The year 2022 was a difficult one. Ambiguity regarding economic conditions, fluctuating prices of devices and accessories, unavailability of spare parts and other supply chain roadblocks, and shifting customer buying patterns were growing pains of repair shops. While some businesses made it through unscathed, many kept losing customers and barely made it to 2023.
New year brings new beginnings. No matter what 2022 had in store for you, 2023 can be the year to unlock your true potential. Whether you’re just starting out or are a seasoned player, your goal should be to take your business to the next level by identifying the mistakes you previously made and working on filling potential gaps in the market.
Single stores, multi-stores and enterprise repair store owners, here are the tips and tricks that can help shape your goals for this year.
Conduct more experiments
Being a small or medium business, you might have tried a few things, and some of them would have worked for you. It’s tempting to stick to only those methods and play safe, but in reality, it’s a trap you should avoid. There’s no guarantee that a plan working for you today will always work; therefore, it is vital to keep experimenting.
An example could be to experiment with generating video content on your social media if you are currently only using images and captions. Video content has greater reach and may resonate more with your potential customers. It’s important to identify what works for your target market and then provide them with exactly that. Companies that plan ahead always tend to have better chances of success.
Replace manual processes with automation
New repair business owners are primarily cash-strapped and need more resources. This is why they tend to do many things on their own, which makes them overburdened with work and leaves no time for themselves, their family, or to make essential business decisions. Doing tasks manually also leads to errors that cause inefficiencies, delays, and lags.
Most owners hesitate to invest in software that brings automation to their business as they see it as an additional cost, but this is far from the truth. In fact, the right POS software can help you to get rid of repetitive tasks and stay on top of tasks by being able to track and provide a great customer experience, something that should be a goal for every business.
Automation is key today; the sooner repair business owners realize this and decide to invest in it, the better. Imagine getting rid of all the repetitive tasks of your business and being able to manage all your business activities through just one software!
Invest in marketing your cell phone repair business
Marketing is the core of your business. It helps create brand awareness, engage customers, and helps you position your product in their minds. It also helps your customers differentiate your cell phone repair business from other brands and respond to your unique selling proposition.
But that doesn’t mean you exhaust all your resources on marketing. Gone are the days when you had to spend a fortune on marketing; today, social media can help you reach the masses without spending too much. Focus on being innovative, understand your audience, and market your product with their pain points in mind.
Other than just social media, marketing emails, messages, and the use of print media all can help you achieve your marketing goals.
Read about the Best Marketing Practices for Your Repair Business
Be creative in business operations
This goes out for both small businesses and multi-store chains. How creatively you market your products or services, how unique your warranty and payment policies are, and how personalized your shop experience is, has a direct impact on your sales; therefore, you should always look out for new ways to attract and serve customers.
Coming up with attractive deals and offers, being innovative in telling your brand story, and explaining how your service is different from others can help you position your business in the minds of consumers and help your brand stand out from the rest. Giving exciting buy back options, longer warranty periods, store loyalty cards and flexible payment schedules makes the customer’s experience more delightful. Top it off with a great smile and a white glove service, and you’ve won a customer for life. With a growing loyal customer base that you’ve retained by incorporating the tips above, let’s now look at how growing businesses can do things differently this year.
Use integrations
The use of technology would help you automate daily business operations and activities, which in turn would help you achieve efficiency. But it’s important to invest in the right technology that’s made for your industry and supports your business. As a cell phone repair business, you need to make sure the right type of integrations including payments, shipping, ecommerce management, accounting and customized widgets are supported by the POS software you decide to invest in.
Manage workflow
When a business grows, so do responsibilities. Due to this very reason, many businesses suffer from miscommunication, lack of proper management and direction, etc. Being able to realize how much work you can manage and delegating the remaining tasks is important. Task delegation also helps in developing employee confidence and motivates them to take ownership.
Along with this, managing the workflow of employees is also important. Implementing 4 days a weekly work policy can also help a lot; in fact, around 40% productivity boost can be achieved according to research conducted recently, as this policy significantly brings down work stress levels and boosts productivity.
In 2023, the focus should be on learning from previous mistakes, taking note of the opportunities and taking immediate action to serve them, and lastly keeping tabs on the changing customer preferences and economic trends. If repair store owners incorporate these goals in their 2023 strategy, there is nothing that stop your accelerated growth.
