Ch. 10 of the Comprehensive Checklist for Growing Your Business: Community Outreach

In the midst of your crazy day of managing a business, the thought of community outreach and social responsibility probably isn’t floating around at the front of your head. They all say, “It takes a village to raise a child,” and that applies to raising a business as well. Without the support of your neighbors and community, your business probably wouldn’t exist. Let’s take a minute to surface the real ROIs on doing a little something for your community.

There are different levels of involvement that you can choose from that best fits your availability. You can sponsor local events, organize meetings/networking gatherings, or participate in a meetup. The opportunities of helping your community can get really fun and creative while also being a cost-effective method of marketing. It’s also a great opportunity to rally up your employees for good old team building and morale boosting. Now, on top of all those positive things, let’s get to how it can help build your business.

1. Get yourself publicly known by your locals.

   The more you put your name out there, the more your community will gain awareness of your business. Community outreach is heavily effective because it puts a real person in front of prospective customers. In contrast, with an ad, or website, it garners a one-way communication to your audience. Making real connections to people involves engagement, and a moment that you and your customer share - it’s hard to forget that.
    

2. Build long-lasting relationships with them.

   By putting a face on your business and engaging in conversations with people in your community, it’s only natural that you start to build long-lasting relationships with them. You get to know first names of pivotal people in the neighborhood, their family, and story. Slowly, business owners can build their network and make important connections that are beneficial for the long run. However, these connection are symbiotic. The more resources and value you can provide for your customer, they more they depend and come to you.
    

3. Increase company reputation and image.

   By staying active and involved in community events, it builds fantastic repertoire amongst your neighbors and customers. The driving force of purchasing decisions are made by emotion. If you can connect with your community on an emotional level, it’s a win-win for them and your business.

Community outreach can build your clientele and strengthen your presence in your community. By participating in these events, businesses can develop customer loyalty and top of the mind recall. It is also fantastic for building a positive reputation which can then lead to long-lasting, returning customers. Investing time into this method of marketing doesn’t have to be a complex process. Doing something as little as printing branded bookmarks for the library, or providing water for your local marathon can leave an unforgettable, lasting impression on your business.

Ch 6. of the Comprehensive Guide for Growing Your Business: Modernize and Invest in Your Brand

It is mission critical to have a logo that conveys your brand’s look and feel. According to smallbusiness.chron.com, the company logo is, “the single most visible manifestation of the company within the target market.” We couldn’t agree more. For this reason, it is heavily important that you brand your company in a position that aligns with your target market. It’s a visual first impression to your customers so, make it count. Another astonishing stat from ConversionXL says, “visual appeal can be assessed within 50 ms” (Laja). That’s a fast assessment! Where does your logo stand on the eye-catching meter? Graphic trends are ever-changing but we do know that resorting to ClipArt, gradient heavy graphics, and busy elements in a logo add noise when you’re trying to break through the clutter. Seek for a clean, easy-read symbol for your company.

A good rule of thumb is to ask yourself if you logo is a clear read if it is shrunk down to a 1-inch area. Often times, many businesses strive to include tiny details in their logo that unfortunately, get lost when it’s printed on a business card or other small marketing materials. If your logo needs a bit of a facelift, there are many platforms available to you to solve your problem. You can hire a local graphic designer to create branding and marketing materials for you. 99designs or Canva for Work is commonly used to instantly get a few designs created. Moo.com and Vistaprint.com are great options for cost-effective and high-quality marketing materials with a fast overturn rate.

If you have employees, it’s not a bad idea to have matching team shirts made. Even having branded marketing materials like table cloths and tents can help strengthen your brand image amongst customers and team members both. Having a cohesive and unified look across your company on all platforms goes a long way. Paying attention to small details and cleaning up the look of your company positions your business in a better spotlight in consumers’ minds.

Ch 5. of the Comprehensive Guide for Growing Your Business: Review, Review, Review

Review your financial reports for the year before and make sure that your bookkeeping is organized for the year ahead.

Financial Reports and Statements come into play when you least expect it. It’s important to stay on top of your reports because investors, creditors, and banks look at these to analyze a company’s performance and overall standing. It’s a good rule of thumb to review your statements to ensure accuracy and thoroughness.

Stay organized! We’re still early on in the year and starting off on the right foot can make this your easiest year of bookkeeping yet. Here are some tips we’d thought might help:

• Get a separate bank and credit card accounts for personal and business.
• Dedicate a small amount of your time per week to organize your finances.
• Ditch the paper & declutter- the IRS accepts electronic copies of your receipts.
• Store it in the cloud - you can’t do a quick word search through your physical folder of files!
• Sign up for Quickbooks Online to keep your finances organized and ready for taxes.
• Don’t know what you’re doing? Simply, ask for help from a professional.

I’m Behind on Bookkeeping

Is, “I can’t even right now,” your first reaction when you hear, “bookkeeping?” It’s a heavy chore, we get it. If you’re at a loss of where to even start when you need a Profit & Loss Statement, hire a local bookkeeper for a few hundred dollars per month. They can help keep you organized and prepared for taxes. You can also outsource your bookkeeping to a company like Bench.co who provide bookkeeping experts you can depend on.

Staying on top of paperwork is one of the many keys to success when owning your own business. Double checking, or even triple checking your numbers and financial reports safeguards you and your business from future mishaps when those reports have to come into play again. If you have any suggestions or ideas on what works for you when dealing with reports and statements - we’d love to hear them! Feel free to drop us a line in the Contacts section.