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Chart Your Success: Plan Your Sales for 2010
Be positive. Be realistic. Be successful. Plan now to set goals for the year ahead.
Sales forecasting is fun–really. This is the time where you look at the opportunities for your business. There are always opportunities, even in a down economy. Okay, so 2009 may not have been your best sales year ever. That makes it even more important to set realistic sales goals to help you plan. Revenue is the lifeblood of your business. Keep expenses in check. Identify your 2010 sales projections.
Here are some resources to help:
Follow this link to download 12-Month Sales Forecast.
Find Customers & Deliver the Goods, online workshop.
A mentor can be a sounding board. Ask SCORE online.
If you expect each quarter to be vastly different, set quarterly goals. When you have targets, it’s so much easier to chart a path to success.
Christine Banning, SCORE
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December 30, 2009
Tis the Season to See and Be Seen
Make the most of December. Attend holiday parties, community events and chamber of commerce events. Between now and December 15th be sure to network. Let it be known that you’re in business and connect in the community.
Have plenty of business cards. Always carry a business card. Even in social settings, you may share contact information. And, it’s a signal to people that you are serious about your business, when you do have cards at the ready.
Don’t be in the position of asking for a pen and note paper to share your contact information. Always get a business card from people you meet to add to your list of contacts.
If your business information has changed during the year, be sure to include a business card with your holiday greeting cards to business associates. Keep in touch and keep your info current.
-Christine Banning, SCORE
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December 23, 2009
Time to Wrap up 2009 Sales
By December 19th, the sales year is pretty much over for most businesses. If you have proposals waiting for approval, seek the signature and that deposit in 2009. Get some revenue on the books and some business in the door for 2010.
If you are a retailer, this is your time. Take two hours this week to look at how you’re doing for the holiday season. Make a mini-plan now to refresh your store windows every Monday between now and the new year. Foot traffic attracted by your displays can create energy and impulse buys.
To help rev up your energy:
Get tips on business vision from mighty entrepreneur Robert Kiyosaki, author of Rich Dad, Poor Dad. Free to you thanks to our interview. Get Download.
Free offers are interesting. Use them sparingly, but offer something of value. In retail, this loss leader generates excitement, interest and the sense that you really get your customers & their needs.
I have a free offer for you. Visit the SCORE landing page to find out about our Free 1 Gig USB Drive. Visit page to Contact us (hint: link at end of page) to be one of 10 who get a free drive each week in December. Visit December offers.
Always free and confidential SCORE business advice. It’s what we are all about connecting you with experienced business experts as mentors. Give SCORE a try. Ask SCORE online.
Visit next Wednesday for a post on sales forecasting.
-Christine Banning, SCORE
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December 16, 2009
Support Your Community & Boost Your Biz
With Thanksgiving right around the corner, businesses can show their appreciation to their communities by giving back and garnering free publicity in the process. Big corporations have long recognized the advantages of giving back. Business like Target, Tom’s Shoes, Harpo and Microsoft are very vocal about their contributions to the local and international community. It shows their committment to the people and community that supports them. It also helps to build a brand associated with altruism and philantropy.
Small Biz Guide to Giving Back
Find out what matters most to your customers and focus your efforts.
For example, Target donates a part of their profits to schools because a large percentage of their target market are families with school-aged children. To make the best impact, focus on the issues that matter to your client base.
Decide what method works best for your business.
There are many ways to contribute. Pizza Hut offers free pizzas to students who read a certain number of books. Disney offers a free pass to indivuals who volunteer with an affiliated organization. Apple offers product discounts to students and teachers. These are just a few examples of how your business might give back.
Spread the word.
Once your program is up and running, let the public know. Put up information on your web site, place flyers in your store and update your online networks (Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter). Most importantly, pitch the story to your local media outlets. Reporters are always looking for human interest stories. Also, contact organizations that would benefit directly from your program. Ask them to include your info in their publications and on their web sites. This is a great way to get free PR and boost your business.
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Here are a few articles from SCORE to jump start the process.
Christine Banning, SCORE
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November 18, 2009
Make a Smart Start with Your Business Idea
Small businesses start with great ideas. If you have a great idea and 2010 is your year to start a small business, then plan ahead.
Now is the time to jot down your vision of where you want to be in five years. Starting a business? What kind of sales, profits, market niche and employees do you see ahead. Paint a picture of the future.
To get started, meet with a SCORE mentor and talk about your ideas for a business. In person, ask for a copy of the workbook “How To Really Start and Structure Your Business.” This free workbook by SCORE and The Company Corporation is a great resource to help you think through a small business start.
Free for Your Business
Find SCORE and make an appointment to meet a mentor in person.
Try the online workshop on putting together your Business Plan.
Take the entrepreneur readiness quiz.
If this is the beginning of your journey, don’t go it alone. Start out by surrounding yourself with trusted advisors. SCORE advice is free and confidential. Take this opportunity to make an appointment to meet with a mentor in person. Find SCORE near you.
Christine Banning, SCORE
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November 11, 2009
Stay Current & Win!
The first 100 subscribers in November for eNews and ExpertANSWERS will win a complimentary SCORE Great Ideas notebook. Subscribe here.
SCORE eNews
Monthly tips, trends, articles and small business news.
111,000 subscribers and growing.
Read sample issue.
SCORE Expert Answers
Monthly Q&A interviews with key insights from a leading expert.
100,000 subscribers and growing.
Read sample issue with one of Oprah’s favorite financial gurus, Jean Chatzky.
Note: Winners must live in the continental United States. When subscribing, you must include your full name and mailing address in order to receive the notebook.
Christine Banning, SCORE
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November 4, 2009
Make the Connection.
Email, Blogs and social media are great. Quick info and a sense of connection.
But, when was the last time you actually talked to your 10 best customers?
The recession is easing, but the economy is still in a state of flux. Do your clients have a personal connection with you?
Set aside a day and call your top clients to find out how they are doing. No rush. No pitch. Just get feedback.
Real relationships and trust take time. The investment in picking up the phone to call can reveal emerging client needs, bring feedback on your services and can build loyalty–because you show that the client is important to you as the business owner.
Workshop: Creating Customer Loyalty
5 Tips on Customer Service
Managing Client Expectations
Christine Banning, SCORE
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October 21, 2009
What Does the Future Hold for Your Business?
Times have changed. We can look back at the last year and learn.
As a solo entrepreneur, home office biz pro, a two-person company or a firm adding staff to meet new demands, you and everyone around you is looking for the answer to this question, “Where will we be in the future?”
Your leadership, vision and dream provide the answer. However, in the flurry of day to day activity, it’s sometimes difficult to take the time to plan ahead. This is where a SCORE mentor can really help.
Mentoring & Brainstorming Help Answer Big Questions
Add a SCORE mentor to your team as a free and confidential advisor. 1) Meet for a brainstorming session to talk about your dreams for the business. 2)Then, meet a second time to talk about the dreams that have the best chance for market success. 3) Finally, meet with your mentor to put those ideas down in a one page plan of where your business is heading next. Tomorrow planning is doable.
A mentor can guide you through the process, so you can define your big success horizon.
Make an appointment to meet in person. Find a SCORE office.
Ask SCORE for advice online.
Christine Banning, SCORE
View more posts by Christine
October 14, 2009
Form a Connection. Deepen the Bond to Build Client Loyalty.
Ben Franklin was an entrepreneur with big ideas. While money doesn’t grow on trees, getting your big idea across to clients does bring in the green.
Franklin said, “Tell me and I forget. Teach me and I remember. Involve me and I learn.”
How do you involve and engage your clients, so they connect with you and your product or services? Sales success is all about forming that connection, so prospects become clients and clients become fans.
Ask a SCORE mentor online about marketing.
Read more: Ben Franklin’s advice.
Christine Banning, SCORE
View more posts by Christine
October 7, 2009
Energy, Optimisim and Good Advice
Could it really be that simple? Well, no not quite…but close.
It really is a start-up secret that entrepreneurs are optimists and see blue skies ahead. Always looking to the horizon.
The power of your ideas, energy and optimism are harnessed when you: focus, surround yourself with trusted advisors and plan for the future you want to create. To begin your blue sky thinking and plan ahead, start here with:
Quiz: Be Your Own Boss
How To: Business Structure
Advisory Board: Forming an Advisory Council
It’s free and confidential. Don’t be shy, ask SCORE for advice online or in person.
Christine Banning, SCORE
View more posts by Christine
September 30, 2009
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Be positive. Be realistic. Be successful. Plan now to set goals for the year ahead. 
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