3 Questions To Ask Yourself When Planning For 2011

Wow the end of the year is quickly approaching. Are you panicked or well planned?

If you have been meaning to organize your thoughts for the upcoming year, here are some guiding questions to ask yourself.

1. Would you say your company is becoming more effective at meeting customer needs?
2. Have you recently implemented a large-scale innovative campaign or several small-scale innovative pilot projects?
3. Are you collaborating more with others outside your firm?

If you want annual revenue growth next year, then work out how to answer yes to these questions.

1. Customer Relationships
Selling stuff is about creating a value-based relationship that benefits your customers and keeps them coming back. Focus obsessively on their needs and in turn your needs will be fulfilled.

2. Innovation
What are you selling? Is it worth the price, time, attention? Sooner or later, all businesses run out of room to grow. The ability to reinvent is no small feat, but it is what separates the high performers from the one-time wonders.

3. Collaboration
Forest, trees. Trees, forest. Sometimes the most obvious areas of innovation and growth are right in front of you, but you are too close to see it. Gathering ideas from outside your company is one way to source new ideas. Plus forging joint ventures and licensing arrangements can help you bring ideas to market faster and cheaper than slogging through it alone.

Now go have some egg nog and mull that over.