Written by: Amber Barry, Executive Contributor
Executive Contributors at Brainz Magazine are handpicked and invited to contribute because of their knowledge and valuable insight within their area of expertise.
Did you start your business with visions of freedom, dreams of financial abundance and the flexibility to make your own schedule? These are among the top reasons people have for starting their own business — and for a good reason! But being a business owner is not always sunshine and rainbows. If the reality of being a business owner is falling far short of what you had hoped for, or you find yourself working more than ever, systemizing and automating may be the solutions you’re looking for.
Building a business that works for you is the key. Instead of doing more work, establish systems in your business that are designed to do the work for you. Building systems ensures consistency in your brand, which helps establish trust with your customers. It also helps you keep things organized, streamlines the way you interact with customers and makes following up with new leads a breeze.
With predictable systems in place, you can make smart, confident decisions and measure your progress. Systems also help you identify what areas of your business you can delegate and make it easier for you to keep track of what’s working and what isn’t.
Imagine that 20% of people who watch a short video featuring your sales presentation become your customer. You’re happy with this 20% conversion rate, but what would it mean to you if you could increase that to 25%, or even 30%? Testing out new ideas and measuring and quantifying each one's results can help you build momentum through systematic trial and error.
Once you know what works and you have systems in place, running your business becomes infinitely easier. It also gives you the ability to scale. You’re only one person, and there’s only so much time in the day, which means that even if you’re the most productive, efficient person on the planet, there’s a cap to how much you can manage. But when you have predictable systems in place, you can offload a chunk of the work to automations or other team members and still feel confident it’s getting done the right way every time.
Additionally, suppose you find yourself saying the same thing over and over again when you’re nurturing new leads, sending out similar emails constantly, or going through the follow-up process manually. In that case, automations should be considered — and they don’t have to be generic or impersonal! You can use software, like Ontraport, to create if/then scenarios that walk your customers down a consistent, planned path.
For example, if a customer opts into your free lead magnet, they automatically get a series of emails that deliver more value and invite them to an even better offer. From there, if they click on certain links within your email sequence, you can walk them down an even more customized path. Creating this path makes it easy for your potential customers to get to like, know and trust you and your brand, and can even warm them up and convert them to the sale.
It doesn’t matter if you’ve been in business for 5 months or 5 years. Systemizing and automating your business is essential for your bank account and your sanity. Here are 4 steps to get you started:
For one week, document your daily tasks and responsibilities and those of your team members (if you have them). You can use a time tracking app, like Toggl or just a handy notebook to keep track.
Now that you have a list of your tasks and responsibilities, outline the process involved in each one. Break each down into a series of steps as though you were training someone completely new to take over. Don’t forget to include the little things too, like the when and the how. Store this knowledge in an easy to access place so you can refer back to it when you’re building out automations or training new team members.
Once your systems are in place, it’s time to build your automations and workflows. Review your current processes and build automations for anything repetitive that doesn’t need a hands-on, human touch. For everything that needs your personal attention, create workflows and templates to streamline your process.
Now it’s time for some fun: trial and error! It’s great to create these systems in your business, but this isn’t a set it and forget it sort of thing. There’s always room for improvement in any business, so once you have everything in place, you’ll want to test new ideas one at a time to see what kind of return you get. Keep track, and soon you’ll create a smooth-running, revenue-generating machine.
If you’re intimidated by the tech or just unsure how to proceed once you’ve broken down your tasks and responsibilities, visit my website to schedule a free consultation. From my own trial and error, I know that the only way to move forward is to make consistent forward progress. If you’re feeling stuck or overwhelmed, reaching out for help can make all the difference in the world.
Do you have a success story to share about how you streamlined your business? I’d love to hear it! Submit it here.
Amber Barry, Executive Contributor Brainz Magazine
Amber Barry is a U.S. based business strategist and consultant specializing in digital marketing, automations and social media advertising for small businesses and startups. She is passionate about deconstructing the process of establishing and growing a business, and aims to make it less overwhelming and easier to navigate for new business owners. She is the founder of Amber Barry | Digital, a digital marketing and advertising agency, and creator of The Go-Getters Club, where she offers online courses and coaching to women in business to help them maximize their marketing efforts and turn their small steps into big wins and massive momentum.She is a Registered Nurse and a Certified Health Coach by training, and draws from her 12+ years of experience in health and wellness and 20+ years as an endurance athlete to help people transform their journey as business owners into an enjoyable, successful, fulfilling experience.
