I was listening to the brilliant Suze Ormand on the radio a few weeks ago, and she noted that most people today are living paycheck-to-paycheck, day-to-day. But, she says, despite the poor economy, with proper planning (and discipline) that could be avoided.

The same principal applies to marketing your business: you either put out fires, operating your business day-to-day, or you think long-term and plan for growth. Let me paint a picture: in the “put out fires” mode, your day might look like this:

• You personally respond to customer requests, both good and bad
• You fill your day with operational activities such as paying bills, talking to vendors, answering emails, managing staff and filling orders, and before you know it the day is gone.
• You occasionally look at your website or brochure and cringe that you haven’t updated it in three years 

When you think strategically and keep the big picture in mind, you prioritize and then delegate most of those daily operational activities so that you can focus on sales and market your business in a planned methodical way:

• You have a protocol set to address customer requests, preferably one that involves multiple staff, each with responsibility for different tasks
• You oversee your staff (meaning you check in with them, YOU DO NOT DO THEIR WORK for them) regarding their day-to-day activities that keep your business running smoothly
• You analyze website traffic reports, social media statistics, talk to customers/executives/colleagues about the business landscape to monitor your business environment
• You consult your budget and follow your marketing plan to keep on track with your initiatives and goals.

As a business owner myself, it’s hard to not fall into that trap. But as the immortal David Baker says, "take time to work on your business, not in it." Assessing and planning ahead will save many hours of wasted tasks (and money). And it’s never too late to START NOW.

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