Hewlko News - The first step in your strategic planning process
When I work with new clients we often start with strategic planning. Strategic planning outlines business goals and can identify any barriers so that we can make appropriate recommendations. To run these types of meetings I’ve created a short, four step process to help guide the discussion.
Step 1 – What does success look like?
Success can look different depending on the person, team, business and relationship that you hope to develop.
Thought starters:
What does a successful relationship, project or communication look like?
Step 2 – Business goals
A goal is a desired result you want to achieve. The below is a list of some areas where businesses like to set specific goals, select the ones that work best for you and your business.
Thought starters:
Sales / Revenue
Brand
Customer experience
Operations efficiency
Growth of business
Employee retention
Marketing
Step 3 – Business objectives
An objective defines the measurable action taken to achieve the overall goal. These are where we create a solid picture of what needs to be done to hit specific goals with timelines, due dates and team responsibilities.
Thought starters:
Sales / Revenue: $X (Date)
Brand consistency (Date)
Customer experience: review customer journey, sales cycle, etc. (Date)
Operations efficiency: financial systems, technology features, etc. (Date)
Growth of business (Date)
Employee: employees in specific roles, culture, etc. (Date)
Marketing and communications: updated brand, messaging, website, events, etc. (Date)
Step 4 – Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats Analysis
This simple marketing exercise never gets old and for annual clients I like to redo this every year. Always looking through the lens of: How can we highlight our strengths and are there any weaknesses that can easily be solved? How?
Next I typically recommend completing a competitive analysis, check out how you can complete your own here!
Q&A with Erin Ferguson
Meinzer, James & Ferguson, Realty Group
Meet Erin, realtor, entrepreneur, lifestyle and friend extraordinaire! In this Q&A we dive into what it looks like to be a realtor in today's economy and reflect on the ways that Erin has built up her business over the past 10 years.
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