Summer is the time for relaxation, recreation, revitalization, and overall fun. However, for some small businesses it can be their downfall as clients don’t come in as often, and the overall business slows down to a crawl. There are many things that a small business can do to help re-create themselves during the summer so that business trickles back in more or their business takes off with a bang the coming fall.
So what are a few things that you as a business owner can do to help revitalize and recreate your business? We have listed just a few of them here but we thought these 5 would help you to get started this summer.
Generate a list of your primary patrons or leading clients
Everyone does or should have a list or index of their favorite patrons or prospective clients sitting in a prominent part of their desk or desktop (if you keep everything tidy on your computer.) This list tells you which patrons buy the most or need things regularly. It also tells you who could be a prospective client as they are someone you have talked to on a regular basis that has shown more than a passing interest in your products or business itself. If you don’t have one make sure you have one made. Researching and finding out the best clients/patrons to be on this list isn’t hard and prospective clients are all about the leg work. During the summer, it is best to reach out to your top patrons and find out their next big plans for the fall what they could need from you, etc. Finding new and potential clients is also important to keep your business running smoothly.
Refurbish your Procedures and applications
Summer is the time to re-create, so why not ensure that your internal operations such as procedures, applications and programs are all working as they should. This is items such as updating programs that need to be upgraded, backing up applications, and even streamlining any current procedures that you already have in place to make them easier to deal with. This will help your business run more smoothly when fall hits and things start to speed up.
Redesign and Strategize your Fall Marketing Plans
Summer is the perfect time to get your Fall Marketing re-energized and ready to go. Establish, block out and expand your current fall marketing plan so that you can narrow your target market area and realize the best way to reach new and current customers. This can include redesigning your current marketing materials, i.e. ; cards, brochures, and anything else you may use for marketing. Spruce them up, change them completely, and make them look more modern or attractive. Ensure that your social media information is printed on your marketing material as well as any other important information.
Build a mobile website
If you don’t already have one and most small businesses do, build a website that is also mobile friendly. If you do have one already ensure that it is up to date, snazzy looking, and easy for users to navigate it through their phones. Many people use a smart phone of one type or another, two-thirds of those people access the web from their phone. That is two-thirds of the population of smart phone users that you could be targeting for your business. When a website is not easy to navigate either by phone or on a computer then most people will not stay on the site. Ensure that your website looks as great on a smart phone as it does on the computer. There are many mobile websites or plug-ins for website that will help them be mobile ready.
Finish up any projects that need it
We all laugh about those honey-do lists but how many of us actually have those lists sitting on our desks or desktops? If there are some that are in dire need of attention then tackle them and get them out of the way once and for all. Regardless of what it is (cleaning out the stock room, creating new products, or any number of odd things that need to be done. Getting these items done will help you to shorten that list.
There are many free systems that can help you with your summer revitalization of your business, some have premium features that can be added for a small price. Storage to the cloud can be handled by Dropbox, Box, or Google Drive. When looking for a website there are providers such as Weebly, Wix,Wix, and BigCommerce that can help you.
When you go to redesign your marketing materials Vistaprint, PsPrint, and Moo can help at a reasonable price.
This summer get ready for fall by revitalizing, re-imagining and re-creating your small business.
