1) CLEAN UP YOUR SOCIAL MEDIA: With this challenge to get your business ready for the new year, the first tip is to Clean up your Social Media Accounts. If you don't have any, you probably aren't reading this, but go and sign yourself up for atleast Facebook, Instagram, and either LinkedIn, G+ or Twitter. If you do have social media accounts, go through the info, contact sections, the profile pic, and see what you can do to clean them up. Odds are your YouTube page still doesn't have that Channel Art that you want, the Facebook picture is way old, the Instagram profile link needs to be changed.
2) SHOW ME THE MONEY: Timecards, Invoices, Accounts Payable: If you are doing timecards or invoices by hand or spreadsheet, midnight candlelight, there are many more efficient ways. There are many electronic options to choose from as well. Check out companies like Freshbooks, Squareup, Concur, Zoho, My Hours, and many more.
3) SUIT UP!: What details did you leave undone when you registered for your business? Since creating your business what changes or legal questions have you encountered? Go back through your legal paperwork and make sure you are up to date. If you have any questions on steps you've taken since then, there are many very good small business attorneys ready and willing to help you on your path to success!
4) Begin with the End in Mind: Project Management: Ever tried telling someone your To Do list when it's in your head? There are many free and paid project management apps that are perfect for small business teams. Asana, Trello, Wunderlist, Google Keep, Microsoft Planner and many more that help teams stay on the same page. Many have phone apps that sync with the online desktop version. Team members can set due dates, assign tasks, talk about them all in the same place. Gone are the days of the Post-It notes and notebooks to keep track of your company's task list.
5) Google For Business: I went from working a job where a CRM, email, calendar, database, etc. were provided for me. When I started working from home, I wasn't sure how to go about business without those pieces I'd become accustomed to. I found that Google has everything I had at the job plus more. Integrations, Collaboration on documents, shared calendars, etc. Everything you need at free/low cost to make you feel like a boss without the pricey packages.Here's a link to a company similar to many we've helped that chose to use the Google Suite for businesses:
6) Meet with a Tax Advisor: Many small businesses started with a dream, budget, and goals but after the initial concept, money is in places they didn't imagine it would be! There are many reasons to meet with a Tax/Financial Advisor. They can help you make a plan, stick to it, and meet your budget. We partner with Mazuma USA and know they are GREAT and do AMAZING work with Small Businesses. Mazuma USA
MAZUMA's Video:
7) Fix Your Google: Brian Armstrong from Local Place View and Social Tap Marketing says: "One of the biggest under optimized areas of Google My Business profiles has to be the photos section. Believe it or not, your business photos play a role in your local search rankings. By adding location data, it can have a big impact on searches with local intent! Another under optimized area are the "See Inside" photos that display in the search results. These 360 photos offer your potential customers the opportunity to virtually walk through your business to see what make you unique and how you stand out from your competitors." For more info, see this BLOGPOST to learn more about geo-tagging the photos Social Tap Marketing
8) Forms & Events: When holding an event, you need to capture as much information as you can about each of the people coming. You also need to keep the information about who is attending and their needs in an organized place. A few of our favorite free apps for events are: Eventbrite, Google Forms, and SignUp Genius.