A new year. Fresh starts. A world of opportunities. Now that you’re back in the office and ready to take on the year ahead, it is the perfect time to reflect on the past year.
What were the highlights, the achievements, the lowlights, or the things that at the time you would have rather forgotten?
It is important to remember that you will experience positives and negatives in your business and that both elements can help you to grow your business in the long term.
Let’s take a look at three ways to help your business grow this year, and give your business some real momentum.
Growing your business
1. Take the time to reflect on last year
If you didn’t get the chance to review your business or your goals at the end of last year, then seize the opportunity and take the time for some reflection now. Think about where you started last January and month by month, review what happened. Write a list of all the things that you achieved or problems or issues that you may have encountered. Highlight your top three achievements, and your top three issues and expand on why they stand out for you. Then consider how you could improve on any issues that you encountered, or enhance your achievements even further this year.
2. Review your people, systems and processes
It is easy to get caught up doing all the things in your business, which soon leaves you feeling nothing but overwhelmed. Some key things to consider are:
- Do you have the right people around you? This not only includes your staff, but other professional advisers (accountant, lawyer, business coach) who are there to support you, challenge you and drive your business forward.
- When did you last review your existing software or CRM?
- Have you developed processes to help streamline critical areas in your business? (eg. Sales, service / product delivery, onboarding new staff members, HR management, etc)
- Are your staff feeling empowered? Do you ask for and value their feedback? By taking the time to review your people, systems and processes at the start of the year will help to set you up for a year full of success.
3. Analyse your financials, marketing and overall strategy
FINANCIAL ANALYSIS
Sit down and review your profit and loss and consider some of the following:
- Did you achieve what you set out to?
- How are you tracking relative to your goals/budget for this financial year?
- Have you set KPIs for you and/or your staff?
- Are you and your staff embracing the KPIs?
MARKETING
When you consider your marketing, there are many elements to review.
- Do you have a marketing plan/strategy in place?
- How do you currently attract new clients?
- How do you measure the effectiveness of your current marketing?
- Have you used any new marketing strategies this past year?
- What business relationships could you nurture?
- Have you increased the focus on your digital marketing?
STRATEGY
With all of the above in mind, do you have an overall strategy that you are looking to implement this year? Improvements that you would like to make? Refinements you would like to complete?
Identify 3 areas to work on for the year ahead
Taking the time to reflect on the past year, and considering a variety of areas within your business can soon feel like you have way too many goals to achieve, or areas to improve.
So keep it simple and break it down. Identify the top three tasks or projects that you will work on in the first few months this year. Then take it a step further and break each project up into bite-sized pieces, or weekly or daily goals. Not only will your project now seem much more achievable, but the feeling of overwhelm or stress will reduce too.
Talk to your staff about your ideas and goals for the year ahead, and empower them by including them in the process.
