An Open Letter

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Dear Occasional Client*:

I know you just love getting these monthly notes from me.  But, we really do want you to pay the lowest amount of taxes legally required- and to grow your business.  And, it’s really hard for us to help you do that if you think meeting in January or February will work- especially for the year that just ended.   Because once the calendar has closed up 2013- so has your ability to afford yourself of whatever tax breaks existed- and to insure that you can hit 2014 at maximum speed.

Insurance
Insurance (Photo credit: Christopher S. Penn)

Let’s start with what needed to be done all year… Each quarter, you should have evaluated your gross revenue and your expenses to insure that your salary reflects the equitable compensation rules.  And, your employees need to be paid well enough to have them stay with you- and to help your grow your business.  You needed to send in your payroll taxes (typically monthly or quarterly, unless you are a solopreneur- which may let you do so annually).

If this kind of stuff is a pain, you should have signed on with us.   We can run your back-end operations at a very reasonable price- and can use that information to prod you to do even better with your business.

We also need some time to go over how the laws that change next year  (or expire this year) will affect how you do what you do.  It would be useful to see if there is an additional need to slash expenses, acquire more inventory, raise prices, or any combination thereof.

And, yes, you need a written plan for next year.  It doesn’t have to be elaborate, but it does have to cover marketing, production, competition, and financial data.   One with milestones you can put on the wall.   (We even believe these milestones should be shared with your employees, if you have them, so everyone knows what’s expected.)  It’s the best way to insure that you can and do can monitor progress.

It’s also a great time to see if anything you’ve been doing needs to be stopped.  Anything that doesn’t grow your bottom line- your profits- is the best target.  Revenue is great- but profits are what counts.  Anything that requires twice as many resources- time, working capital, people- to get the same amount of profit must be evaluated to see why it still belongs in your portfolio.

Remember that your customers are your lifeblood.  Getting new ones- but especially keeping your existing ones- are crucial to your existence.  Determine how you can more effectively interact with them- by phone, by email, by snail mail- and in person.  Make sure you touch each one at least once a quarter.   And, it doesn’t hurt to ask them for a referral to meet new clients.

Evaluate your website and blogs.  Make sure all the information is up-to-date-  and reflects your current mission.  Check your links to make sure they all go to the places your want.
And, make sure Twitter, Pinterest, Facebook, and the other social media sites are part of your arsenal.  If you need to use specialists or virtual assistants, get them on board now- so your year goes smoothly.

We really want you to have the best 2014 possible.  And, if you just lay back expecting things to fall into place- then you can bet that we have better dreams for your future than you do- and that should never be!

See  you soon…

*We meet with most of our clients at least quarterly. Some of them daily, others weekly, and a few monthly. But, this letter is written to those of you who are thinking of retaining our services- or just come once a year. We ARE good- but we can’t work miracles. These are ways to insure you don’t have to rely on miracles.
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