3 minute read
Remember Your Business Plan?
If it’s been years since you looked at your business plan, or maybe you never actually got around to writing one, you may want to consider it. I mean right now. The past three years have introduced unprecedented challenges to small business owners. These challenges demand serious attention be given to this area of your business.
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A solid and realistic Business Plan is the basis of a successful business. Properly written, your plan outlines your goals, how you can meet these goals, and possible problems and solutions along the way. It also includes a marketing strategy. It is basically a roadmap to success. The Bureau of Labor Statistics notes that a failure to create and follow a business plan is one of the top reasons for business failure. Even if your dealership has weathered the storms over the years without a plan, you may be leaving money on the table if you neglect to create one. As with any activity, having a plan can increase your success rate (and income) by 30% or more.
Advertising and Marketing should be a big part of your business plan. If your old plan had your advertising focus on the little freebie papers or newspaper ads, local TV, and radio, you may be missing a huge group of potential buyers that rely on social media or streaming services for entertainment. A great website is no longer effective and has been replaced by having a complete social media presence. Print or banner ads have been replaced by targeted video ads. A live sales presentation and test drive is being replaced by an online touchless purchase experience. Younger car shoppers are showing a higher likelihood to prefer shopping and purchasing online. Many prefer texting to phone calls or in-person visits. A successful plan should contain a strategy that addresses a growing online presence including Instagram, SnapChat, Facebook, YouTube, and regular requests for Google reviews.
How do you know what works best for your customers? Begin by asking every caller and every visitor this simple question, “How did you hear about us?” In a short time, you will be able to identify which ads are working and which are a waste of money. The most important part of this process is to write everything down and make an honest evaluation as to what works and what is no longer working. As salespeople we often rely on our ‘gut feelings’ and sometimes it takes seeing the data in black and white to realize a change is in order. conversation with a 62-year-old that claimed he was too old for this online game. He was surprised when I reminded him that his age, and older, introduced us to this age of online engagement. He was the same age as today’s Millennial shoppers when Facebook and other social media was launched!
The next step is to adjust your plan, removing the obsolete or ineffective things, and adding in the items and tasks proven to work well in today’s market. Your business plan is a tool to help create revenue more efficiently for your business. It should be referred to on a regular basis and reviewed or updated every six months.
Money saving tip: If you are presented with an opportunity by an advertiser, the details of the offer should be compared against your business plan before you agree to spend one cent. Even if it appears like the deal of a lifetime, if it doesn’t fit within your written plan, take a pass on the opportunity. It’s really that simple. Save the information until your next six-month plan review. If it’s a good idea now it will be a good idea in six months and you can choose to implement it then.
Need some guidance? MARIADA, NIADA, and their affiliate vendors provide limitless resources to help you navigate your business in 2023 and beyond. Attend local chapter meetings and visit the association website. n
Todd Shepard is the founder of Shepard & Shepard Insurance Solutions and a regular contributor to the several IADA publications. For more information or to obtain a competitive dealer insurance quote visit www.shepquote.com.
