Case Studies

Communication and Innovation Drives Manufacturers Competitive Advantage

If it's important, get it right! - in a recent survey, manufacturers were much maligned for their lack of flexibility and poor communication with regards to price changes. However, to stand out from the crowd, communication, service and product support are as crucial as the actual product itself.

Communication, service and product support have a direct impact on how the manufacturer's downstream customers and sales channels perform. All three factors affect how much effort will be made towards promoting the manufacturer's products and ultimately sales volumes. Together, with continued product innovation, this is key to business growth. How can manufacturers achieve this?

Since deciding to focus on the potential of internet sales, Skytrex the railway and military models business has continued to expand. The company decided to take advantage of new international sales channels available on-line, while also developing existing channels. Developing new products, maintaining quality and customer service in addition has put pressure on resources as a result.

Critical to growth has been the decision to embrace on-line sales channel in favour of traditional channels to enable more targeted promotion of the product portfolio and to ensure sales margins were not eroded by distribution costs.

Business managers often question the value of appraisals. It is easy to overlook the benefits and just see the cost in time and disruption from preparing and delivering appraisals. However appraisals add lots of value to any business provided the appraisal program is simple, easy to use and creates an opportunity for manager and employee to talk about performance.

Key to a successful program is that it engages both the employee and the manager in a conversation about performance. Keeping things simple and engaging start with asking the right questions through the appraisal process. What questions are most effective?

Effective Business Action Planning Process
No idea can ever be successful if it’s not taken the market. So, with a refined idea it’s time to make an action plan to get the message out. Action planning is about clarity of tasks and ownership and formed the final element of the Rapid Commercialisation workshop.

The challenge is to turn good intentions at a planning meeting into tangible progress across a group of employees who may well have varying levels of day-to-day involvement with the business.

Many industries rely on fabricators and value added resellers to do the 'dirty work' of adapting the manufacturer's standard product to meet the customer's application and exact requirements. Being a fabricator or value added reseller is highly competitive, with little scope for differentiation, making a strong focus on service key.

The main goal for fabricators and other value added resellers is to build up a network of motivated customers and sales channels, and as a result, grow their business. They are in the middle of the supply chain and therefore need to balance their priorities between downstream sales channels and their suppliers. But how can this be achieved?

A well-written, well –structured case study is an excellent and cost-effective way to showcase your organisation’s capabilities, and ultimately encourage more customers to buy your products and services.

Case studies can be used in a number of ways to promote your business, from gaining free publicity in relevant publications, to adding a fresh look to your company’s home page. But what are the important elements of a good case study?

Your existing customers are like gold dust. The windows and glazing industry is extremely competitive and facing tough trading conditions. The BBPN GlassTalk Survey identified how retailers and installers who are proactive, and market to their existing customers, are successfully adding to their sales volume and achieving higher margins

The main challenge for retailers and installers is to maintain or grow their sales volume in a tough market. Retailers are always searching for new ways to make their sales grow more than their competitors. It was found that it is easier for retailers and installers to sell to an existing customer than to win business from new customers. The steps are simple and effective:

Team based and cross-functional value proposition development can create a clear definition for a product or service. This is challenged by discussion and by using template based techniques to ensure the definition and proposition is robust, marketable and has genuine commercial potential.

The process involves getting very close to a final definition of the product or service within a day or even a few hours. This refinement stage was the third element of the Rapid Commercialisation workshop, and enabled delegates to fine-tune their original plans.

Safeguarding in Staff Recruitment

For many organisations that are dealing with children and vulnerable adults, safeguarding is a key challenge. When recruiting for posts working with vulnerable young people and adults the interviewing and selection process is critical. Having a clear process that adds extra rigour to the selection process by identifying negative behavioural indicators is vital.

A group of key managers involved in recruitment and selection were asked to review the existing selection processes. Information was gathered on the number of interviewees, the number of appointments, and the reasons why panels recommended not offering a post because the applicant was deemed 'not safe'. Using this data a range of questions were designed to elicit information about behavioural traits.

A key challenge in business is getting to market quickly, and taking advantage of opportunities in your market can help to grow your business faster. But is it possible to get a great idea to market in just one day?

This is the scenario recently presented to a group of experienced business owners as part of a special Rapid Commercialisation event run by the Business Best Practice Network (BBPN). Rapid commercialisation is increasingly seen as a process which is critical to businesses if they are to successfully take advantage of market opportunities.

The Feedback that Drives Success

Customer feedback is vital to any business, whether it’s a simple, morale-boosting pat on the back, or constructive criticism that can be used to improve the service you deliver. Learn how this has been made easy, effective and high impact.

However, accessing the kind of feedback that can really make a difference to a business can be difficult, often because it can feel as though you are imposing on your customers’ time.

To help solve the problem, BBPN has developed a simple and highly effective on-line feedback collection survey, which can be triggered by sending out an invitation email, or by following a link on a website.

The Importance of Price as a Driver of Choice
It is a common notion that price is the main driver of choice in most industries. However, the GlassTalk 2011 survey, which focussed on the glazing industry, challenged this preconception.

It would be reasonable to assume that the windows and glazing industry is exceptionally price sensitive. However, a detailed study looking at decision drivers across the supply chain found that price was far from the most important driver of choice, begging the question, what is?

The study unmasked the decision drivers across the industry, offering real insights and actionable conclusions that have relevance in this, and most other, industry business-to-business settings.

If you offer a service that provides advice, a professional service or provide design input to your clients, then you may consider investing in professional indemnity insurance cover. This is also known as professional liability cover and is, in fact, regarded as an essential type of cover for some client engagements.

So what can investment in such a cover offer for you and your business? Indemnity insurance aids in covering both expenses and legal costs if it comes to defending a claim from your client. It will also cover any compensation costs that may be awarded due to the claim. "But I do great work and get along well with my clients" you say! - In that case you may still want to consider this:

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