Passionate about helping start-ups get off the ground, Alltel General Manager Trent Brinsley shares his knowledge, experience, and tips so you can build a successful business. As GM of a national, independent telco, he knows what it takes to go from a family-run, lounge room operation to a successful national corporation. During this 4 part podcast series, created especially for start-ups and small businesses, you’ll learn: - all you need to know about laying the foundations - establishing structures for growth, and; - setting achievable goals. During his time in business Trent has always been customer focused. He believes success relies on knowing: - who your customers are - where they come from - and what they are looking for Like many companies, Alltel was established after a gap in the market was identified. “We felt telco’s weren’t providing a good service to businesses, and that’s how we came about,” says Trent. After they figured out how to fill a hole in the market, they then considered how they wanted the business to look. In the early stages it’s helpful to think about how you want your business to appear. Trent suggests asking yourself the following questions: - What will happen when your first employee comes on board? - What will the first employee do? - How will you share your knowledge with your staff? Once the staffing structures are in place, then it’s time to focus on the customer. How are you going to remain in their mind? Will you be available to them 24/7? What support do they require from you? If you look after your customers, growth will follow. Trent outlines a number of free tools you can utilise to gauge your customer experience. For example, you can measure and test how long they spend on your website without spending a cent. There’s more to come in series 1….. During the final podcast we look at goal setting.