It’s the time of year when the days are getting longer and snippets of green growth is coming through again… naturally, this helps us to kick into organisation mode and it’s a perfect opportunity to organise your business for the year ahead.
Creating a more efficient business encourages growth
As virtual assistants, our expertise is helping small business owners to manage their time more effectively, introduce better systems, and keep on top of organisation.
To grow your business, you need an efficient and organised business model. Your day-to-day operations need to be clean and tidy before you can scale. Any time-consuming tasks need to be optimised as much as you can.
Here are nine ways you can declutter and organise your business routine.
1. Revisit your business and marketing plans
What are your goals for the year? Have you reviewed last year’s performance yet? A great way to set new intentions is to look at your business plan again and set new targets. That way you can organise your business with intention.
Check how your marketing activities have been going – what’s been working well? Where did your most recent customers come from? Is there anything you want to try that you haven’t got around to yet?
2. Diary management
An achievable, well-planned diary is a business owner’s best friend. Are you guilty of putting too much into your working day and ending up with a never-ending to-do list?
Or do you forget to leave time for your own mental wellbeing and business development? If so, you’re not alone… one of the most common issues business owners face is losing control of their diary management.
Are you using default diary systems in your business yet? If not, check out our blog post on getting organised with default diary systems. Setting up a system to follow means things don’t get left behind.
3. Managing time better
With a more efficient diary process, you will now be able to manage your time better. The best way to support this is to delegate any repetitive or low-importance tasks.
Make sure you’re only doing the tasks that suit your skillset and level of expertise. When you organise your business ready for Spring, don’t fall into the trap of making yourself too busy to focus on any growth activities.
4. Declutter files
If you need to find important documents, do you know where they’re kept? Organise the paperwork that’s in your office and declutter online files during this time to organise your business.
Use folders to categorise files. Keep it simple and repeatable. For more information, find out why it’s so important to implement effective filing systems.
5. Inbox detox
Is your inbox a huge timewaster? It’s easy to get sucked into replying ’just checking your emails’, only to find yourself distracted an hour later.
Clear your inbox of any unnecessary subscriptions – deleting emails you don’t need is a satisfying way to organise your business.
Here are five easy inbox management tips to avoid email overwhelm.
6. Automating simple tasks
Be honest with yourself – how many repetitive tasks are you doing in your day?
If the answer is one or more, you can get more time by using browser extensions for automating repetitive business tasks. They’re easy to set up and could save you hours!
7. Contact and email lists
If you use a customer relationship management (CRM) system or have an email marketing list, now is a great time to declutter them.
Look for any hard bounce email addresses and spend time reviewing your contacts. There could be people in your system that are no longer active clients, so archive them.
It could be a good opportunity to request testimonials and survey responses from previous clients.
8. Reviewing your systems and processes
When was the last time you reviewed your business systems and processes? Take a moment to think about your customer journey. Is there anything you need to improve to provide a better service or deliver better results?
When you organise your business, break down your systems into small chunks. When you’re more aware of these details, you can focus on improving them. It also means as you prepare to grow and hire more employees, you know your systems and processes are robust and scalable.
If you’re not sure how to approach this, look at how to prepare your business systems and processes to start delegating effectively.
9. Tidy your physical office space
Possibly the most satisfying way to organise your business is to clean and tidy your physical office space. You know how the saying goes – a tidy space equals a tidy mind.
Dust off your old books, give your desk a good wipe, disinfect your keyboards and mouse, water any plants, and hoover the floor. Throw away any unwanted clutter, such as recycling any old paperwork and finally tackling the pile of ‘things to put away’.
Delegating tasks to organise your business
If reading this has made you realise you need help by delegating tasks, a virtual assistant could be the right choice for you. Available on an ad-hoc, flexible basis, our team of virtual assistants can help to organise your business and get you back on track.
The only thing we can’t do for you on this list is helping to tidy your physical office space! As the clue in the name suggests, we work with our clients virtually, anywhere in the world. It’s the most efficient way to grow your business – without hiring a full-time employee.
Once you feel organised and start delegating tasks to a virtual assistant, you’ll realise how beneficial it can be to your whole business. Find out how hiring a VA can help to take control of your work/life balance.
If you feel like your systems and processes aren’t recorded and so it would be difficult to use a virtual assistant, then our Virtual Business Manager service may be just what you need.
Feeling inspired to get cracking and organise your business? Get in touch with Spero Solutions for expert support. Our professional virtual assistant service is tailored to suit your specific needs.