Letâs face it, the economy is a mess and we really donât know how bad this could get. Iâm not going to get into speculation and waste time inspiring you to make a change in your business. Youâre here because you have the fortitude to make a change already.
Weâre going to dive right in and examine the âArt of the Pivotâ so you can take actionable steps right away!
What Does it Mean to Pivot
Pivots can be defining moments in your career (and really in your life) if done intentionally. Pivoting in business means that you are realistic, have courage and are a visionary. Pivoting means you understand that although you may have done something one way that produced results for possibly decades; you have the understanding that âtimes are a changinâ and you need to change with it.
But, we need to be intentional with our pivot - and to do that we must do a deep dive into the foundation of our business and identify any potential cracks.
Step 1: Foundation
Now is the time to be honest with yourself and do the work must of us donât like to do. Itâs the work that we know in the back of our minds that we âshouldâ do yet always bury it to the bottom of our lists.
This can include everything from organizing your inbox, cleaning up your google drive (dropbox etc), learning to use a new technology like Slack or Trello, updating your CRM, and ensuring your SOPâs (Standard Operating Procedures) are up to date.
Most of these types of activities are self explanatory, so Iâm going to focus on SOPâs since I know for a fact that most small business owners do not have SOPâs let alone updated SOPâs.
A Standard Operating Procedure simply means you have documented all of your essential processes within your business so that your business can run like a well-oiled machine without you working in it.
The goal as a business owner is to create a business that doesnât require you to be in the day-to-day but honestly without SOPâs you will never be able to achieve this within your business.
I have good news though - creating SOPâs doesnât have to be difficult! In fact, itâs quite easy to create documented processes by recording your screen with a software like Loom. Personally, I prefer to hire and work with Virtual Assistants to create the SOPâs within my business. If youâre new to the concept of working with VAs, then I invite you to check out my Podcast âClone Yourselfâ where I walk you step-by-step how to hire your first (or next VA) in the first 15 episodes.
Step 2: Messaging (Positioning) in the Marketplace
Iâm generalizing but most businesses do not update their brand guidelines for years on end. Donât let that be you! There is literally no excuse to not update your brand guidelines right now and truthfully we all must update our brand guidelines if only to stay relevant to the current economic climate!
Specifically, I invite you to take a look at your messaging:
- Does your messaging still match your target demographic?
- Are you positioning yourself in the marketplace to match the products and services you started offering since the last time you updated your brand guidelines?
- How can you position yourself to match the current state of the economy better?
These are but just a few of the questions you might consider asking yourself as you go through updating your brand guidelines. Keep in mind that Iâm not suggesting you do a rebrand. Iâm simply just inviting you to tweak your current brand.
Also, I do realize that for many small business owners you may not have brand guidelines. If you donât currently have a brand guidelines, then you can download this template âBrand Guidelinesâ to make it your own!
Step 3: Team
The unfortunate truth is layoffs are abundant right now. With a heavy heart and consideration to those you may have had to let go, we both know that you still need help to offset some of the work your team members may have been doing.
What better time than now to explore working with Virtual Assistants?
When working with VAs, you donât have an hourly commit of dedicated work hours per day/per week/per month and so on. This means that if you only need 1 hour of extra support a week, you can hire a VA for as little as one hour per week!
Now, honestly, you most likely will have more than one hours worth of work that youâll need help with - but Iâm just painting the picture to help you see what life might be like when working with VAs!
Maybe now youâre stuck doing invoicing or some other function of your business that you havenât done for years or simply just donât like to do. I suggest looking into working with a VA to execute these sorts of tasks! This would be a massive pivot in your business for those of you that do not currently work with VAs.
When things circle back to a new normal, youâll be set-up to run a more lean, profitable and freedom-based business if you learn to work with VAs now. Make sure to check out my podcast, âClone Yourselfâ to learn how to work with VAs.
AND if you feel called for additional support in your journey, consider joining my âSwag industryâ exclusive mastermind group to learn more about how to run an efficient and freedom-based business (more on that here).
Step 4: Get Ready to GO!
Congratulations! When you get to step 4, youâve done all the work and now you will be ready to go when things get back to a new normal. However, thereâs one thing we havenât covered. How to open doors despite a recession or even a depression!
Iâve built out a completely FREE training that teaches you how to open doors no matter how bad the economy is. Click here for the FREE masterclass!
The secret is content creation, whether it be podcasting or anything else. In this training, I show you the exact steps youâll need to take to use content creation to open doors. So many people fail out monetizing their content because they arenât intentional about whom the content is for and how they will utilize content to open doors - donât let that be you!
Click here to register for this completely FREE training :)
Final Thoughts
Keep the positive vibes, continue (or begin) to eat healthy, find a new exercise routine and if you feel the curiosity to meditate or do some other practice to go within then definitely listen to that whisper and give it a go!
We are all in this together, we will be stronger because of what is currently going on and I can assure you that if you are intentional about your pivot; you will rebuild your business!
If you want more, feel free to schedule a FREE 15 minute strategy call with me by clicking here :)
To Your Success,
Sam AKA SwagSam
Sam Kabert is the creative director of SwagWorx and the creator and co-host of the podcast âWhatUp Silicon Valley!â A risk taker who embraces permanent beta, Sam is leading the transformation of his family-run office supplies business into a promotional products powerhouse. Sam can be reached at Sam@SwagWorx.com.