Growing your small business can be a difficult and frustrating process. No matter how talented, experienced, or proficient you are as a leader, business development may not be one of your core skills.
So, how do you develop the business leadership skills necessary to grow your business and achieve the success you envisioned when you started the business? You need a growth strategy. Here are a few ideas:
Leveraging. Every leader should look for ways to leverage everything they do in multiple ways. If you have a satisfied customer, they are one of your best resources for new business. Simply ask them “who else do you think would benefit by using our product?”
Relationship-building. Relationships are key to growth. Build high-trust, high-integrity relationships with everyone you do business with – clients, vendors, bankers, colleagues, alliances, etc.
Clarity. A key business leadership skill is clarity. Clarify what your company truly is and what you want to accomplish. Clarify job functions, performance metrics, ethics and more. Defining these and a multitude of other factors that will impact performance and growth.
Infrastructure. Many small business leaders overlook this critically important aspect of doing business. They manage by the checkbook method, thinking, “if there is money on the checkbook, I must be doing ok.” But if you don’t plan your growth, and measure against your goals, how will you know where you are headed? Your infrastructure must include goals, budgets and planning at a minimum. Measure everything that you can so you can notice improvements as your small business grows. To help, hire the best people you can afford in key measurement areas such as accounting, finance, sales leadership, manufacturing and all front line personnel
Business Development. Everyone is responsible for business development. Everyone is a salesperson… regardless of their job title. If you know the challenges that keep your clients up at night, all that remains is to provide your clients with solutions that will work for them. That is, after all, what a growth strategy is. Identify the problem; provide the solution that will meet or exceed your client’s expectations and your business will grow.
Ask for expert advice
As a small business owner, you have vast resources available to you to assist in developing and growing your business:
The Small Business Administration (SBA) website has a section that provides proven Strategies for Growth. They also have a vast library of resources for you as a small business owner to learn from and utilize. Let them help you.
You small business lender is also a great resource for you as you develop and grow your small business. They have probably seen it all and can give you great ideas on how to expand and grow with the right financing products for your business.
Always keep in mind your small business lender has a vested interest in your success. There is no need to fear the client/lender relationship as they can be of great help to you and an ally in you realizing your dream.
To your success.
This article was written by Praxis Strategy Groupand originally appeared in Small Business Connect, an online resource for small business from Alerus Financial. For more information, go to Alerus Small Business Connect.
Praxis Strategy Group is a partner with the Flint Group
The Center for the Study of Government and the Individual will be co-sponsoring the Annual School of Public Affairs Leadership Conference at the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs on Thursday, April 8, 2010. The Center will be bringing in David Osborne and Delore Zimmerman.
David Osborne is the author of the best seller “Reinventing Government” and co-author of “The Price of Government: Getting the Results We Need in an Age of Permanent Fiscal Crisis.” He also served as senior advisor to Vice President Gore.
Delore Zimmerman, Ph.D., President of Praxis Strategy Group, is a strategy consultant with twenty-five years of domestic and international experience working with local and regional economic development groups, businesses and universities. He is the publisher of http://www.newgeography.com/, a website devoted to analyzing and discussing the places where we live and work. As a researcher he has been awarded eight Small Business Innovation Research awards to develop leading-edge practices and tools for use by development professionals and community leaders to work more effectively with entrepreneurs and to build competitive, innovation based economies in the global, networked economy.
The conference will be held on Thursday, April 8, 2010, 8:00am to 5:00pm.
To reserve a spot in the conference, please contact Jane Muller, jmuller@uccs.edu or 719.255.4093.
Bill speaking at the Chamber's "Lunch Time Learning"
As companies voluntarily join or are unwittingly dragged into social media, their brand is being exposed to greater pressure than ever before. Brand Vulnerability is at an all time high as consumers have adapted to new digital tools faster than companies. At a recent “Lunch Time Learning” held at the St. Cloud Chamber, Bill Hatling spoke about the reach of social media and offers practical steps for businesses to confidently enter the social media environment.
Today Andy and Alissa Pesta sit down to discuss her tenure at Flint Interactive and the Flint Group, staying on top of new trends and advancements on the web and what the future of digital marketing looks like. We also talk about her family, working remotely and coming back to work after her first child.
I’ve been there, about to present our communication audit findings to the client team and truly understanding how an IRS auditor must feel. But unlike the dreaded IRS audit, a communications audit is better compared to a complete physical at a doctor’s office where routine health indicators are reviewed and tested to determine “how you’re doing” or where improvement is needed. That may make you cringe as well. But the opportunity to take the time to examine how well you are communicating with key audiences is an investment in your organization’s future, and just like an annual physical, it is a smart investment.
What is a communications audit?
A communications audit is a method of research, where we focus on the process of communications. We look at the exchange of information between you and your audience (think internal or external, customers or members, potential customers, those who influence your audience, volunteers, employees and more) and examine how well you are achieving your communications goals in reaching each critical audience. We define the audit scope based on the audit objectives; some have included interviews with key audiences or review of media coverage, others focus solely on advertising and communications materials.
The hardest part is getting started
Actually, the most painful part of the audit is the process of pulling together representative samples and lists of all audience touch points, both internal and external. Once you strip away the different silos, department ownership or rationalization that can surround communication and advertising, and review all your communication collectively, you’ll discover consistency or inconsistency, strengths and weaknesses, gaps and opportunities.
This process also helps you analyze how effectively you’re telling “your story” and most importantly, can serve as both a benchmark and a roadmap for your future. Just yesterday, I read a client’s 2010 communication plan that was developed from our 2009 audit findings.
What about your company or organization? Do you cringe at the thought, or are you ready for a communications audit?
When the cauldron was lit and the games of the 2010 Olympics were declared open, HatlingFlint was there at the Opening Ceremony, tweeting live. And we weren’t alone. Turns out there were lots of tweeters inside BC Place, around Vancouver, and all over the world who were sharing their Olympic experiences from where they were at that moment. This may not seem that unusual, but looking back only four years ago to the last winter Olympics, social media was virtually unknown. Today, social media is playing a very big role in connecting fans with athletes, teams, countries, and the overall Olympic experience.
It is for this reason that the US Speedskating team has added two members of the HatlingFlint team to their Olympic delegation, for the sole purpose of managing their social media campaign. Many of the athletes such as Apolo Ohno, Allison Baver, Jordan Malone, and Katherine Reutter, just to name a few, were already veterans of social media, but for the team as a whole, it was new.
Members of the US Speedskating team skating in Vancouver
The purpose of this new social media campaign that is still in its infancy, is to bring the Olympic experience of the team to fans of Speedskating, and continue with a sustaining program after the Olympics are over. Despite the well-publicized sponsorship of Comedy Central’s Stephen Colbert of the US Speedskating team, after the Olympics are over, his involvement will be complete, so the team continues to seek a new gold-level sponsor who will take the torch from Colbert. Having a sophisticated social media campaign in place will be attractive to any future sponsor, and can serve as an additional means by which to get this message out.
The primary components of the campaign include: Facebook fan page – updated several times per day with photos, race updates, and of course, daily medal counts. Fans have also engaged by adding their own photos of them wearing their Colbert Nation caps, historic photos of Olympics from the past, and posting questions about where to get tickets to events. Twitter – most popular are the live tweets from the venues as the races unfold. Even though some of the events are not broadcast or delayed, fans can choose to follow the action immediately. Two times per week, a trivia quiz keeps fans coming back to answer a question and go into a drawing for a cool prize. YouTube – new videos are uploaded showing many different sides of athletes from competitions, practices, goofing around, and their opinion on brussel sprouts. Blogs – daily monitoring allows us to comment on every blog that mentions Speedskating in some way; so far there have been over 100 blog posts to date and growing. Featured bloggers are added to the facebook page which helps give them even more exposure.
So take advantage of this new phenomenon and join in the fun. Engage with the US Speedskating team online and we’ll keep you up to date on every possible moment we can, now through the Olympics, and well into the future.
Ok. (Deep breath). I have a confession to make. I am a bonafide email nerd. Yep, there it is, I said it. I live it, I breathe it, I put ez-cheese on it and eat it. Now I wouldn’t have admitted that a few weeks ago…until I made a discovery. I’m not alone. I had the pleasure of attending the Direct Marketing Association sponsored Email Evolution Conference earlier this month in Miami, FL. So while the Indianapolis Colts were poolside next door, Jordan Sparks was giving a concert in an adjoining conference room, and Lou Ferrigno was having drinks at the lobby bar (I’m not making this up folks) – hundreds of fellow email practitioners gathered behind closed doors to discuss the latest eMarketing trends and best practices. Oh yeah, email nerds unite!
Listening and learning from the brightest minds in email innovation, I took away a few simple gold nuggets of knowledge I’d like to bestow upon my fellow email enthusiasts out there…
Don’t forget the welcome mat. Growing your email list can be difficult and sometimes expensive. My advice, once you get that email address – treat it like your mom on Mother’s Day. The first thing many email marketers do is forget to send an immediate welcome email after a prospect/customer signs up for their email distribution list. A big no-no. Why is this so imperative? Well, like the saying goes, first impressions are everything, besides that here are a few reasons why welcome emails are imperative:
Immediately reminds the subscriber they signed up for your emails (hey, I forget where I put my keys down two minutes earlier). By gently jogging their memory it also helps reinforce their decision to begin a relationship with you and lets them know that you will be attentive to their needs.
Allows the subscriber to put your email send from address in their safe sender list. This way your email will always reach their inbox and images will automatically be displayed in their email browser. If you aren’t asking your subscribers to put you on the white list, start asking now.
Provides you the opportunity to set expectations with your customer. Give them a taste of the content, promotions, or value-add your emails will be bringing to their inbox. Start training your subscriber on what you’d like them to do in your emails, whether it’s as simple as gleaning industry knowledge or directing them to your website to purchase a new widget.
Four seconds to save the world. That’s it, four seconds is all you get. That is how long the average email reader scans (I didn’t say reads, scans) an email to see if it is worth their time. It shouldn’t surprise you – you are guilty of doing it yourself. Heck, sometimes I don’t make it past the send from name and subject line. As email practitioners this should give us some understanding of just what an integral part email design and call-to-action play in your email. When they glance at your email they should know exactly what the purpose of the email is, what the offer and call-to-action is, and what their next step should be. You accomplish this by first and foremost having these items above the fold (before you scroll down to see the rest of the email) as well as having them stand out using both images and text (in the event images are disabled when they preview). Remember, your readers are busy just like you – don’t make them regret signing up for your emails. Give all your emails the four-second-glance test. Tick tock tick tock.
Email isn’t near extinction. Nowadays everyone seems to be enamored with the new shiny object called social media. And well, rightfully so. Its public adoption is unparalleled and has countless ramifications for marketers regarding their brand participation and perception. However, email and social media need each other. Email remains the foundation for social network verification and notification. Furthermore, email ROI continues to be the strongest of any direct marketing medium with numbers that continue to increase each year. Email isn’t going anywhere and in fact it’s getting sexier. Technology advancements now allow email content to be dynamic based on behavior and soon, still in beta testing, these advancements will allow email to be interactive with content that changes and moves (much like a website or rich media banner ad).
The best game plan is to embrace and integrate the three newer digital mediums -call it the “Triangle Offense” – of email, social media, and mobile. You will see all three channels of marketing become stronger when used together.
HatlingFlint recently won eight ADDY® Awards at the American Advertising Federation of Central Minnesota awards ceremony held on Saturday, Jan. 30, 2010. The ADDY Awards recognize creativity in numerous forms.
Pediatric Home Service’s Thrive Campaign received a gold award and also won the Judge’s Choice Award. The Thrive Campaign consisted of videos, a direct mail piece, ads and a microsite. The agency also received a gold award for Illustrations from the HatlingFlint Circus posters.
PHS Thrive Campaign and HatlingFlint Circus Illustrations
Silver award recipients were the Blattner Energy website, Glenn Metalcraft photos, the HatlingFlint Circus posters, a video of Tyler’s Success Story for Pediatric Home Service, and St. Cloud State University’s MBA Engaged Marketing campaign.
The award-winning pieces will advance to the district competition in Minneapolis on March 19-20.
I sit down with Libby Issendorf, Digital Strategist for the Flint Group, to discuss her past experience at Campbell Mithun and what brought her to Fargo. We’ll also talk about her social media work with the US Speedskating team, her upcoming trip to the Winter Olympics, and where businesses should start their social media efforts.
After last week’s blog posting, how did your brand clean up? Here are five more questions to see if it’s time to brush up.
Have you acquired new companies or shed divisions?
When your company acquires new ones or divides, it may mean a shift in business strategy or it may not. Regardless, it may mean you’ve left your brand behind.
Has your revenue growth stalled?
If your category is dying, you can’t necessarily blame poor performance on your brand. But if your sales growth doesn’t match your category’s growth – and it hasn’t in awhile – it could be time to overhaul your brand.
Has your market changed around you?
Lots of new players, new developments and new customers in your market? Your brand may be well-positioned to take advantage. Or it may not. Time to figure it out.
Has your senior management restructured?
Brands belong to the people, but brand development begins at the top of the food chain. When there’s a lot of change at the top, there’s bound to be some confusion below. A strong brand development process is a great way to get everyone on the same page.
Has your company turned 20 years old?
Okay, this one belongs to my friend Jim Hughes, of the Brand Establishment, who’s been doing this a long time. Jim swears a high percentage of established companies that come to him for his brand development expertise are about 20 years old. Why? His hypothesis is that at about the 20-year mark many companies find they’ve lost their focus, the market has changed around them and maybe there’s been some senior management change. Whatever. Maybe it’s like the 17-year locust or seven-year itch. But I’m guessing that if your company’s about 20, some of the other nine clues are making themselves evident.
So where does your company stand? Healthy brand or unhealthy? For most successful companies, working on brand building – understanding it, delivering on it, communicating it, measuring it – is an all-the-time thing. If your organization has a clear vision of your brand and is acting on it, you’ve probably already stopped reading. If not, you’ll probably find yourself nodding yes to a number of the clues; it may be time.
The professionals at HatlingFlint are always hungry for new marketing trends, techniques or hot topics that we can share with friends and clients. Watch for a regular stream of insightful information – or join in the conversation.
