5 Ways To Spring Clean
Your Small Business
"Spring cleaning doesn't have to be a dreaded list of chores. It can be a rewarding experience that helps provide some structure and organization in your life." – Peter Walsh
Spring is here (finally)! No matter how harsh, damaging, or cold this past winter may have seemed, spring always resurfaces with new life and energy. While most take this time to spring clean their home, why can’t the same be applied to businesses? Business owners can also take advantage of this wonderful time of the year to get organized and make improvements by spring cleaning their business. By doing so, you can see what certain processes need improvement, it can help you streamline your everyday operations, and give your business a fresh start. Not sure where to start? Here are 5 easy tips to help start spring cleaning your business today!
1. Tidy Up Your Website
Chances are your business has grown and changed during the last year, and if it hasn’t, you are one of the lucky ones. However, when was the last time you took a look at your website? It’s no secret that websites can help businesses grow and evolve. Maybe your company has revised its mission, or completely changed its logo and color schemes, or maybe there is some content on your website that needs to be rewritten to better reflect your services or target market. No matter what, taking the time to truly scour through your website for things that no longer line up with your current brand can make all the difference.
2. Reevaluate Your Business Goals
Sure, you know what goals you want to accomplish for your business, but how specific are they? Are you pacing towards them, or do you find yourself starting to fall behind? Whether you’ve realized it or not, if your business’ goals are not specific enough, they will inevitably lead to chaos. Why not take this time to reexamine your overall goals and make the necessary adjustments to help your business excel! A great place to start is determining whether or not your goals are SMART (Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Results-Oriented, and Time-bound). SMART goals can help your business develop a clear vision and focus. Not only do they outline a specific path to success, but they also help you stay on course in a timely fashion and make vague goal tracking feel antiquated.
3. Tackle Your Inbox
We’ve all been there. When you’re so occupied by your business, it’s easy to quickly become disorganized. Emails are constantly coming into your inbox, and before you know it, your inbox becomes a complete mess. There’s a good chance your inbox is full of things you don’t need, or there may be something important that’s hidden. While semi-painful and time-consuming, you’ll feel invigorated and definitely organized after you clear your inbox out. Try to create folders to sort certain emails, whether they’re based on who sent them, or if they are related to a specific project, and delete the ones you don’t need. While cleaning out your inbox, you can do additional digital spring cleaning by going through old files on your computer and deleting any unnecessary documents and folders. The breath of fresh air you’ll feel when you finish this process will be well worth it. I promise.
4. Freshen Up Your Marketing Strategies
Just like your business, marketing tactics are ever growing and constantly developing. Spring is a great time to examine and evaluate all of your business’ current marketing strategies. Ask yourself questions like, “Which advertising mediums do we think are performing the best?”, “Which mediums allow us to accurately measure ROI and are proving to be performing the best?”, or “Is our creative campaign still captivating our audience?”. From there, you can freshen up by researching new marketing trends, investing in social media and email marketing and analyzing last year’s data. Marketing is a powerful way to reach your customers, but your efforts won’t be effective if your strategies are old or left on the back-burner.
5. Deep Clean Your Space
Whether you’re working at home or in the office, a clear space equals a clear mind. What would a spring-cleaning article be without touching upon literally cleaning your workspace! A recent report from a survey by retailer OfficeMax found that 90% of Americans believe clutter has a negative impact on their lives and work. Additionally, more than half of the respondents said disorganization impairs their state of mind and motivation levels. Clear your desk and wipe away any dust or grime, clean your computer screen, get rid of the random business cards and receipts you’ve been hoarding (we’ve all been there too), and as a bonus, add a new office plant or flowers.
The Bottom-Line
Cleaning and de-cluttering your business doesn’t have to be a herculean task. While these tips are good to incorporate throughout the year, there’s nothing like a deep clean at the beginning of spring. A fresh and clean business can give new life to your business operations and put you in the right mindset to lead your small business to success.
Have you found during your spring cleaning that you may need a new technology or management solution? Be sure to reach out to our team of business consultants today.