Spring and fall are two times of year that automatically instill a need to refresh. Whether you are doing spring cleaning or getting ready for the winter season, you take a look around your home and life and assess what needs to change and what stays the same.
I was looking in my closet as part of the fall transition time and realized I had some winter shoes that were looking a little worn. Some of them need to be thrown out and replaced completely while others just need some attention and maybe to be resoled.
As I was sitting on the floor in my closet sorting my shoes I began to think about how this also applied to my business. What things in my business have I been doing or working with that are just worn out and need to be replaced? What things need to be resoled? I came up with a list of areas to assess. I hope this will help you in doing the same.
Business processes
- Make a list of all of your major business processes. Usually this includes the functional areas of your business: Production, Sales & Client Relations, Finance & Record keeping, etc.
- Look at each process and identify if it is working well, needs to be reviewed and ‘resoled’ or is so broken it just needs to be replaced. Or maybe it adds no value at all and just needs to go completely!
Example: I have a process for capturing my communications with my connections, but it is not efficient. I need to resole my process and optimize the tools I already have or adopt a new CRM tool.
Branding / Marketing Material
- Make a lis tof all your marketing material and areas where branding is used. This includes web, print, email, presentations, stationary, etc. All representations of your business.
- Review all of your current material. Is your look and feel consistent across print, web, and eMaterials? Is it time to refresh that look and feel? It’s a big decision to change your brand (replace) but maybe a refresh (resole) is all you need to make it feel fresh and new again!
Example: I have material to share with my readers that has old logos and URLs. It’s time to update that material ad give it a new sole (or soul)!
Products and Services
- Make a list of all products and services you had any activity with in the current year.
- How many products / service options do you have? Is it too many? Not enough? Have you reviewed all of them recently to make sure they are up to date? Is the content fresh? Has the business environment changed since you created them?
Your Challenge: Take one area of your business and do a ‘spring cleaning’ or ‘fall transition’ review. Identify one area that needs to be either replaced or resoled. You’ll feel better with those new or refreshed shoes on your business!
