Marketing 101 by Elizabeth Slater - January 2020

2020, not only are we into a new year, we are into a new decade.

The idea of a new decade always pulls me up short, as I wonder what happened to the last one. I can’t believe that it went by so fast and at the same time wonder where was I when the last decade started, physically, mentally and emotionally.

Do I feel the past decade was a good decade or a so-so decade? (I try not to think of decades as bad. If I am still alive at the end of a decade, I have nothing to complain about.)

What have I learned and what have I accomplished in the last ten years?

Could I have done better? How?

After that I list my long term and short-term goals for the next few years.

I don’t go into a lot of detail in describing the goals. This list is a general reminder of things I would like to accomplish before 2020 becomes 2030.

The short-term lists are more detailed. I start with years one and two. Towards the middle of year two I check the things that I have and have not accomplished to ensure that I can complete the list in the six remaining months.

Or I may look at the list of things that are not yet done and decide that some of them are no longer important as my focus has changed.

Then I start on the list for years 3 & 4.

This goes on, until in no time at all, I start my list for a new decade. At the beginning of the last decade (2010) I started writing this weekly blog. Here we are 10 years later.

I find that looking over my lists encourages me to keep going and reminds me of the projects I want to complete. There is so much happening on a daily and weekly basis that I findthe reminders of long-term and short-term goals very helpful.

What are your plans for your business for the next decade as well as the next year?

Where do you see your business when 2030 hits? Do you have plans to expand the business to reach different areas or you may expand your services to reach different customers. Perhaps you are thinking it is time to sell your business. Whatever you are going to do, you will need a plan for it.

Look over your business plan and take note of the things that you planned to do. What have you achieved in the last decade (or the amount of time you have been in business) and what is still on the to-do list? The end of the year or beginning of the next is a great time to pick out a few things that have not been achieved yet that could make a difference to your business success and profitability.

Think about what has changed in the way you contact your customers. Are some updates or additions to the avenues of contact needed? These days they are many different ways to reach your customers. Are you using all these avenues and more importantly are you using them effectively? Take some time to explore what types of emails or texts will spark interest in your customers. Also, don’t overlook the fact that your customers (and everyone else) gets many more emails than they can deal with on a daily basis. Consider subject lines that will intrigue the people you are trying to reach and make them open your email.

Consider training your staff in customer engagement and connection. Your customers are much more likely to buy from your company because they are engaged with your employees and your business. If your employees are not selling the experience but are just selling products you will not see as big a rise in sales.*

Wishing you all the best for a happy, healthy and prosperous new year and every year for the next decade.

*If you are unable to train your staff yourself drop me an email at E@inshortdtc.com

A tip of the glass from me to you.