What You Measure Matters
You can’t know where you are going if you don’t know what it will take to get there.
When it comes to revenue and projections in business, it is not uncommon to hear from entrepreneurs who have a “general idea” of their goals for the year, and some might even have them broken down quarterly, but rarely do entrepreneurs plan and forecast revenue based upon their actual business and marketing plan for the year.
At the end of 2014 a successful client wanted to know what revenue goal per month would be required to hit a her 2015 goal. As we discussed her plans for the year I shared that if as a business owner she only used a linear calculation (as an example.... $300,000 divided by the 4 quarters of the year) her actual projections wouldn't take into account actual sales cycles, previous prospecting or additional programs that are scheduled to launch, and a variety of other factors that initially might not be accounted for; and could result in one quarter being significantly higher or lower depending on the year’s business plan, and could lead to frustration or discouragement.
So with some proper planning, she came back with a projection for 2015 that took into account the known aspects of her business and factored some other variables that left her feeling confident about her plan.
In a session with her this month while discussing a number of aspects of her business she mentioned that things were going well - but that business felt "flat" ……as we began reviewing her numbers I heard her pause on the phone…...and say, “holy smokes , umm I projected $92,500 for the first quarter and I hit $92,493.67!”
“That’s great,” I replied, “what was last year?”
She “$72,844.08”
Long pause
Me “You realize that’s almost a 27% increase….don’t you?”
She “Wow”
Me “Doesn’t feel so flat now? Be proud of yourself.”
Writing down your financial goals for the year and looking at them on a regular basis will provide clues for you to follow in what’s working and what might need to be adjusted in your business.
Did you evaluate how your first quarter was compared to what you projected? Did you need to readjust higher or lower? Do you keep your revenue goals where you can visit them frequently, and do you have a regularly scheduled meeting with yourself or your coach to review your progress?
Not sure where to start? Join me for my Coach’s Corner Call May 4th at 1pm Pacific - I’ll be talking about course correction and financial goal setting for your business.
