10 Things You Must Do Now For Your Business

April 24, 2012 - PRLog -- 1.Create at least one company profile, three are better.

Most companies don’t have a business profile that’s adaptable to all the online areas where it could be useful. Writing an effective profile is harder than you think. It’s difficult to combine your most important message with the customer’s most important need on the spot. Having several profiles of different lengths ready will help you easily fill out those bio areas that really benefit your branding online, such as social media, online directories, bylines and article resource boxes - among others. Have one around 200 words, another around 300, and yet another for extended bios around 500 words. You’ll still have to tweak them to fit the different environments, but the hard thinking will be done, saving you a bunch of time.

2. Commit to filling out one online directory listing a week.

MerchantCircle, Manta, Brownbook and others are important places to list your business. They pull more rank than you, so get some of that for yourself. You can have very good business listings in several of these places for absolutely nothing, but they’ll really try to get you to pay for additional services. If you do them all yourself, you don’t need their services. Go FREE in large directories, but get your website link in them.

3. Get a domain email address.

Are you still using gmail, hotmail, or yahoo.com for your email address? How does that help your brand? Your branding should be evident on your domain - either your ultra-concise message or your company name. It becomes even more recognizable as you build your online ‘legs’ all over the Internet. Email is the most effective way to reach and stay in touch with your customers and prospects. If they can’t recognize you from your email address, you're shortening your reach. Most domains offer free to very inexpensive emails that end with your URL.com. Use your branded email address for absolutely everything business related. By the way, the more frequently a customer inbox marks you as spam (which is common when they don’t recognize your email address), the more your name will be recognized as such. You don’t need to end up with trouble stemming from any unintended CAN-SPAM violations.

4. Collect all available contact data from existing clients and all prospects.

If you’re not doing so already, start immediately collecting email addresses and entire street addresses in addition to phone numbers. Make sure your customers are aware of your social media locations and company blogs. Invite them to connect with you, and use this information to build long-term relationships. Happy customers and interested prospects are great advertisements for your business and help you build the ‘social proof’ that’s so necessary for online and mobile search results.

5. Develop an editorial calendar.

Marketing online is a lot of work. Do all you can to make it more manageable and to see that necessary tasks are getting done. Make overall annual goals for how much online content you intend to build for your online reputation management - like articles, press releases, blog posts, and white papers - and then continue to break that into manageable content per quarters, months and weeks to make your goals. You may decide that this type of effort is worth a dedicated individual or team, depending on how aggressive those goals are. Written goals are more likely to actually get accomplished.

6. Focus your energy on what makes money today.

You have a lot to do. Truth is, it will never all be done. That editorial calendar will really help you focus your efforts, but that’s not the end of the issue. Things that get put off and put off regularly can become a weight around your neck, it might be time to decide if you should take them off your plate entirely. When this decision must be made, look at those unfinished tasks as ‘open loops.’ They have a beginning stage, but the final stage just isn’t happening. That final stage is where I want you to start. If a project is open-ended, but could be making you money today, do whatever it takes to close it. Mark it off your list. With every email, every phone call, every new product line or great warranty - focus on how it makes money today. If it really doesn’t impact your finances today in the least, assign it to someone else or consider taking it off your plate. Primarily, focus on the tasks that make money today.

7. Focus your attention on what makes money tomorrow.

Make time today to put something into action towards making money in the future, too. Even if it’s only 20 minutes, put some time into the things you need to do for future growth. Growth doesn’t just ‘happen,’ it has to be planned and executed. Without dedicated time, brainstorming sessions with your team, and implementation, those ideas you have for your company will never materialize. People and businesses perish for lack of vision. Do you need to centralize? Expand? Hire someone to address things you no longer have time to do? Maybe you need more education to proceed. Whatever it is, move towards it today in a tangible way.

8. Connect with another business.

Are you really spending enough time reaching out to work with other businesses or getting to know them? Money-making can’t be done alone. Endorsements and cross-marketing strategies are extremely beneficial, and for more reasons than you might think. Online, it’s the currency of recognition. Search engines use algorithms that notice your connections, socially and through links. Businesses that understand this share each others information and boost their own page rankings. Mobile screens and tablet screens are small, and competition for those top placements are vital. Do everything you can to benefit from friendly business relationships.

9. Develop a concise mission statement of 3 - 5 sentences.

Narrowly define your position. Be the clear choice for your prospects. A mission statement helps you and your entire company stay true to core beliefs. I always advise my clients to not only have this available online, but print copies and have them signed by your employees. That way you have something to stand on when it’s time to promote or discharge. I can’t stress enough how important it is for your overall company mission to be easily stated, administered, and adhered to for those inevitable, questionable situations. When it comes down to it, what you believe at the core will be what defines you and your business.

10. Find a mentor.

No man is an island. The Bible calls us ‘vessels.’ Vessels are containers that pour - easily filled, poured out, and filled again. This concept is huge and matters much more in business than people realize. We grow when we surround ourselves with others who are doing what we want to be doing - what we see our businesses doing - in the future. Often when we frame it like this, we look at it on a more personal level. The truth is, even our businesses only put out what we put into them. No vessel will pour anything out empty! Get good information from a mentor you trust. Consider a coaching program or a mastermind group - even local chamber of commerce groups are helpful when looking for a business, or business owner, to emulate.

Don’t stop there! Remember, get your vessel full and then pour out what you’ve learned to the leaders in your company. Your business won’t grow until your proteges are ready for leadership. Start today by deciding who you want to learn from and what manner and level of interaction will benefit your company the most - then share your wisdom with those you want to nurture in business to eventually take your place. Your promotion, even in your own business, happens when someone else can do what you’re doing right now, well.