Lessons from a data breach

The Optus data breach is top of mind for a lot of Australians, particularly those who have had their data breached.

For business, the breach is a timely warning on the importance of understanding what data is held on your customers (and should you hold it?), how it is secured, how your systems work and the process to identify gaps and deficiencies, the appropriate actions if and when a breach occurs, and the impact on your relationship to your customer. This is not something that can be outsourced to IT but a whole of business issue.

The obligations on business

We all know that no system is 100% secure. For Optus, this is not the first time. In 2015, Optus agreed to an enforceable undertaking for breaching the Privacy Act in 2015.

A data breach happens when personal information is accessed or disclosed without authorisation or is lost. If the Privacy Act 1988 covers your business, you must notify affected individuals and the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner when a data breach involving personal information is likely to result in serious harm. The notification must be as soon as practicable but is expected to be no later than 30 days. Every day counts.

A business must take all reasonable steps to comply with its obligations to prevent data breaches occurring. These obligations are not limited to preventing cyber attacks. Malicious or criminal attacks represent 55% of all reported data breaches. But, human error is responsible for 41% and 4% through system faults. Where human error was involved, 43% was where personal information was emailed to the wrong recipient and 21% the unintended release or publication of personal information.

How to apologise

Your relationship with your client is about trust. Beyond the breach notification requirements, the other issue is the client relationship.

So, how should a business apologise? University of Chicago economist John List, Professor Benjamin Ho from Vassar College along with other academics studied this issue for Uber ride sharing – the experiment came about after John List, who was at the time Uber’s Chief Economist, had a bad ride sharing experience. The bottom line? The apology must come at a cost to be effective. That cost can be reputational, a commitment to do better in the future (the cost is the higher standard), or a monetary cost. The paper states: First, apologies are not a panacea – the efficacy of an apology and whether it may backfire depend on how the apology is made. Second, across treatments, money speaks louder than words – the best form of apology is to include a coupon for a future trip. Third, in some cases sending an apology is worse than sending nothing at all, particularly for repeated apologies and apologies that promise to do better.

Helping to protect against data breaches

Understand your Privacy Act obligations. Specific industries and businesses that hold specific types of data often have advanced requirements.

Review the personal information held on customers. Is their full date of birth a necessary part of what your business does? If you need to verify identify, do those identification documents really need to be stored once they have been validated? Or is positive confirmation enough? Is the data held securely and is access limited to only those who require access?

Ensuring systems have multifactor authentication

Improving staff awareness of not only cyber threats and how to prevent them – phishing, fraudulent messages etc, but reviewing how personal data is managed and accessed.

Understanding your systems and how they work together to prevent security gaps or ‘backdoor’ systems access.

Contact us to find out more

There is a particular attitude that sets the magnificent apart from the mediocre. The great Walt Disney knew this all too well; it’s called the success attitude. Some people are born with it, others have to develop it, but what we know for certain is this, those that have an attitude of wanting to do well are often remembered for the great lives they led.

Look at the life of Walt Disney. Leaving behind him a legacy of magic and dreams, Walt is still regarded today as the poster boy for the possibility. After all, if his life taught us one thing, it was that anything is possible.

It was his unwavering belief in the possibility and a life without limits that gave Walt the positive attitude that helped him to become the great man we remember today. He wasn’t born into success, but those that met him would have believed otherwise. He lived his entire life in a positive mindset. It is said that when he headed West to pursue his dreams, Walt sold everything that he owned, all so that he could travel with a first-class ticket

What a better example than this, to demonstrate the success attitude that helped him start it all?

If you too were to master an attitude of success, there would be no ceilings to what could be possible for you.

Walt Disney was once famously quoted as saying ‘First, think. Second, believe. Third, dream. And finally, dare.’.

Let’s take a closer look at each of these, for a clearer understanding of the success attitude and how you too can use it for bolder, happier living.

1.Think

“I resent the limitations of my own imagination.”

Every action, every fulfilled dream, and every pursued passion. they must all begin with a thought.

It is as the Law of Attraction teaches us, where our mind goes our reality follows. So, rid your mind of all limits and negativity and begin to think BIG. This may help you start laying the foundations on which you are going to build your dreams.

2.Believe

“No matter how your heart is grieving, if you keep on believing, the dream that you will wish will come true.”

Before you receive it, you must first learn how to believe. Having a dream or an idea is not enough; you need to believe that they are possible for you. After all, when something is not believable to you, you’re never really going to give it all the energy and attention it needs to become a reality.

Remember how Walt Disney sold all of his possessions for a first-class ticket that guaranteed him nothing? He brought that ticket with the belief that it would take him to his dreams and it did. Learn to have the same level of conviction in your dreams.

3. Dream

“All our dreams can come true if we have the courage to pursue the dream”

As children, we are continually sharing with others what we dream of doing when we grow up. Never lose this. Live your life forever in awe and anticipation of your dreams. When you fulfill one, don’t forget to dream up others.

Most importantly of all, DREAM BIG. You are a limitless being so why settle for the mediocre and mundane? Everything is possible for you! Live your life in this knowledge and let it inspire you to dream bolder, bigger, and better.

4.Dare

“We keep moving forward, opening new doors, and doing new things, because we’re curious and curiosity leading us down new paths.”

To chase the magnificent and marvelous, you have to have daring. Walt Disney lived a daring life and it paid off. So, how daring are you willing to get in pursuit of your dreams?

Be a leader; pursue your dreams relentlessly and strive to make the impossible, possible. I dare you.

There are no limits to what you can have, be, or achieve. Walt Disney called himself a success long before anyone else did. Why not do the same?

Being successful is a dream for everyone, but it can also be a reality.

Contact us to find out how we can help you achieve your dreams and goals.

Climate change featured heavily during the election and now the Albanese Government is putting into place some of the promises it made. We look at the current state of play and the likely impact.

The Government’s Climate Change Bill passed the House of Representatives in early August and is now before the Senate Environment and Communications Legislation Committee for review.  But, what impact does the legislation have on business and consumers in Australia?

Under the Paris Agreement, a legally binding international treaty, Australia and 192 other parties committed to substantially reduce global greenhouse gas emissions to limit the global temperature increase in this century to 2 degrees Celsius while pursuing efforts to limit the increase even further to 1.5 degrees. At this level, the more extreme impacts of climate change – floods, heatwaves, rising sea levels, threats to food production – can be arrested. As part of this commitment, the parties are required to communicate their emissions reduction ambitions through a Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC). On 16 June 2022, Australia communicated its updated NDC to the UN, confirming Australia’s commitment to achieve net zero emissions by 2050, and a new, increased target of 43% below 2005 levels by 2030 (a 15% increase on the previous target). The Climate Change Bill enshrines these emission targets into legislation.

The Bill itself sets an accountability framework for climate targets but does not introduce mechanisms to cut emissions.

Impacted industries

The energy sector is at the heart of climate change producing around three-quarters of global greenhouse gas emissions. In Australia, the CSIRO says energy contributes approximately 33.6% of all emissions, with a further 20.54% from stationary energy (from manufacturing, mining, residential and commercial fuel use), transport 17.6%, and agriculture 14.6%. The future of the energy industry is also at the crux of the Government Powering Australia policy.

Emissions reduction is not just a social obligation but a necessity as investment tilts towards lower emission suppliers. As an example, the 2022-23 Federal Budget committed a $120 billion 10-year infrastructure pipeline. The June 2022 Business Council of Australia Infrastructure in a world moving to net zero report provides a series of recommendations to address the way in which Government invests including the adoption of low carbon materials on public projects and options for reducing emissions during construction, understanding the whole of life emissions impact of infrastructure projects and potentially adopting the UK style PAS2080 standard on carbon management infrastructure, and a shift in procurement to lower carbon supply chains. If these considerations have not made it into business production and supply chain planning, they will soon.

Amongst other initiatives the Government have committed to:

• $20bn investment in Australia’s electricity grid to accelerate the decarbonisation.
• An additional $300m to deliver community batteries and solar banks across Australia.
• Up to $3bn investment in the new National Reconstruction Fund to support renewables manufacturing and low emissions technologies.
• Powering the Regions Fund to support the development of new clean energy industries and the decarbonisation priorities of existing industry.
• Double existing investment in electric vehicle charging and establish hydrogen refuelling infrastructure (to $500m).
• Review the effectiveness of the Emissions Reduction Fund that provides businesses with the opportunity to earn Australian carbon credit units for every tonne of carbon dioxide equivalent a business stores or avoids emitting through adopting new practices and technologies.
• New standardised and internationally-aligned reporting requirements for climate risks and opportunities for large businesses.
• Reduce the emissions of Commonwealth Government agencies to net zero by 2030.

In essence, business can expect directed funding for co-investment in emission reduction technology, Government spending to be through the lens of the renewed emissions targets, and for new funding opportunities to advance low emission technology.

But emissions reduction is not just about industry. Land use change can have a significant impact on emissions through reductions. For example, a reduction in forest clearing in 2020 reduced emissions by 4.9%. One initiative needs to go hand in hand with the other.

In 2021, fossil fuels represented 67.5% (59.1% coal) of the total annual electricity generation and renewables 32.5% (an increase of 5% on the previous year with the spike contributed by small scale solar, and large scale solar and wind farms).

FBT-free Electric Cars

New legislation before Parliament, if enacted, will make zero or low emission vehicles FBT-free. We explore who can access the concession and how.

Electric vehicles (EV) represent just under 2% of the new car market in Australia but it is a rapidly growing sector with a 62.3% jump in new EV registrations between 2020 and 2021.

Making EVs FBT-free is just the first step in the Government’s plan to make zero and low emission vehicles the car of choice for Australians, focussing on affordability and overcoming “range anxiety” by:

• Cutting import tariffs
• Placing EV fast chargers once every 150 kilometres on the nation’s highways
• Creating a national Hydrogen Highways refuelling network, to deliver stations on Australia’s busiest freight routes
• Converting the Commonwealth fleet to 75% no-emissions vehicles

It is on this last point, fleet cars, that the FBT exemption on EVs is targeted. In Australia, business account for around 40% of light vehicle sales according to a research report by Griffith and Monash Universities. However, EV sales to business fleets comprised a mere 0.08% of the market in 2020. The Government can control what it purchases and has committed to converting its fleet to no-emission vehicles, but for the private sector, there is a wide gap between the total cost of ownership of EVs and traditional combustion engine vehicles. It’s more expensive overall and the Government is looking to reduce that impediment through the FBT system.

How the EV FBT exemption will work

The proposed FBT exemption is intended to apply to cars provided by an employer to an employee under the following conditions:

Low and zero emission cars

• Battery electric vehicles;
• Hydrogen fuel cell electric vehicles; and
• Plug-in hybrid electric vehicles. Be careful here because this doesn’t include all hybrid vehicles. To qualify the car needs to be ‘plug-in’. A car that has an internal combustion engine will not meet requirements unless it is able to be fuelled by a battery that can be recharged by an off-vehicle power source.

The car was first held and used on or after 1 July 2022

• Where the car is first held and used on or after 1 July 2022. Provided the conditions of the exemption are met, an electric car that was ordered prior to 1 July 2022, but was not delivered until after 1 July 2022 would be eligible for the exemption (even if an employer acquired legal title to the car before 1 July 2022). However, a car delivered to you prior to 1 July 2022 would not qualify.
• A second-hand electric car may qualify for the exemption, provided that the car was first purchased new on or after 1 July 2022

Value below luxury car tax threshold for fuel efficient vehicles

• The value of the car at the first retail sale must be below the luxury car tax threshold ($84,916 in 2022-23) for fuel efficient vehicles. The luxury car tax threshold generally includes GST and customs duty but excludes other items such as service plans, extended warranties, stamp duty and registration.

If an electric car qualifies for the FBT exemption, then associated benefits relating to running the car for the period the car fringe benefit is provided, can also be exempt from FBT.

Government modelling states that if an EV valued at about $50,000 is provided by an employer through this arrangement, the FBT exemption would save the employer up to $9,000 a year.

While the measure provides an exemption from FBT, the value of that fringe benefit is still taken into account in determining the reportable fringe benefits amount of the employee. That is, the value of the benefit is reported on the employee’s income statement. While income tax is not paid on this amount, it is used to determine the employee’s adjusted taxable income for a range of areas such as the Medicare levy surcharge, private health insurance rebate, employee share scheme reduction, and social security payments.

Can I salary sacrifice an electric car?

Assuming your employer agrees, and the car meets the criteria, salary packaging is an option. While some FBT concessions are not available if the benefit is provided under a salary sacrifice arrangement, the exemption for electric cars will be available. In order for a salary sacrifice arrangement to be effective for tax purposes, it needs to be agreed, documented, and in place prior to the employee earning the income that they are sacrificing.

Government modelling suggests that for individuals using a salary sacrifice arrangement to pay for a $50,000 electric vehicle, the saving would be up to $4,700 a year.

Who cannot access the FBT exemption

Your business structure makes a difference

By its nature, the FBT exemption only applies where an employer provides a car to an employee. Partners of a partnership and sole traders will not be able to access the benefits of the exemption as they are not employees of the business. When it comes to beneficiaries of a trust and shareholders of a company it will be important to determine whether the benefit will be provided to them in their capacity as an employee or director of the entity.

Exemption is limited to cars

As the FBT exemption only relates to cars, other vehicles like vans are excluded. Cars are defined as motor vehicles (including four-wheel drives) designed to carry a load less than one tonne and fewer than nine passengers.

EV State and Territory tax concessions

The Federal Government is not alone in using concessions to encourage electric vehicle ownership.

ACT

The ACT Government offers a stamp duty exemption on new zero emission vehicles, and up to two years free registration for new or second hand zero emission vehicles (registered between 24 May 2021 and before 30 June 2024).

New South Wales

Reimbursement of stamp duty paid on purchases of new or used full battery electric vehicles (BEVs) and hydrogen fuel cell electric vehicles (FCEVs), with a dutiable value up to and including $78,000.

Northern Territory

For plug-in electric vehicles (battery and hybrid plug-in), from 1 July 2022 until 30 June 2027, access free registration for new and existing vehicles and a stamp duty concession of up to $1,500 on the first $50,000 of the car’s market/sale value – 3% thereafter.

Queensland

Discounted registration duty for hybrid and electric vehicles. And, a limited $3,000 rebate for new eligible zero emission vehicles with a purchase price (dutiable value) of up to $58,000 (including GST) on or after 16 March 2022.

South Australia

A limited $3,000 subsidy and a 3-year registration exemption on eligible new battery electric and hydrogen fuel cell vehicles first registered from 28 October 2021.

Tasmania

From 1 July 2022 until 30 June 2022, no stamp duty applies to light electric or hydrogen fuel-cell motor vehicle (including motorcycles). Vehicles with an internal combustion engine do not qualify.

Victoria

A limited $3,000 subsidy is available for new eligible zero emission vehicles purchased on or after 2 May 2021. More than 20,000 subsidies are available under the program. Plus, stamp duty for ‘green passenger cars’ is set at the one rate regardless of value ($8.40 per $200 or part thereof).

Zero emission vehicles receive a $100 annual registration concession but are also subject to a per kilometre road user charge.

Western Australia

A $3,500 rebate on the purchase of a new zero emission, hydrogen fuel cell or battery light vehicle with a value of up to $70,000 purchased on or after 10 May 2022.

We hope the above information is valuable.

1. Budgets & Cashflow Forecasts Help Business Management

Now is a good time to review or prepare budgets and cashflow forecasts.  We are doing quite a bit of this sort of work and it is proving immensely valuable for the business owners and management.

This involves:

Goal setting – what are your goals for the next 12 months, including your salary, targeted profit before income tax etc?

How is the economy likely to affect your business?  This covers interest rates, debtors’ days outstanding, gold and oil prices, unemployment.

Your business’ expectations?  What do you think will happen relative to:

• labour costs?
• cost of materials?
• support from your suppliers?
• market confidence etc.?

Sales targets – have you given consideration to the matters that have already been discussed?  What do you think is going to be your business’ realistic sales performance for each week and month during 2022 – 2023?

Stock purchases – does your business have to supply stock?  Do you need to create a stock purchases budget?  This will reflect the number of days you are budgeting to invest in stock on hand.

Overhead Expenses – the financial year has just started so it is a great time to subject the various expense categories within your business to a detailed review and questioning as to whether the expenses are necessary or whether the current suppliers are the best ones to continue to deal with during this year.

Break Even Analysis – what is your break even going to be in various business operations?  Are the managers/supervisors of those activities being informed of the break even calculations for which they are responsible?

Currency Fluctuations – the Australian Dollar will no doubt continue to fluctuate during the year.  If you are an importer or exporter, should you be trying to lock in currency cover?

“Profit” is not the same as “cash” – In the Budgets and Cashflow Forecasts prepared, you need to examine how much money is going to be tied up in debtors, stock and work in progress.  This is where a lot of your profit can end up; meaning that you don’t see it in your bank account.  Could the level of debtors or stock be reduced so that you can utilise more of the profits earlier?

Projected Source & Application of Funds Statement – it is a good idea to have a projected source & application of funds statement prepared because this will give a clearer outline of what is projected to happen in your business in the forthcoming 12 months.

Key Performance Indicators – once the Budgets and Cashflow Forecasts have been finalised, Key Performance Indicators can then be prepared so you can have these targeted amounts in mind to compare your actual financial performance against during the year.

If you wish to discuss the preparation of Budgets and Cashflow Forecasts, please contact us.

2. Customer Loyalty Ladder

To have a great business, you need to establish a customer loyalty ladder.  The ultimate aim then is to develop evangelists for your business, but where do you start?

The loyalty ladder:

In the first instance, a viewer is someone in the market place who could buy from you but is currently not a prospect or a customer.

Prospects are people who are not yet customers but who have shown some sort of interest in the products or services offered by your business.  They might have responded to advertising or may have requested a quotation.  The greatest cost every business has is attracting prospects and then getting them to take the next step to become customers.

Customers are people who buy from your business once, but you shouldn’t stop your marketing/promotional activities once someone becomes a customer.  In fact, you have only just started because you need to utilise systems, staff attitudes or your business’ knowledge to take customers to the next level.

Clients are people who buy from your business more than once, so you need to continue to promote and market your business to them – show them you care!

Member – a member is a client who has dealt with your business a number of times who you then offer a “loyalty card” or offer “other inducements” to make them feel they are an important component to your business.

Advocates – Advocates are different to members because, when asked, they will recommend your business.  Advocates need to be people who are well recognised by your team as being people who are prepared to be pro-active to viewers and prospects, in their support of your business.

Evangelists – the highest level of customer recognition is where an advocate becomes an evangelist.  An evangelist openly promotes your business through things they say to other people, comments they make on your website, facebook and blogs.  To develop an evangelist in your business, you need to make communications very easy and encourage members to become advocates and then to become evangelists for your business.

The team needs to understand that the first sale to a customer is the beginning of a relationship which will hopefully culminate in a customer becoming an evangelist for your business.

Then you have a loyalty ladder.

Keeping Customers Is Important

Consumers are looking to deal with businesses they can trust.  Is your business creating a feeling of trust with the customer?  It is a good idea to obtain testimonials, preferably on video, from happy customers and utilise these videos on your website.  Do you conduct customer surveys to discover customers’ likes and dislikes regarding your business?  This might mean you need to fine tune your business operation.

Staff should be encouraged to show passion and enthusiasm when dealing with customers highlighting your business’ unique selling proposition.  You can encourage loyalty from customers by focusing on providing them with superior service, and by offering specials to regular customers.  A good customer attraction and retention system should make significant contributions to your business’ cashflow.

If you would like us to review your customer attraction and retention system, please contact us.

3. What’s It Mean?

Debtors’ Days Outstanding

Debtors’ days outstanding is one of the most important key performance indicators available to a business manager.  The calculation should be prepared on a monthly basis and the resulting figure compared to budget estimates.  Debtors’ days outstanding is calculated as follows:

Credit Sales  365 = average daily sales

The actual debtors’ balance is divided by the average daily sales to give debtors’ days outstanding.

Example:

Credit sales     $2,382,000

365          =        $6,526

Debtors’ days outstanding        $327,000

Divided by average daily sale   $6,526   = 50.1 days

If your business is trading on 30 days payment terms, this means you are making available to your customers an extra $131,173 worth of credit.

If you would like to have a discussion on how to reduce the amount of money owed to you by your customers, so you are no longer acting as the banker, please contact us.

Break Even Sales

Is the level of sales necessary to cover all fixed and variable expenses (i.e.  no profit or loss).

Example:  If the fixed costs were $722,000, the variable costs were $319,000 and the business was

achieving a gross profit of 48%, the calculation of the break even sales would be:

Management should be aware of the break even sales figures for their business, or individual operation, so as to assist in the strategies being prepared for the business.

If you would like to have a discussion on how to work through your break even sales please contact us.

This is why you Must be There…….

Where:

Hilton, Surfers Paradise

When:

17 – 19 October, 2022

Our 100% Money Back Guarantee (so absolutely NO RISK FOR YOU):

If you do not get at least 1 idea that pays for the course investment 10 times over then we will give you your money back.

The only disclaimer is that you come along with an open mind and you get involved and work through the course and you implement what you learn. It will be the best decision you ever make for your business and your life.

100% Tax Deductable:

The whole event (getting up there and back home, the accommodation, the course investment, meals and spending a few days up there before and/or after) is 100% tax deductable. So, the Government helps you grow your business by letting you claim all of those things, now that is awesome.

At the Event: 

There will be advisors at the event to help for every 10 attendees. So you will not be left alone, we will work with you for the 3 days.

After the Event:

We will not leave you alone. We will work with you (if you like) after the event to make sure you get the maximum results and benefits form the 3 days.

Like-Minded People:

The event brings like-minded, forward thinking, positive people in one room where everyone shares and provides ideas and thoughts for all attendees to use. This is a great way to learn and pick up ideas.

Best of Breed Key Note Speakers:

Specialising in technology, social media, marketing, leadership, the numbers, customer service, team, culture, motivational, strategy, sales and much more

The 3 Day Program focuses on:

• We look at how planning ensures you can manage the things you can control.
• We look at the impact of beginning with the end in mind and how it dramatically can alter how your business moves forward.
• We drill in and look at the 5 Key Business Building Strategies™ – the 5 ways will show you how little changes can have profound effects on your business.
• We look at the 5 Dysfunctions of a Team and how by tackling them you can multiply your businesses service levels and in turn your profits.
• You will learn about the Value Gap Test™ and start to work on it.
• You will be introduced to the 5 Steps to Successful Succession™ – this alone will ensure you obtain a much higher price for your business.
• You will also learn how to apply systems that will improve your business.
• How you can profit by working ON rather than IN your business.
• You will learn how to increase the profitability of your business but NOT at the expense of your quality of life.
• Discover how it is the “Little Things” that have a massive results.
• You will also have the opportunity to meet and do business with other people who are business people just like you. You will be able to combine the shared experience of the group with your own resources to work on the specific issues your business is faced with.
• And so much more

What People are Saying about the Global Business camp Event:

What I loved about GBC: John’s infectious excitement! Business bible (take home folder). Revisiting our values, mission and culture. Making sure the right people are ‘on the bus’, and improve our team. – IRENE, BUSINESS SERVICES INDUSTRY

John is the man that defies all of your expectations of accountants! He is the greatest cheerleader we’ve ever met! He’s exciting, engaging and challenging. John mixes his business savvy with unbridled enthusiasm and a commitment to seeing us realise our business dreams!

He comes off the stage and into the heart of the business and we love him for it! It’s John’s voice that gets into your head once you’ve left Global Business Camps, whispering to you “that’s so cool” when you’re turning the 6 Secrets™ into your reality! – TRICIA, TRAIN TO SUCCEED

We plan to go on holidays, we plan how to build our house but we don’t really plan as to where we want our business to be in 5 then 10 years so that we’ve got a set goal to get to. – IAN HEALY

Or just go and listen to what a few more wonderful people have had to say – https://globalbusinesscamps.com.au/event/testimonials/

Find out more at https://globalbusinesscamps.com.au/camp about the 17 – 19 October, 2022 Global Business Camp and register now.

Or you can also call us on 08 8212 8585 and speak to one of our team and find out more about the 3 days.

If someone asked you what your ideal day is, what would you answer?

This year was a year where many of us have taken stock of what is important, refined our goals, and focused on closing the gap between our ideal and our reality.

Article by Brian Tracy and additions by us where required.

Sometimes, when it comes to achieving life success in both your professional and personal life, focusing on the most basic, simple priorities is the most beneficial thing that you can do.

When you give your body and mind the things they need to excel, good results will follow.

No matter what you are hoping to achieve or accomplish, there are three essentials for success: sleep, exercise, and positive thinking.

Below, we’ll cover each one and discuss why they are so important.

1. Get Plenty Of Sleep

In modern times, far too many people suffer from a lack of sleep.

There are several different factors causing this, with the first being the busy, stressful lives that we live. When you’re in a constant state of hustle, it’s easy to put a good night’s sleep on the backburner.

Likewise, when you’ve had a long, stressful day, relaxing your mind and falling asleep can sometimes be difficult.

The second factor that causes a lack of sleep in modern times is artificial light, especially the light from a smartphone or computer.

Many people spend the late night hours on their phone or computer, right up to the minute they try to go to sleep.

This constant flood of light, though, can trick your brain into thinking it’s still daylight, slowing your melatonin production and making it hard to fall asleep at night.

If you want to be at your best each day, though, it is essential that you overcome these challenges and get a good night’s rest.

Eight hours of sleep each night is recommended, and it’s definitely a worthwhile goal to aim for.

When you start getting enough sleep each night so that your body and mind are both fully refreshed the next day, you may be surprised by the results that it brings you.

2. Exercise

Exercise is a key factor to success.

The physical benefits of exercise are well-documented. However, the mental benefits of exercise are certainly noteworthy as well.

Countless studies have shown the impact that regular exercise can have on your confidence, optimism, enthusiasm, and much more.

When you exercise, your body releases endorphins – the “feel good hormone” – and these endorphins are able to provide a wide range of positive benefits as you go about your day.

In addition to releasing endorphins, regular exercise is able to boost your confidence by changing your body and showing you that you can hit your goals if you set your mind to them.

Of course, the physical benefits of exercise are definitely worthwhile as well.

When you exercise regularly, you’ll have more energy, more strength, and better health – all things which are able to translate to more success in both your personal and professional life.

3. Think Positively

Finally, you must think positively.

There’s a motivational quote that says, “Whether you think you can or whether you think you can’t, you’re right”.

In more ways than one, a person’s outlook on life often turns into a self-fulfilling prophecy. When you fill your mind with positive thoughts and optimism, positive results typically follow.

Conversely, when you fill your mind with negative thoughts and pessimism, negative results typically follow.

Positive thinking is like fuel for your mind, driving you to succeed and helping you to overcome the challenges that you encounter rather than being brought down by them.

In order for you to have a mindset that lends itself to success, it’s essential to start trying to have a positive outlook in all aspects of your life.

In the end, you may be shocked by just how dramatic the results will be when you make this one simple change.

Now I’d love to hear from you, so my question today is: Have you thought positively about yourself today? 

Finding happiness in yourself will reflect on everything you do. 

Take our affirmation challenge and join us at the upcoming Global Business Camp on the Gold Coast, from the 17^th to the 19^th of October 2022 and transform your business and life. Not only will you be with positive forward thinking people but you will be away from your normal environment working on improving your business and yourself.

The  Australian Taxation Office is getting very vigilant now regarding personal superannuation contributions and the deductions.

Please note: You must complete a ‘Notice of Intent to Claim Form’ with your superfund provider when putting money into super.

You will need to submit the Notice of intent to claim a deduction form (Notice of intent) with your superfund provider before you complete your tax return or before 30 June of the financial year following the year you contributed (whichever occurs earlier).

Your superfund should be communicating this with you but we are finding this is not happening.

If you do not the Australian Taxation Office will knock back the tax deduction.

Please contact us with any questions.

For more information like this click on the below:

https://www.indigofinancial.com.au/category/news/

Over the years we have had thousands of businesses attend and achieve great results post the event. We are very proud of that result and are keen to continue to help SME’s do and be better. In turn the greatest outcome is that the owners and key stakeholders of these businesses end up having a better life.

My team and I would love for you to come along and spend 3 days with us and experience the best business camp in the world. I have a little summary below and an attached invitation with more detail. Also, our website at www.globalbusinesscamps.com.au has all of the information.

DID YOU KNOW?

• 88% of business failure is due to things we can control.
• Over 50% of Small to Medium Enterprises (SME’s) have no strategic business plan and 50% will change generation in the next decade.
• It costs 6 times more to get a new customer to deal with you than what it takes to get an existing customer to buy more from you.
• A 15% increase in customer loyalty can increase profitability by up to 80%.
• 80% – 90% of the success of any business ad, letter or communication comes from the heading.
• A fully systemised business is worth up to more than 86.7% more than an unsystemised business.
• The cost of employee turnover is up to 150% of their remuneration package.

The 3 day program focusses on

• The 6 Secrets™ of any successful business. This simple yet powerful concept will give you a structured starting point to start the journey improving the performance of your business.
• The 5 Key Business Building Strategies™.
• You will also learn how to apply systems that will improve your business.
• How you can profit by working ON rather than IN your business.
• You will discover how to calculate the real value of your business and what you can do to increase that value.
• You will learn how to increase the profitability of your business but NOT at the expense of your quality of life.
• Discover how it is the “Little Things” that have a profound effect.
• Benefit from the experiences of other business people.
• Leadership, social media avenues, technology advancements, marketing, sales, team, culture, how a 1% change can have a massive improvement in your business, resilience and inspiration, how to become the go to business and why the experience is everything and much more

What are some of the things you will work on?

• We look at how planning ensures you can manage the things you can control.
• We look at the impact of beginning with the end in mind and how it dramatically can alter how your business moves forward.
• We drill in and look at the 5 Key Business Building Strategies™ – the 5 ways will show you how little changes can have profound effects on your business
• You will learn about the Value Gap Test™ and start to work on it.
• You will be introduced to the 5 Steps to Successful Succession™ – this alone will ensure you obtain a much higher price for your business.
• You will also have the opportunity to meet and do business with other people who are business people just like you. You will be able to combine the shared experience of the group with your own resources to work on the specific issues your business is faced with.

Some key points for you to consider

• The event and pre and post is 100% Tax Deductible and is a great way to work on your business for a few days away.
• There is also an 100% Money Back Guarantee – if you do not get at least one idea that pays for the course investment 10 times over we will refund your course investment in full. So there is ABSOLUTELY NO RISK TO YOU.
• We have great key note speakers that focus on – purpose, why, sales, marketing, the 1% changes and their impacts, leadership, technology, social media and so much more.
• The course is structured and focused on your business.
• Great networking event with like-minded forward thinking people.
• We would love to offer you and your businesses very special pricing of $1,980 pp (full rate is $3,300 pp, that is a saving of $1,320 pp).
• Contact us so we can get you registered.

This is truly an event not to be missed. Join us and the already 98 people that are registered.

Once again please contact us if you would like to speak about the event. Call us on 08 8212 8585 and ask for Kathy (Event Coordinator), John Tsoulos, Nathan Kentish or one of the other team.

One of the biggest complaints from salespeople in a tight economy is the time it takes to achieve a sale. So, what can you do to speed up the sales process?

Sell the solution not the product

Branding is wonderful but unless your brand is as mighty as Coca Cola, it’s unlikely people will purchase what you have based on brand alone. It’s more important than ever to have clarity about why your product or service is valuable to your client and why they should be buying it from you.

Back in 2000, Berlei bras demonstrated the art of solution selling with their sports bra campaign, “only the ball should bounce.” For anyone that has seen a sports bras you know that aesthetically, they are the ugly duckling of the lingerie world; highly functional but very unattractive. Berlei used science to demonstrate how much damage exercising in anything but a sports bra could do (using television advertising, print, point of sale advertising, media, etc).  The point is to understand what the most meaningful message is for your customer and that is unlikely to be a product feature list.

Sell the savings

Does your product offer your customer any form of efficiency gain or benefit beyond value over time? Can you justify it with real examples such as testimonials and worked examples? If it does, you need to ensure that you articulate this message. If there is a benefit, ensure you highlight it and emphasise the result. Try and stay away from long range forecasts. If it is going to take a few years to see the real value then this is not a compelling selling point in the current market.

You are only as strong as the weakest link in your sales process

If your first point of contact is the weakest link in your sales chain, then you need to fix it. Help your team identify and capitalise on opportunities by giving them the training and structure they need.

Value added discounts

Discounting is a common strategy to increase sales but it comes at the cost of your margin. If you are going to discount, do it strategically. For example, when David Jones wanted to build the number of customers holding a David Jones AMEX, they offered a limited time 30% discount store wide to everyone who either held or applied for the card on the spot. And, staff were trained to encourage the adoption of the AMEX at the checkout. Yes, it was a big discount, but it created an event for existing store card holders and ramped up acquisition to the store card program. The added benefit is that loyalty programs work; the probability of selling to an existing customer is around 14 times higher than a new customer.

In tough economic times, it’s common for the volume of products purchased by customers to go down. You can overcome some of this reticence by packaging items together and encouraging sales volume by offering a discount on the second item or on bundles. If you are going to package, ensure you are not packaging low margin products and then discounting them. Packaging works best when you package products with higher profit margins or where you boost the sales volume of slow moving stock by combining it with faster selling stock.

Quote of the month

“You can’t change conditions. Just the way you deal with them.”

Jessica Watson OAM, the youngest person to sail solo and unassisted around the world

If you have any questions about any of the above, please contact us.

We also focus on all of the above in large detail at the Global Business Camp. The camp focusses on sales strategies, selling a solution and not the product, value adding discounts and offers, what is unique about your business etc.

The event is coming up from the 17^th to the 19^th of October 2022 find out more – www.globalbusinesscamps.com.au.

Also, speak to us about how we can help you with the above and any other business assistance you may need.

Contact us to find out more.