New Year recipe for success: Focus, Focus, Focus!
Start right in 2021!
Have you been impacted by the terrible year of 2020 and thinking of starting up your own business? Being your own boss sounds like a good idea in this new world and it is.
But to be truly successful there are only really 3 things you need to remember, and they are: Focus, focus and focus.
The trap most start-ups fall into is over enthusiasm; trying to do too much too fast. A communications strategy requires a precise process, and each step follows onto the next in an ordered way. Doing so will ensure solid foundations and enough due diligence will be achieved at each phase building a robust foundation for your communications plan. So, let us go through this 5-step process in detail.
- THE WHAT PLAN
The first, and arguably the most important, step is to define your business idea plan.
Most people think of this as a solely business focused plan, logistics and finance for example, but this first stage should be the bigger picture. What is your idea? How will it deliver a market advantage? What is it’s SMP (Single Minded Proposition)? Who are its audience? How will you convince your customers to use you? Etc.
- THE HOW PLAN
Once you have defined these points as a clear, documented plan you can then work from this document to solve how to address each of these points including the logistics of achieving them and the finances needed to do so.
- THE PREPARATION
So now you have the road map laid out, the route you will take, the stops you will make, what you will see on the journey, now it is time to take the trip.
This means you need a name, a brand and a marketing strategy that delivers on all the customer promises your WHAT PLAN has defined. This creative phase is not abstract, it is not a matter of board members tastes, it is defined clearly by your plan document. It is a matter of following from A to B with logic. This is where many start-ups come adrift. Stay focused on your defined goals at this critical point. Get it wrong and you could miss your opportunity! Tread very carefully here.
- THE IMPLEMENTATION
So now you have a big picture plan, a defined logistics and finance plan in place, a brand and a marketing strategy as well as any tech or product development that has been running in parallel with all your other efforts, also based diligently on your initial plan. It has all come together in beautiful unity.
Now is the moment of truth, the roll out! This is where your brand, its promise and how well your marketing delivers that promise to your potential customers really comes into its own. These first few months are make-or-break, get traction and you are over the hill and that means getting steps 1 to 3 perfect.
- THE ANALYSIS
In this tech driven world, data is king. Data convinces and data leads. Build in systems to gather as much as you can and use it to gain more funding for a phase two expansion or to fine tune your product, your marketing, or both. The world constantly changes as do consumer needs and desires so don’t think if you get it right that is it. Your product, business model, marketing etc. will need to evolve to keep up and data informs this ongoing process.
Each new year offers an opportunity for a fresh start and brave new world of possibilities. Remember to stay focused and agile, and the rest will flow.
So it just leaves me to wish everyone a very optimistic 2021.