15 Dec 12 tips to get your business ready for 2020
‘Isn’t it funny how day by day nothing changes, but when you look back everything is different.’ (C.S. Lewis)
We all get a little crazy in December. Burnt out, over it, looking forward to holidays … And in the blur of the final end of year business and personal to-do lists, phone calls, emails, parties, holiday planning and the odd last-minute call for help, it’s easy to lose sight of the big picture. But in fact now is the perfect time to consolidate your learning from 2019 and make plans for 2020.
Our 12 tips
Here are 12 areas you can focus on to get set in your small business for 2020. (And then you can sign off!)
- Celebrate your achievements. Take time to be grateful for your year. Acknowledge your employees and/or the people around you who have contributed to your success.
- Identify your challenges. Conduct a SWOT analysis of your business – what were the Strengths and Weaknesses (what you did or did not do well internally), how did you manage external Opportunities and Threats?
- Run financial reports. Look at your profit and loss (P&L) statement and your cash flow. Are you happy with where your money was spent and do you have enough cash to take advantage of opportunities if they come along?
- Revise your business plan. Based on the results of your SWOT and P&L what needs to change in your business plan? Are the key goals and metrics still valid? Has the market changed and therefore does your focus need modifying?
- Clean-up your database/s. Update addresses, phone numbers and the names of your key contacts. Delete or archive contacts you don’t use anymore.
- Update your operations manual. Your operations manual is not a set and forget tool. Review your documented systems and processes and make updates if they are redundant or need modifying.
- Clear-out files and emails. Delete, re-arrange and organise your soft files and scan and shred paper files.
- Back up computers and mobile devices. Even if you use cloud-based software, back everything up on a hard drive or external server.
- Review marketing collateral. Scan your website, socials and any other marketing materials. What needs updating, deleting or refreshing? Make a plan to get this work done.
- Stocktake. If you are a product-based business, or have books or other goods for sale, undertake an inventory check to help you make decisions for 2020.
- Identify your resourcing needs. What did you suffer through this year that could have been done by an employee or external agency to free you up or make you more efficient? Are there opportunities in your budget to make changes?
- Set your goals. What are your personal, professional, community and business goals for next year? Make your goals SMART – specific, measurable, achievable, relevant and time-bound.
Be prepared
Don’t let the year slip by without taking stock of where you are now and setting goals for 2020. Otherwise you can run the risk of imagining things are either better or worse than they actually were. As a result you may start the year two steps behind – then you will be playing catch-up instead of being on the front foot.
If you need accountability and ideas to help keep you and your business on track in the coming year, why not look for like-minded business people and start your own Beyond Business Groups in 2020? Month by month we give you content, tools and tips in all areas of your business to keep you working ‘on’ your business, not just ‘in’ it. Groups can start anytime in February. Find out more.