7 Steps to Growing a Business More Rapidly

Is it time to improve revenues? Then it’s time to shift and get off the pot” reassessing your business model and changing your sales plan.

It’s not about the next “bling” or even about spending time “doing” social networking. Instead, expect to tweak or recreate your business planning foundation – REALLY!

Think about it. If you’re building a new story on a home, having a strong foundation, is not only necessary, it helps you build higher and higher.

What constitutes the pieces of business growth? What are parts that matter the most? (Hint: these are the pieces you update yearly during your planning week) Give up? Below are the 8 important steps:

STEP 1:
Assess: Take a snapshot of where your business is right now. Next assess where you want to be.

STEP 2:
Ideal Client Profile: Create a one sheet profile with very specific demographics, psychographics, technograpics and geographics.

STEP 3:
SWOT: Take a look at your companies strengths, weaknesses, as well as the opportunities to grow and threats from inside and outside your company.

STEP 4:
PLAN: I use the One Page Business Plan(R) methodology. It’s concise and helps put the focus on the priorities that will bring growth the quickest way possible. It includes your company (or practice or department or profit center) vision, mission, objectives, strategies and overall action items.

STEP 5:
Monitoring System: Monitor your objectives and action plans. Monitor how you use your time. Monitor how many thank you’s, phone calls, prospect calls, etc. you and your team make daily.

STEP 6:
Marketing Funnel: This is a list of ways you start relationship building with prospects and reach your goal of cultivating clients who are raving fans in your tribe.

STEP 7:
Take what you created in your strategic plan to create a yearly marketing calendar. Yes, plan a year ahead. This includes your firm’s seminars. Sure things will “come up” and then you can look at your calendar and see how those things fit, remove something on your calendar or hire someone to help you to fit more on your calendar. Include both in person and online marketing, PR, networking, advertising and other types of marketing that will help you reach larger numbers of your ideal clients.

With the exception of your marketing calendar, each of your foundation pieces can be placed on one-page and kept in a binder and in a Word document. You’ll tweak your foundation pieces monthly during the first year of use, and then yearly or during major shifts in the market.

Go for it!

(c) 2010 Elevating Your Business