19 Nov 2014

A lot of poverty eradication projects are ruined by credit hence the need for programme beneficiaries to avoid giving credit to customers.

South East District Council (SEDC) chief adult education assistant, Ms Kealeboga Kopelang said this at a poverty eradication workshop in Otse on November 17.

She said giving credit to customers was a risk that had led to a lot of projects being closed because debtors refused to pay while some relocated without leaving their contact addresses. 

“While business owners are always advised not give credit to anyone, there are some who still do that which hinders the growth of their businesses,” said Ms Kopelang. Ms Kopelang advised aspiring entrepreneurs not to trust anyone. She also suggested that they quote debtor’s full names, physical and postal address and their identity card number.

She said profits were driven by hard workers who take care of their equipment so that they could be able to use it for a longer period without having to replace it. “Taking good care of equipment should be able to help sustain your business for a longer period,” she said.

Furthermore, Ms Kopelang urged entrepreneurs to save part of their profits once their businesses takeoff and refrain from using money unreasonably. She further noted that some businesses collapsed because owners were quick to reward themselves before they make profits.

She warned the prospective entrepreneurs to build good relationships with their customers and to treat customers equally regardless of their situations so as to attract even more customers in order to succeed.

Ms Kopelang also advised them to keep records of what goes in and out of their business in order to judge whether or not they were making profits. “Records should be able to help you assess where your business will be in the next coming years,” Ms Kopelang said.

For his part, the Local Enterprise Authority (LEA) entrepreneurship development trainer, Mr Victor Ramaribana said entrepreneurs should always remember why they ventured into business.

He said they should be able to market their businesses in order to increase sales as well as to build their company’s reputation. He noted that by marketing, entrepreneurs would also be able to promote product awareness and penetrate the market.

Mr Ramaribana further urged those that would be going into business to be strategic and to win people’s minds. The SEDC social worker for Taung, Ms Masego Kgomotso urged the aspiring entreprenuers to refrain from closing their businesses to work for Ipelegeng. ENDS