Archive for December, 2009
Planning for Small Business Success in 2010
Posted by: | CommentsWe all know the old saying “If you’re failing to plan, you’re planning to fail”. And we know it’s true, right? My own experience has proved that the
best way to MAKE things happen—versus just hoping they will—is to know where you are now and where you want to go, then make a plan to get
there.
Yet I’m amazed at how few small business owners have any kind of marketing, sales or business plans at all. I’d say maybe 5% of the entrepreneurs I talk to do any kind of planning at all. Most can’t even tell you their net or gross revenues unless it’s tax time. And while they might be able to tell me how much they want to make, when it comes to achieving that goal they’re just winging it.
Do that and chances of hitting your goals are not high.
Since we’re getting ready to roll into a new year, there’s no better time than now to spend a little time planning for your future success. Below
are 6 simple steps you can take now, that are sure to make a big difference for you in the year to come…
1) You have to know where you are now, or you can’t plot a course to somewhere else.
This means your first job is to take a look at your books and see where you stand. You should know:
- Your gross revenue
- Your net revenue
- How many clients or sales you had this year
- Average per sale value
- Average annual value of one customer or client
- Total number of employees
- Your total expenses
- Your marketing expenses
- Your own take home pay
- The number of hours you worked
If you aren’t using Quickbooks or something like it, I highly recommend you start. Bookkeeping software makes it much easier to track these
important numbers.
2) Choose your destination.
Now that you know where your business is today, you need to decide where
you’d like it to be in 12 months.
- Projected gross revenue
- Projected net revenue
- Projected take home pay
- Projected number of hours worked
- Projected per sale value
- Projected annual client or customer value
- Projected number of new clients or sales
3) Now, based on these numbers, work backwards to determine 3 milestones (smaller goals you need to hit to achieve your big goals). These could be weekly, monthly or quarterly goals but they should give you what you need to reach your bigger goals.
Keep in mind that in any business there are only a handful of ways to increase revenue: reduce expenses, get more clients or sales, or increase
the average per client or per sale value. So set goals to do one or more of those three using specific numbers.
4) Make a list of objectives for reaching each milestone. For example, if one of your milestones is to make 4 additional sales per month, you
need a way to do that. So your objectives might be to send 10 follow up letters to past clients each week, attend at least one networking event
each month, and add e-commerce capabilities to your Website.
5) Create task lists for making each of your objectives a reality.
Just jot down every step you need to take, from writing letters and buying stamps, to finding networking groups and creating a better elevator speech, to writing product descriptions and hiring a new Web developer. Put dates and deadlines on these so you get them in a timely fashion.
6) Take action! Nothing happens until something moves.
And as I’ve recently learned, much like a big ship, it’s impossible to change course if you’re still sitting in port. You have to be moving in some direction. So don’t worry about everything being perfect, or the time to be right, or for you to know everything about what you’re trying to do. As Nike said “Just do it”!
It’s your job as a business owner to be the captain of your ship, do the planning and set a course towards success. Plus, once you have a plan complete with tasks and milestones, it’s easy to see what worked and what didn’t. That way you can make changes and achieve even more success each time.
So carve out 30 minutes, grab a piece of paper or sit down at your computer, and crank out a simple one to two page plan. Then get to work.
Business-Building Lessons Learned in 2009
Posted by: | CommentsI’ve talked to plenty of entrepreneurs who are just barely getting by right now. One of the most common complaints I hear from long-time business owners referrals alone are just not enough anymore. What’s really interesting is that most of them aren’t doing anything different to market and grow their businesses, even though the marketplace has clearly changed.
On the other hand, I know plenty of small business owners who’ve experienced unprecedented growth this year. I’m talking growth that would be considered stellar in a good economy. Even my own revenues have doubled again this year.
So, what are the successful entrepreneurs doing differently? Based on my experience and observations here’s a list of 10 things successful small business owner are doing that you can do to…
1) Forget about the state of the economy. Pay attention to how it changes your prospect’s buying behavior, but don’t let the gloom and doom get you down. If you sell products or services that are truly helpful or useful there will always be people willing to buy.
2) Offer something new. If people aren’t buying what you’re currently selling, but they used to, that’s a sign something needs to change. The knee jerk reaction is to simply cut prices. But that devalues what you offer.
Instead try adding value by creating new packages out of products and services you already have. Or updating a current offering. Even better, bring something completely new to the table…Hold a workshop, write an ebook, offer training programs, delve deeper into a specific aspect of what you offer.
3) Stop guessing. Find out what your prospects, clients and customers want then give it to them. Do this by surveying your people in person, by using a short, written evaluation, or via email using a no-cost service like surveymonkey.com.
4) Embrace technology. The World Wide Web is no longer the Wild, Wild West, but there’s still plenty of room to make your mark. And all the social networking tools make it super cheap to market your business effectively. So get out there and give it a go. You’ll expand your reach, get your wisdom further out into the world, and maybe even discover it’s fun.
5) Build your list. Even before the Internet, business gurus said “The money is in the list”. In other words, you need a list of past customers as well as a list of prospects that you keep in touch with. You can do this the old fashion way by collecting contact info on the phone or in your office or store, then sending out print materials. Or, you can do it the modern way by having an awesome offer and sign up system on your Website, then staying in touch via email.
6) Provide value. The days of the pushy salesperson are going…going…gone. Nowadays people don’t have extra cash burning a hole in their pocket. So they expect good value for their time AND money. Focus less on selling your products and services and more on how you can be a helpful problem solver in all your marketing and you’ll get better results.
7) Embrace mixed media marketing. Silver bullets don’t exist when it comes to marketing. Instead of focusing on one media or tactic, create a strategy and plan that uses as many as you can to reach your people.
I send postcards, letters and gifts, write a weekly e-newsletter, host monthly teleseminars, post articles, audios and video online, write a blog, go to live networking events and more.
8) Keep learning. Times and technology are changing fast. It’s up to you to stay on top of what’s new and what’s working now. But you can’t do that if you’re always buried in your business. So read a new book, attend teleseminars, and get yourself out to at least one non-industry specific conference each year. I attended two this year and they were so valuable I plan to go to at least that many—if not more—next year.
9) Stop doing it all yourself. This is a biggie. The people I know who have successful, growing businesses and fulfilling lives have this figured out. This is even more true in the Internet age.
Face it, you don’t have time to become skilled at doing everything it takes to market, grow and run your business—especially online. Eventually you’ll hit a wall, business growth will stop, and you’ll be exhausted and burned out.
The solution? Even if you don’t have the money to hire an employee you CAN afford a Virtual Assistant. Get one now and have them help you revamp your Website, set up and manage your blog or email newsletter, handle your social networking, automate your marketing and much more.
How has this worked, or not worked, for you? Please do share by leaving a comment below…
Get More Free PR Leads
Posted by: | CommentsSign up for www.pitchrate.com at no charge at all. My friends Drew, Michelle and Shannon run a really awesome PR firm, Wasabi
Publicity, and their PR leads service is growing by leaps and bounds.
Last I heard they had 100 hot leads up on the Web from journalists, bloggers, radio show hosts and more looking for experts! You could be just the expert they’re looking for. All you have to do is sign up for you no-cost account and they’ll send you leads via email.
So you know, I don’t get a thing for promoting this. It’s just a really great service you should know about and start using.
Who are your customers, and why do they buy?
Posted by: | CommentsI flew to St. Louis for the Glazer-Kennedy Info Summit. This is a 4-day event about how to create and market information products (think ebooks, teleseminars, coaching groups, membership sites, live seminars and more).
This is the second time I’ve made it to this event, and once again I took home a ton of fantastic ideas. So for the last month I’ve been going through my notes and getting started on some of the new products and services I was inspired to create.
Of course, there’s ton of information on marketing and small business success in general. So I thought I’d share a few of the killer tidbits of business-building wisdom I picked up.
Today, I’ve got a really interesting way for you to look at your target customer and why they buy. This comes from the copywriting workshop Dan Kennedy presented on the first night…
According to Dan, you can put your customers in one of 6 categories…
1) Slight Edge Buyers – These folks are always eager to do better. They’re constantly looking for ways to improve and get a slight edge over the competition, or bring just a little more to the table. If you sell information in any way, shape or form (consultants, speaker, authors and coaches take note) these are generally your best customers.
2) Junkies and Addicts – These people are passionate about or have a deep interest in a subject or subjects, and/or a strong attachment to a particular author(s). So they buy everything on the subject, or everything that author puts out.
3) Reinforcement Buyers – Unlike the last two categories, these people aren’t really looking for new information. Instead, they want to buy things that reinforce the opinions and conclusions they already have…Sometimes because this gives them the courage and conviction to finally move forward with their ideas.
4) Unplugged Joiners – Some people are joiners who feel compelled to always belong to or be a part of something. So if they are unplugged from one thing they go in search of something else right away. This is why “recent expired lists” are so valuable in newsletter business…Because if they’re subscription or membership to one thing just expired they may very well be itching to “belong” to something else. Also in this category are the chronically unsatisfied, the legitimately disappointed, the people looking to move-up, and the lonely.
5) Desperate/Life Raft Grabbers/Magic Pill Buyers – This group of buyers is typically confronting new or unexpected adversity, sudden change or marketplace disruption. So they’re desperately in search of a solution. Also in this category are the perennial losers who buy lots of stuff but never use any of what they buy.
6) Life Event Driven Buyers- As life changes, so do your wants and needs. This has a tremendous impact on this type of customer. A couple great examples of folks in this category would be anyone going through a mid-life crises, or whose kids just went off to college. These events weren’t surprises, but they definitely impact what and why someone will buy. This is one reason why baby boomers are such a hot target market.
Chances are, whether you sell products or services, you have clients from a few of these categories. Which of these do you recognize in your business?
How could you market to them more effectively now that you know what motivates them to buy?
Make Your Website More Readable
Posted by: | CommentsWhen it comes to content on your Website, it’s not how many words you put up there that matters. It’s what you say, how you say it, and how you organize it that makes all the difference.
Because people are in a hurry and tend to skim and scan first on the Web, you want your content to be skim-friendly. Do this by following these simple rules:
1) Keep sentences short—21 words or less is ideal
2) Keep paragraphs short—no more than 4-5 lines
3) Include headlines, subheads and bullets wherever possible
Planning for Your Small Business Success
Posted by: | Comments“The general who wins the battle makes many calculations in his temple before
the battle is fought. The general who loses makes but few calculations
beforehand.” Sun Tzu
This week, I’ve got a question for you…
What is one of the critical differences between successful businesses owners and unsuccessful businesses owners?
It’s not how much money they start with, or where they come from.
It’s not their level of education.
It’s not who they know.
The majority of truly successful business owners have one thing in common…They are really good at deciding exactly what it is they want. Then creating a detailed plan for getting it and putting that plan into action.
You see, successful people don’t just wait around for things to start happening…They make things happen. And not just any old things…The right things.
That’s why, last week, I talked about the power of creating and writing down clear, well-defined intentions or goals for your business.
If you’ve already done that, congratulations! Just taking that one simple step is often enough to get you moving down the right path.
But here’s the catch…If you really want to achieve success quickly, you have to do more than just set clear goals or intentions (A la The Secret). You need to come up with a doable plan for achieving them.
Now I’m not saying you have to spend weeks creating a 30-page business or marketing plan (though that’s a good idea in some situations). But you do need to have a well-thought out, written plan of action.
So, in order to help you do just that, I’m going to take you through a simplified version of the process I use to create highly-effective Marketing Success Action Plans for my clients…
Let’s say you want to grow your business by 30% next year.
Start by listing three objectives, or targets, you could hit that would let you reach that goal. I don’t advise choosing more than three unless you’ve got people to help you. Otherwise you can get overwhelmed and never get anything done. Fewer than three is fine. For example, you could decide to increase return visits by 10%, attract 20 new customers per month, and develop new products or services to generate an additional $X a year.
Whatever you choose, always give yourself specific numbers, or targets, to hit. That way you have benchmarks you can refer to later to make sure your plan is working.
Next, come up with one strategy for achieving each of your objectives. More if you have fewer than three objectives.
Say you want to increase return visits. A good strategy could be to send out a regular newsletter to your current clients. Or a series of follow up mailings.
Now, make a checklist of all the steps you need to take in order to put each of your strategies into action. Whatever you do, don’t skip this part…It’s critical.
So to start a print newsletter, at minimum you’re going to need to: pick a marketing angle, come up with a name, decide how often you want it to go out, write or get content, purchase a template or hire a graphic designer, choose a printer, find a mailing house, compile your client database and get the whole thing put together and out the door.
Finally, create a detailed timeline with deadlines to get it all done.
Whew! Now you have a goal, and a plan reach it. And you can start taking action by checking things off of your new to-do list.
Of course, don’t forget that some plans are going to be easier to implement, and/or more effective, than others. So take your time researching options and choosing strategies. Better yet, unless you really know your stuff, consider hiring a professional to help you make the best decisions for your business and your goals.
Remember, this is the blueprint for your future success. It’s worth the extra effort!
If you’re struggling with this, grab a copy of my e-workbook “Putting Your Business on the Road to Success to help you along. It’s filled with simple worksheets and checklists that make writing a powerful, 2-page marketing plan as easy as planning a vacation road trip…literally!
You can find it at http://www.2pagemarketingplan.com
Are you on Twitter?
Posted by: | CommentsIf so, here’s a cool tool you should know about…
This is the easiest way I’ve discovered to find a person on Twitter, or find people with a particular expertise or interest.
While you’re on Twitter, be sure to follow me at @stacykaracostas
Why Sizzling Hot Prospects Suddenly Go Stone Cold
Posted by: | CommentsIt happens all the time…You get a call or email from a prospect. They sound interested, and interesting. You chat. It goes swimmingly…Perhaps so much so that you’re already mentally shifting your calendar to fit them in.
Then, suddenly, they start giving you the cold shoulder. Or come up with some lame-sounding excuse for why they can’t move forward just yet (these usually arrive via email).
You go from excited about this hot knew prospect, to slightly deflated, a little frustrated, or possibly even incredibly worried about where your next client is going to come from now.
Maybe a touch of self doubt even starts to creep in. Thoughts like, “What’s wrong with me and my services?” and “They seemed so excited to get started…What happened?” tend to follow.
Well, I can’t answer the first one for you, but I can tell you exactly what’s happened in 99% of these instances…Life happened!
Yep. You read right. Life got in the way of you working with that top-notch, seemingly red-hot prospect.
Here’s the deal. Most people are going to call because they have a problem they believe you can help them solve. And right that second, this problem is a biggie. It’s top of mind and top of the to-do list.
So they make calls, interview service providers, and start deciding who to hire. Then, something happens…Literally.
And that something suddenly makes the problem they called you about WAY less of a priority. Now, because they have other, more pressing issues to deal with, you’ve been placed on the back-burner.
Depending on how pressing the original problem they called you about really is, they may become hot for your services again in a few days or weeks. But there’s a good chance more things are going to come up for them that take priority. So you could be on the back burner until that red hot prospect turns icy cold.
Thankfully, that doesn’t mean they won’t warm up again. It’s just that you might not still be top-of-mind when they do.
What should you do in the meantime?
First, keep in mind that no matter how disappointed you are, or how much you need the money, it’s your job be the consummate professional when they decide not to move forward.
Then, even more importantly, it’s your job to stay in front of them until they are ready to move forward again—without coming across like a pushy salesperson or pest.
How? Here’s a short list of inexpensive ways to stay top-of-mind for the long hall…
1) Collect their contact info (at least email, ideally physical address too)
2) Keep a copy of your notes regarding their business and needs. That way you can reference details down the road.
3) Immediately send a thank you card after you chat. They took the time to find and call you. The least you can do is let them know you appreciate their efforts.
4) Ask if you can put them on your newsletter list. This could be email or snail mail. Doesn’t matter. Just be sure your newsletters offer valuable information, not just sales pitches or coupons.
5) Follow up periodically with information that may be of interest to them. If you run across an article you think might be helpful, pop in an envelope and send it on.
6) Send birthday and holiday cards. Don’t just do this for your clients, do it for prospects too so they know you are thinking of them.
7) Be a great resource. If they keep getting valuable info from you, they’ll want to keep hearing from you. That’s good for everyone involved.
Keep it up and before you know it, the problem that originally brought them to you is likely to rise to the top of their priority list again. When it does, those icy prospects will get all hot and bothered again. And who do you think they’ll call…???
An Easy Way to Get More Links Back to Your Website
Posted by: | CommentsHaving links to your Website from other relevant, well-ranked sites is one of the best ways to improve your search engine rankings and drive traffic to your site. An easy way to do this is by blogging.
Even if you don’t have a blog, you can use the power of other people’s blogs to promote your own. All you need to do is find a couple of blogs that are frequented by your ideal clients and post helpful comments regularly.
The keys are to post more than just “thank you for the article”. Instead provide a useful tip or interesting tidbit. Then make sure to include your Website address in your signature with the http:// in front of the www.
This automatically creates a link back to your site. And if people are interested in what you had to say they may follow that link back to your Website to learn more.
How has this worked, or not worked, for you? Please do share by leaving a comment below…
Are you putting the sales cart before the marketing horse?
Posted by: | CommentsJust the other day I was on the phone with a potential client. We’d met at a recent seminar in San Diego, and I’d admired her can-do spirit, energy, and desire to help others by sharing what she had learned. On top of that, based on a quick peek at her Website, it seemed she had at least some idea of how to market herself on the Web.
Our conversation got off to a great start as we talked about what she’d need in place to launch her own teleclass series. But I could tell as I started listing all the different parts and pieces (marketing plan, sales page, thank you page, follow up autoresponders, promo emails, and more), and people she’d need to get it all done (copywriter, Web designer/Virtual Assistants, etc.) that she was totally overwhelmed.
That’s when she revealed a few, key facts…
1) As a retiree she was living off—and funding her business with—her retirement pension…And that wasn’t huge.
2) While she had her Website set up to grow her list, she didn’t really have a list to speak of yet. Plus she was struggling to get enough traffic to her site.
3) She’d tried doing some live speaking events but hadn’t had much luck getting people to attend her talks.
4) She didn’t have a plan in place for marketing her events, her Website, or her business. She was just winging it then wondering why nothing was working.
Right away I knew she was putting the sales cart before the marketing horse so to speak.
Sure, running a multi-part teleclass might be a terrific way for her to reach more people and grow her business. But she didn’t have the skills to do it herself nor the money to hire others to do it for her.
On top of that, since she didn’t already have a list of subscribers she regularly communicated with, she was going to have to build her list while selling her class. This is doable, but harder, more time consuming, and more expensive.
Finally, if she wasn’t able to get even handfuls of people to attend her live events, she probably wasn’t ready to invest in a bigger venture like these teleclasses. Instead she needed to take a big step back and work on her marketing basics.
My recommendation was that she stop worrying about launching something so big and complicated. Instead she should work on
getting out and doing more live events and growing her list. That way she could test different topics, titles, talks and marketing tactics to see which ones get the best response.
Then, once she had a decent following, and all the marketing materials for that talk, she could easily tweak it to deliver via teleseminars. Then later launch the full teleclass series. By then she’d already have a list of people who know, like and trust her and enjoy receiving her words of wisdom.
Of course, to do any of that she really needs to put together a marketing plan. Just like any other product or service you have to do effective marketing if you want people to show up at an event…Even a free one! Because they’re still giving you their time, and these days that is a precious and limited commodity.
The same is true with most everything in your business. If you’re having trouble selling one thing you need to figure out why or you’re likely to have just as much trouble selling something else. That requires at least a simple plan complete with goals. Otherwise your’re always guessing.
Listen, it’s easy to get swept up in the excitement of the latest Online craze or business idea. Yet if you want people to buy your new product, service, program, package, or whatever…You have to have your marketing basics in order. Winging it rarely works, especially in a down economy when people are holding tightly on to their wallets.
Can you put together events, programs and product launches quickly and have great success? Sure. But if you don’t already have a solid track record, a list of followers, and marketing systems in place, you’re going to have to spend more money hiring experts to make it happen.
If that’s not in your cards, it’s best to set a big goal then work backwards to figure out how to get from here to there in small, doable steps that set you up for success. As your revenue and list grows you can launch something more ambitious.
In the case of this prospective client, since she couldn’t afford to hire me to do it for her, I suggested she grab a copy of my 2-page marketing plan guidebook “Putting Your Business on the Road to Success”.
That way she can put together a simple yet effective plan for marketing her events that makes sense given her budget and skill set. Then she can track results and figure out what’s working.
Plus, she can send her finished plan to me for a complimentary critique and get access to my marketing expertise at no additional charge (a $300 bonus that comes with this $67 product!).
You can do the same by going here: http://www.2pagemarketingplan.com
Got questions, thoughts or suggestions on this topic? Please do share by leaving a comment below…
“WARNING! You could end up spending WAY too much for a Website that does nothing to make sales or grow your business!!”
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