Part Two: Revamp Your Business Growth Strategy
Part Two: Revamp Your Business Growth Strategy
Tips on how to update your operations + marketing for Q3
Hola familia,
I hope you found the financial deep dive from last week insightful (icymi, it’s linked here).
As promised, here’s the next part of our journey to revamp your business growth strategy. This week, we’re diving into operations and marketing. Scroll to the end to see your action plan that you can paste into a document and fill out on your own.
If at any point in time you need help going over your revamp plan, you can always book a strategy session. This option is perfect for any kind of entrepreneur looking for thought partnership on how to grow for the second half of the year.
And remember, if you’re a Latina entrepreneur who wants ongoing strategy support, accountability and community - applications for the Jefa in Training Circle are open! Sliding scale spots are still available. See more info here.
Step Two of Your Revamp Plan: Optimize Your Operations
Your operations are the backbone of your business. Streamlining them can lead to significant improvements in efficiency and productivity.
Here are some key questions to ask yourself, along with examples to guide you:
Are my current processes efficient?
Identify any bottlenecks or repetitive tasks that could be automated or simplified.
Example: If you find that manually entering data into spreadsheets is taking too much time, consider using automation tools like Zapier to integrate your apps and automate these tasks.
Example: If you spend a lot of time scheduling meetings, sending proposals, invoices, etc., an all in one platform like Honeybook can help automate this process, to help your clients move through your process seamlessly (and of course save you time and create peace of mind).
Do I have the right tools and systems in place?
Evaluate whether your current software and tools are meeting your needs. Look into new solutions if necessary.
Example: If project management is becoming chaotic, consider adopting a more robust system like Monday.com or Notion to keep everything organized and on track.
Is my team operating at its best?/ Is it time to start outsourcing tasks?
Consider if your team members are in the right roles and if they have the resources they need to succeed. If you don’t have a team, maybe it’s time to see if you need to delegate some tasks.
Example: If a team member excels in creative tasks but struggles with administrative duties, it might be beneficial to reassign roles to better match their strengths.
Example: If you find yourself overwhelmed with tasks that can be handled by someone else, consider outsourcing to freelancers or virtual assistants. Things that can be outsourced to start: your inbox, calendar, research, project management, social media engagement)
How can I improve my customer experience?
Look for ways to enhance your customer service, reduce response times, and ensure satisfaction.
Example: Implement a live chat feature (or integrate WhatsApp for Business) on your website to provide immediate assistance to customers.
Example: Use a CRM system (Honeybook, Dubsado, Hubspot) to track customer interactions and ensure timely follow-ups. This can also help personalize the customer experience.
Step Three: Enhance Your Marketing Strategy
A strong marketing strategy that prioritizes community-building through providing value and an opportunity for genuine connection is crucial for business growth.
Let’s refine yours by asking these questions:
Who is my target audience?
Revisit your customer personas and ensure they are still accurate. Adjust as needed based on recent data.
Questions to ask yourself:
Have there been any changes in my customer base demographics?
Are my customers’ needs and preferences the same as when I first created my personas?
Have new trends or challenges emerged in my industry that affect my customers?
What behaviors can I notice about my personas based on my social media and newsletter analytics/insights?
Conduct market research surveys with your customers:
How did you hear about our product/service?
What problem are you trying to solve with our product/service?
What products/services do you find most valuable?
How would you describe yourself in terms of job role, industry, and experience level?
What other products/services do you use in conjunction with ours?
What marketing channels are performing best?
Analyze your current marketing efforts. Focus on the channels that yield the highest ROI and consider dropping those that don’t.
Use tools like Google Analytics, IG Insights, and email marketing reports to track performance.
Example: If your LinkedIn generates high engagement but your Instagram has low conversion rates, consider allocating more time on content creation and engagement to where you are seeing results until you can outsource help to bring more attention to another communication channel.
Is my brand messaging clear and consistent?
Ensure your branding across all platforms reflects your business values and speaks directly to your audience.
Review your website, social media profiles, and marketing materials to ensure they all convey the same message.
Create a brand style guide that outlines your voice, tone, and visual elements. Want to see an example? Here’s mine.
How can I engage my audience better?
Experiment with different types of content like videos, blogs, webinars, and social media posts to see what resonates most.
Pay attention to the feedback and engagement metrics on each type of content, as well as what leads to opening links, booking calls or any actual sales.
Example: If blog posts on industry trends get a lot of shares but videos showcasing case studies or actionable steps get more calls booked, consider balancing both types but focusing more on videos.
Your Action Plan:
1. Audit Your Tools
Make a list of all the tools and software you use. Identify which ones are essential, which ones can be upgraded, and which ones can be eliminated.
Project Management:
Customer Relationship Management (CRM):
Email Marketing:
Social Media Management:
AI-Based:
2. Survey Your Customers
Send out a quick survey to your customers to gather feedback on their experience and what they’d like to see improved. Here are some sample questions:
What do you like most about our product/service?
What do you think we could improve?
How easy is it to navigate our website/order from us/use our product?
On a scale of 1-10, how satisfied are you with our customer service?
What other products or services would you like to see us offer?
3. Content Calendar Creation
Creating a content calendar is essential for consistent and effective marketing. Here are some tips:
Understand Your Audience: Make sure you are very familiar with your customers’ needs and pain points. Use insights from your customer surveys to inform your content.
Identify Key Themes: Based on your audience's needs, identify key themes that your content will cover. These could include tutorials, industry news, customer success stories, etc.
Plan Content Types: Vary your content types to keep your audience engaged. This could include blog posts, videos, infographics, podcasts, and social media posts.
Schedule Regularly: Decide on a posting frequency that you can maintain consistently. For example, you might post blog articles once a week and social media updates three times a week.
Use a Template: Use a content calendar template to organize your ideas. Tools like Google Sheets, Airtable, Monday, or Notion.
Content Ideas to You Can Start With:
Educational Content: Create how-to guides or tutorials that address common challenges your audience faces.
Case Studies: Share success stories from customers who have benefited from your product or service.
Q&A Sessions: Host live Q&A sessions on social media to answer customer questions in real-time.
Tip of the Week: Share a weekly tip related to your industry that provides quick, actionable advice.
Stay tuned for more next week! In the meantime, know I’m always here to support you.
xx
