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Three key business priorities to review for this year – especially if you are a printing company

Do you have a plan for the coming year?

This is a time of year when budgets are often being set. I remember working at one company where a manager cheerfully admitted that her budgets were complete fiction. She simply made the numbers up to keep the directors happy! You are probably not surprised to learn that she had some uncomfortable budget review meetings later in the year…

This year I have been sitting down with some of my clients to facilitate their planning for the coming months. We have been look at what they want to achieve. Then we have been making some realistic plans on how they this is going to be achieved.

It is important to plan ahead

Have you set a planning meeting for this year yet?

Have you set a planning meeting for this year yet?

Those who plan thoroughly have a much better chance of achieving their targets. They will be more likely to have control over the changes that will face them over the coming months.

Those who believe in business as usual will struggle to grow. They are much more likely to be witnessing a slow decline.

Here are three areas you should look at as part of your review.

Examine your website

When was the last time you looked seriously at your website? Does it accurately reflect your company and services? Is there a reason for your customers to spend time on it? And is there a call to action?

Many websites do not give customers a good reason to do business with the company. But it is one of the first places a prospect visits if they are considering using you.

Review your sales message

Many printing companies have sales messages that focus on themselves. They tell prospects all about their quality, service and machinery. That’s a mistake.

A good sales message will focus on the customer. They will learn how you can help them overcome their business challenges. The dialogue will focus on far more than print. If your message does not focus on these areas you may be losing good business opportunities.

Improve your social media presence

The social media landscape is littered with the failed accounts of companies that have failed to maintain a suitable presence. However, social media is one of the first places that potential customers will check you out.

It’s essential to make sure that you have n active social media presence. It must say the right things about you and attract customers. It must do more than just broadcast cheap prices and special offers.

What about production issues?

I have focused on the sales and marketing side of thing in this article. However, production efficiency should not be ignored. There are lots of simple changes that can be made that make a real difference to efficiency and profitability.

Here’s how simple planning has helped one printing company

I have been mentoring with a smaller print company. We have put together a simple plan for improving sales next year. Over the first few months they will be sending out a series of communications. They will be carefully measured and potential prospects followed up.

The planning has only taken a couple of hours. But they now have a very definite action plan to make sure tht the right sales activity takes place over the next few months.

It’s time to take action!

  • Set a time in the diary to sit down with your key managers to discuss what you want to achieve over the coming months
  • Book room off site so you won’t be distracted by production issues
  • At the end of the meeting, set some goals and measurable action plans

Make sure you can answer yes when you are asked if you have a plan for the coming year.
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