Updated: March 4, 2024
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Like Mike Tyson once said, ‘everybody always has a plan, until they get punched in the mouth.’ He used a couple of expletives but the message is clear. Life happens. You want a strategy to implement technology in your business without getting punched in the mouth. A good strategy begins with a good plan.
If you are thinking of starting a small business, is there a good reason to bother with a plan? Especially a technology plan. Wait, does a plan exist? Many small business owners cannot say with certainty whether they will be in business in a couple of years. The lack of a plan contributes to the demise of businesses. Let us plan and strategize.
Why bother with a plan?
At this point, we know technology is important and why. If you are not familiar, you can check out our article on the importance of technology in your business. Among many other things, with technology you give your business a fighting chance. You steer the business toward growth, profit and longevity. When we talk about plans in a business, a business plan comes to mind. A business plan is different because it looks at a holistic picture of where the business is heading. A business plan is usually drafted before you start your business. It is in the process of drafting it that you decide on issues like how you intend to finance the business.
First of all, a technology implementation plan is informal. Outsiders have no use for it and it is only for you and your business. It is an operations plan where you think of what technology you will use. In the process, you uncover why certain software is better for you than other software. The strategy is in how you choose the technology and why. Your decisions will depend on many factors.
We have met the enemy, it is us.
Take a long hard look at everything you have. Understand your strengths and weaknesses. You will need to analyze this, both from a business perspective and an individual level. From a business perspective, you will need to bootstrap the weaknesses you uncover. At an individual level, your weaknesses are likely to impact your business. Now that you are aware of the current state of affairs in your business. Here are the strategies you will use when choosing which technology to adopt.
It has to make sense and cents
This is an investment you are making. Invest only when it does not hurt your business. The zeros in your bank account will determine the kind of technology you can purchase. Hopefully, it is not all zeros. You will weigh between the technologies that are sold and those that have a monthly subscription model. Sometimes, it is the same company giving you the option between a one-off lifetime purchase and a subscription.
Lifetime purchase prices are discounted and are a good option to consider. A slight variation of the lifetime purchase is where you subscribe to a yearly offer or multi-yearly contracts. This option is also highly discounted and worth considering. The big issue is whether you are comfortable with the technology itself and if you have money to stomach long term contracts. Our advice is to have used the service for at least six months to say you are comfortable. If you are comfortable and have enough cash, then you have the green light to commit long term.
Monthly subscriptions make sense under certain circumstances. Remember, in the long run, you will pay higher than long term commitments or purchases. The reason to choose a monthly subscription is cash. No matter how discounted, a long term contract costs more upfront than a monthly payment. If you are cash strapped, committing for a long time may make other areas in your business suffer. Cash is king and in chess you lose if the king is helpless. Don’t be the cause of your own checkmate.
It raises the question, ‘how do I know if I have enough money for upfront payments and long term commitments?’ I wish there was a formula to apply to your business. Young businesses will often have too many moving pieces and are often unique in their own way. Consider your suppliers. If they are willing to give you credit, then it lifts your need for cash. Slightly. Consider your customers. A business that has customers who pay per order will have liquid money compared to one where you invoice them and wait for a couple of days or weeks. Consider the bank balance vs your total expenses. If a large upfront payment is a minimal percentage of your total expenses, you can go ahead.
Take the Low Hanging Fruits
Companies that offer the technologies you want also have their interests to look after. Don’t hate the player, hate the game. That being said, some of their interests will align with yours and these offer low hanging fruit. Having an online presence through social media is free. The social media companies want you to help them retain their users’ attention. They retain attention which they will monetize in their own way. You use the attention for your own ends as well: driving growth and profits for your business. With a good phone and some creativity you can let users know what you are about, do it inexpensively, and look good while doing it.
Having a website is another low hanging fruit. Fine, you are not a programmer and there is a small cost to hosting your website. With the modern ecommerce platforms you can build a website for a relatively affordable price. What’s more, it doesn’t matter if you know how to program. In fact, it is cheaper than hiring a programmer to do it for you. We have a primer on building a website through a website builder.
Once you have your website, search engines like Google and Bing don’t charge to index your website. You end up getting visitors to your website and store through organic reach. It is possible because you want to reach potential customers and Google wants to show their users what they are looking for. It goes without saying, competition is high. It will take time for you to actualize the fruits of organic reach. The sooner you start the better.
Services will usually have a tiers. The tiers are distinguished by factors such as the number of employees who can use the account. Some will have a limit in capability. When you have a young business, the lower tiers are the ones you want to go for. They are accessible and usually, they are sufficient for what you need at the moment. Before you start, a lot of service providers will give you a free trial. Take advantage of that to not only decide if the service is the best for you, but to also get some work in while it’s free.
Plant a tree yesterday
Some decisions are easier to carry out than others. Others once made will take a long time before you see meaningful results. Most of the technologies that help you build your brand will take time. People, naturally, take time to trust. In his book, Influence, Robert Cialdini talks about how social proof is a very strong force for humans. Social proof is basically peer pressure. It is how you are more comfortable doing something if other people who you trust have done it. You know how you buy a phone after a friend recommends it. You can do this even after your research says there are probably better ones for cheaper out there. Organic reach in social media and websites will take time and effort. It is therefore a strategic move to start growing your online presence as soon as possible.
Quick sidenote: Influence is an interesting read if you want to understand the psychology of people. For those in business, it is a must read. It is simple to understand and will give you insight into factors that ‘influence’ people’s decisions. You can check out its price on Amazon using this link.
Work with Vilfredo Pareto
The Pareto Principle states that 80% of results come from 20% of causes. 80% of the profits in your business are dependent on 20% of causes/customers. It follows that you need to cater to these 20%. Technology, for example a CRM, that helps you retain your super star customers is important. You would want to make such a technology a priority. It applies to other factors that lead to your success. If more of your customers walk through your doors because of a certain product, it makes sense to double down on it.
The Pareto Principle applies in the other direction as well. You could evaluate the single biggest source of your headache. It could be a customer, or an expense. Most probably, the customer or the expense are not matching the attention they demand. If that is the case, wouldn’t it be wise to focus on what creates more value for your business? What not to work with is just as important as what to work with. You determine this based on the impact a technology is bringing and the problems it solves for you. The strategy is to focus on the low effort, high impact technologies for long term success.
It’s a wrap
If you remember what Mike Tyson said, then you know you’ll experience some challenges even with a good strategy. Check out our article on challenges you will face when implementing technology in your business. A simple plan is way better than no plan.
Through this article, you now know what to focus on for you to get the best outcome for your business. You have an idea of what your plan should have and when to add certain technologies to your business.
