When it comes to growing your online business, if you are anything like I am, you will have very ambitious ideas for how it will take off.
But have you stopped to consider that the only way to ensure your exciting ideas actually succeed is to have a very clear plan of action?
You need an ambitious plan that sets direction for each stage of growth in your business. That helps you get there step by step. Fast.
So let me tell you more about a tool I have used throughout my Entrepreneurial career, so that you can use it to achieve your goals and create that success you want.
One of the biggest challenges that online businesses face, that always gets in the way of realising ambition, is not having clear long term goals. I covered this in my last coaching club session: How To Power Up With Simple Goal Setting.
Your goals need to be well defined and measurable. You need to make sure that you know exactly what your financial expectations are and your milestones for success.
You also need to use key performance indicators and targets such as website visitor numbers and conversion rates to help drive you forward and keep your teams focused.
So if you haven't already - set your business some ambitious growth goals.
My view is your growth goals need to be realistic, but they should always stretch you just a little beyond your comfort zone and what you think is possible.
You want something to strive for and you have a lot to share with this world. So make those goals ambitious. They should scare you a little bit... or if you are feeling bold - a lot!
It is easy to overestimate what you can do in a single week, and that can often leave you feeling like you're just not making progress on the things you want. However, I find that you will totally underestimate what is possible in a year, so surprise yourself... stretch a little... or stretch alot.
When you know your goals, it helps you focus on what the real priorities are for your business and identify where your "busy work" pitfalls are.
You want your overall growth goals to inspire projects that will have the biggest impact on your core business and help you make huge leaps forward in profits and your purpose or fulfillment. It is ok to brainstorm a variety of ideas before you identify the key projects to prioritise for your business.
“Successful people are always moving forward and always seeking improvement.”
If you are in Tech, you will already know about the Agile project management methodology which introduces the concept of "sprints". This is one of the most successful tools I've come across that your business can draw inspiration from to really move you forward and get some momentum going.
The idea is that a business growth goal or project is broken down into individual work packages that are completed in short ‘sprints’.
These can be any length of time - for your online business growth I recommend you make it a 90-day sprint. Each quarter in a year = 3 months, so this timeframe maps entirely and neatly onto a 90-day sprint.
I swear by this timeframe - it is long enough to achieve some real success, but not so far away your team gets demotivated because they can't see the finish line. Everyone can see the finish line across a 3-month window. The use of this tool just makes the year look a lot less daunting.
The 90 Day Sprint is about staying focused.
Here's how I do it:
Step 1: Map your growth goals across each quarter.
Take your overall business growth goals for the year - the ones that you identified earlier - and assign these to each quarter across the year.
Ask yourself, in which quarter will I work towards and achieve this goal?
You should break your goals down into manageable chunks across the year if need be, especially if too broad or large. Your growth goals effectively become the targets for each quarter.
Step 2: Set Up your Plan template for Q1 and choose a maximum of 3 priority projects to focus on.
Next, take your first quarter - Q1 and create 3 columns on some paper or open up a fresh google docs. Title each of these columns with the name of the months in that quarter as headings. e.g. Column 1 = January, Column 2 = February, Column 3 = March.
Step 3: Decide how you will judge success
Step 4: Identify The Steps Required + Assign an Owner
Step 5: Take Action, Hold Yourself Accountable and Measure Success
Pick up your finished 90 Day Sprint plan and take a look:
Growing your online business can be a challenge, particularly if you are looking to achieve big things. We all know that you can do this; it just needs a solid plan of action and alot of focus in order to get you there. The 90 Day Sprint Plan will make it a whole lot easier. I promise.
Following the steps above and implementing a 90 Day Sprint plan will set you and your team up for massive progress and success in your business.
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