Category Archives: Profitability

Is Pricing Low A Good Idea?

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Especially when starting up a business the perceived wisdom can be that you should price low. If you price low you can win more customers. More customers mean more sales and that’s the key to success……or is it? The tendency is to think I’m new, I’m small, I can do it cheaper. But in fact there are four problems with this thinking. One of the most common mistakes made by business owners is to underestimate their costs. Small businesses generally don’t have the right attributes to be able to get significant cost reductions in comparison with […]

5 Ways To Generate More Potential Customers

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5 tips for getting new customers

Often a business will rely on just one or two ways to generate leads; perhaps using traditional newspaper advertising and having a website. It’s likely that whatever you are using works or you wouldn’t be using it. There can, however, be a number of ways to reach your potential customers. And the best ways to reach them changes over time. This means it’s good to periodically review your methods and try new ones. Then when you find something that brings some results, milk it for all it’s worth! For instance, here’s 5 simple ideas to get […]

Small Businesses Benefit From Interest Rate Cut

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From 1 July 2016, Microfinance Ireland is offering a 1% cut in its interest rates on loans to small businesses. Microfinance Ireland (MFI) was set up in 2012 as a not-for-profit lender designated to deliver the Government’s Microenterprise Loan Fund. MFI provides “micro-enterprises” with access to loan finance of between €2,000 and €25,000. This can be a helpful option to businesses in getting finance. What is a micro-enterprise? A micro-enterprise is any business with less than 10 employees and an annual turnover of less than €2M. MFI will consider applications from start-up as well as established […]

A coffee drinking educational experience – Pricing Strategy

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Bernadette Jiwa, the marketing strategist and author from Dublin but now living in Melbourne, recently blogged her coffee story. “When my family and I were in Venice recently we decided to take a seat in a tiny Cafe in St Marks Square and ordered four hot drinks (anyone who has holidayed in Italy knows what’s coming next!). There was nothing remarkable about the coffee but we walked out half an hour later having paid €37 for 4 drinks.… the most expensive cup of coffee I have ever had.… my husband kept the receipt! The lesson. If […]

How Low Should You Go – Healthy Margins

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Maintaining a healthy margin is essential in order for a company to survive and continue to grow. Appropriate pricing and monitoring costs are key components to establishing and maintaining a strong margin. Here are some key points on determining how low you should go with pricing your product/service.   Points to remember to maintain healthy margins:   Have the most up to date information regarding costs – this is the basis for determining your selling price. Ensure volume does not decline as this will increase the overall overhead cost per unit and so decrease the margin […]