Profitable Business Writing and Training Strategies for Small Businesses

Business strategies are often concentrated in a specific direction rather than involving multiple objectives. While this strict approach could allow for a process that is easier to monitor and facilitate, there can also be clear downsides. This article will discuss an example that illustrates how combined strategies involving business training and technical business writing can be more profitable for small businesses than approaching each separately.

Profitability is a useful tool to serve as a “management umpire” in most situations involving choices and decisions such as those described here. While this may periodically require a small business owner to get help from a profitability expert, prudent use of this specialized decision-making tool always warrants serious consideration. For those unfamiliar with the benefits of cost effective solutions, here is a brief summary:

• In simpler terms, the process forces a comparison of costs (including both time and money) and what you get for your money in both tangible and intangible terms.
• Once that comparison is made for each of several possible options, it is a short step to have a more objective evaluation of multiple alternatives.
• When evaluating the “effectiveness” or results of an action taken, it is also important to analyze the consequences of not doing something
• Peter Drucker described the concept obliquely when he said, “Efficiency is doing the right things.”

How does this relate to business training and technical writing? One practical approach is to look at the training first and see where it can be most profitable for small businesses. While there are many different and conflicting reports about how effective business training is in actual practice, there is significant consensus that a short list of fewer than ten training activities routinely provides the most profitable results. Business writing is on the short list.

Most small businesses regularly strive to increase their sales revenue, and business proposal writing is a viable strategy to achieve this goal. However, many companies often lack the advanced and specialized business writing skills necessary to produce effective proposals. How do you think this critical capability can be added? If training is the answer, why do you hesitate to go ahead with this double strategy?

The biggest impediment to using business training and profitability is probably that these concepts are simply misunderstood too often. But with risks and issues to address, small businesses must make the effort to gain a practical understanding. What are the consequences of not doing this?