Want a great business? Then do great things. As a leader, business owner, decision maker, you set the tone for the rest of your team, no matter what the size or location. Often, there are so many things to do in a day, we bypass some of the most important concepts that can make our businesses GREAT. The following Business Improvement Concepts, as basic as they may seem, are often overlooked. Apply or revisit these GREAT concepts for your business and see what happens!
1. Have a GREAT Vision:
Great leaders have great visions. Bill Gates envisioned “a computer on every desk”. How do you ultimately see your business? What are you doing? Who is around you? What are your sales?
2. Develop a GREAT Business Plan:
You can’t hit a target you can’t see. Know where your are going and how you are going to get there. What are your goals for the year, the quarter, the month, the week, the day…even the next hour? Review it often and adjust strategies and goals as opportunities and hurdles present themselves. 1 minute of planning can save 10 minutes in execution!!
3. Implement a GREAT Marketing Approach:
To have a great business, you need great sales; to insure great sales, you need a great marketing plan. Who are you marketing to? How are you marketing to them? Remember to focus on what you product does-the benefits-instead of what it is-the features.
4. Attract and Keep GREAT Customers:
Once you get the word out and attract great customers, be sure to ask what they want to keep them coming back. 
Resisit the temptation to assume you know what they want or even who they are. Know who your best customers are and keep them happy-HAPPY CUSTOMERS ARE YOUR BEST REFERRAL!!
5. Deliver GREAT Products or Services:
If you had to start over, which product or service would you focus on? Which would you eliminate? Know what is successful and what isn’t by getting feedback and tracking your sales. Continuously ask “What can be done to improve?”
6. Track GREAT Numbers:
Identify key numbers and track them. A key number or numbers will tell you instantly how your business is performing. What matters most…Number of customers? Number of sales? Profit per sale? Customer aquisition cost? Renewal period? There are always one or two numbers that predict the success of a business more than any others. Know what they are and focus on improving them.
7. Get GREAT Results:
Planning is important but if it doesn’t yield results it is not a great plan. FOCUS on results; and if they aren’t great, revisit your vision, adjust your plan, review your marketing approach, evaluate and talk with your customers, assess your products or services, check your numbers AND get back to getting GREAT results!
somebody in your life? Who do you offer these to? Spouse, partner, kids, boss, customer, staff, suppliers…..everyone you come in contact with. What are you doing every time you sell? COMMUNICATING!
6. Everything Your Mother Taught You Is Not Out of Style:
In the age of social media, it becomes easier every day to find ways to procrastinate. In an effort to somehow justify perusing the variety of forwarded emails, articles, YouTube clips, questionnaires, surveys, games, links, invitations…..I contemplate what message, learning or opportunity could be buried in the content, and how I might apply it to my business. Often, I come up short, scolding myself for deviating from the “block schedule”, a fail safe tool which is supposed to insure an efficient and productive blend of marketing, sales, meetings, administration, planning, preparing, delivering and following up. Oh, and a personal life.
again. In one such case, what appeared to be cause for scolding, turned out to be a terrific reminder that a “time-out” is not always a punishment. Pause for reflection, a quick chuckle, change of scenery, is often inspiring, invogorating and just plain fun. Funny how teachers know these things. Maybe recess had a purpose!!
We struggle daily-attempting to maximize our productivity, do more with less, master a variety of roles, meet deadlines, obtain goals….meet everyone’s expectations. Sometimes a good old “time-out” works wonders. In their book, “The Power of Full Engagement”, Jim Loehr and Tony Schwartz address the concept of “sprint and recover”, emphasizing that to fully engage, we must allow ourselves frequent, intermittant recovery time to recover from the “sprint” we engage in daily. A few minutes to break the cycle, chuckle at a ridiculously funny re-enactment of high school history and not do anything with it, is OK. In fact, here it is.
next.
conference with Tiger Woods, held in Augusta, GA.. One reporter asked Tiger why he hadn’t addressed his situation sooner, knowing he was cascading into a downward spiral? Tiger’s response was simply, he wasn’t able to face reality and take action until he had reached absolute rock bottom. Most likely, Tiger will recover and go on to win tournaments and generate millions in endorsements. What about your business??
1. Ask “How are we doing? Do this often. Always know where you are with regard to achieving your plan. Waiting until a deadline to evaluate can lead to disappointing results.
you a clear indication of how your business is progressing. Detailed reports are important, but can take time to review. Find those particular numbers and keep track of them regularly-making sure all of your team is tracking them as well. Examples: monthly revenue, annual profit margin, weekly operating costs, quarterly number of clients, weekly client conversion rate, daily cold calls, average transaction dollars-whether dollars $, percentages %, or numbers #- pick something and track it. 
A few weeks ago I received 2 emails. One was offering new business owners the opportunity to gain visibility in a new online and print business magazine. The other was inviting me to the launch party for a new magazine with the same name. I opened the first email, clicked the link and checked out the advertising, featured business owners and comtemplated whether or not it would reach my target market. Next, I reviewed the launch party invitation, thinking what fun it would be have a new group to network with. Looked interesting, so I forwarded to my friend, asking her if she might want to go to the party and to check out the magazine at blahblahblah.com.
I began sharing the 18 Disciplines of Sales used by a consistently successful sales associate and 2 time recipient of the Brian Tracy award for Sales Excellence. In past blog posts these were presented a few at a time. Considering the consistently recurring sales theme, it seemed timely to share all 18 at once. Hope these offer some relief from frustration. Sales CAN go according to plan. Apply these basics and make the second quarter of 2010 exceed your expectations:
Answer WII-FM (what’s in it for me?).
Could not have said it better…enjoy!
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