Now is the time to clear out the cobwebs, tune up your operations, look over your sales, and improve customer service. Spring is a great time to clean up your business. The weather is changing for the better and so should your business. You will feel rejuvenated and refreshed with a good business scrub.
What is spring cleaning your business? This is the time to see what has been going right with your business, what has been going wrong, what has been pushed to the side, and what needs to happen for the next quarters to come.
Emails
Clean out your inbox. Complete your flagged messages and tasks. Review any emails from ninety days or before and reach out to potential customers who may have said they were not interested at that time. Archive old emails. Unsubscribe to junk mail that is a constant distraction.
To-Do List
Tackle your to-do list. Time is UP! Do not let another month go by with the same to-do list. Either scratch it off and never return to it or get it done. Let’s not carry over the same things into a new season. Prioritize your list by importance and time sensitivity. Start with the easiest tasks that will take a short time to complete. For longer tasks that require high energy, tackle them when you are at your peak. Don’t try and multitask while completing these types of tasks, as they will automatically be draining. Focus on the single task at hand.
Google Yourself, Google Your Company
Your name is intertwined with that of your company, therefore, it is important to see what pops up via an Internet search. See what your potential clients and customers see. Through a Google search find out if your company is where you want it to be. Are you located on the first or second search page? Improve your keywords so you are more visible online.
Pump up your Online Presence
Consider renovating your online storefront this spring—your website. Your website should be clean, straightforward, and user friendly. If your website could use a facelift check out theme-based websites from WordPress, SquareSpace, or Weebly. Is your web address everywhere it needs to be: social media platforms, LinkedIn, Google, Yelp, etc.?
Develop your social media voice. Does your social media page speak to your customers and target market? Is your message getting heard? Small business owners typically make the mistake of hiring interns or letting a friend of a friend manage the page, who will do occasional posts and chats. Building a social media brand takes time and commitment. In the early stages while there may not be a budget in place for social media management and marketing, if you want to be successful online you must invest in these things. Do it right the first time instead of having to clean it up later.
Customer Service/Feedback
Survey your customers. Ask them for their feedback. What can be improved? What do you like about us? What can we do better? What would you like to see from us in the future? Evaluate your employees on this too. Ask them their concerns and feedback. Ensure them their suggestions are vital to the company’s success and that being honest will have no bearing on how you evaluate their job performance.
Dump the bad apples
Review your operation costs and expenses. Check your bills and membership plans. Can you reduce costs in any way, change plans? Is there a special running at another company? Review your staffing plan. Is the staff you have now working out? Is it time to hire new or more staff?