Jeremy Rudd uses a compelling story, without any accounting jargon, of Jo, a young girl starting a business to get across important lessons in running businesses profitably. Jo encounters all the most common pitfalls along the journey and is helped by a mentor turning her first loss into huge and sustainable profits. This novel approach uses a memorable supporting cast, for instance the mentor is Squawk a battle-weary seagull, helpers being dormice and her inspirational (and some say accident prone) partner is her teddy bear.
Key messages for success are given and enforced:
- Have a Target (must have clear vision of what you want!)
- Make a Plan to deliver the target (otherwise how do you know what to do)
- Maximise profit by focusing on Pricing mechanisms (and we learn that increasing your sales price by 5% could double your profit)
- Market research - always know what your competitors are doing
- MaximiseSales (5% increase in items sold could increase your profit by 30%),
- Costs will devour profit if not controlled (a profitable business introduces a new product and slumps into losses) Who ate the chocolate?
- Fixed costs are such a risk in any fast-moving business.
- Management Information (in the book they use lots of different tins to put the cash in)
Jeremy ensures that the book answers many questions that Entrepreneurs and Leaders are always asking themselves:
- Why and how do you start a business?
- How do you make and sustain a profit?
- Is my business profitable enough?
- How do I know what techniques to use to increase profit and customer satisfaction?
- What must I do next, what are my competitors doing
- What is market research?
- Where has my cash gone….
“It is a true gift to be able to explain complex ideas simply and clearly and in this book Jeremy does just that. I would recommend ‘4 Magic Steps…’ to all management teams and would encourage a re-read on an annual basis. Too often the intricacies of any business conceal the prime objective and distract management. This book reminds us exactly what our priorities should be.”
Ted Smith, Chairman Tracscare and Keys Care and former CEO of Craegmoor and Embrace
“Jeremy Rudd delivers the goods in this very accessible and easy to read business book for everyone. Start-ups to Fortune 500 companies will appreciate the easy to remember approach and the ease with which it can be explained to their teams. His 4 Magic Steps are extremely compelling, and the math examples show us just how powerful, how magical they are Everyone running a business or growing a business should read this book. Cash is king, and Rudd shows us why it is powerful and how to grow profit in 4 easy to understand steps. Buy it, you can’t afford not to!”
Trevor Hill, Chairman & CEO, FATHOM. Phoenix, Arizona.
“Whenever I look at my business performance, it’s as if Squawk is now sitting on my shoulder....”
Gary Smith, former CEO SIS and President Bell, Canada.
“Jeremy Rudd delivers the goods in this very accessible and easy to read business book for everyone. Start-ups to Fortune 500 companies will appreciate the easy to remember approach and the ease with which it can be explained to their teams. His 4 Magic Steps are extremely compelling and the math examples show us just how powerful, how magical they are. Everyone running a business or growing a business should read this book. Cash is king, and Rudd shows us why it is powerful and how to grow profit in 4 easy to understand steps. Buy it, you can’t afford not to!”
Trevor Hill, Chairman & CEO, FATHOM. Phoenix, Arizona.
“Speaking of his predecessors, Sir Isaac Newton, the greatest scientist of his era, once remarked, modestly, that if he had seen further than others, it was because he stood on the shoulders of giants. Let Jeremy’s clear and incisive thoughts be the shoulders which help you see further than the competition.”
A successful entrepreneur.
“Talk about scratching an itch! Jeremy Rudd addresses the very heart of the problem that every business manager and entrepreneur wrestles with: how can I make my business more profitable? Using a beautifully simple story he brings complex business principles into everyday language, enabling the reader to extract tools that they can instantly apply. Every entrepreneur should read this. Every manager should read this. Everyone should read this.”
Piers Clark, Founder & Chairman Isle Group. Isle is a technical, specialist consultancy with offices in the UK, Netherlands, USA, Australia, Singapore and Abu Dhabi.
“Read this book if you are a busy boss, a struggling SME or an aspiring entrepreneur. The 4 Magic Steps formula will help you to cut through the entanglements and diversions which so often detract from a primary focus of business – profitability. Jeremy has brought to bear his many years of experience in developing and turning around businesses in a wide range of sectors to give you a simple, readable and engaging story exposing the magic steps to doubling your profit. Buy one for yourself and one for every person in your business to remind them to stay focused on this vital element of success and sustainability.”
Specialist adviser to and former MD of Facility & Utility Management Businesses.
“Understandably, a young businessperson switches off when listening to an old codger spouting on about business. I really, really hope young business people don’t switch off when confronted with Jeremy’s insights into business performance. They may just avoid thirty years of misery and worry.”
Old codger, retired retailer.
“This new book is excellent. It certainly makes a refreshing change from reading tedious business books that are often less accessible and much less well explained! It’s a fantastic primer for new entrepreneurs and for top management of businesses who have never had a formal business education and so often fall into the usual traps like underpricing, overtrading/working capital shortage, and not keeping a firm lid on overheads. I particularly liked “Sage” being the accountant with his tins instead of ledgers but I constantly suspected Ted of being a crook who was going to run off with all the cash one day and/ or set up as a direct competitor!”
James McNaught-Davis, Managing Partner Wetherby Capital Partners LLP, London, UK.
“Most businesses stay small, some by design, most not. The focus in this book might help you to have the choice.”
UK Business advisor.
