You can't do it overnight

(Well, you can if you are a very small business with only one order and you get one more - but this section isn't about that scenario ! ) 

Some pointers:

• You will need some new customers to do this!
• As a general rule, the fastest a business can grow and remain under control is about 50% pa. Growth of over 100% pa usually hits problems (like going bust because of poor cash flow control, poor project management and bad debts).
• As a general rule, in most business-business areas, it takes 18 months from first contact to first order. Why?
• The customers budget year: "We'll put it in next financial year"
• They need to get to know you (This takes 6-9 "touches" over a period)

How to approach the problem

(Read our "Marketing Process" stuff first)

The eight tasks in the marketing process build on each other, so improvements multiply (like compund interest on your mortgage).

So, as a rough guide, an improvement of 10% in each task will result in a 1.1⁸ = 2 times improvement in business. OK, it's a rough guide, but you get the idea, so what you have to do is obvious:-

• Look at each of the eight tasks in the marketing process and rate how good you are at each one.
• Target actions on the tasks where you score low.

Think of a top-down & bottom up pincer movement

(Read our "Top-down, Bottom -up" stuff first)

• Improvement in the Market Development Tasks (1-4) will take longer to feed through into sales - say 18 months.
• Improvement in the sales pipeline tasks will be quicker, say 9 months.

So why not establish an 18 month improvement programme

• With a 9-month target improvement of 40% more business
• With an 18-month target of 100% more business

Like the idea? Then go to it!

• Understand the 8 tasks in the marketing process
• Identify your worst perfoming tasks
• Take action now to improve the worst tasks
• Set up an 18-month business improvement plan
• Become a Registered user so that you can call on our help