Beyond the Hype: A Guide to Strategic Tech Investments for Entrepreneurs

“If something can be automated, it should be”

~attributed to Tim Ferriss

There are plenty of examples of automation in the world of business.? We have autonomous cars, automated traffic management, writing and with the proliferation of AI the possibilities are endless.? But what about your business process?? With so many options, how is an entrepreneur with limited funding options to decide how to invest in a way that moves their business forward???

I don’t believe this is a new problem.? I believe this is a very old problem that is aggravated by the sheer volume of options now available.?

In the past and even today, the largest companies hire consultants to help identify changes needed to help their businesses grow.? The consultants come in, interview the business owner and their team and learn all about current daily operational processes.? After the interviews are complete, the consultants make a recommendation about process and technology changes for the business to implement.? Some businesses would then hire the consultants to do the actual work.? Other businesses would implement the recommendations themselves in house.?

With the proliferation of technology, there are a plethora of tools and services that have the capability to allow an entrepreneur to improve their business systems and processes without hiring a consultant right away.??

And actually, entrepreneurs (particularly small businesses and startups) have a leg up on their larger counterparts.? While large companies can only look at a subset of their business operations and take longer to implement changes, a smaller company is much more agile and can results sooner.

Most entrepreneurs are so busy fighting fires and handling the general chaos that is a part of being in business that they don’t even notice how valuable it is to be able to have the capability to make quick enhancements to business.

What if we could create a framework that would allow a business owner to take a step back and manage their business at the 30,000 foot level???

What if you could see your processes and then make decisions based on moving your business forward??

What if you also had metrics to help you know whether or not you’re headed in the right direction??

That is the power of the baseline business framework.?

Simply put, a baseline business framework is a management tool for entrepreneurs.? In Corporate America there are visualizations that show the entire process, metrics that measure how the process is doing and a strategy document to keep focus on the long term.??

In the past, entrepreneurs could not even imagine having the capability to manage their businesses intentionally using these tools because the data was not available.? But now, with easy access to tools that capture data while they support the growth of our business, entrepreneurs can be more strategic than ever before.??

Hence the baseline business framework.??

Here’s Your Next Move:?

1. Write Down On a Sheet of Paper (or your favorite writing tool) everything that you do to provide your product or service to the marketplace.? Start with the lead acquisition process all the way through customer delivery and even referrals and product enhancements)?
2. Now, take another look at the process from the customer’s perspective.? How do you want the customer to experience your business at each step of the way in an ideal world?? Add those components to the drawing or list.? (For example, I wanted to shorten customer onboarding time so I added the 1st steps of customer onboarding to the end of my sales process to reduce the time between client signup and actual delivery of value).
3. Finally circle all of the items or areas that you believe, if implemented, would greatly improve your customer satisfaction and revenue generation.?

Voila, you have created your first version of a baseline business framework. Now tweak and refine this framework continually.? By identifying the key areas that provide the most value for your business, you can narrow down the areas where investing in technology will provide the most value.? Armed with this knowledge, you can take your rightful position in the drivers’ seat when looking to invest in technology to help you scale your business in a profitable way.??

If you are looking to scale your business I’d like to invite you to join me for an event I am? hosting entitled “Leveraging Marketing Technology to Build a Business that Scales.”? I’ll be sharing in more detail how to help make technology work for you as you grow your business.?

Comment below if you currently use a baseline business framework or a similar tool to strategically grow your business.??