Goal! - Why They Are Vital To Your Business

Business goals are really important to your business success. They are there to help guide, focus and motivate us. Goals help inspire us to create the pathway we need to follow to get to the end destination.

In business we find ourselves being pulled in so many different directions it can feel overwhelming when trying to focus on the future. What goals allow you to do is target your attention and energy on a key theme or issue and then help you come up with the framework to overcome the obstacle and achieve an outcome.

 When we set goals it allows us the opportunity to measure the outcome.

Did that task finish by the deadline? Did I have the number of customers I wanted this month? If something doesn’t go to plan then it gives us the chance to investigate why and figure out the next step. And if something is successful then you can build on that success.

Goals come in all sizes and its important to include, small, medium and large goals. They help to keep you focused on what you want to achieve but more importantly keep you moving forward and growing in your business.

What the F&*% - Why language is important

Video is a visual medium but the words you use to tell your story is as important as the pictures.

What you say and how you say it matters.

Two things to think about when writing a video script:

 1.      Use words and language that your audience and customers use. It’s easy to think that using big complicated language makes you or your products seem more successful or significant but it actually has the opposite effect. The viewer feels talked down to and confused. You lose the emotional connection to the viewer and they will turn off.

2.      Less is more. The viewer doesn’t want to listen to a list of amazing things your service or product does, they want to see it. Use narration and audio description when you really need to and use it sparingly. Keep it concise and authentic. People see through marketing jargon straight away so tell a story that is true and real. People will connect to that much easier than marketing slang.

All language and script should speak to your audience like they would speak themselves. They don’t want to watch a video where they don’t recognise their own words and language. They want to connect and see themselves in the story and what better way to do that by using their own words.  

Once Upon A Time

Story in video is vital. It’s the framework to the video. Without story all you are left with is facts and figures. While they are important, its difficult for people to take in and engage with dry facts and figures.

But what does good story look like? For marketing videos there are three points that are important';

 ·       What does your customers think about your brand / product?

·        What does your brand / company stand for?

·        What does the customer care about?

These three points are the foundation to help you create your story. By keeping in mind these points you can construct a context and story vehicle for your facts and figures to make your product or service relevant and engaging to your customers and audience.

The story is not about you, but what your audience wants and needs.

By keeping the story about your audience and customers you are able to show them you understand their problem and have the solution.   

The value of asking for help

This year I learned the important lesson of asking for help. When starting your own business, you go into it thinking you can do something so well that people will pay you for it. Why would you need help?

I already know how to do it.

But soon after the reality of running your own business so sets in and you learn very quickly how much you don’t know.

 It’s so important to have people around you who can support you and who are experts in their own fields. Need to learn how to do your finances? Ask your accountant. Need to learn about different software for your business? Talk to someone in IT. But a lot of the time we forget to ask about ourselves. How are we doing? Are we achieving the goals we set out to do? Am I handling the work? How do I feel about the direction of the business?

 How am I really doing?

We put so much of ourselves into our work and businesses that if we suffer, our business suffers. Having someone to talk to about how you are feeling and discuss your own goals and achievements is vital to the health of your business.

For this I would suggest getting a mentor. I myself had a mentor this year and she has been absolutely invaluable. Having an outside opinion can really help you see things much more clearly. You can get so bogged down in your own business that its hard sometimes to see obvious answers right in front of you.  And it’s always great having your own personal cheerleader. Someone who is there just for you and your success.

It doesn’t have to be someone in your field of work but someone you may look up to or someone who has experience you want to learn from.  

So, if you do anything new next year, I would suggest seeking out a mentor. No matter what happens you will always learn something new about yourself and that can only bring positives to your business. Or you can even be someone else’s mentor. As there is always someone out there who thinks you are cooler than you think you are 😊

What did you say?

Listening is the key to good video.

We make video. That’s what we do. But the main part of our job is to listen. To our clients and to the audience.

 Good video is all about listening.

When you listen you learn. You learn about the needs of your customers and help them solve a problem.

Video is solving a problem. When you listen to your customers you get to know them and their needs and offer a solution. When we don’t listen and assume often we offer something our customers don’t need and doesn’t focus on their problem.

When we listen to our customers’ needs and offer them a solution they feel listened to and valued. And that’s what keeps your customers coming back.

What is your customers favourite food?

Everyone eats so what do your customers like to eat?

When someone walks in to your shop, makes a phone call or emails you, who is that person? How old are they? What job do they have? Where do they live? Do they have a family or are they single? Whats their favourite food?

All these things are important elements to think about. The more you know about who you are selling to the more you know if you are selling them the right product or service and delivery that sale in the correct way.

Does your customer like to walk into a bricks and mortar shop and browse the shelves? Or do they prefer to look online in their own time?

Does your customer make the buying decisions for their family or just for themselves?

When you can answer all these questions you will have a very detailed and accurate picture of who your customer is so when it comes to making choices on marketing and branding you know exactly who, how and why they are buying.

Take A Breath

It can be pretty overwhelming running your own business. You have to wear so many different hats; sales, book keeper, administration, manager, marketing and promotions. While at the same time offer your product or service.

You make sure everything is running smoothly within the business while making sure you are creating new leads and looking after your core customers.

It can feel like you are doing everything but nothing. Are we actually making more sales? Are we tracking better than this time last year?

We spend a lot of time worrying.

This is when you need to sit back and take a breath. Take some time to think about what you have achieved. Its easy to fall into the trap of thinking you aren’t doing enough, not working hard enough or long enough. We are incredibly demanding of ourselves. So at times like this, take a step back, take a breath and simply congratulate yourself on what you have achieved.

Even if just for a few minutes, sit and be proud of what you have achieved. You deserve it.