PPB March 2017

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The truth is, we
can’tmanage
money ifwe’re
notmaking it.
We can’tmanage
clients ifwe
don’t haveany.
there; it’s like soil. Soil doesn’t
care what’s planted; its job is to
help seeds grow. Well, brains
work the same way. Make sure
you’re planting your mind with
good thoughts.
The second article (December
2016) moved into branding,
which is the foundation from
which marketing and sales are
built. I recommended you look
at your branding from a bigger
view, and gave you a few ways to
narrow it down to the best thing
you do, the best client you serve
and your best positioning within
your competitive marketplace.
Next (January 2017), I wrote
about marketing planning,
strategy and tactics, and what
your messaging should say. I
covered how to start building
relationships and help prospects
find and choose you. And
then (February 2017), I wrote
about the contents of “selling”
conversations. Sales is a two-
way street and it’s important
to qualify every one of your
prospects for the best results.
These are all necessary tools
for building your business.
You must do them to stay
competitive, to grow and to
create a thriving a business.
Now, the challenge is that you
must also run your business.
Quoting, sourcing, billing,
problem solving, managing
inventory, managing employees,
learning systems—even running
to the store for supplies—it’s all
in a day’s work. You must also
take steps to structure, organize
and manage your business.
These responsibilities will also
help you grow personally and
professionally, and create a
thriving business. But all the
effort to grow your business
can’t happen if you’re not
ready to tackle your business
with organization, structure
and systems.
The truth is, we can’t manage
money if we’re not making it. We
can’t manage clients if we don’t
have any.
The age-old question business
owners struggle with is where to
most productively spend their
time. It’s a paradox for many,
and the reason it’s so confusing
is that we struggle to find the
right balance.
How does a business owner
figure out what to do?
You manage priorities.
The only way to find the right
balance of working on your
business as well as working
in your business is to decide
what you need to focus on
in your business. There is no
right answer to this question.
It requires you to look at
your current operations and
processes, and see where you
have weaknesses and voids
that are causing you to waste
time and lose money. Relative
to promotional products, what
research tools are you using? Is
your prospect database up to
date? Is your client database up
to date? Are you paying for tools
you’re not using?
Let’s face it, everything
needs to get done, but it can’t
all be done at the same time.
Sometimes it makes sense to
work in your business to firm
up structure and get organized
so that what you’re doing works
more efficiently. While you can’t
organize your way to success,
you can free up precious time
and energy needed to work on
your business.
For example, you should
evaluate various operational
issues at least once a year. With
new online tools launching
quickly it pays to keep up to
date on how technology can
help you run your business
more efficiently. And, a smooth-
running business will free up
time so you can create deeper
relationships with your current
clients, and provide greater
value to prospects as well.
And greater value ultimately
leads to more customers and
more orders.
As I’ve said, everything has to
get done. But knowing whether
you should be focusing in your
business or on your business
at a specific time is critical to
helping you understand yet
another piece of the business
success puzzle.
Abigail Tiefenthaler, founder of Aiken, South Carolina-based distributor Sweetspot Strategies, Inc., is
also a speaker and consultant helping entrepreneurs run the businesses they really want to run. With
30-plus years of business experience, including 15 years in corporate America working in a variety of
marketing capacities, and 19 years running an award-winning promotional products business that
put her in the top five percent of the industry, Tiefenthaler understands how critical it is to play full out,
and use marketing for the heavy lifting it is designed to do. Her goal is simple: simplify the marketing
process and eliminate confusion. Reach her at or 954-804-9413.
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