The Art of Business: Don’t Get Creamed Before the Recovery

Eric J. Adams

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It may be another six to 12 months before the clouds clear and the jobs start rolling in on their own. You’ve made it this far, that’s good. Here are a few mistakes to avoid during the home stretch.

Operating Without a Game Plan. You take a Web development job here and an identity job there. You search for jobs online and wait for the phone to ring. If you’re conducting business reactively, it’s time to get proactive.

A game plan starts by defining your strategic position. What is it that differentiates you from others and makes your services worthwhile? To determine a strategic position consider how you can capitalize on recent industry trends and developments, competitive opportunities and openings, changes brought about by new technologies, and most importantly your strengths and interests. Next, turn these advantages into a strong marketing message that’s clear, precise, and repeatable in your sleep.

Ignoring Your Current Clients. If you haven’t heard it ad infinitem by now, it’s worth repeating one more time, your current clients are the best source of new work.

Maybe your client has a project on the back burner or a project percolating for which she doesn’t realize you’re qualified. Don’t be afraid to ask, “What other projects are you considering?” or better yet, “What other business challenges do you have? Perhaps I can help you solve them.”

Current clients are also great for alerting you to other in-house projects in faraway departments. Don’t wait for an invitation. Ask away: “Are there colleagues in your company who might benefit from my services?” Finally, your current clients can help you locate work outside of the company. “Jim, I have openings for a few new clients. Is there anyone you think might be looking for a creative consultant?”

Forgetting to Market Incessantly. Creating a marketing plan is the easy part, making that first cold call is the difficult part. Here’s the good news; if your marketing plan is filled with relationship-building opportunities and exercises, there is no cold calling. It’s all warm calling to potential clients whom you’ve already had the pleasure of making their acquaintance at seminars, conferences and classes, and through friends, colleagues, and clients.

Forgetting to Mind Your Cash Flow. Cash flow, like backgammon, takes a minute to learn, a lifetime to master. Money comes in, money goes out. Why is it so dang hard? I’m still working it out myself, but here’s what I’ve learned so far. Make sure that money keeps coming in by staying on top of your accounts receivable. Never let an invoice go unpaid for more than 30 days without at least one telephone call, 45 days without a few phone calls and e-mails, and 60 days without sending out the Light Brigade. The protocol is particularly important on jobs for which you’ve shelled out cash for vendor services.

Manage cash out by being a lunatic about expenses — keep that color laser chugging along for another year, forget that new OSX Mac for a while, put off buying that new office furniture (if I only could take my own advice).

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