November Newsletter: KICKSTART YOUR NEW YEAR IN 3 EASY STEPS
STEP ONE: Create your Plan
Planning does not have to be complicated, but it needs to happen!
Many people wait to plan until January, but if you look at your business cycle, you are probably being paidnow on work you did 60 days ago or more. So don’t wait another day, start NOW to plan for the New Year! Most frequently credited to Benjamin Franklin, the quote “A failure to plan is a plan to fail” has been uttered by so many that it’s hard to properly cite. But planning is only the tip of the iceberg. At Orange Leaf Consulting, we want to take it a step further and propose that failing to plan for implementation is the major culprit in why people fail at reaching their goals! Your plan must go further than just setting goals; you need to devise a plan of action on how to reach your goals. So, regardless of whether you are an individual contributor and setting only personal goals, or you are a senior leader who is responsible for driving your organization’s goals, pay attention and stay tuned through January 2013. In this 3 part series, we are going to walk you through the 3 STEPS TO KICKSTART YOUR YEAR.
- Step 1: Create Your Plan (November 2012)
- Step 2: Implementing Your Plan (December 2012)
- Step 3: Measure Progress (January 2013)
Step One: Create Your Plan
Plan your numbers and your to do list.
Much of our 4th quarter here at Orange Leaf Consulting is spent working with our clients to plan their strategies for the New Year. We take them through the Orange Leaf Consulting planning process and get to the nitty-gritty of how we are going to make it happen.Here, we will give you a few steps that you can do with your team to set you up for success in the New Year.
1. Write out your specific goals for 2013 and then break them into quarterly goals, and then monthly goals. Pay attention to market cycles, trends and history. Here’s an example:
2013 Revenue Goal = $5million Quarterly Revenue Goal = $1,250,000 Monthly revenue = $416,666 (This example assumes consistent production throughout the year. Depending on your industry and trends, your quarterly and monthly goals may not be flat throughout the year.) Now figure out how many orders/sales based on your average sales price or fee. Let’s assume average revenue per sale of $1500 So with a monthly revenue goal of $416,666/$1500, you need to close 278 deals per month based on this model. Do you close every single order/sale? If not, you need to account for your cancellation rate. We’ll use a 20% cancellation rate in our example, therefore, you must open: 348/month to account for a fall-out of approximately 70 orders This is your monthly order/sale goal. Now that you know this number, the next step is to figure out where those numbers will come from. Yep, it’s time to target!
2. Create your MOST WANTEDlist for 2013.
Our suggestion-create a list of at least 40 customers that you want and share this list with your team members. Research your targets-get to know who they are, their contact information and how you can get in front of them. You’re almost done with the first step of planning for the New Year. Now that you know how much, and from whom, it’s time to create the HOW. The HOW is what outlines your strategy and your specific tactics
3. Write down specific sales activities that you know can bring you business.
Without specific action items your plan is simply a hope… and hope is not a strategy! It may be helpful for you to look at your results from the past year, and figure out which activities resulted in a return on your time investment. Try to do more of the things that resulted in a new customer in 2013, and less of the things that keep you busy, but don’t actually produce a result!
Here are a few examples:
- Call 2 new prospects and ask for a meeting -Daily
- Ask for a referral-Daily
- Give 2 presentations-Monthly
The ball is in your court now. Complete Step One: Create Your Plan, by December 1st. With all task assignments, you must commit to a due date and stick to it; otherwise, you’ll be looking in your rearview mirror all the time. Then look for our December newsletter where we will discuss Step Two: Implement Your Plan!!
Happy Thanksgiving!
Grow Big or Go Home!