Is there a Doctor in the house?

It is thought that the expression, ‘Is there a Doctor in the house?’  originates from the theatre when the stage manager would request a doctor if a member of the audience fell ill during the performance.

Sadly, today the theatres are closed. Doctors and nurses are working around the clock. And there is little opportunity for anyone to escape reality with the joys of live entertainment.

“Every problem is a gift—without problems we would not grow.” – Anthony Robbins (source)

As 2021 gets into full swing, business owners are also facing challenges and obstacles that they have never encountered before. Challenges that have the potential to detrimentally affect the performance of their operations and disrupt the way their plans play out. In short, the health of their business may be at risk.

This may be so, but there is no need to panic. It could just be a case of a simple Business Health Check.

Time to call for the Doctor in the house

While there are lots of tools and self-check options available, given the economic climate we find ourselves in this year, it may be worth considering a more in-depth review of your business at every level. Asking an external, objective party to assist you with a comprehensive business check-up is a smart move. But be wary of high-priced consultants that will leave you with a laundry list of to-dos or opt for a quick fix that will not truly transform your business in the long-term.

You will benefit much more from working with someone who takes the time to understand your business. Someone who helps you analyse the obstacles, and encourages you to find solutions that will deliver long term sustainable change for profitable growth.

One option is to consider joining forces with a business coach. A professional and certified business coach who has proven and tested strategies they can teach you and your team to make changes that will stick. However, selecting the right coach is critical. There needs to be a rapport and genuine trust between you and your coach for them to help you build a stronger team, get you more free time, and ultimately make your business more successful.

What is a Business Health Check?

A Business Health Check is much like a general medical check-up – something that should happen regularly to ensure all vital functions are operating at peak performance. Or in business terms, making sure your business is focusing on the most critical opportunities.

Ideally, a holistic business health check should guide you through 8 important steps that consider how to:

  • Improve net profit drivers – Identify which products or services bring in the most profit. It usually takes just as much effort to sell highly profitable items as it does to sell something with low profit margins. It just makes sense to concentrate on improving these first.
  • Grow existing business – Create a process to track how many times each customer buys, when they buy, what they buy and how much they spend. This data will prove invaluable in efforts to build continued business and customer loyalty. Remember, retaining an existing customer is far less expensive than finding new ones.
  • Find new channels and business models – An important consideration in any business growth strategy is understanding the client. Who is the person that you are trying to persuade to purchase your products or services? Before you can explore any new markets and attract new customers, you should have a clear understanding of what they expect from your product or service.
  • Build a solid competitive advantage in the marketplace – What will set you above your competitors? Have you fully articulated your unique selling proposition and incorporated this into all your revenue generating activities? If you are unclear, then your customers probably are too.
  • Create a robust marketing strategy – This should ideally consist of several different tactics to ensure you are reaching all your existing and potential customers where and when they are most receptive to your message. Most importantly, though, these strategies need to be tested and measured almost daily to deliver the desired ROI.
  • Focus on key business drivers – Identify the key areas or functions that have the most significant impact on profit growth. These can be financial or nonfinancial as this article explains.
  • Identify demand – Demand and supply are two fundamentals behind any economy. Knowing where the demand for a product lies, and how much customers are prepared to pay for that product, will help determine the optimal price for maximum returns.
  • Create strong working capital reserves – Allocate a portion of your profits as a reserve to act as a financial buffer when trading conditions may affect negatively performance, or funding for long-term growth and investment strategies.

Ready for a check-up?

Each of these steps has multiple action steps that your business coach will help you understand, implement, and execute. As your business grows, you and your coach will find new opportunities to grow your business for the long-term.

After the chaotic year of 2020, 2021 requires new approaches and new actions. Now is the time to get a business health check, set a fresh course to capture opportunities, take control of your business, and work in innovative, more effective ways.

“There’s no shortage of remarkable ideas, what’s missing is the will to execute them.” – Seth Godin (source)

If you feel you and your business could benefit from a business health check, contact me. Let’s book an appointment for your first complimentary coaching session and get started on your business health plan for 2021.