Servcorp’s My Biggest Small Business Challenge competition has revealed task delegation, time management, work/life balance and isolation are the biggest challenges facing SMBs.
Kylie Nash, owner of online baby gifting service Bubs in Arms, has won the $5,000 prize money, beating 176 other entries. Small businesses shared their biggest concerns as part of Servcorp’s social media campaign on Facebook last month for their chance to win.
Nash told Dynamic Business her biggest challenge was the fear of losing control by delegating tasks. “Every facet of my operation is ultimately up to one person; and that is me!”
She finds developing social media and having the time to carry out action plans can be a struggle. Therefore she needs to be willing to lose some control by relying on others to carry out her vision.
Keeping a work/life balance was another problem revealed by the competition. As a “Mumpreneur” Nash claims this problem is a juggling act. She said: “You want to spend as much time with your kids as possible, but you have to balance this with work for the business.”
Isolation is a further issue. Working alone can be hard when there is no-one to share in the struggles or the triumphs. Servcorp CIO Marcus Moufarrige said joining a business community can help not only to alleviate the isolation, “but also generate fresh ideas and perspectives”.
Time management is the final major challenge. Prioritizing is key, and as Nash notes “as the owner, you’ve got to become the expert in all areas of business”.
To overcome these challenges Moufarrige suggests using video communication and virtual offices which allow better communication with clients and colleagues. Nash adds, “it’s helpful to surround yourself with encouraging people, people who have walked in your shoes.”
Nash is “very excited” by her win. “I wrote my entry from the heart,” she said. She plans to invest the prize money into her business, most likely going towards advertising and online marketing.
The other finalists were: Claire Gresty of The Little Dress Making Company, Keri James of iTravel and Borge Prinsloo of Mr Roast.
