Growing a Building Surveyor Business

Podcast Summary

• Creating a clear business vision for growth: Define a vision for your business, set specific goals, and create a roadmap with milestones and deadlines to attract and retain top talent and grow a successful business.

  Growing a business requires setting clear goals and creating a vision for the future. Denise Ferguson, a building surveyor and quantity surveyor with a 5-year-old business generating £10,000 a month, expressed her desire to become a market leader and increase her revenue to £15,000 a month. However, she lacked a defined vision for what her business would look like in the future. James Sinclair, the host, emphasized the importance of creating a business roadmap with specific milestones and deadlines. He used the analogy of writing a book, where each story has a beginning, middle, and end, to illustrate the need for a clear business vision. Denise also mentioned challenges such as educating customers about her industry, spending too much time on lead generation, and managing client expectations. To overcome these challenges, James suggested focusing on effective marketing strategies, delegating tasks to team members, and setting clear communication channels with clients. Overall, the conversation highlighted the importance of having a clear business vision and goals to attract and retain top talent and grow a successful business.

• Excellent opportunities for property investors in London's hospitality and leisure sector: London's economic situation offers investors affordable commercial properties and favorable lease terms in the hospitality and leisure sector. Entrepreneurs can also access affordable coaching and resources through the Entrepreneurs University to grow their businesses.

  The current economic situation in London presents excellent opportunities for property investors to secure great deals on commercial properties, particularly in the hospitality and leisure sector. Businesses like ice cream parlors and sweet shops are struggling due to the absence of tourists, leading to reduced revenues and vacant shops. Landlords are eager to fill these spaces and negotiate favorable lease terms, making it an ideal time for investors to expand their property portfolios. Additionally, the Entrepreneurs University, an online training platform by James Sinclair, offers business owners affordable coaching and resources to help grow their businesses. For just £49.99 a month, members gain access to James' expertise, proven strategies, and valuable content. The platform's swipe files, blueprints, and cheat sheets provide practical tools to help businesses succeed. Denise, a commercial property negotiator specializing in salon leases, emphasized the importance of profitability for salon owners. By focusing on sustainable business models and effective lease negotiations, she helps beauty industry professionals build profitable enterprises. Overall, the Business Masterclass event and the Entrepreneurs University provide valuable resources and insights for individuals looking to build and grow successful businesses. Whether it's through securing great property deals or learning proven business strategies, these platforms offer essential tools for entrepreneurs.

• From solopreneur to investorpreneur: Building a team for business success: Invest in a team to create a profitable, independent business, transitioning from a job-like operation to a sellable enterprise. Born entrepreneurs may follow different stages, but an investor mindset can lead to greater success.

  Building a successful business involves growing a team and transitioning from being a solopreneur to an entrepreneur, and eventually, an investorpreneur. The speaker emphasizes the importance of having a team to create a commercially profitable enterprise that can operate independently of the business owner. Currently, the speaker's business is more of a job than a business, as it heavily relies on the owner's involvement. To build a sellable business, the speaker advises the importance of employing people instead of outsourcing freelance work and investing in the team. The speaker also believes that entrepreneurs are born with the necessary spirit, and the stages they go through in building a business may vary, but having an investor mindset can lead to greater success.

• Balancing consistent revenue and negotiations for business growth: Map out a 10-year plan focusing on personal and business growth before setting financial targets to build a profitable business with a significant profit margin and reduced workload.

  Successful business growth involves a balance between consistent revenue streams and cyclical negotiations. The entrepreneur in this conversation emphasized the importance of helping clients grow their businesses to secure consistent monthly income, while negotiating leases provides the more variable revenue. The entrepreneur's long-term goal is to build a profitable business with a significant profit margin, allowing for a reduced workload and the ability to remove oneself from the day-to-day operations. The key to achieving this goal is to map out a 10-year plan, focusing on personal and business growth before determining the financial targets. This approach allows for a clear vision and the confidence to reach for achievable goals, rather than being intimidated by seemingly large numbers.

• Denise's Business Growth: Speaking, TV, YouTube, Consulting: Denise aims to grow her business by focusing on her personal brand through speaking engagements, TV work, YouTube, and consulting, while letting go of the surveying and consultancy side. She encourages growth and flexibility in business goals and doesn't compare herself to others.

  Denise's £6,000,000 business in 10 years will be a combination of her personal branding in various forms, including speaking engagements, TV work, YouTube, and consulting. She intends to be less involved in the surveying and consultancy side of the business and more involved in public seating, her YouTube channel, TV, and the beauty industry consultancy. Denise emphasized that she doesn't compare herself to others and believes success leaves clues. She currently makes between £10,000 and £30,000 a month from her speaking engagements and aims to grow her business into a commercially profitable venture. She doesn't believe that everything has to be massive or limited by others' beliefs and encourages growth and flexibility in business goals.

• Educating the Beauty Industry on Business Acumen: Many beauty industry entrepreneurs lack a business mindset, leading to unfavorable situations. Seek guidance to understand essential business aspects and treat your business as an investment for success.

  The beauty industry is filled with passionate individuals who lack the necessary business acumen to grow their businesses beyond profitable jobs. The speaker, who has been working in the industry for six years, emphasizes the importance of educating the industry on the availability of help and resources to run successful and profitable businesses. He mentions that most business owners in the industry lack a business mindset and fail to understand essential aspects like negotiating leases, leading to unfavorable situations. The speaker believes that only a small percentage of business owners in the industry truly understand the importance of treating their businesses as investments rather than just jobs. He encourages more individuals to adopt a business-focused mindset and seek guidance to generate cash flow and build successful businesses in the industry.

• Providing free advice on social media and charging for personalized consultation: James shares his experience of offering free advice on social media and then charging for individualized help, emphasizing the importance of providing value in both ways. He also discusses his struggle with managing cash flow as his business grew, highlighting the financial responsibilities of business growth.

  Providing free advice on a large scale through social media is an effective way to help a large number of people, but for more personalized and in-depth consultation, a paid approach is fairer and more efficient. James shared his experience of giving free advice on social media and then offering paid 15-minute calls for individualized help. He mentioned that while some people might find his approach annoying, it has helped him connect with those who are open to his perspective and have led to significant business decisions for them. During their conversation, James also shared that his biggest struggle when scaling his business was managing cash flow. He started off as a sole trader with all profits, but as his business grew, he had to deal with various expenses such as VAT, business rates, and rents. To generate the necessary revenue to cover these expenses, he now needs to make over £250,000 a week. This significant increase in revenue requirements can be a daunting leap for many business owners. Overall, James' approach to providing free advice on social media while charging for personalized consultation is a fair and effective way to help a large number of people while also generating revenue for his business. His experience with managing cash flow as his business scaled is a common challenge for many entrepreneurs and serves as a reminder of the financial responsibilities that come with business growth.

• Maintaining a healthy cash flow is crucial for business success: Minimize overheads, focus on revenue, eliminate comfort blankets, leverage work, take responsibility, have a strong work ethic

  Maintaining a healthy cash flow is crucial for the success and survival of a business. This means keeping expenses low and focusing on generating revenue. Successful entrepreneurs often eliminate comfort blankets and work in humble environments to minimize overheads. Cash flow should always be at the back of your mind, even when your business is established and profitable. Another key takeaway is the importance of leveraging work, such as starting a podcast or writing books, to reach a larger audience and maximize the impact of your efforts. The speaker also emphasized the importance of taking responsibility for your business and your employees, even if they are self-employed. Success often comes from a strong work ethic and a relentless drive to succeed.

• Recognizing the need for transition in business growth: To grow a business from £15m to £100m, entrepreneurs must let go of hands-on control, add middle management and systems, challenge limiting beliefs, and learn the investor mindset.

  Growth in business often comes with new challenges, and it's essential for entrepreneurs to recognize when they need to transition from a hands-on role to a more managerial one. Denise shared her experience of growing her daycare business from £15 million to £100 million in revenue, acknowledging the need for more middle management and systems as the business scaled. She also emphasized the importance of recognizing limiting beliefs and continuing to have the drive and hunger to make the business succeed. Another key takeaway is the potential for successful partnerships between entrepreneurs and investors, with each bringing unique perspectives and skills to the table. Denise suggested that her ideal podcast guest would be an entrepreneur looking to grow their business but struggling with the investor mindset. By learning to think like an investor, entrepreneurs can make informed decisions and build strong, successful businesses.

• Entrepreneurs and Investors: Building Strong Partnerships: Entrepreneurs should focus on their strengths, ask the right questions of specialists, and build a strong team to achieve business milestones. Being knowledgeable enough to have informed conversations with experts is crucial.

  Entrepreneurs and investors have the potential to understand each other's needs and work together to build successful businesses. However, it's essential for entrepreneurs not to become too invested in the financial aspects of their business and instead focus on their strengths while knowing enough to ask the right questions of specialists. This approach allows entrepreneurs to build a strong team and achieve business milestones. The speaker emphasized the importance of entrepreneurs being knowledgeable enough to have conversations with experts in various fields, such as accounting, law, marketing, and more. This concept can be compared to being a good GP who knows enough to ask the right questions of specialists. By doing so, entrepreneurs can make informed decisions and build a strong foundation for their business. The speaker also shared that they have always been driven by both business and entertainment since childhood. They started earning money by doing kids' parties and eventually bought properties and opened a family entertainment center. This experience taught them the importance of having a clear vision and the determination to make it a reality. If you're looking for help with property surveying or negotiating leases in the beauty industry, there are resources and experts available in the speaker's network who can provide guidance.

• Connecting with Business Experts: Visit denisebergson.co.uk for surveyors, connect on social media, apply to discuss businesses on jamesinclair.net, attend Business Masterclass at jamesinclairbmc.net, rate, review, and subscribe to the podcast.

  There are various ways to connect with business experts and learn from them. Denise Bergson, a guest on the podcast, suggested visiting her website denisebergson.co.uk to find surveyors or connecting with them on social media platforms. James Inclair, the podcast host, invited listeners to apply to discuss their businesses on his website jamesinclair.net. He also mentioned the availability of tickets for his Business Masterclass at jamesinclairbmc.net, which is not free but offers valuable insights into growing businesses. To help spread the word and reach more people, listeners are encouraged to rate, review, and subscribe to the podcast. Overall, these platforms and opportunities provide valuable resources for individuals looking to learn and grow their businesses.