Spring cleaning doesn’t just mean organizing, cleaning, or decluttering your house. Small business owners can also take advantage of this tradition by spring cleaning their businesses.
Taking the time to spring clean your business can show you what processes may need improvement, help you streamline everyday operations, and set your small business up for continued growth and success.
Here are seven ways you can spring-clean your business:
1. Brush Off Your Business Plan
When was the last time you reviewed your business plan? If your business plan has been collecting dust, spring cleaning is a great time to give it the attention it deserves. Instead of a one-time exercise, think of your business plan as a tool that can help you reevaluate how you’re doing and where you are in your business. Small businesses constantly develop and change, unexpected things happen, and your business plan needs to adapt to these changes.
Consider asking yourself:
- What kinds of changes has your business made in the last year?
- Did you add or remove products?
- Are you targeting a new market?
- Annually evaluating and updating your business plan can be a valuable exercise for your small business.
2. Do a Full Sweep of Your Clients
As a small business, your client list is likely one of your most valuable assets. Are you nurturing and caring for those clients as best you can, or are the responsibilities of running your small business keeping you too distracted? Spring is a great time to check in with clients, past and present. For clients you haven’t served in some time, see if they need your services again. While cleaning up your client list, you can also make a list of potential clients and try to secure new business.
3. Scrub Your Books
Spring is when many small business owners are already getting their financial paperwork and tax documents in order, but it’s also an opportunity to take a step back and do a financial inventory. See where your business stands, review your revenue and expenses and identify areas where you can save.
That could even include evaluating your current accounting processes to see if there are ways to make them more efficient. Also, look for areas where you can invest in growing your business.
4. Straighten Up Vendor Relationships
While a meaningful vendor relationship is one where both parties benefit from working with one another, the wrong vendors can disrupt production and efficiency for your business. As part of your spring cleaning, take some time to reevaluate your various vendor partnerships to determine which ones to keep, which ones to renegotiate, and which ones to terminate. To get started, pull out your vendor agreements, read through them thoroughly, and identify any items that seem counterproductive to your business model. From there, you can decide whether those points are worth renegotiating.
5. Declutter Your Files
It wouldn’t be spring cleaning without some tidying up, and many businesses are unnecessarily holding on to old files. Start by sorting through your loose papers and documents and determining what needs to be saved and what can be discarded, taking the time to shred any paperwork that contains sensitive information.
As you declutter and organize your business space, note anything you could digitize. Keeping files digitally makes your workspace or home office tidier and allows you to access them anywhere. Consider scanning existing documents and choosing a digital storage space for them.
6. Spruce Up Your Marketing Strategies
Marketing is vital to any small business, and spring is the perfect time to examine and spruce up your marketing strategies. Like your business, marketing tactics are constantly changing, so you must consistently improve your marketing plan. You might research new marketing trends, take a deep dive into social media, or set up marketing automation. Look at what marketing efforts are producing the best results, and consider eliminating any marketing strategies that are not helping drive revenues.
7. Consider Franchising
If your small business spring cleaning finds you ready to take your business to the next level, consider investing in a franchise. Our Expert Team at Neighborly® can help you expand your business through franchising, streamline your operations, and achieve your goals, as well as provide options for converting your existing business.
Reach out and learn more about your options from one of our helpful team members today!
