You’ve probably heard that what you measure is what you know, but did you also know that measuring is also how you GROW?
Every first Monday of the month, I get together with my team and review numbers throughout the different departments of my business so I can see where we’re thriving, where we’re lacking and where we need to focus our efforts.
Taking the time to track and review these numbers helps my team and me stay focused and motivated. Because we’re essentially looking at a snapshot of where the business is at the current moment, we can clearly see and understand the next steps we need to take in order to grow — both on a large and small scale.
In this episode, I’m sharing how you can track and monitor numbers in your own business. No matter how big or small your operation is, the tips and strategies I’m sharing today can help you reach the next level and feel more in tune with your business as a whole.
Tip #1: Track Sales and Cash Flow
This may seem obvious, but you MUST track your total sales and cash flow if you want to understand which areas of your business are actually bringing in revenue (and exactly how much revenue).
When I look at my sales each month, I review the enrollment of my programs as well as how my online shop is performing — how many items were sold and which items were most popular? How many visitors came to the shop throughout the month? Getting the answers to these questions helps me determine which products to restock and how many of each item we should have available while also letting me know which products we should consider phasing out.
When it comes to sales, you are examining conversion rates — how many potential clients are actually becoming customers, and what are they most interested in purchasing from you? Having this information is essential to growing your earnings and increasing your bottom line.
Tip #2: Measure the Effectiveness of Marketing
When tracking marketing efforts, you’re focusing on lead generation — in other words, how many people are coming through the “door” or passing by the “window” each month, and what’s bringing them there?
Examining your marketing can include answering questions like:
- How many Instagram followers did you gain and lose?
- How many people subscribed to your email list?
- If you have a podcast, how many downloads did you get? How many people subscribed?
- If you have ads, how are they performing?
- Overall, how do this month’s numbers compare to last month’s numbers?
Having numbers to review makes taking action MUCH easier because you know where to turn your attention — and the more data you have, the better your decision-making process will be.
Tip #3: Take an Analytical Approach
Having an analytical mind will help you better understand correlations between your actions and your results, and you’ll likely be able to solve problems faster.
For example, I recently noticed my first-day podcast episode downloads weren’t as high as they used to be, and I realized that was likely because I wasn’t promoting the episode the day before it went live (which I had done in the past). This is a simple fix, but without collecting data and taking an analytical approach, I may have missed the answer that was right in front of me.
Another example: During a launch, I realized my sales were down despite many people clicking through to the sales page. Instead of panicking or making assumptions, my team and I decided to tackle the problem by collecting more data. We applied a heat map to see where people were clicking so we could illuminate the issue and get a better idea of what was really going on. Without this information, we would have stayed in the dark.
The takeaway: Data is magical — so magical, in fact, that I’m working with my team to compile weekly reports so we can use our analytical minds to make more informed decisions week to week, not just month to month.
Tip #4: Accumulate Evidence
Without evidence to remind you of the truth and take the subjectivity out of a situation, it’s easy to get stressed when things don’t go according to plan or when you’re in uncharted territory.
Maybe you open your inbox and see someone is requesting a refund — it can be easy to spiral into negative thoughts and imagine that many of your clients are displeased, which is why it’s important to have evidence to support the reality. Consider tracking how many clients request refunds and why, and compare this to your total number of clients. Unless something is VERY wrong, you’ll probably see that the happy clients far outweigh the unhappy clients.
Accumulating evidence also helps you move forward during launches. You may feel unsure or worried about the number of sales you’ll get, but if you can see that people are clicking on your website or engaging with your promotional content, chances are you’ll feel calmer, more confident and more inclined to continue pushing forward.
Tip #5: Determine WHAT You Want to Increase
If you want to grow your business, consider determining 3 things you want to track in your business this month.
Here are some areas you may want to focus on:
- Your email list — how many subscribers do you have, what’s your open rate, and what are they clicking on?
- Average order value (or the average amount of money people spend when purchasing from you)
- Instagram Story views — on average, how many people are watching your Stories? Are there any topics people seem to be more or less engaged with? How can you maximize your reach?
Exactly what you track is up to you, but remember: What gets measured also gets managed, and unless a miracle happens, growth isn’t going to happen by accident.
To make it easy, I’ve created a FREE tracking sheet for you — the 100 Days of Data Protocol — where you can log your stats and take an objective view of your business! Download the sheet right here: fastforwardamy.com/trackingsheet.
RECAP
I hope these tips and strategies help you track and monitor progress in your business!
I’ve included a quick recap of all 5 tips so you can screenshot this article and take it with you as you focus on growing your business and maximizing your output!
Tip #1: Track Sales and Cash Flow
Tip #2: Measure the Effectiveness of Marketing
Tip #3: Take an Analytical Approach
Tip #4: Accumulate Evidence
Tip #5: Determine What YOU Want to Increase
Watch this episode on YouTube, or listen via iTunes, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts, and search for episode 131 of The FastForwardAmy Show.
PS: Interested in scaling your business? My Boss Up Mentorship (BUM) program may be perfect for you. Follow this link to learn more: fastforwardamy.com/bum! If you want to work with me but aren’t sure where to begin, head to fastforwardamy.com/findyourfit and answer the questions — we’ll point you in the right direction!
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