January is the time
to plan big, right? Business plans are created, amended, folded, stapled,
mutilated, and disseminated. Business strategies are set when these business
plans pop up and everyone gets very excited.
Then it’s February.
Resolutions and business plans - both business and personal - are made with great intentions. And most are doomed to fail. Why? Because resolutions and business plans are over-rated. They fail because you might just hit them.
It doesn't matter what kind of business you are in. My advice to you is to eschew a business plan and create a powerful marketing plan. Having a business plan without a strategy on how you're going to bring business in is like taking off for a secluded vacation getaway without a GPS, a map, or a Boy Scout compass. You might end up getting there, but it took you longer and wasted more of your valuable time.
Here is your GPS to success for next year. Just insert my voice (rather than the lady with the English accent) imploring you to recalculate when you go off track.
Resolutions and business plans - both business and personal - are made with great intentions. And most are doomed to fail. Why? Because resolutions and business plans are over-rated. They fail because you might just hit them.
It doesn't matter what kind of business you are in. My advice to you is to eschew a business plan and create a powerful marketing plan. Having a business plan without a strategy on how you're going to bring business in is like taking off for a secluded vacation getaway without a GPS, a map, or a Boy Scout compass. You might end up getting there, but it took you longer and wasted more of your valuable time.
Here is your GPS to success for next year. Just insert my voice (rather than the lady with the English accent) imploring you to recalculate when you go off track.
- Determine how you improve the condition of others. What is the value you bring? What sets you apart from your competition?
If you can't sum it up in your own words, ask your best clients. Find
out why they do business with you. Two things happen. First, you learn why
people actually do business with you. Second, they remind themselves why they
should continue to work with you! That helps with retained and future business.
- Who is your target market? Are there new
audiences you should be reaching out to and grabbing around the shirt
collar? How do you get yourself and your brand in front of them?
- Put asking for referrals on the top of
your list. Many businesses get referrals just by doing a good job for
their clients. Most do a poor job of asking for them. Develop a system and
language for your sales professionals (and you) to mine for gold. Asking
for referrals is not difficult once you know how. Make it a priority.
Note – there is an art and
science to not only receiving, but also converting referrals into business.
This is low hanging fruit. If you get good at picking fruit, you will
consistently be “eating healthy” in any economy!
- Create your own intellectual property. For
professional service providers, that might mean webinars, teleconferences,
articles, columns, blogs, and podcasts. For other businesses, that might
mean creating new services, products, and offerings. Find new and creative
ways to become an object of interest.
- Stop wasting time and money on tactics
that aren't working. Does anybody even own a phone book anymore? Find out
where people hear about you and go there. There has never been an easier
time to be creative for far less investment.
- Find ways to speak publicly about how
you dramatically improve the condition of your clients. You aren't there
to "pitch." However, if your presentation is deemed as valuable
then you will get opportunities to speak. The thundering herd of people
approaching you afterwards to talk to you is your sign that people might
like to hire you.
- Be better at following up on revenue
opportunities. We have all been guilty of getting great leads and then
letting them slip through the cracks. Set up a system that doesn't allow
that to happen. These chances rarely offer you second chances.
- Set metrics and review data to see what
is working and find out why. If it isn't working, adjust and re-try. If it
still isn't working, stop. If it is working, rinse and repeat.
- Be shameless in your promotion. If you really
and genuinely believe that what you offer to your customers is
highly valuable and will help them lead better lives, then why wouldn’t
you?
Marketing is no
place for modesty. We are all in the marketing business and there is no shame
in that. It just simply is a shame if you do not become competent in letting
your potential customers and clients know you exist and how much you can help
them. If you provide a great value through your services or products, you
should be telling the whole world. If you truly believe that you are improving
the condition and lives of others, then not aggressively tooting your own horn
is actually selfish. You have great value; believe in yourself first.
Bottom line - Ditch
the business plan and create a powerful marketing plan. A marketing plan that
works well will ultimately blow away anything your business plan would have set
as a goal.
Take a left at the
next light. You have reached your destination...
© 2013 Dan Weedin. All Rights Reserved
DAN WEEDIN
Dan Weedin is a
Poulsbo-based management consultant, speaker, and mentor. He leads an executive
peer-to-peer group here in Kitsap County where he helps executives improve
personally, professionally, and organizationally by enhancing leadership
skills. He is a 2012 inductee of
the Million Dollar Consultant Hall of Fame. You can reach Dan at 360-697-1058;
e-mail at dan@danweedin.com or
visit his web site at www.DanWeedin.com.
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