Being a Great leader requires a combination of skills, character traits, experience, mental strength, intelligence and principles.

If you are a leader and you lack any one of the following YOU WILL ultimately get found out and crash and burn:

• Can articulate a compelling vision of the future that’s clear and focused
• A good communicator with a simple message
• A charismatic and enthusiastic character
• Able to mobilise people and hold their company/team together
• Can inspire confidence and empower others
• Can bring out the best in others
• Is credible, courageous and proactive
• Has admirable principles which guide decisions
• Makes decisions intelligently, quickly and with commitment
• Has high expectations in self and others
• Can establish a success formula and achieve tasks efficiently
• Searches for new opportunities for their company to consider
• Is flexible and can refocus in light of new opportunities or threats
• Predicts future demand and trends and plans for them
• Embraces technology
• Puts health and family before work (within reason)
• Can take advice and knows the right people to get it from
• Can manage change effectively

Alexander Bullivant
Roxbourne Marketing Consultants

• Why are you in business and where do you want to take it?
• What is mission critical?
• What barriers to success are in your way?
• What sets you apart from your competition?
• What do your customers really need/want?
• Have you researched it?
• What kind of service do they expect these days?

Endless things to consider.. all you know is turnover and profits must rise and stress levels must fall.

What’s needed are a new Mission Statement and an Action Plan to get passionate about. You need to research, innovate and develop your offering to attract more and better business, boost client/customer satisfaction and reputation.

Re-focus on a new mission and work out a success formula for your business. Once you have a clear Mission Statement you can then start to work out suitable and effective Strategies and Tactics within a practical and tailor-made Company Action Plan. Develop, use and perfect those marketing tactics to attract more clients/customers to your door.

Within the Company Action Plan there can be various subsections like

• Marketing and Sales Tactics,
• Process Efficiency,
• Growth Plan,
• Customer/Client Care Management,
• Service/Product Development Plan,
• Modernisation and Technology,
• Your Internet Strategy,
• Cost Reduction,
• Employee Incentives,
• Competition Beating Tactics,
• Work/Life Balance,
• Your Exit Strategy as a shareholder, etc.

Consider the following:-

• Do you ever consider new marketing methods borrowed from other industries?
• Do you regularly send emails to your clients/customers?
• Have you updated your website’s blog, main content, style or coding recently?
• Have you checked where your website appears in internet search engine results pages?
• Do you develop Centres of Influence in your community?
• Do you ever ask for referrals?

If you have a client base you simply MUST develop a Referral Marketing System – it’s all about KNOW, LIKE and TRUST – see other blog on referral marketing.

You need to make sure your website and marketing materials abide by the old marketing chestnut -

AIDA – Attention, Interest, Desire and Action.

• How about branching out?
• How about working with related but non-competing companies – sharing contacts?
• How about developing your services?
• How about offering new consumer friendly policies rather than “protect the company at all costs policies”?

You can read all about Business Strategy and Marketing from 1,000s of books, the internet, at university, etc but they can’t provide MOTIVATION and ACTION.

Writing a fresh 2009 Mission Statement and Action Plan maybe what’s needed to help get you passionate, rejuvenated and positive about the future again.

A new and exciting Company Action Plan is all very well, but it clearly needs to be embraced and followed by all in your company. As a leader – inspire your teams – let them feel your fresh confidence – give them a reason to work smart and be proud to work with you and in your company. See our recent blog about the traits of a great leader.

Good luck for 2009 – be positive – recessions come and go (although this is a mother) - like evolution and the survival of the fittest - it may just help you out by eliminating a few competitors.

If you need some external Strategy and Marketing assistance – consider us. By delegating some or all of your marketing strategy to Roxbourne you will not only have our wealth of experience and abilities but also our hands-on assistance in turning your objectives into plans, into action, into results.

We will take time in understanding your business and your objectives, help you write a mission statement, conduct the consumer and market analysis, decide suitable marketing strategies and tactics AND help you deliver those plans and create results. Sometimes it helps to have an outsider’s view, entrenched employees are very often scared to make the necessary changes.

I have learnt a fair amount of things about marketing, the kind of stuff you won’t even read about in books like “What they can’t teach you at business school”. I have nearly 25 years of experience in Services Marketing Strategy, I read a lot, I keep up-to-date as much as anyone can, I try to predict the future (try it) and I think a lot. I don’t profess to be an expert – they don’t exist – just a helping hand with some passion, empirical recommendations and a fascination for assisting owner managers build their businesses.

Give Roxbourne a call and find out how much we could help you build your business.

Alexander Bullivant

Ask about our FREE  initial marketing consultation.