As a business owner you saw a need that wasn’t being fulfilled, drew up a business plan which equated to a strategy and boom! A business was born. This is an oversimplification of creating a business, but it serves a purpose in this blog. With the recent closure of businesses and gradual reopening of the economy it’s time to think out of the box. How can I continually reach and engage my clientele? I can’t afford to keep my wonderful employees on payroll without my excellent customers. The solution is to triage. Triage your business plan into what I call RDO (Re-strategize, Digitize and Optimize).
Re-strategize
Think long and short goals. What can you improve on? Is it your cashflow? AR (Account Receivable) and AP (Accounts Payable) process: Can you do a better job in getting paid faster? Should you invest in an ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) system that will provide true visibility in the company? Is there a manual process that can be automated? What is your marketing strategy? If you don’t have an online (social media) marketing strategy, you will need to come up with one. You may need to engage the services of a social media marketer. They will be able to guide, research and create a social media strategy that will rejuvenate your image.
Digitize
Is it possible to eliminate paper? Digitizing any information will save you time (looking for paper) and money (looking for a missing invoice) plus the cost of storage. Create a digital filing/storage system where you can access your information.
Automation
Automate a manual process by simplifying it. You can use electronic workflows to enable you to be efficient and thus increase productivity. Automation also helps you stay organized and in turn helps you achieve your goals quicker.
Marketing
Due to the lock down, walk-in customers are almost a thing of the past and most people are shopping online. That’s why you are digitizing your marketing from printing pamphlets to using social media platforms. These social media platforms have quantifiable metrics which means they are measurable. It’s easier to change a digital message than pamphlet that’s already in production.
Optimize
You have re-strategized, digitized and now it’s time to optimize.
Optimizing your business process means readjusting your long/short term goals without violating the core business values. Pick a quantifiable optimization measure like, reducing costs while increasing efficiency or how many people have watched your advert, clicked on a link or gone to your site.
Access to information
As you RDO your business, it’s also important to think about security and access to your information. Access should be given to those who need it.
Some of the security measures that can be enforced are:
Audit trail – who accessed info and at what time.
No download of company data,
Endpoint protection for BYOD (bring your own device) and access for authorised devices.
These measures are a delicate balance of protecting the business while not being a hindrance to its daily users.
Summary
Once you figure out the bottlenecks in the business, it’s time to pick the right strategy that will align with your long/short term goals while being scalable.
Highlights:
Pick a quantifiable measure for every strategy
Your online messaging should be often, authentic, specific and strategic.
Give access based on need.
Secure your information and devices.
Kilele Consulting can help you assess and develop a focused strategy that addresses your long/short term technology goals. Send as an email at [email protected] or engage us through social media at @kileleconsulting on Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn.
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My web blog :: John E. Snyder