It’s a new year and many small business owners and self-employed individuals have probably made the usual resolutions to improve this or finally get rid of that in hopes of bringing more success into their lives. But we know that it’s not always as clear-cut as this. Sometimes it takes internal changes to really shake things up and it doesn’t always feel good! But keep in mind that external changes are usually much easier to deal with when the inside stuff is solid. When we change on the inside these changes will invariably reveal themselves in surprising ways to our outside. It can be very hard to deal with the same old scenario when this happens. So what now?

Getting your business to the next level or creating a new level all together really means getting yourself there first. And that takes a positive, impartial attitude, no beating yourself up, along with some kind of plan. There are several factors to consider here, but start with a thorough and brutally honest analysis of how your business is operating and how you feel about it. Amazing? Frustrated? Excited? Hit a wall? Or just feel plain sick of it?

Time to change your perspective. However you feel there’s always room for improvement. Even if we think we know it all, guess what, that’s when we don’t. Having just reached the two year mark as a health insurance agent with the added responsibility of field manager and trainer with my own team of agents, I truly have learned just what it means to use internal changes effectively in my business. No matter how daunting or frustrating there’s always a way to turn a situation around. The following are some tips that my colleagues, clients, and I have put to the test for utilizing change to reinvent our businesses. If nothing else, they could fire up your enthusiasm!

• Don’t get stuck on the gerbal wheel. You know the feeling. Your pipeline has dried up. You keep calling the same leads or referrals over and over again with little or no results. Put that list away and get some new numbers to call. And how do you find those?…
• Call your existing clients, associates, friends, neighbors, and family members. Ask them whom they know who might benefit from your services. Go to a business library and load up on free, targeted leads. And after you do that….
• Get yourself out there! Attend networking events. If you’ve had no success in the past with certain groups, try several different ones then pick 2 or 3 that you really like and keep showing up. Make sure to followup immediately by email after the event. Set up one-on-one coffee meetings. You could even sponsor an event or start your own networking group.
• Go for quality instead of quantity. Less is more when it comes to marketing! Instead of purchasing mailing lists and the like, target your campaign to a group that really would use your services. It does take some extra research, but you’ll be hitting a more receptive audience.
• Join associations and advertise or write articles for their newsletter. Write your own newsletter!
• If you haven’t got a website consider having one. If you already do, how long has it been since you’ve updated it? Is it interesting and eye-catching? Are you driving people to it? Is a link to your site on other quality websites?
• Start a reciprocal referral program for your clients. You could post it as a resource page on your website.
• Form strategic alliances with relevant industries.
• What image are you projecting to the business world? First impressions can make or break a deal. That goes for your marketing materials. Again, less is more, particularly in the text. Do your materials accurately represent you and your business?
• Create a powerful pitch. If you can’t tell people what you do in 15 seconds or less, you’ve got a problem. BNI groups allow their members to speak for 45 seconds and some people go past that without ever getting to the point! It’s not what you say, but how long it takes you to say it that counts.

And, last, but not least, don’t project yourself into the future with all sorts of depressing, made-up scary scenarios or look back longingly into the past. Be here now. Now is all that matters. Have fun. It might sound corny to some, but it’s the journey and not the destination that thrills. So true! But that’s another article. Here’s to change and all the wonderful places it can take you this year.