Getting Ready for 2005 Business
By Tom Egelhoff
 Even though the holiday season is in full
swing this month it's a good idea to put aside a little time
and do some 2005 planning. Why not wait until January? Because
there may be some things you can do before December 31st that
will reduce your tax bill. I'm not an accountant so I can't give
you any qualified accounting advice other than to meet with your
accountant and follow their advice for anything that might help
your business before the end of the year.
Take A Look At The Books
Look at your books from last year. What happened during the
first quarter of last year? Was it good? Bad? Average? Set some
goals for the first quarter of 2005 and get your business off
to a good start. You know what it took to do the business you
did last year. What's it going to take to do 5-10% more in the
coming year? If you think your business may have a hefty tax
bill coming due in April that might be a good incentive to have
a good first quarter. Once you have momentum going in your business
it's hard to slow it down. Get busy early in the year and you'll
most likely stay busy all year.
Check Competitors
Ads
Another reason to start in December is that for many readers
it's the time of year that your business may make 25% of your
yearly sales. For that reason alone its well worth looking at
this time of year. One of the techniques I advise in my seminars
is to start a file on each competitor and start clipping and
saving their ads each and every month. I know you are busy during
this time of year so make a pile to clip later if you must. But
it's very important that you know what your competitors are doing
and how it's affecting your bottom line. You will be very happy
next Christmas when you pull out your file and know what your
competitors did in 2004, how it affected your business and how
you reacted to it. And, if you keep a monthly file in 2005 you
will know what to do in every month of 2006.
Read, Read,
And Read Some More
Next, you need to read more. Anyone who spends just 20 minutes
a day reading something about their industry will know more about
that industry at the end of the year than 75% of the people in
it. If you get trade magazines thumb through them and tear out
the articles of interest and throw the old copies away. Give
some to employees to read and report on at your next meeting
but make sure you read them too. Educating yourself and your
employees about your business just makes good sense. Employees
that feel knowledgeable feel powerful and usually give better
customer service. We all enjoy showing off our expertise to others.
Convert employees into readers too.
The second reason for reading is that your industry is always
evolving. Technology, like it or not, has a profound effect on
business in general. If there are better or more economical ways
of doing things in your business you need to not only know about
them but make plans to implement them as well. If you fall behind
because you are afraid to make the investment it may cost you
twice as much down the line to remain competitive.
The Final
Thought
The important thing to remember is that the days of just opening
your doors and crossing your fingers and having a successful
business are over. Consumers are more demanding, competition
is more fierce, there are more regulations, and much more risk
to succeed in business than ever before in our history. So it
boils down to who are the true business professionals? Who becomes
a student of their business and really works it? Those are the
successes we read about in the trade journals and business pages.
Will you be one of them in 2005?
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This article may be reproduced for your non-profit
group or organization provided it is not altered in any way and
the following is attached:
©1998 - 2004 Eagle Marketing PO Box 271 Bozeman, MT
59771-0271
http://www.smalltownmarketing.com - (406) 585-0219 - Toll FREE
(888) 550-6100
email: tommail@smalltownmarketing.com
Based in Bozeman, MT, Tom Egelhoff is the author of How To Market, Advertise & Promote Your
Business Or Service In A Small Town, and The
Small Town Advertising Handbook: How To Say More And Spend Less.
He is also a seminar and workshop presenter
and trainer. He may be reached at 888-550-6100 or PO Box
271 Bozeman, MT 59771-0271
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