Have you noticed how easy it is sometimes to go around in circles, getting more confused, acquiring more information or knowledge, wondering if you’ve got the answer, or just better-informed confusion? (That could just be me).
How does this relate to 2023? For me, and for you?
First, do I need more clients, and if so, how many? To know that, I need to know what my capacity is, and also what I want in terms of income. That’s a good determinant of whether new clients are needed, or not.
If you’re fairly busy now, and your goal is another $50,000 of income, perhaps instead of new clients it may be enough to offer your existing clients an added service they need.
Or, a fair increase in your charge rate or fee, or provide another service that many clients would like that complements what you already provide to them.
The point is, it’s not just how you make it happen, it's about finding and asking yourself the right questions so you have a clear strategy to move forward. It’s extra easy to get caught in an internet offer (‘if you just buy this everything will be perfect!’) and forget it’s the clarity in the numbers that dictate the strategy, which in turn dictates the activities to implement the strategy.
The numbers you keep, like financials, reports of sales, closure rates, new clients, average sales, etc., tell us where the gaps are and the directions needed to correct those gaps.
Opening questions and early thoughts:
What will your business make in calendar 2022?
How much do you want to make in calendar 2023?
What is the obstacle you most think is your problem? (Not necessarily just more clients)
The gap or shortfall (2023 – 2022 profit) could be reduced by doing what?
What strategies would you need to put in place to close the gap, and how sure are you (1 to 10, 10 being 100%) they would work?
In a short while, even allowed 60 minutes, we have a fairly clear idea of what needs to happen. (Doesn’t have to be perfect – yet!). First thoughts can be great thoughts.
You can use Predictive Modelling too, the software is much improved over the old Budgets (where you entered the expenses and added 10%, and plonked in enough sales so it all balanced nicely). Now, the software and models concentrate on getting the sales predictions right, which means based on the strategy and not wild guesses.
Ask yourself the right questions. Look at your answers. What does your path look like, are you reasonably confident you could make this happen?
Have a great day, and we hope some planning delivers an even better year!
PS: if it’s still a bit of a muddle, happy to be a sounding board and make a few helpful suggestions. Even happier to work together on a (one-page) plan including a forecast of profit and cash, and help monitor results regularly so you get the results you want. This doesn’t add much to an annual fee, because regular monitoring removes much of the need for checking financials at the end of the year.
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