Start your current business from scratch tomorrow
Ask yourself this: How would your business be doing without some of the baggage that you are hauling along from day to day? If you could dump some of those crazy monthly outgoings, or ditch that real pain in the ass client, or do work a different way from the because-we’ve-always-done-it-like-that way?
With this topsy turvy economy it’s useful critical to go back to basics, and assess everything in your business.
The simplest way to do this is to take time out, go for that walk in the woods with your notepad, and ask yourself: If I was starting my current business, today, how would I do it?
By giving yourself the space to do clean-slate-thinking, you won’t be directly addressing the problems that your business is facing in these economic climes. But! By thinking of an ideal business, you can address the fundamentals of what a recession busting, effective business is, and of course, then take steps to transform your existing business into that superfly ideal business.
If I was setting up a web design company tomorrow, would I need an office? Or could I do without the money I’m spewing on premises that clients rarely come to or that my team don’t really need with skype and email? Similarly, do you really need that company car, office plasma screen, and coffee machine hire?
Good clients & bad customers
We all know that 80% of our business comes from 20% of customers, and 80% of the problems come from 20% of customers. So if you were starting a new business tomorrow, what gold service features would you provide to those 20% cashcow customers? And how would you build a business tactic that allows you to easily dump problematic customers? Thought of some? Good, focus on the right customers and stop wasting your time.
Product range
For me, as a web designer in the current economic climate, I see that people may not want new shiny websites as often as they may have done in the boom times. Yet I see that the web is totally measurable, people will pay for results that help their business in a slump, results they can see. They will pay for their website to be up-to-date and ahead of the pack, they will pay for search marketing to gain traffic from Google, and they will pay for email marketing that enables them to keep and maximise the revenue from their existing customers.
I now have a new product set to focus on. Maybe your industry has a set of products or services that are perfect for this economic climate? Get out there and ask customers what they really really really want.
The way things have always been done
It’s tough to see how things could be done differently. Like a favourite jumper, the way-things-are-always-done feels comfy, right and easy. But now is no time for inertia, you don’t want to be outa business through an inability to change.
With the freedom of thinking of a new business, you should be able to sketch out marketplaces, production processes, ways of working, sales angles and a core new-business model. Sketch anything and everything really engage yourself in the task of clean slate thinking for your industry. There should be at least 3 things that you identify that are real hardcore WHY DO WE DO IT LIKE THAT?! things.
Sorry if this article hasn’t been a bundle of laughs. I’ll make up it for it now by telling a bad joke: There were two monkeys in a bath, one monkey said “ou ou ou ah ah!”, and the other said “well put some cold water in then stupid”. Until next time.
When you’ve done this I’d suggest useful physical actions that will kick-off your new direction – move the furniture in your office around, sort your papers and ruthlessly clear your clutter. This will not only make you feel good but also underline what you’ve decided in terms of the way you run your business.