Get Your Small Business’ Goals Back on Track This Year
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If you’re a small business owner you’d probably agree that managing existing profits and processes is challenging enough. But how do you turn your small business passion project into profits? We’re discussing five areas that require special attention when you’re re-organizing your focus and working on growing your business.
Financial Management and Tax Prep
Your small business is more than likely operating on a pretty tight budget. There’s not a lot of room for error when you’re maximizing your resources and avoiding additional operating costs. Making sure your in-house or external financial management team is equipped with a tax software for professional preparers could make a huge difference when it comes to filing for tax season. Make sure your get the most out of your profits by setting yourself up for compliance with the IRS and ensuring that your taxes are filed with the maximum return in mind.
Project Management Tracking
How do you get your goals back on track if you never even knew where they were? Having a project management software system like Asana can help you and your team identify what needs to be done, so that you’re all on the same page when it comes to reaching productivity goals.
Effective project management isn’t just about checking off tasks and planning next month’s calendar. Make sure to take time to celebrate your milestones and accomplishments along the way. Set goals that are attainable, but also push you a little. Challenging goals are the ones that will feel the best when you finally meet them—or better yet, exceed them.
CRM Software Solutions
Keeping track of clients, leads, and business connections is a lot to handle when you’re busy chasing the next job, marketing to new audiences, and balancing your business and personal life. Every small business needs a customer relationship management software (CRM) to keep their operations in tact and profits growing.
Having a centralized place to track your sales, leads process, and make adjustments to your workflow could be exactly what your business needs to ramp up sales and productivity. It’s easy to let things fall through the cracks when you’ve got so much on your plate already, but client management is surely not where you want to sacrifice any efforts.
Refining Customer Service Processes and Communication
Customer satisfaction starts with great customer service— and referrals are often the easiest way to generate new leads for your business. If your customer service processes are faulty, there’s a good chance your sales are going to suffer. Establishing a strong customer service training program and being transparent with employees about your company’s direction and goals is key to keeping everyone on board.
Besides external communication, small business owners should also focus on how they can improve internal communication between staff. Oftentimes business failures can be traced back to a lack of communication internally. Make sure everyone is updated on company changes, new projects, and important details with an effective communication application. This will not only make you feel better about what’s going on while you’re away, but it will also give your staff peace of mind as well.
Employee Training and Initiative
Your employees are what really keeps your business going. Making sure they’re compensated properly and well-trained makes a huge difference when it comes to customer service and interaction. If they know what your business stands for, and they can get behind it themselves, your job will be much easier. Turn your employees into your best marketers with exceptional training and initiatives.
If your staff is in on the goals you’ve outlined for your company, chances are they’ll be more motivated to help get you there. Small business owners should make sure their staff feels encouraged, valuable, and in a position to grow with the business.
In Conclusion
Whether your goals have derailed with the chaos of the new year, or you’re just taking preventative measures, integrating these steps into your small business operations can help you increase your profits and refine your strategy. Getting organized and re-focusing your efforts can be challenging at first, but the return is worth the hard work. Follow these strategies and keep your business’ mission at heart as you adapt these ideas to fit your own business model and goals.
This is a sponsored post from Purple Camel Media.
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Great advice, especially for small businesses with employees. It’s easy to overlook internal communication and that is how details get missed. Even something as simple as establishing a clear mission for your business is so important, so you can stay true to it with your processes. Thanks for sharing!
I think it can be especially challenging when a sole proprietor takes on their first employee or subcontractor. If they don’t have documented processes, they may tell the other person what to do without elaborating on how, because it’s second nature to them. As a result the work may be done incorrectly and/or take far longer than it needs to.
These are great goals to ponder and take action on – I’m currently trying to make better use of my CRM, which I implemented last fall. I know I’m not making the most of all of the features, and I need to carve out some time to learn how it all works. So true that it’s easy to “let things fall through the cracks.”
I’ve just started using a CRM myself. It’s definitely one of those things that would have been much easier in the beginning, when we had less information to manage (and therefore don’t see a need for it).
Great advice! Communication is key when you want to have a well-oiled small business machine. And, to be honest, we all want that.
You got that right! I bet that 99% of the problems that arise between service providers and their clients result from a lack of communication.
These are all great tips. Customer service is so important and being able to respond in a timely fashion is key.
Yes! When I realized that nearly all my new business last year came from returning clients and referrals, I decided to aim for an even higher level of customer service.
The start of the year is the perfect time to look at goals, look at outsourcing needs and getting finances in order. I am sure a lot of business owners will find this useful. Thanks for sharing!
I’m glad you found it interesting, Sarah, and hope this year brings you everything you seek!