Reinvent Your Business Or Perish

I see, hear and talk with small business owners every day and they are frequently viewing their current situation as if they have a choice. There is no choice, there are no options. We are confronting a changing business environment and we all must make changes to survive. Holding the course, doing the same things we have always done is not an option. Until and unless we all surrender to this clear mission we are flirting with self-destruction.

The new economy will allow no slackers, no doubters, no lagging. We must accept our position, accept the realities of a changing economy, and surrender to the changes required for survival under the new conditions we are in, or we will not survive. It’s that simple.

So what does this mean? It means you need to reinvent your business, what it does, how it does it and what the sales revenue and profit can and will be.

1. Downsize immediately.

2. Tighten up the operation. There will be decreased revenues so overhead, payroll, expenses, cost of goods, etc. all must be carefully controlled to maximize the profits that are available out of reduced revenues. Your business must be run as tightly as possible to survive these changes.

Anything short of this two-step strategy is destined to fail and it is just a matter of time. There is no such thing as a partial attempt here, it is all or nothing.

The real first step is to acknowledge the intensity and danger of the situation and then to take full and complete action. You must surrender to the realities that changes are required and that one has no option and then implement the changes required.

The “funny” part of this issue is that we all know what we should be doing and yet we all ignore making these adjustments to tighten the operation for reasons that are mere excuses. We do not do the things we know we need to do to survive. Instead, we believe to our own excuses. “Tomorrow, we will make adjustments, I am too busy today” or whatever the excuse may be. Surrendering to the issue is to accept that there are no choices and thus all that remains is to do the job.

Debt is a killer and thus there is no choice other than to work out the debt, reducing it so survival can continue as other adjustments are also made. Debt cannot be ignored or absorbed in a smaller revenue context. Debt taken on when projections of revenue were significantly larger cannot be serviced when revenues are decreasing rapidly. Something must change, either the debt is reduced or the business will fail. Surrender and do something about it. Do a debt workout, or fail.

Marketing is usually the first line item to go and the next mistake. Marketing strategies must change, that is a certainty, but effective marketing is critical to survival and must be successfully implemented in a downturned economy. This is an opportunity to absorb a larger share of the declining market if marketing is appropriately implemented under the changing terms of the new conditions. Failing to market at all is fatal.

Recognize the changes occurring. Recognize you have no choice. Surrender to the requirements to make the changes necessary for survival then implement them immediately. That is the order of the day.