Are you caught up working 24-7 IN your growing business?
Can’t find the time to get it all done? Not enough hours in the day? No one can do the work right, except you?
Well, then maybe the time is right for you. You’re finally ready to implement a strategic plan for Business Growth.
Let’s review 24 reasons why your business needs a strategic plan for Business Growth.
24 Reasons Why You Need A Strategic Business Growth System
You have no future-oriented vision for your business. In other words, you don’t know where you would like your business to be in 1 year, in 5 years, or even in 10 years from now.
On the other hand, you have some vague notions of where you would like your business to be in the future. But you don’t have any concrete plans established to make your dreams a reality.
Another reason you need to develop a strategic plan for business growth is that you are not sure what it is specifically that YOU want to achieve for yourself personally from your business. A strategic plan for business growth specifically incorporates plans to help you achieve those personal goals you want from working in your business for the next 5 to 10 years.
A strategic plan for business growth includes the balancing of your personal and business values. One should not outweigh the other. A strategic plan asks you to consider your personal values as you develop a plan to grow your business.
One primary reason for developing a strategic plan for business growth is your Cash Flow. Is it unpredictable? Why is that so? A strategic plan for business growth must address your business’ Cash Flow circumstances.
In addition, a strategic plan to grow your business will help you develop your business’ unique methods of generating Cash Flow.
Does your business have a specific “system” developed to generate Cash Flow? How about to manufacture more of it? Your strategic plan should encompass the design of such a Cash Flow “system”.
Any business can suffer from the unfortunate circumstance of having trouble paying bills on time. How can you solve this problem? The answer typically lies in having an organized approach to your business growth that keeps focus on your financial outlook. Your Cash Flow, your sales, your accounts receivables, and your own collections may be underlying reasons for your own financial woes. Your strategic plan should answer these questions and should arrive at workable solutions that you can implement to correct the problem of money, of Cash Flow.
If your business has failed to produce sustainable profits, likely you do not have a strategic plan in place. Your plan must set out actions to produce profits. But must also be focused on sustaining profits once they start to come.
One major reason for designing a strategic plan for your business is because your customer or client base is unstable, not growing, or even dwindling. You need a plan to identify your current customers and clients. And a plan to target your most valuable ones.
What if your customers or clients aren’t sure what it is you do? What steps are you taking to ensure that your customers and clients do know exactly what it is that you do? These steps must be “programmed” into your customer and client contact “system”.
If your customers or clients do not refer business to you, and neither do friends or colleagues, something is wrong. What? You’ve got to strategically analyze your business and come up with reasons for your lack of referrals. Then your plan must include remedies to the referral problem.
Many times, your competition gets the upper hand over your products or services just because you failed to consider them. Your plan to grow takes into account your own competition, their products, and services compared to your own. What steps can be taken to improve your products and services, or to design new ones that are even more competitive in your market? Your plan will have the answers.
What do you love about your business? Your products? Your services? Are you really passionate about your business? Any plan to grow a business must answer this important and fundamental question.
What about your marketing? Have you addressed this issue in your plan to grow? Are you spending too much money on marketing with no specific method, plan, or target? When you implement your strategic plan, you will come up with a specific plan for your marketing and, most important, a specific target to market.
Additionally, it may surprise you but you are in desperate need of a strategic plan to grow your business if your only form of acquiring new customers or clients is word-of-mouth. What is your method of acquiring new customers? What are your specific plans?
Who are your “prized possessions?” I call these your “Ideal Customers and Clients.” Your plan to grow your business must include ways to identify your Ideal Customers and Clients, and ways to acquire even more of them.
Can you state exactly what benefits your products or services provide to your customers or clients? You must be able to as part of your plan to grow your business. Once you arrive at your answers, write them down. These benefits must be constantly, and consistently promoted to your customers and clients as part of your overall plan to grow your business.
Why do you need a strategic plan to grow your business? Because you don’t have enough time in the day to do all you have to do. When you fail to plan, you plan to fail. Writing it down, and then following your plan is a great strategy for time management and goal achievement
“But I can’t develop a plan.” I’m just too busy putting out of the fires.” That’s a primary reason why a plan that strategically addresses your issues, obstacles, and problems, your IPOs, is urgent. You’ve got to identify what are your IPOs. You do this as part of your strategic plan. Then your plan has got to come up with solutions that you can implement to overcome your IPOs.
A central reason for having a strategic plan in place is so you have a method and steps to follow to achieve your goals. And they’ll be written down. Once they’re written down, then their achievement are merely a matter of executing the steps you have written down. If you want to achieve your goals, then have a strategic plan to do it.
But what if you say you don’t have a plan. That you just do what you have to do each day you come into the office. Having a “system” and a formal process to follow day in and day out leads to consistent action and eventual triumph over the hurdles and obstacles you face in your business. A formal plan will keep you on track taking the actions that you need to achieve your goals.
A necessary part of your business, if you want it to grow, and make money in the process, is to design and implement a “system of operations”. Your strategic plan for your business must establish the key “business operating systems” that will run your business and its component parts, whether you are on the job or not.
If you’ve been keeping track, we’re now at the final reason why you need a strategic plan in place to grow your business. If you’re not sure of definite ways you should grow your business and increase your profits based on your personal goals and business objectives, then you really don’t have a plan. You haven’t thought out how your business is supposed to be the vehicle that gets you to the ultimate destination…, your goal achievement.
But once you take the time to design a strategic plan, you’ll then have a method… a “system” that you can follow daily. You’ll have a plan that sets out definite ways and methods that you can implement… ways that will increase your profits… and that will drive you daily towards the ultimate achievement of your goals and aspirations. Not only for your business…, but for YOU.
There’s 24 reasons why you need to design and implement a strategic business growth system for your business.
“But, how can my business benefit if I design a strategic plan for business growth and increased profits?”
To answer that question, let’s review just 7 benefits of designing and implementing a strategic plan for business growth.
7 BENEFITS OF A STRATEGIC PLAN FOR BUSINESS GROWTH & INCREASED PROFITS
Once you develop a strategic plan to grow your business and increase your profits, you will have:
=> A business that is strategically growing and evolving into the dream enterprise YOU always wanted.
=> More fun and satisfaction by doing the kind of “work” you most enjoy, with the people you most like to work with, and for the kind and quality of customers and clients you dreamed of one day serving.
=> A financially solid business with increasing income for you and your staff.
=> Profit building, with lower overhead costs and reduced expenses.
=> Easier, quicker resolution of customer and client complaints, and staff issues.
=> More time off to spend with family and friends.
=> Less stress.
So, what are you waiting for?
There’s only 24 hours in the day . And only 7 days a week.
24/7.
But that’s enough time to get busy working ON your business.
So, get going. Today. This hour!
You want to make more profits? Achieve all of your goals? Have more time off? Feel fulfilled? Be happier and more passionate about your business?
Then here’s the secret.
You must design, and implement a strategic plan for your business growth.
This article is an excerpt from the MasterMind Business Growth System, as authored by Miguel Mendez, Jr., Esq.
Copyright 2008. Miguel Mendez, Jr. All rights reserved.
The author of this article, Miguel Mendez, Jr., is the Owner of MasterMind Group International. He is an Attorney, noted Business Growth Expert, and Speaker. Miguel Mendez has represented and performed consulting services for start-up and fast-growing businesses for over 22 years.
To learn more about how you can design and implement your own strategic plan for Business Growth and increased profits, check out the MasterMind Business Growth System, a 310 page interactive workbook, with 8 CDs, and easy-to-implement forms and checklists.