Over the years I’ve discovered SME’s who’ve become victims of their own success. They might’ve launched a ground breaking innovation, which has proved extremely popular; perhaps they’ve smashed their sales targets. They have been so successful that the business has reached breaking point. They’re awake at 3am worrying about how they’re going to keep all of the plates spinning and they have to be up in 3 hours if they are to have a hope in hell of making a dent in the ‘To Do’ list. Sound familiar?
What’s gone wrong? What’s made them a victim of their own success? Often it’s because they’ve failed Business Basics 101 at an earlier stage. For example, I’ve advised many SME business owners on the importance of organisation and having workable systems in place and do you know what I usually get back as an answer….’We’re too small, we don’t need systems – that’s for bigger companies’. The problem with that approach is that if things do go swimmingly for a few years and growth is off the scale, by the time it is a mess and the business is ready to implode because of a lack of simple, workable systems it’s almost too late.
There are so many basics that fail to be implemented early enough for SME’s. Starting a business without a business plan is nuts. Failing to clearly define your business and marketing objectives is another. And then there is branding. It is NOT just for big companies with big budgets. I cannot emphasise enough the importance of creating the right perception in the minds of your clients, customers and prospects early on; simply having a logo is not enough.
So, when is it early enough to consider such matters? When are you no longer ‘too small to bother with all of that yet’? It is an interesting point to ponder isn’t it?
