Avoid “being on the TITANIC!”

November 5, 2019

If you own or run a business you must read this article.  If nothing else as a reminder of the key items to be on guard for.

Does your business have a process for establishing your prices?  Does this process include a periodic review at least annually?  If not, you may be on the Titanic!  Reference on pricing strategies

Does your business have a sound set of financials that are reviewed monthly?  Is a budget part of this package?  If not, you may be on the Titanic!

Certainly, Jeff Foxworthy made this quip, “you might be a redneck, if” famous in his comedic act.  But as a business owner who is responsible for many people and their families, it is not a laughing matter.

Here is a quick test to see how you are doing…

  1. Do you have a pricing process?
  2. Does it include a review annually?
  3. Do you have a capital spending plan?
  4. Do you maintain a budget?
  5. Do you know what the ratio is of your AR to AP?
  6. Do you monitor your sales volume weekly?
  7. Do you have a pipeline management system for your leads?
  8. Do you have a written sales / marketing strategy? Reference on B2B marketing
  9. Do you review your IT needs quarterly?
  10. Do you project cash flow?

How did you do?

  • 8-10 YES answers- congratulations you are staying on top of your business!
  • 4-7 YES answers- maybe you should take a closer look at your business.
  • 0-3 YES answers- strongly consider getting some outside help. You have some serious issues lying just below the water that will get you.

Manufacturers?

  1. Do you scrap out your old equipment within 90 days?
  2. Do you actively review your inventory and plan for obsolescence?
  3. Do you actively measure your operations performance with objective data?
  4. Do you eliminate repeat errors?

Add four (4) to the scoring above.

While the above was shared with a dose of humor, ignoring your business is no laughing matter.  Most businesses we visit that are in trouble have been on a slide for months or years.  These same businesses did not address the above ten questions.  Unfortunately, their business decline was slow and not due to one specific issue.  All of them could have avoided the pain had they seriously focused on the areas above.

If you would like more information or help in finding support for any of the areas above, reach out to SPC Consulting and let our team help.