THIS WEEK’S PRO TIP!
I thought it would be fitting, given it’s the start of the year that perhaps sharing with you a tool I use ALL THE TIME, and I mean all the time, inside my business.
CANVA – www.canva.com –
This free platform (it does have a paid platform but to be honest the free one is fabulous and all you need for starters)
This one website will transform your marketing, social media and so on I ABSOLUTELY GUARANTEE IT.
So, what is it?
Canva is a graphic-design tool website, founded in 2012. It uses a drag-and-drop format which makes use a synch with LOADS of premade templates, photos, graphics and fonts. You can also upload your own photos – which is awesome for branding and stuff. If you’ve already set your goals for 2019, but don’t use Canva, please put NEED TO LEARN CANVA on that list – you’ll thank me for it later, I’m 100% sure.
It has great inbuilt tutorials, but if you’d like me to send you my tutorial – just drop me an email jenn@jenndonovan.com.au and I’ll send it straight through.
MY TOP 5 SUGGESTIONS ON HOW TO GET SOME SMALL, IMPACTFUL CHANGES INTO YOUR BUSINESS FOR 2019
I LOVE LOVE LOVE new year resolutions – especially the BHAG ones – BIG HAIRY AUDICIOUS GOALS ones but If you’re thinking, you know what Jenn – I don’t make new year’s resolutions ….
… then that’s ok – totally ok.
But if I told you the definition of a resolution was as simple as a decision to do something differently and bring about a positive change – would you still think you don’t make them or won’t make them?
If you’re in business, then somewhere along the line you are definitely making decisions to do something differently to bring about a positive change – otherwise you just wouldn’t still be in business!
That I know for a fact!
One of my favourite sayings (side note – you’ll learn as we go along that I’m an inspiration saying lover and a goal setting freak – but don’t hold this against me)
IF YOU DO WHAT YOU’VE ALWAYS DONE, YOU’LL GET WHAT YOU’RE ALWAYS GOT
It’s hard to know who said it first – if you google it – it’ll come up with Tony Robbins – but I first heard it from my business mentor.
Hand on heart I can tell you it’s fundamentally changed my life. Sounds stupid I know but it has.
Words are pretty powerful like that.
So, if we’re going to change so we can get changes we want, here’s my top 5 suggestions on how to get some small, impactful changes into your business for 2019
1. MAKE MARKETING YOUR PRIORITY
It’s not a coincidence that this is Number 1 – if there was one thing that was drummed into me in my mastermind and by my mentor time and time again – it’s this!
You’re just got to make time for marketing. It can’t be a back-burner activity.
And by that, I mean – it can’t be a when I finish this or get this off my plate or when I have some free time – it’s got to be your priority or someone’s in your business.
I know you wear a lot of hats, and this is another one – but if you make this your priority in 2019 – I can tell you the results will astound you.
One of my members in my Marketing and Social Media group has embraced marketing. She’s been in business for almost 15 years, smashing it, kicking goals for sure, but 2018 saw her make marketing a priority and I just love her texts or phone calls or DMs saying, I did this, and this happened – smashing mind set out of the park!
There’s a reason why the Podcast is called Small Business Made Simple and not EASY – this owning your own business stuff isn’t easy – in fact sometimes completely overwhelming – but to be honest, it is simple – attract more customers or clients, convert more customers or clients and keep them coming back over and over again – we can’t grow without customers – in fact we’re out of business completely without them!
See not easy – but simple yes!
2. LEARN TO MANAGE YOUR CASH FLOW MORE EFFECTIVELY
Cash flow is the lifeblood of any small business. Statistics tell us that 82% of small businesses fail due to poor cash flow management.
Cash flow isn’t intuitive. You simply cannot do it in your head and making sales doesn’t mean you are making money.
And business growth sucks up cash. The biggest times of growth can be hiding your worst times if you don’t manage your cash flow through the ebbs and flows of business. The faster you grow, the more capital you need to create to invest back into your business.
If you often have cash flow problems, seek out where – as in what time of the year or why and put some energy and effort into fixing it – there are solutions for cash flow problems – you’ve just got to reach out or look at your numbers more often.
I’m no accountant or financial adviser, but if this is where you need the most help – reach out. I’ll put you in touch with just the person you need to solve this problem – or reach out to your own accountant or finance expert.
Don’t let it be a problem for 2019.
3. LEARN HOW TO DELEGATE AND DO IT MORE OFTEN
Did you just squirm? Does the thought of delegating make your inner core shake?
If you’re a doer and a business owner, it’s a recipe for disaster when it comes to that dirty word – delegation.
I know, I’m one of them. Even with my kids and family I’m a “give it here, I’ll do it faster/better/right etc …”
Or at least I was – I’m reformed now – welllll slightly reformed anyway!
But here’s the thing – it’s a skill you CAN learn and it’s worth its weight in gold!
If you’re not a delegator, start with something small and delegate that. If you’re a solopreneur and have no one to delegate too but are still overwhelmed – investigate Virtual Assistants (VAs) or someone to do your social media posts or hire a uni student to do data entry – give yourself permission to not do EVERYTHING.
If you’re not sure what to delegate answer this question
What are the 3 things you’re best at in business and if you didn’t do them, money would stop coming in the door?
What are the activities that you do, as the business owner, that drives your business?
Whatever they are – DO THEM and start to look at delegating or outsourcing the other stuff!
You are your businesses greatest asset after all!
4. INCREASE YOUR DIGITAL PRESENCE
Start thinking of your digital platforms as a marketing platform and not a selling platform.
You’ll hear me say this a lot – til the cows come home virtually!
Your online presence is all about winning the digital interview.
No convinced online marketing is for you – here’s some tough love –
The only good thing coming from you not using your digital platforms well, is the profits to your competitors.
Now that’s gotta hurt – no small business owner I know wants to give more money to their competition.
5. TAKE A LOOK AT YOUR PRICING STRATEGY!
When was the last time you had a look at your prices or even put your prices up (or in retail – changed the formula you use to come to a RRP)?
Perhaps it’s time to raise your rates or prices to correspond with the value you bring to the table.
You might be thinking that raising your prices will alienate certain people from becoming a customer. That could be the case, but then they simply aren’t your target market.
The story of “they won’t pay that for it” is a story I hear all too often when chatting to small business owners and I’ve certainly experienced it myself.
But when I’ve tried it – they have. They absolutely have.
In my retail business – they’ve paid that much for a fry pan – in my speaking business, they have paid to come along to events that were once free.
We humans, we’re funny people and awfully hard to put all into one basket – so to speak.
Yes, you’ll lose some, but we were probably going to lose those customers anyway because they clearly price driven – and don’t value you and all your offer.
It’s time small business owners, it’s time – review those prices – and see what comes!
I truly hope as the new year starts, you’ll take the opportunity to look back at 2018 – look at what worked, what didn’t, what goals you achieved and which ones were missed (and why) – and start setting some 2019 goals for your business and even for you!
After all, if 2018 didn’t exceed your expectations, then you don’t want to repeat for 2018. Or if it did (kudos by the way) – then you want to analysis the why and how, so you can rinse and repeat or upscale for 2019.
So that’s it for episode 1 of the Small Business Made Simple podcast –
See you next week, and if you’re liking the podcast already – please head over to where you listen and leave a rating – those things are GOLD for podcasters like me!
Remember small business peeps, there’s no point in dreaming small!
Great Podcast – love this – make marketing your priority, manage my cashflow, delegate, digital platform = marketing platform and check my RRP and if I lose some customers probably was going to happen anyway as they are clearly price driven + don’t value me or what I offer.
Thank you Jen xx