Streamline communication

Running a business isn't easy. Good communication is a key factor in any relationship, especially in the workplace. Is your organization doing it right? Streamlining communication will help get your leads and profits up. Here's how:

Be brief. Let people know up front how much of their time you'll need. "I know you're busy so I'll just need two minutes of your time to let you know about some training we have coming up." Say what you need in your first sentence so others don't feel like you're dragging out your request.

Go digital. Streamline tracking your sales leads and cut down on file cabinet space with a sales lead tracking tool. Tracking leads digitally makes it easier for multiple people to access them from different locations, and makes finding a particular lead as easy as one click, rather than flipping through stacks of files.

Update your team. Send a monthly or weekly newsletter to the entire company to keep everyone up to date. It doesn't have to be fancy; it could just be a short e-mail letting everyone know how many sales you've gotten so far, company updates, upcoming goals, and what you'll need from team members to reach those goals.

Get a company directory. There's nothing more frustrating than needing to call your colleague in a rush and not being able to find his number. Keep an up-to-date directory with everybody's contact info to make getting in touch with colleagues easier.

Communication is the most important thing to running a business. Once you streamline your communication, sales and profits will be easier to get.