IF YOU FAIL TO PLAN, YOU PLAN TO FAIL, WRITES DARRYN LE GRANGE
The beginning of a new year brings renewed energy, focus and determination, especially if you have just returned from a relaxing and enjoyable year-end break. It is critical to set adequate time aside to plan for the year ahead before you get stuck into the daily operational grind. We encourage business owners to plan their year by making use of the following planning tools:
Strategic Planning Day
For as long as I have been running my own business, I have always hosted a strategic planning day with my team at the beginning of each year. This has proven to be an invaluable tool in examining our past year’s performance, identifying areas for improvement, plotting how to improve in these areas, and assigning responsibility to team members. The exact content and agenda of this one-day session will differ from business to business, but here are some common agenda items that will apply to most businesses:
• Assess actual performance versus targets and goals from 2019.
• Review customer information: new clients gained and clients lost during 2019.
• Review tactics or strategies that didn’t work in the previous year and understand why they didn’t work.
• Identify specific areas for improvement in 2020 and plan how to achieve these improvements.
• Review marketing performance and stats from 2019: which marketing strategies or campaigns delivered the most, which ones didn’t deliver as expected, etc.
• Present your budget for the forthcoming year.
• Set 2020 goals and targets.
Annual Marketing Plan
I am a firm believer that marketing is one of the key secrets to business success, and therefore believe in the importance and value of producing an annual marketing plan. Marketing is the function of educating and communicating with your target audience. The marketing plan we produce in our business works on a weekly and monthly format, allowing my team and I to see all our planned marketing activities for each week of each month for the entire year. This plan takes out the guess work when it comes to when and how to market during the year. Once the plan is complete, it needs to become somebody’s job to deliver on the plan and as the business owner or manager, your job is to hold that person accountable.
BUSINESS BREAKFAST
You are invited to an Entrepreneurs Breakfast – How to take your business to the next level in 2020.
Friday February 14, 2020, Makaranga Garden Lodge, 1 Igwababa Road, Kloof
8am for 8.30am – 12 noon
R195 per person, which includes a buffet breakfast
Email Chenal at adminkloof@actioncoach.com to secure your seat
FREE BUSINESS TOOL
For a free copy of our marketing plan template, please email Chenal at adminkloof@actioncoach.com