Take The Time To Grow Your Business
Got big dreams for your business? Eager to succeed? Fantastic! Now sit down and figure out how you are going to make that happen. You can’t cut to the front of the line or skip steps. Use your excitement to keep focused on your plan. Don’t use it to jump ahead and try to short circuit the process.
Every day I see small business owners jump ahead in a couple of areas in their business. From marketing to networking to pricing you can do real damage to your future if you go to fast.
1. Marketing
Before you sign up to advertise in a magazine, pay for Google ads, or buy air time, ask yourself some key questions:
Before you sign up to advertise in a magazine, pay for Google ads, or buy air time, ask yourself some key questions:
- Who is your audience?
- Where is your audience?
- What is the best way to transmit your message?
Taking the time to answer these questions will help you avoid spending money in the wrong places. Think about it this way. If you sell to businesses, does it make sense to put an ad in a consumer magazine or neighborhood paper? Not really. Sure, you can tell yourself that your target market will be reading that document. However, they won’t be reading it with an eye for what you are offering. Your message will be lost on them. That is not the best way to spend your marketing dollars.
Don’t allow yourself to be swayed by the salesperson or your associates. You must do your due diligence before signing on the dotted line.
Example: I have two friends who started an organization called Positive Thinkers Network. After it had been in operation for about a year they decided to launch The Positive Times, a periodical that goes into homes and has only good news stories in it. When the salesperson reached out to me about advertising in it my first reaction was to sign up. After all, I like the owners and wanted to support them if I could. My heart said ‘do it.’ When I took a moment to consider this I realized that it just wasn’t the place for me to advertise because I sell to businesses, not consumers. As much as I wanted to support my friends, this was not a good marketing decision. So I respectfully declined.
2. Networking
There are tons of opportunities to network, on and off line. You could be doing it all day and night, every day. However, that would not be the best use of your time. Once again you have to ask yourself some questions starting with what do you hope to accomplish. It is my opinion that networking is building relationships with people who may or may not need what you have to sell.
There are tons of opportunities to network, on and off line. You could be doing it all day and night, every day. However, that would not be the best use of your time. Once again you have to ask yourself some questions starting with what do you hope to accomplish. It is my opinion that networking is building relationships with people who may or may not need what you have to sell.
At the same time, since time is precious, you want to meet the people who can introduce you to your target. Visiting various events and groups to get a sense of them can be a very valuable exercise. Just pay attention while you are there.
Example: I have a client whose target market is CPAs and attorneys. I have another client whose target market is busy professionals and salespeople who like to thank their clients. Where they will network will be different. The first client should be around business owners as they are the people most likely to have CPAs and attorneys. The second client would do well with business owners but would also do well in a group of salespeople.
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