Fellow Canadians, take a moment and breath a deep sigh of relief – the Mayans were wrong.
2013 is freshly upon us (with a walloping snowfall to boot) and personal resolutions are starting off nice and strong — it’s still early after all.
For business owners, making business resolutions may sound silly and unnecessary, but in reality they can be strong drivers for internal change and the overall improvement of the business.
Reflecting back on 2012 offers much insight into what worked, what didn’t and where there are opportunities to improve and make 2013 a more prosperous year.
Not sure where you should start?
Here’s a list of 3 resolutions we think small business owners could definitely get behind, and fingers-crossed – keep them!
1. Promote your business – regularly
The age of cellphones and tablets have made us a consuming society, with a serious lack of committed attention span. What this means is that marketing your business needs to adapt to the times.
Change up the vehicle (online, mobile, print, radio), but keep the consistency so that you’re constantly in the minds of your target market.
2. Listen to your customers – enact change
Your customers are your goldmine for data, and data will help you improve and develop your business. Ask them questions, in the form of questionnaires, emails, or even at the checkout process so that you can gain some insight into what they like and what they want to see.
You may not agree with the answers, or want to pursue a particular direction, but at the very least it will arm you with information to help you make future decisions and communicate them in a way that will appease your shoppers.
3. Trim the fat – reduce waste
Yes, we agree – trimming the fat sounds like a more personal new years resolution. But that doesn’t mean it can’t be both!
Cutting out the excess business costs, reducing unnecessary clutter and streamlining your processes can help you turn your business into an efficient machine.
Not all sales methods are going to work. Not all products are going to break sales records. Give everything the time it needs to determine its worth, but be realistic enough to know when to pull the plug on certain experiments.
After all, it’s a new year, and a new opportunity to try something different and exciting.
__
If you’re thinking of trying something new, speak with a funding specialist and see how you can increase your cash flow today and make 2013 your best year yet.