Oftentimes, as business owners and entrepreneurs, we look forward to summers as a time for play and vacation.
But if you can get your ducks in a row early, then you have the time to take a summer vacation and really enjoy it without worrying or wondering about whether you're hitting your goals.
If you prepare and put those in motion now, then you'll be able to breathe easier in the summer.
Start learning to become proactive because what you build today creates what you own tomorrow!
Here are five focus areas that you need to prepare for your summer success:
Data
Know which numbers to look at and how to follow those in a trend. Knowing what your year looks like allows you to move in with much safer parameters and generate predictions for the following year. Data is one of the biggest driving factors in creating new sales. But it has to be meaningful and useful, otherwise, it’s just going to be useless.
Outcomes
You have to craft your future. Determine the outcome you're going for this summer and what you want to develop throughout the summer. What are things you’re trying to chase?
Set SMARTER goals:
- Specific
- Measurable
- Attainable
- Realistic
- Timely
- Exciting
- Relevant
Keep your goals exciting by setting a reward every 30 days or so. If you have difficulty achieving the goal, reward yourself more often.
Tracking
Informational data versus actionable data are two different things. Determine what data is informational to help you make decisions on what's working and what's not working, and then what data is something you're supposed to obsess about so you can keep it on track.
Strategy
- Visibility – Put your business out there and market to the right people. Learn about who your competition is and who they're actually serving. Define what “sociable” looks like for your brand. If people cannot see you, they will not trust you.
- Outreach – Pick something you can be consistent with. What you want doesn't matter here. What matters is what the person you want to serve wants – and where that person is.
Capacity
Recognize you're going to need resources to serve the growth that came as a result of your efforts. But planning for capacity can't happen the moment you realize you don't have it and you need it. You have to count the cost before you even invest the cost.
If you want to learn more about how to approach your summer that will set you up for success, check out Episode 086: Planning Your 2022 Summer Sales Success.
