Having just been through the world-wide cessation of all business we are emerging a little shell-shocked but keen to get back to it.
Most of us have had severe disruption to our cash-flows and profitability and some have had to downsize the business from small to micro just to stay afloat.
So, the question now is “How do we bounce forward” to a new, vibrant and profitable business with financial security.
We need to follow the words of the song, “pick ourselves up, dust ourselves off and start all over again.”
The answer, to our way of thinking, is quite simple, having lived through several business financial crises during our entrepreneurial career, you start small again and use any new money earned to get stronger and more secure so that you can push harder and grew further.
However, before going into our recommendations, let us just put forward a note of caution. Whilst planning any sales/promotional activity it is now more important than ever that you link it to a cash-flow forecasting system. This will allow you to model the financial implications of any promotional costs, with their projected sales returns, before you commit to any plan of action.
This is something that was developed by BHT as long ago as the 1990s and has helped us negotiate the rocks and reefs that have been along the way. It is very low cost (60/mth) and worth its weight in financial security and profit! (If you need help with this give us a call on 0808-172-1900)
So, to get back to the pipeline development her are our thoughts.
We are talking primarily to the micro/small businesses who will have to build up their portfolios with very little in their budgets. There are several things that we would recommend that are minimal cost/time and capable of immediate deployment
- Regular social media posts (daily) so that other companies know that you are still here and are open for business
- Regular blogs – at least one per week
- Join an online networking group
- ½ hour per day telemarketing – 6-7 calls.
If you do these 4 things, in one month, you will have:
- posted approximately 20-23 social media messages,
- 4-8 blogs
- Spoken to about 150 companies in the online network
- Called 120 – 140 companies and emailed out follow up information before a follow-up call next month
Based on our statistical knowledge of the power of telemarketing you should have identified between 12 and 21 companies showing interest. You should be well on the way to converting business in the next 1 to 3 months.
The same statistics may well apply to your digital campaign.
So, we can pick ourselves back up again and move to a secure future, it’ll just take a little time and effort.
If we can offer any advice or assistance with what we have described here, just ring us on 0808-172-1900.
