Strategize Your Business’s Operation If You’re The Only Employee

I attended Entrepreneur Magazine’s Growth Conference in Miami, FL and it was very energizing. I left feeling like I could take on the world and will be successful no matter how many times I fall on my face. Of course you never plan to fall, but listening to the stories told by the successful entrepreneurs who received awards, I know if I do there is a way back.  It stimulated my creativity and motivated me to try new and different things with business. There were many things that stood out to me but one of the things that resonated was John Jantsch, author of Duct Tape Marketing, discussion about making marketing a habit. He said you need to have an organizational chart not of who is doing what, but what needs to be done.

Unless you are a start up with funds available to hire a team of people, when you first start your business you are every employee. You’re the Vice President of Operations, Director of Marketing, and Customer Service Manager.  These titles may vary depending on how you chose to label yourself that day. I’ll stick with being the CEO, Chief Everything Officer. Creating an organizational chart of who does what will not work for the solopreneur. It’s only you managing the entire operation and you’re responsible for the day to day activities. Having an organizational chart of what needs to get done is still important even without employees to delegate tasks to.

Everything you do and how you present it creates an experience associated with your brand and what your business stands for. This is something to keep in mind when making decisions about your business. How you operate your business internally will show itself externally. Create a habit of strategizing what needs to get done before listing your tactics. Knowing what is your goal or constant focus is necessary in growing your business. You may not have a team of people whom you can delegate to, but there are plenty of online resources and tools that entrepreneurs can use to maintain business and help complete what needs to get done.

Once you’ve clearly outlined your tactics, research ways on making sure your deliverables are met. You can choose to outsource tasks or automate them. One of my favorite resources is Hootsuite, my Chief Marketing Officer that comes with low labor cost. There are many other resources entrepreneurs with low operating budgets can use that will help your business structure. Google what you need!