As I write the penultimate blog of the year on the 12th of the 12th 2012, despite it not getting published until tomorrow, it seems only fitting that this topic should continue the festive feel and relate to the twelve days of Christmas …it’s as if I planned it. You might even be lucky and get a bonus one seeing as I am technically a day late.
So we can relate to it and so it doesn’t look like I am just having fun, I have added a slight business theme to an old favourite that we all know and it goes something like this…
On the first day of business my marketeer agreed with me
1 Mission statement or overall aim – It is important to set this in stone before you proceed
On the second day of business my marketeer agreed with me
1 Mission statement or overall aim
and
2 Quantitative goals or objectives – for example: turnover or increase in sales
What, you don’t want to sing it cumulatively? O.K., I’ll just get straight to the juicy bits
3 Communication channels – offline, online and face to face. How are you going to communicate with your audience most effectively? If you segment your customer base this will help you be heard.
4 Action points – set them and do them!
5 Golden rules. Be professional, be genuine, always go above and beyond, be loyal and be yourself.
6 Meetings with suppliers/customers – Set up meetings to discuss progress, moving forward and also how to keep things fresh, exciting and keep you ahead of your competitors
7 New ideas – Inspiration! This is vital to keep you on the right track! Hold brainstorming meetings with staff and management and get everyone involved.
8 KPI’s – I know what you’re thinking…Acronym. Key Performance Indicators do exactly what they say on the tin and help you define and reach your goals.
9 Forms of contact – this is an expansion of communication channels and deserves a greater number as there are so many… email, letter, flyer, twitter, newsletter, blog, telephone, visit, brochure and so on and so forth.
10 Tips on social media to gain and keep interest – use all channels, ask questions, post regularly, post relevantly, run competitions, get customers involved, comment and encourage interaction, set a reward for ‘likes’, ask them to share your page and be friendly!
11 Review steps and procedures – These will be based on how close you are to achieveing your goals.
12 Months of the year. Every month and season is different for a business so you should monitor your performance accordingly.
And your tip for good luck? Don’t leave your Santa outfit in the dressing up box!
Next week will be the last Debut blog instalment of 2012 so I thought I would steer clear of all things work related and tell you some of the funny stories that have happened to us this year – hold on to your Santa hats, it’s going to be a hoot.