Yep, it’s the start of a brand New Year and here we are, January’s half gone already. The most depressing day of the year – apparently 6 January – has passed by swiftly, so let’s get cracking.
What’s the difference between good and great you say? Well, good’s OK if a little tame. Great carries much more promise.
Wondering where to start? Here are my top tips for getting organised this month.
Take a long hard look at 2013 and work out what went well and what’s still on your marketing hit list.
1. Remember the 7 Habits – begin with the end in mind.
What do want to do, change, achieve or measure? How can you connect in a more meaningful way with your customers or your supply chain or the media? Want to improve internal communications, start blogging, get more buy-in from your staff?
2. Define the goal
Then break those big, unwieldy goals into small, bite-size chunks and commit to some dates for activity. More effective to take several small steps which move one goal forward than having too big a challenge or a list of 50 goals which is so scary, you never find time to start work on any of them. And remembering the end in mind set a realistic target for yourself, or your team or it’s easy to let things drift.
3. Share the load
Doing a review and working on forward looking goals as a team gives you the chance to share ideas and work out who can realistically do what, by when. An away-day or in house session devoted to strategy will enable everyone to focus and agree key marketing goals. If you’re more of a lone ranger, hire a mentor who can support or guide you to keep focussed on your goals.
4. Regroup to review
Schedule a time to get back together in 30 days and review your progress.
Good luck and Happy New Year!
