Monthly Archives: February 2023

Re-inventing yourself this spring

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Michael Altshuler once said, “the bad news is that time flies, the good news is that you’re the pilot.”

When it comes to the British post-Christmas winter, I guess you won’t mind too much if time flies. I for one am always happier when we approach the end of February and I know that spring is just around the corner. Even though the weird and wonderful weather patterns mean we can still have snow in March, longer and lighter days always cheer me up.

In terms of business, this year has mainly been uncertain so far. Despite the fact that the forecast for the recession seems to be becoming shallower and shorter by the minute, it seems hard to come up with a firm plan at the moment. Most business owners tend to sit on their hands in situations like this because moving forward often means spending money which is a worry when you are not sure what is around the corner.

The issue with this kind of thinking is that it holds you back which can become risky when we have to work harder to achieve the same or less results than in better economic times. If you think about it, reality changed in March 2020 with the first lockdown and we have lived with uncertainty ever since, we just called it different things to help the time pass. If there is one thing we learned over COVID, it’s that holding back from giving your business what it needs to move forward does not work. If you look into it, you will see that companies who did nothing to re-invent themselves over the pandemic took a lot longer to move forward when things opened up again.

So, what can you do to re-invent yourself this spring? Today I wanted to share the key points from the process we run at YBDT to create our strategic plan for 2023:

  1. Get clarity on your vision: Don’t keep going and get too busy to see the woods from the trees. Just like a bear coming out of hibernation, you need to clear the cobwebs that affect your vision. Taking a point on what Einstein said, “if you always do what you always did, nothing will ever change”. If you are not sure what you want to get out of your business anymore, get help from a coach or a mentor. Give yourself time away from the business to consider this and keep digging until you come up with something that feels right and that you find exciting.
  2. Get excited about moving forward: we all deal with self-limiting beliefs which hold us back. Sometimes it feels safer not to get too excited, keep your hair on and stick to what you know. But if your business has become a boring job, you might as well get one. Get back to what made you go out on your own in the first place, look at your journey and embrace change. This will help you identify the best way to move forward with your new vision.
  3. Share your vision with your team to create your plan: we all have our blind spots and sharing your plans with your team will help uncover areas that need further consideration. Don’t underestimate your team’s knowledge and understanding of your business. Whilst you oversee things, they often make them happen, giving them a different perspective on things. Not to mention how much quicker and enjoyable planning in a team can be.
  4. Make sure your plan has measurable goals in it: goals are key indicators by which we know if we are moving in the right direction. Without them, you will get lost in that wood again. It’s important to keep your team involved in this and assign goals and actions to them too – after all, you can’t do it all on your own.
  5. Hold each other accountable: don’t lose momentum by reverting to business as usual and forgetting all about the plan. A big advantage of getting your team involved is that you are all going to feel passionate about achieving your goals. By involving others, you offer them a share in the business which makes their job more exciting. Make sure you have regular sessions to check on progress and update each other on the journey you are all taking.

I hope you find this helpful towards having a more joyful spring and a better year overall. Remember that any business plan worth its title will include growth which means generating more leads and selling more. At YBDT we can help propel both. Find out more about our strategic business development plans here and get in touch to discuss yours.

Don’t believe the hype. There is no fairy dust

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Like most people I’ve been getting a lot of emails promising to work miracles in all areas of business. One recent one told me how the sender had “helped John go from £100k/mo to £200k/mo in 3 months and Joe close $485k in new deals while working part time”. The truth, of course, is that the sort of magic needed to live up to promises like that does not build viable businesses. If you had found the secret formula to instant sales success, would you give it away? In the real world where our businesses live, we want to create sustainable growth that gives value to our customers now, in a year and in five years. To do that takes time, planning and developing a long-term strategy to prove your worth to your clients.

In 2023 sustainable growth means taking a clear view of how to achieve your aspirations for the business. It is easy to get attracted to each new opportunity and devote all your resources to chasing it down. Much like a football team where everyone is running after the ball, you risk of leaving your own goal, or existing business, undefended. Any game, or business plan needs to be built on a sound strategy with the tactics used to achieve your aims changing depending on the opposing team you want to beat, or the business prospects you are looking to convert into clients.

In a leading article at the CEO-Worldwide portal Colin Thompson suggests that: “The route to growth is more important than the growth target itself”. He goes on to point out that skincare company Natura, owners of Avon and Body Shop, has achieved success by concentrating on a relationship-focused business model. While having a target to aim for is clearly still important, putting the steps in place that make hitting targets repeatable is critical.

YBDT has 15 years of experience in doing exactly that. We create finely tuned sales and marketing strategies for business looking to build success for now and the future. Creating a successful sales and marketing plan calls for a comprehensive understanding of your business, it’s products, unique selling points, and story to help us craft the strategy. We can help you pit that strategy into practice by creating a tailored sales process and using our team of experts to produce the content and make the calls that will convert leads into customers.

We have worked with Higos Insurance Services since early 2020, here is what their Regional Manager Alan Clarke said about his experience of working with us, ‘I would say YBDT are ideal for businesses who are looking for a strong partner, who will represent them well, and deliver positive results in terms of strengthening your telemarketing distribution channel and sales pipeline.’

We know there is no fairy dust, but after 15 years of following our own advice and building sustainable effective marketing for our own business, we also know what is needed to do the same for your business. Get in touch to book a discovery call that is the first step to your business growth in 2023.