Keys to Success

Keys to Business Success

 

 

 

Too many business owners focus solely on their profit-and-loss statements. "It's critical to focus more on the business assets, what's going to allow you to expand your reach and grow your company?" You should find ways to grow your client base, new employees, systems, and partnerships. Planning and execution is what will grow your client base, thus your company.

Mission Statement: Most businesses either don't have a mission statement or it so general that it has no meaning. Think about what you're trying to achieve and include that big vision in your mission statement.

SWOT Analysis: a comprehensive SWOT analysis (assessing company strengths, weaknesses, market opportunities and market threats) is critical to assess your opportunities, generate ideas and create a focused approach.

Marketing Strategies: Take a good look at your current marketing strategies. Spread out your marketing dollars and try new channels; by the end of the year you will have another valuable business asset: proven knowledge of which marketing tactics work and those that don't.

Company Goals" Set goals for a five-year target point. What income level do you plan on achieving in that time? Will you sell the company, remain at the helm, or go public? Plot your course, and then break down your goals and strategies into a one-year plan. Which opportunities are best to execute this year in order to achieve your five year goals?

Competitive Analysis: It is important to be prepared for the inevitable—competitive challenges. Take a good look at your competition and define what steps they could take that would really frighten you and ask yourself if you could deal with it or if your business would be massively hampered. The next step is to determine what you could do under your current circumstances to pre-empt the worst case scenario.

If your competition acquires another company as a part of their growth strategy, for instance, what can you do now to control the impact of such a move?

Define your team: "Even solopreneurs should have a team. Don't try to do it all on your own. Consider your virtual assistants and other outside contractors, or employees if you need to have them. Where do you want to be one year from now? What skills will you have to acquire? Who do need to grow your company? How can you get those resources in place?

Operations Plan: Finally, consider the importance of an operations plan. Looking at your five-year plan and what you want to accomplish, define your marketing strategies, any additional services or products to offer, and all of your key initiatives for the year. You may need chart so that you have a visual for each project.

 

Those are some thoughts on keys to Business Success. What do you think?