The 10th January is MicroBiz Matters Day and founders Tina and Tony will be celebrating with a conference over in Preston. They have also requested that micro businesses share their top 10 tips so, as 2020 will see Red Kite Services celebrate our 10th birthday, I thought I would share some of ours (in no particular order).

Top Ten Tips for running a Micro-Business:

1. Think about your branding – it helps with everything moving forwards if you get a strong logo and a list of brand colours and fonts. These will inform your web design, social media presence and any printed products and save you a lot of time.
2. Make sure your business cards have a design and font size that is easy to read and explains your business and your job. I have written a blog on this
3. Always take plenty of business cards to networking meetings
4. Set up systems for your business, such as Capsule CRM, email templates, calendars and filing – spending time on this when you start out pays dividends further down the line
5. Keep your website up to date with events, news, products etc at the front end and with the latest versions of the software at the back end
6. Post regularly to your chosen social media channels – both 5 and 6 help people be confident your business is on the go
7. Separate your work space from your family/social time – I am lucky enough to have an external office, but if you work from home try to have dedicated work space and time and also a ‘phone for business only.
8. Keep in regular contact with your clients – either through phone calls, meeting up for coffee or through newsletters
9. Send out your invoices regularly – either straight after you have completed the work or on a set day each week or month. (I do them mid-month and last day of the month).
10. Keep a close check on your bank account and check it at least weekly.

And as an extra bonus because I’m feeling generous, my final tip is BE YOURSELF!