices.

That is a very common yet very serious

mistake.

I know that the low price mentality

permeates many sectors of our business

community, and even those branches of

government who attempt to assist

exporters.

It probably stems from the days when

bulk commodities were just about he

only goods we exported and the sole

competitive advantage they could have

was price.

BUT, in today’s sophisticated market

where Aussie manufacturers are trying

to sell high quality, world class products,

we need to draw the emphasis away

from price. We need to promote and

focus on other features of our products

and the advantages and benefits these

will have for our customers.

Looking rationally at the overall

Australian export scene, it is just about

impossible for us to compete on price.

Our cost structures are generally higher -

and sometimes much higher - than many

of our international competitors.

Wages; infrastructure; components;

general operating costs, are all

generally higher than our

international competitors. Not to

mention the fact that our geographic

isolation dictates higher

transportation / delivery costs.

Additionally, that fact that even our

largest factories are small by global

standards comparison, means we

cannot produce sufficient volumes of

products to satisfy demand for

cheaper goods.

So, why do we keep trying to sell

on price?

Now, please don’t misunderstand

my intended message …. I’m not

trying to paint a picture of doom and

gloom.

Australian products are very

competitive on world markets in

terms of innovation and quality.

Admittedly, we do, sometimes, have

a few “glitches” in terms of

consistency in quality and reliability

of supply, and perhaps these are the

real reasons why foreign importers

try to squeeze our prices. … and

maybe these are the areas on which

we need to focus our attention.

Let’s face it. In terms of

manufacturing goods, Australia is a

supplier to niche markets. So, low

quantity, high quality and high

prices are really ‘the order of the

day’.

It is possible, and it is - absolutely -

the most sensible strategy for us to

pursue.

www.efic.gov.au

Let’s Talk Business

6

With increased marketplace

demands and intensifying

competitive factors that surround

us, leaders must have greater

poise, agility and patience to

minimize the impact of

uncertainty. How leaders respond

to these and other growing

pressures is an indicator of their

leadership skills.

Composure is reflected in their

attitude, body language and

overall presence. In today’s ever

changing business environment, it

is clear that leadership is not only

about elevating the performance,

aptitude and development of

people – but more so about the

ability to make people feel safe

and secure.

Move up http://i.forbesimg.com t

Move down

Many times crisis results when

composure is missing.

During times of uncertainty and

adversity, crisis and change – you

must avoid showing any signs of

leadership immaturity or lack of

preparedness that will make your

team feel unsafe and insecure.

Here are seven ways to maintain

leadership composure during the

most pressure-packed moments:

1. Don’t Allow Your Emotions

to Get in the Way

Don’t wear their emotions on your

sleeve. Don’t yell or get overly

animated when times get tough.

When you allow your emotions to

get in the way, employees

interpret this as a sign you are not

being objective enough and too

passionate about the situation at

hand.

2. Don’t Take Things Personally

Leaders shouldn’t take things

personally when things don’t go their

way. Business decisions and

circumstances don’t always play out

logically. As a leader, remain calm

and don’t get defensive or think that

you always must justify your thinking

and actions.

When you begin to take things

personally, it’s difficult to maintain

your composure and make those

around you believe that you have

things under control.

3. Keep a Positive Mental Attitude

Employees are always watching their

leader’s actions, behaviour,

relationships and overall

demeanour. During the most

difficult of times, leaders must

maintain a positive mental attitude

and manage a narrative that keeps

their employees inspired and

hopeful.

Leaders set the tone for the

organization they serve. A positive

attitude can neutralize chaos and

allow a leader to course correct

through any negativity. Keep a

positive mental attitude and never

stop moving forward. Stay focused

on building positive momentum for

the betterment of the healthier whole.

4. Remain Fearless

When leaders project confidence,

they instill it in others. During

uncertain times, leaders must remain

fearless and project a cool persona

that communicates composure to

those they lead.

5. Respond Decisively

Leaders who maintain their

composure will never show any signs

of doubt. They speak with

conviction, confidence and authority

– whether they know the answer or

not! With their delivery alone, they

give their employees a sense that

everything is under control.

6. Take Accountability

Leaders are most composed during

times of crisis and change when they

are fully committed to resolving the

issue at hand. When you are

accountable, this means that you have

made the decision to assume

responsibility and take the required

steps to problem solve before the

situation gets out of hand.

7. Act Like You Have Been There

Before

Great leaders know that one of the

most effective ways to maintain

composure during difficult times is to

act like you have been there

before. Leaders that act as though

they have been through the problem

solving process numerous times

before are those with strong presence

who approach the matter at hand with

a sense of elegance and grace. They

are patient, they are active listeners,

and they will genuinely take a

compassionate approach to ease the

hardships that anyone else is

experiencing.

As the saying goes, “Keep Calm and

Carry On!

Geoff Butler FAIM AP, MAITD

MACE

Principal/Business Improvement & Implementation Specialist

Business Optimizers

Mobile: 0414 943072

Fax: 3036 6131

Email: geoff@businessoptimizers.com.au

Skype: business.optimizers1

The Importance of

Maintaining Composure

Let’s Talk Business

7

Jo-Anne Chaplin

Tax & Superannuation Professionals Pty Ltd

PH 07 3410 8116 / Mobile 0457 960 566

Email : taxandsuperprofessionals@gmail.com

Web: www.taxandsuperprofessionals.com.au

I am a qualified Accountant and will celebrate my 20th anniversary as a

Registered Tax Agent this year. During my time in Public Practice I have

assisted clients to achieve business growth and prosperity. My earlier career

included positions in banking, manufacturing, construction and retail. My

particular interest is in promoting a culture of using local industries and

business in order to build a strong community.

Investing in

Rental Properties

Owning a house or commercial

property which is let to tenants can be

a tax effective way of creating wealth.

The rental income received by you is

assessable income, and the associated

deductions of owning and

maintaining the property are

allowable deductions.

However, the prime purpose for

acquiring income producing property

is not about the tax deductions, but

rather about the capital gain that will

accrue.

When selecting a property you need

to thoroughly research the area, the

condition of the property, the local

occupancy rates and whether the

property will be suitable as a rental.

If you are looking at purchasing a unit

in a resort, then give consideration to

on-site management and the

outgoings that are associated with this

type of property.

It also important to be sure that the

property will be affordable. How

much extra will you be required to

contribute to the investment? Usually

the net rental income will not be

sufficient to meet the loan repayments

and the cost of rates, insurance and

other fees. You may need to apply

for a variation in your tax withheld by

your employer. This will provide you

with the extra cash flow during the

year to meet these expenses. A

variation should be carefully

calculated, as if the variation is too

low, there will be extra tax to pay on

lodgement of your income tax return.

Your Income Tax Return needs to include

the rental income, and set out below are

an example of the types of expenses you

can and can’t claim.

What you can claim a deduction for..

Rates & Water costs, Land Tax,

other Council fees relating to the

property

Repairs to the property, including

gardens, garden sheds, pools etc

Fees paid to Rental property agents

Insurance premiums relating the to

the property

Travel associated with maintaining or

inspecting the property

Body corporate fees

Advertising for tenants

Depreciation on the fixtures in the

property eg carpets, blinds, stove,

HWS

Building allowance write off – IF

your property was built after 1985,

and you

Have a quantity surveyors report

giving you the required information

The interest on loans used to acquire

the property, or maintain or improve

it.

What you can’t claim a deduction for..

The purchase price of the property

including the purchasing costs such

as solicitors fees and stamp duties

Loan repayments which are a

combination of principle and interest.

Only the interest component is

deductible

Loan interest on loans which have not

been used in respect of the property.

Initial repairs to the property

Travel expenses associated with

buying the property

If the rental expenses, including

depreciation exceed the income, then

the resulting loss can be offset against

your other income. This is called

negative gearing.

Negative gearing is not working

particularly well in the current

environment of low interest rates as the

gross rental return and the interest rates

on investment loans are very close. In

times of higher interest rates, more loan

interest is paid, and therefore a higher

loss results.

As previously stated, the negative

gearing aspect of investing in property

should not be taken in isolation. As

interest rates are now low, this is the

perfect opportunity to pay down debt,

and increase the equity in the property.

The increase in equity means your

wealth has increased, and also means

that you have more opportunity to

acquire further property or investments

using that equity.

It is always best to seek advice in

relation to the purchase of an

investment property. Consideration

should be given to what entity the

property should be held in, what

percentage of investment returns can be

expected, cash flow matters and the

consequences of periods of vacancy.

Let’s Talk Business

8

“ … If You’re the Smartest Person in Your Business, Your Business is in Trouble …”

After 8 weeks of running a well-

received webinar series, we wondered

what a great subject to finish on

would be. We had already covered

cashflow, database, systems,

recruitment, management, advertising

and much more. So what would be a

fitting finale?

Participants had been loaded up with

templates, instructions and support to

implement the ideas, so this was a

hard call! Then … like a light at the

end of the tunnel … we found it!

Building your Master Mind Group

We realised, that having all these

great resources, learnings and a plan

to implement everything was a

complete waste of time if the

Business Owners didn’t do it! So how

were they going to continue the

momentum of implementing the

strategies after the hand-holding

period of the webinar series had

finished?

The answer was to show the webinar

attendees how to identify or build a

Master Mind Group. The response

has been amazing! We have since

found out that this is the final piece of

the puzzle for many of the Business

Owners for a few reasons.

1. They had to prepare their

businesses and gather & compile

their data so it was presentable to

the professional people they were

intending to approach and invite

to join the group. This was a time

of reflection.

2. Many of the ideas they were

implementing were new for the

Business Owners, but Master Mind

Group members, being experienced

people in business, would have

their own ideas about many of these

strategies. It’s likely they have

implemented many of them

themselves.

3. It was a way to change-up their

game to a new level. They were

clear that to get better results, they

had to associate with people who

were better at business!

Then of course, we had to give

everyone instructions explain how to

build their Master Mind Group. So in

the final webinar we put together a step-

by-step process that would lead to a

private mentoring group of peers that is

a secret strategy many successful

entrepreneurs implement in different

forms.

There are 5 sections to the webinar …

1. How to build a Master Mind Group

2. The purpose of building a Master

Mind Group

3. Who to get involved and why

would they be interested

4. What are the rules and etiquette of

such a group

5. How to open doors with your

Master Mind Group

Since running this webinar several

attendees have told me that they know

that if they do not implement this final

step, their business growth will more

than likely not grow far beyond where

it is now. They have ‘copped it on the

chin’ that if they truly want to play a

bigger game, they will need to

associate and play with more successful

and experienced people in business.

In summary, this final module seemed

to fit the bill perfectly. As a reader of

this publication, you are probably of a

similar mind-set to the attendees of this

webinar and so you have an

opportunity! This webinar series was

NOT FREE! Attendees invested money

to be involved and there have been

some brilliant advances in several of

their businesses. You have a short

opportunity to access this webinar. For

the month of May, 2014 if you email

dan@profitmechanics.net and in the

subject line type Master Mind Group

Webinar’ I will email you a private

YouTube link where you can watch the

40 minute module at your own pace.

If you take up this opportunity you may

also like to have a chat about other

possibilities for you and your business.

To this end you’re welcome to

experience a complimentary 30 minute

review of your business that includes a

copy of the well known Profit

Mechanics Diagnostic Questionnaire.

You will get an easy to understand

report that will help you see where

profit may be leaking from your

business and how to fix it.

Business is More Fun When There’s

Profit!

Dan Buzer

Profit Mechanics

0414 567 188

www.profitmechanics.net/ dan@profitmechanics.net

Let’s Talk Business

9

Planning your social media posts,

tweets and updates can help you

increase your business! Like all

marketing, you should not just take a

point and shoot approach and pray

people are paying attention.

Facebook is ALL about establishing

relationships. This applies to your

personal profile and your business

page. Using the two to complement

each other can prove quite powerful

and provide you with insights to

your potential customers.

Here are some Facebook tips to help

you get more out of your time spent

on Facebook:

A proven number of Facebook

posts = 2 per day. We just do one

per day, but Social Media Experts

have proven 2 posts per day to

work the best if you have the time

to invest.

Typically, adding a photo helps

boost attention to your Facebook

POST. However, because most

businesses are posting a photo,

sometimes putting up a post

without an image can be

surprisingly successful by

standing out in someone’s feed.

If you are going to do an image…

add text. Facebook places more

weight on an image and text

combo posts than a photo by

itself. i.e. More people should see

it.

Keep posts short and sweet…if

you have more information;

provide a link to a Blog post on

your website.

Direct people back to your website

when appropriate…you do not own

Facebook, you own your website. If

you want to build your mailing list,

get them to sign up on your website

not just interact on Facebook as

they can ‘unlike’ your page at any

time then you have no means of

contacting them easily.

Ensure that you ‘share’ any

Facebook posts you put up on your

Business Page via your Personal

Profile. This helps a) reach those

people who are just your Facebook

friends and don’t already like your

Business Page + b) increase the

overall audience reach of your post.

Use the scheduling tool. It is the

little Clock icon found at the

bottom of every post update area on

a Business Page. This allows you to

pre-plan your posts days, weeks

and months in advance. Great for

your regular weekly tip post

upcoming event reminders. NOTE:

Scheduled posts do not usually

have the same amount of reach as a

post created in “real-time” but they

are good to maintaining a presence

on Facebook when you are too

busy to be on each and every day.

Hootsuite is another great third-

party program that allows you to

schedule posts as well as twitter

tweets, LinkedIn updates &

Google+ all at once. You lose the

ability to ‘tag’ easily but a great

program regardless. You can also

leave Hootsuite open to track all of

your social media via one

dashboard. www.hootsuite.com

WHAT to post & WHEN ~ Monday

to Sunday

Monday - provide an inspirational

note or image ~ If you can keep

this industry related, even better.

Tuesdays - provide a free tip or

hint ~ You are demonstrating how

great you are at what you do and

how willing you are to help. Keep

it short and sweet & include an

image or diagram.

Wednesday - encourage

interaction with your social media

~ ask your followers a question,

post a video, ask for feedback,

encourage people to ask you a

question…trial different strategies

until you find one that gets the

most amount of interaction.

Thursday - promote: an event,

your services, sale, new website or

competition ~ this can also be

events that your business

supports.

Friday - be funny ~ it’s become a

cliché but Friday is for fun. If you

can share an industry related

funny image or joke, even better.

Remember to keep it clean &

avoid anything offensive.

And don’t forget the weekend –

Saturday - share relevant event/s

you’re attending (or a review)

and

Sunday – be more social update

~ examples include “Photo of

the Week” or staff selfie.

Karen Ahl Bac. Bus (Mark, Man), TAE40110,

Cert IV IT Caboolture, Queensland

Ph 0415 142 178

www.web-sta.com.au info@web-sta.com.au

Facebook Strategy !

Let’s Talk Business

10

Peter Nicol

Wisdom Marketing & Management Services

0417627097

www.wisdommarketing.com.au

manager@wisdommarketing.com.au

Objections are the Lifeblood of Sales

When people object they are really

asking a question.

There is an old saying that goes “turn

every objection into a question – show

more value and close again”.

Sounds simple and good sales folk find

it a snap. Why? Well for a start they do

their homework. They work out all the

benefits of their products and the

potential objections that they might

have to encounter in the sales process.

All good selling is serving; you are

there to help guide the customer to a

point where they feel this has answered

their needs and wants.

Things like it’s too expensive, I live

too far away, does it come in other

colours, I can get one like it but

cheaper, too heavy, too light, too

everything. Yes they sound like

whingers but they are really only

asking a question and thank them for it.

I usually say what a great question to

every objection. And re-phrase the

objection as a question.

Yes colour is important “but” – “It is a

little more costly than the others but

the warranty is where the real value

come into play”.

Patience and listening to people in the

sales role is the key to success. Some

years ago I saw a sales training film

where half the class were given a

balloon to blow up.

They were then asked to stick a pin in

their balloon. You guessed it they blew

up. The other half were then asked to

blow up their balloon and then slowly

let the air out of it – then stick a pin it.

Not much happened.

That is what prospects are like they

come into your store or get on your

phone and start to talk.

Let em! I love it as it gives you time to

structure your responses and detail

what major benefits are going to be

there when you get your time to reply.

Real Estate agents need to know a lot

about a property as so many factors

can play a role in a purchase.

Is it child friendly- this means they

might have to find out how many

young families there are in the area?

Schools bus services, hospitals for the

elderly. These are just some of the key

elements that good sales people get

together when they are researching a

sale or a product for sale.

The skill can come with two names,

Pre-call Planning or Product

Knowledge. Learn about the attributes

so you can turn objections into

questions, and then answer them

fully and completely and with the

confidence that comes with

practice.

You must inform in order to

persuade. Tell people all they want

to know and, more they should

know. Because you must ensure

they get what they want.

This comes from asking as well as

listening. Sometimes clients are

hell bent on getting a particular

item. It is up to you as a

professional and ethical person to

listen then provide the product that

they want or one that might do a

better job and might save them

time and money. That makes for

repeat business as people come

back as they trust you for your

professionalism.

So next time you see a client, think

of the balloon analogy, and let

them talk for a while and explain

their needs and wants.

Some just have an “itch” and are

not sure they want something but

can be persuaded into making a

purchase.

They might have seen it on TV

and just have come in to touch and

feel.

These are golden moments for the

sales professional. Is that you?

Let’s Talk Business

11

workplaces should treat all of these

concerns as genuine and in

consultation with exposed workers

attempt to find acceptable solutions.

However, as a good "rule of thumb"

if a machine can't be adequately

guarded for the job in hand the

machine being used is probably not

the right machine.

In comparison with States like New

South Wales and Victoria, Western

Australia's manufacturing industry is

on a small scale, making it difficult

to justify jigging and tooling to

automate manufacturing processes

with the associated improvement in

safety for machine operators

.

This "economy of scale" problem

also results in many old machines

remaining in service long after their

genuine "use by date" has expired.

They are kept for those one or two

jobs a year that can then be done in

house rather than sent out to a

competitor with a more appropriate /

modern machine.

As a result, it is particularly

necessary for those who work with

and around machines to be aware of

the related hazards and the means of

controlling them.

Hierarchy has the safest measures

at the top

In occupational safety and health

there is a hierarchy of controls that

should be applied to any hazard.

The hierarchy is in a descending

order from the control measure

which gives the greatest level of

safety, but they may be used in

combination.

Generally the order is:

Ron Court,

AMC Dip (Funerals) MQJA JP

OH&S Advisor

0419 679 619 roncourt@aapt.net.au

Use of Machinery

Elimination

Substitution

Isolation

Engineering Control

Administrative Control

Personal Protective

Equipment

Maintenance considerations should

include ready access to areas

identified during design as

requiring regular maintenance such

as for cleaning, lubrication and

adjustment.

Routine adjustments and lubrication

should be designed to be carried out

with the machine stopped, but

without the need for removal of

safeguards or dismantling of

machine components.

Where frequent access is required,

interlocked guards should be used.

Self-lubrication or central

lubrication of parts should be

considered if access is difficult.

Positive lock-off devices should be

provided to prevent unintentional

restarting of machinery, particularly

after a machine has shut down

unintentionally.

You can get information about your

OH&S obligations and other

valuable OH&S resources both in

hard copy and online from their

websites. http://

www.deir.qld.gov.au

Always seek independent legal

advice on what is applicable to your

situation.

Unguarded machinery is hazardous

The number of machines being

introduced to workplaces is increasing

exponentially. Initially machines were

unguarded probably because the

hazards* were not fully appreciated

and community expectations were not

as high as they are today.

You will no doubt have seen

photographs of factories in the late

1800s and the early 1900s with line

shafts running from one end to the

other with numerous pulleys and

unguarded flat belts driving a variety

of different machines.

The accidents that occurred with such

systems led to the realisation that

action had to be taken to protect

workers.

However, despite the fact that

guarding has been available for many

decades, workers still continue to be

injured.

Machines must be adequately

guarded

In many cases workers remove guards

because they perceive some difficulty

in performing their job efficiently

with the guard in place.

Sometimes the guard is thought to

slow work down, sometimes the

guard gets in the way of the work

piece or the job just can't be done with

the guard in place.

Sometimes workers complain that the

guard restricts their view or doesn't

allow the degree of accuracy required

when lining-up the job for say a

bending or pressing operation.

Employers and persons in charge of

Let’s Talk Business

12

cloud computing is that you need an

internet connection to access the

cloud. Your internet connection

should also be reliable and fast.

This direct dependency on the

internet means cloud computing is

susceptible to outages and service

interruptions at any time. If your

online presence is critical for your

business to operate smoothly, then

you will need to identify an internet

service provider that can guarantee

service availability commensurable

with your needs.

Risk 2: Data Sovereignty and

Security

This is a significant and complex

topic. Generally speaking, if your

business engages non-Australian

service providers, including cloud

service providers, then it is your

responsibility to take reasonable

steps to confirm they comply with

Australia’s laws. Your security

evaluations of their operations must

include who can access the data,

where it will be located, (country of

jurisdiction for evaluation of legal

obligations), technical infrastructure

(e.g. physical hardware) and what

steps the cloud provider has taken to

protect the integrity and security of

the data.

While some cloud providers in

Australia will commit to hosting

services within national boundaries to

alleviate data sovereignty concerns,

you will still need to satisfy yourself

that your cloud service provider

meets all of your other data security

Karen Davey-Thorpe AAIDC CC

Smart n Savvy Business Solutions

1800 899 198

clientservices@smartnsavvybusinesssolutions.com.au

needs.

I encourage you to seek

professional and legal advice to

better understand how this topic

applies specifically to your

business.

Risk 3: Compliance

Did you know that the investment

you made in achieving certification

(e.g. industry standard or regulatory

requirements) may be put at risk by

migration to the cloud if your cloud

service provider cannot provide

evidence of their own compliance

with relevant requirements? Or if

they do not permit audits to be

undertaken at your request?

If certification is important to your

business, please ensure you include

a compliance assessment in your

evaluation of cloud service

providers.

As with the implementation of any

key business change, it is important

to plan properly and consider how

all areas of your business that may

be affected.

The decision to proceed with a

cloud computing solution should

only be undertaken once a risk

assessment has been completed and

you are satisfied the risks and

mitigation actions are acceptable.

We’ll review the remaining key

risks in the next issue. If you’d like

to learn more about whether cloud

should be part of your business,

please contact me.

As I mentioned last month, the

marketing of cloud has been very

effective in promoting the positive

aspects of what cloud computing can

deliver for business (quicker, cheaper,

better), however it’s very rare for the

potential risks and business impacts to

be discussed in equal measure.

The European Network and

Information Security Agency (ENISA)

has identified eight cloud specific

high risk areas. We will begin to

look at these in this article.

It is important that you consider how

these risk apply to your business and

what mitigation actions may be

required to ensure your transition to

cloud is successful.

ASSETS AT RISK

There are two types of assets that are

deployed to the cloud. These are:

Data (e.g. financial information,

customer lists, product details,

supplier details).

Applications/functions/processes

(e.g. procure to pay, inventory

management, customer

relationship management, etc.).

When you consider how important

these assets are to your business, and

the value they hold, then you begin to

appreciate why you really need to plan

your move to cloud solutions carefully.

KEY RISKS

Risk 1: Network Dependency

Cloud computing is dependent on the

internet. A fundamental drawback of

Key Risks You Must Consider Before Moving to the Cloud – Part 1

Let’s Talk Business

13

As we head towards the EOFY, we can

think about how to improve our financial

position and prepare for our tax returns.

1. Documentation – we can assist our

accountants and save money by

preparing documentation. If you

have a book keeper, they will do this

but it revolves around receipts, bank

statements, log books and proof of

expenditure i.e. to receive a tax

deduction “generally” you must

prove that the money was actually

spent on a tax deductible item

2. Pre pay interest – if you have an

investment loan or business loan,

you can pay some or all of next

year’s interest before 30 June this

year. Your accountant can include

this in this year’s expenditure and

can effectively reduce your tax

liability for this year

3. Contribute to your

Superannuation – if you are under

60 you can contribute up to $25,000

to your super and receive a tax

deduction. If you are over 60 you

can contribute up to $35000. You

must be CAREFUL NOT to over-

contribute as there are heavy

penalties. By doing this you can

keep most of the money yourself,

albeit in super AND possibly move

to a lower tax bracket

4. After tax contributions to your

super – you can contribute up to

$150,000 to your super this financial

year. If you sell an investment

property, a business or receive an

inheritance you can utilise the ‘Bring

Forward’ provisions and contribute

up to 3 years of contributions or

$450000. BUT you cannot contribute

more than a $450000 in after tax

contributions in the 3 year period.

5. Capital Gains Tax – you can reduce

your CGT liabilities by a) “realising”

a capital loss to offset against any

capital gain; b) Offset capital gains

against capital losses carried forward

from previous years; c) make pre tax

contributions to super to offset a

capital gain; d) you can sell your

business and roll the proceeds into

super providing you with a CGT

exemption of up to $1.255m for the

2012-13 year. This is a great way of

getting much or all of the proceeds of

the sale of your business into the tax

preferred environment of

superannuation. It is important to

work with your accountant or

financial advisor when seeking

offsets.

6. Bring forward or Defer payments –

just as we can bring forward annual

interest costs we can bring forward

other costs into this financial year.

Additionally we can bring forward or

defer income. We can simply ask our

debtors to pay this financial year OR

ask them to pay next financial year.

Consider your income, expenses, tax

liability and consult your accountant

before applying this strategy

7. One Month to go – we have about 1

Paul GILLMORE DFS

Founder and Director

Southern Cross Financial Services

07 5429 5561

0402 685 032

paul@sc-fs.com.au

month to get these strategies in

place. They must be in place

PRIOR to June 30 meaning that

monies must have been disbursed

or contributed and have

been cleared into their destination

accounts. If not, they simply do

not make it into this financial

year.

8. Superannuation Clearing

House for Small Business –the

ATO has taken over the

responsibility of distributing

super to all super funds. This

saves an enormous amount of

work for small businesses by

simply remitting super to the tax

office with a schedule of

contributions rather than

completing individual forms,

drawing separate cheques and

acquiescing to the administrative

retentiveness of, particularly,

industry super funds – a great

benefit to small businesses.

9. New Millennium – super

contributions and rollovers have

finally made it into the new

millennium by being electronic as

opposed to a physical cheque

with associated postage and

manual reconciliation.

DISCLAIMER – the information here

is general and should not be taken as

financial advice. Please refer to your

account or financial planner directly

for individual personal advice.

EOFY Financial Tips 2013-14

Let’s Talk Business

14

One of the essential ingredients of

high performing individuals, teams

and organisations is creativity

(Basadur,2004).

But before we discuss why creative

leadership is so crucial in today’s

society, we need to understand the

difference between two closely

related things: Creativity and

Innovation.

Mark Batey, Manchester Business

School says: “Creativity is the

capacity to come up with ideas for

solving problems and exploiting

opportunities. Innovation is the

ability to turn those creative ideas

into new products and services. To

put it another way: creativity is

inspiration; innovation is

perspiration.”

In that case, a creative leader is

someone within an organisation who

is capable of producing the

conditions that enable those in their

team to generate creative ideas.

These ideas will help the

organisation to move forward.

Creative people push the

boundaries; they seek new ways of

seeing, interpreting, understanding

and questioning. They can accept

the ambiguity of contradiction and

uncertainty. They can tolerate

disorder and unpredictability.

In fact, they thrive in circumstances

which others might see as chaotic

and disorderly (Montuori & Purser,

1999).

Creativity and Creative Leadership

is probably one of the most

important (but sadly lacking)

leadership qualities needed in this

decade, if not this century.

Creative leaders are not just born

that way, and they just don’t have

very strong personalities if they are

to lead successful organizations.

They must profoundly understand

and know human behaviour, and,

most importantly, understand who

they are and what motivates them to

success and what can cause their

failures.

Creative leadership is built on the

idea that everyone at every level in

the organization is a leader; that

leaders must know themselves, alert

to their failings and graces, to better

serve the organization; and that only

by mastering complexity – both

human and organizational – will

leaders be able to achieve alignment.

(Doug Guthrie, 2012)

Whether you are the CEO of a large

organisation; the leader of a team or

division within such an organisation;

or the founder of a small company,

creative leadership is critical to your

innovation success. Innovation is the

result of successfully implementing

creative ideas.

Moreover, the process from idea to

implementation, of a breakthrough

innovation, requires a great deal of

creativity. And to achieve this, you

need creative leadership.

Jeffrey Paul Baumgartner believes:

“It is not about your creativity. It is

about your team’s creativity”

Creative leadership has very little to

do with your creativity and

everything to do with your team’s

creativity. If it was only about your

creativity, you wouldn’t need a team

would you?

You are only one person. Your team

(which might be your entire

company) is many people. Tapping

into the cumulative creativity of 10

or 100 or 1000 people will clearly

result in better results than tapping

into the creativity of one person, no

matter how creative you are, and

ignoring everyone else.

What Makes a Creative Leader?

Creative leaders love challenges that

test their limits. They also do not fear

the fact that they don’t know

something, and they see setbacks as

just that - opportunities for personal

growth.

Drawing from his experience, Dr

Kalam articulated eight key tenets of

creative leadership that are critical

for driving innovation and growth in

the emerging global knowledge

economy:

1. The leader must have a vision

for the organization

2. The leader must have the passion

to transform that vision into

action

3. The leader must be able to travel

into an unexplored path

4. The leader must know how to

manage both success and failure

5. The leader must have the

courage to make decisions

6. The leader should have nobility

in management

7. Every action of the leader should

be transparent

8. The leader must work with

integrity and succeed with

integrity

Creative Leadership

Dennis Chiron Marketing Means Business

0451 184 599 www.marketingmeansbusiness.com

dennis@marketingmeansbusiness.net.au Skype: dennis.chiron2

Let’s Talk Business

15

“Let’s Talk Business” Small Business Publication

PO Box 569 Bribie Island QLD 4507 P| 0451 184 599 dennis@marketingmeansbusiness.net.au

www.marketingmeansbusiness.com

PUBLISHER: Marketing Means Business

“Let’s Talk Business” is

distributed to 2,730 business email

addresses within Australia and

Internationally.

We welcome contributions,

suggestions for articles and letters

to the Editor from our readers.

Please address correspondence to:

The Editor, LTB

PO Box 569

Bribie Island, Qld 4507

Phone: 0451 184 599

dennis@marketingmeansbusiness.net.au

Web: www.marketingmeansbusiness.com

You are welcome to re-produce

any of these articles. However,

please quote the source as “Let’s

Talk Business”. While every effort

has been made to ensure that all

information contained herein is

accurate, no responsibility will be

accepted by the publisher.

Likewise, the publisher accepts no

responsibility for illustrations or

photographs supplied by

organisations or individuals and/or

typographical errors.

Views expressed in contributed

articles are not necessarily those of

the publisher.

You are also encouraged to

contact the individual authors

direct, if you are seeking specific

advice.

Letters to the Editor

are most welcome

Please send your letters to

dennis@marketingmeansbusiness.net.au

Objectives of “Let’s Talk Business”

Small Business Publication

One of the primary objectives of “Let’s Talk Business” (LTB) is to provide a

monthly print media service to support the Small Business Community. Our

goal is to provide a publication offering a wide and diverse range of topics

and information which may assist business owners and their teams to gain

more insight, knowledge and skills in the overall running of their business,

thereby assisting them to build a strong, viable and sustainable business.

We believe that by offering this free service, we are achieving our goal, and

this is evidenced not only by our constantly growing database of businesses

receiving the publication, but also by the quality of the authors who

unselfishly contribute regular articles to LTB.

We pride ourselves on the fact that we have a range of authors who are

recognised experts in their industry, and these experts give freely of their

knowledge and their time to assist us to offer you quality, practical,

professional advice and information.