How to Start Automating Your Business

At Confluence Business Solutions, 2022 came in like a high speed jet, both in business and at home. We set some big goals for our home life and even bigger ones for the business. Then we put our heads down and got busy. 

Busy is usually a good thing right? If you read the blog about the Eisenhower Matrix, you know the answer…wrong! Busy is only good if it’s producing the right results. I can look and feel completely swamped at the end of a long week and have accomplished essentially nothing. The key is making sure we are expending energy on items that get results and if we want to keep the doors open, or even better, scale then we also need to be able to make a connection between our efforts and the potential for those efforts to produce sales. 

I read somewhere recently, that small business owners on average spend approximately 16 hours per week completing mundane administrative tasks. Think about that. Nearly half their time is focused on duties that are not going to do anything to generate revenue in their business. 

Don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying you shouldn’t reconcile your bank account, reply to emails, do that filing or other tasks that keep the business running, but should two full days of your work week be focused on these things, or is there another way, maybe a better way?  

Much of this comes as a result of the DIY Mindset that plagues an alarming number of small business owners. It’s that feeling like it has to be done by them and outsourcing or automating is just not an option. And I share this blog recognizing that it’s an area that I’ve mastered in some parts of the business and am still learning and growing into in others. 

Ask yourself this, are you spending time on aspects of your business that an entry level employee or an automation tool can do? Chances are then it can be accomplished for far less $$ freeing you up to focus on revenue generating work.

Three Automation Examples You Should be Doing Today

Follow up, Follow Up, Follow Up: This one is a no-brainer and I think it’s my pet project for 2022…help clients build bomb-proof automated follow up. With automated follow up you can send emails and text messages to contacts to remind them of upcoming meetings, or to urge them to automatically book time on your calendar.

Automated follow up can also be super helpful after you’ve had a consult with a prospect. Share case studies, testimonials, create a picture of what it’s like to work with you, but create it only once, then automate it so you don’t have to copy and paste that same email over and over again. 

Calendar Booking – I mentioned that you can automate urging someone to book a call with you, but that means making your calendar digital. Let go of that paper calendar and move to a solution that eliminates the need to go back and forth trying to find a time that works for you and your prospect. Less friction = more action!

Your Sales Pipeline – This one might be a little less obvious. If you could have custom tailored follow up for each stage of your sales process how much time would you save not having to write emails or complete other elements of tracking? It’s more follow-up and it can be tied in with your sales process as well, giving you a visual of all your prospects at each stage of the journey.

Something for Everyone

Some reading this article would say, yes, I know Christi, I’m a Keap user, but don’t let this post be a waste of time! Whether you’re just getting your feet wet or need to revisit automation, the purpose of this post is to ask you the question: are your efforts producing the results you want/need? If not, is there room for improvement in what you’re automating?

Not that long ago, I had an aha. Someone gave me feedback about how I was running my business. I had subscribed to that notion that if it was going to be done it had to be done by me, but the reality was, it was keeping me stuck. I took that feedback to heart and I got to work on the same feedback I had shared with so many clients and turned it into my own sales machine. And let me tell you it’s working!

Starting with automating follow up, I then embedded my calendar so it goes everywhere I go. Lastly, I hired a team that has helped me get out of the weeds. I have seen tremendous growth and so have the clients I’m working with.

If you’ve read any of my past blogs on automation, you know I am a lover of Keap. There are so many reasons, but the simplest explanation is automation. While there are other tools out there that do many of the same things, there are none that do it as well as Keap. And Keap makes it so easy.

So now, I challenge you…What will you do to make your efforts match your results…what will you automate today!