If you are a small business owner, strategic planning is critical. It helps you set clear goals, identify opportunities and threats, and develop a plan of action to achieve success. In this blog post, we’ll provide strategic planning tips specifically for small businesses, covering the basics and some hacks to get you started in the right direction.
Strategic Planning Tip #1 – Assess
Before you begin the strategic planning process for your small business, it’s important to understand the current state of affairs. You’ve surely heard of the term “SWOT Analysis”, which stands for Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats. It’s somewhat of an antiquated term, but it’s an effective way to identify the internal and external factors that can affect your small business.
When you identify your small business’s strengths, be sure to list all the unique features or advantages that your business has that sets it apart from your competitors. For example, maybe your business is located in a prime location, you possess some intellectual property or your team has specialized skills and expertise.
Next, identify your business’s weaknesses. These are the areas where your business may be lacking, or areas where it is weaker than your competitors. For example, maybe your business is not well-known, or your prices are too high.
After identifying your strengths and weaknesses, you’ll need to focus on the opportunities and threats that your business may be facing. Opportunities are external factors that your business can take advantage of. For example, a new market opening up or a new technology becoming available. Threats, on the other hand, are external factors that could negatively impact your business. For example, new competition or changes in consumer behavior.
Once you’ve conducted your SWOT analysis, you’ll have a better understanding of the internal and external factors that can affect your business. With this information, you can setting goals for your business.
Strategic Planning Tip #2 – Goal Setting
There are several schools of thought when it comes to goal setting as part of the strategic planning for small business. One popular approach is SMART goals: Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound. By setting SMART goals, you’ll be able to focus your efforts on what’s important and make sure that you’re making progress towards achieving your goals. For example, instead of setting a general goal to “increase sales,” a SMART goal would be “increase sales by 15% in the next 6 months by focusing on digital marketing.”
Strategic Planning Tip #3 – Action Items
Once you’ve set your goals, it’s time to create an action plan. This plan should include the specific steps you’ll need to take in order to achieve your goals. For example, if your goal is to increase sales by 15% in the next 6 months by focusing on digital marketing, your action plan might include steps such as:
- Developing a new website
- Starting a social media marketing campaign
- Launching a Google AdWords campaign
- Offering a special promotion to online customers
An action plan should be specific, measurable, and include a timeline so you can track progress and make adjustments as needed.
Finally, it’s important to remember that strategic planning is an ongoing process. As the business landscape changes, your goals and action plan may need to be adapted or modified. It’s important to review your progress regularly and make adjustments as needed to stay on track.
In conclusion, strategic planning is essential for small business owners. By honestly and accurately assessing your situation, setting goals, and creating an action plan, small business owners can course correct their management to achieve success.
Need some help getting started? My Business Roadmap can help you get your business on the path you want to take it in line with your long term vision. Our platform will guide you through all aspects of your business and get you focused on what matters most to get you where you want to go.