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Vision Boards for Business

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Tis the season…to complete your vision board! Now, we know what you are thinking. How can a board filled with random pictures and words be good for your business? Well, if this collage encompasses where you want to go and where you want your business to be, it can keep your goals and visions at the forefront of your mind. A vision board can be a powerful tool utilized to help you stay focused. However, throwing photos on a board and hoping for the best is not all it takes.

What is a Business Vision Board?

Simply put, a vision board is a display of images or words that act as motivation by representing aspirations and goals you want to achieve. Creating one can help you see the big picture of what you are trying to accomplish in a visual way.

Why Create One?

We have all heard that when developing a business, you should have a business plan including goals, objectives, and a general idea of where you want to go and what you want to do. Part of that business plan of course includes your marketing efforts. When we start out, we have a vision for our businesses. However, when we’ve been in the business for some time it is easy to get inundated with the inner workings of the business and we can easily lose sight of some of our major goals.

By chance, did your original vision change? To ensure your business is not stagnant, it is best to develop a vision board and refresh it annually. This will allow you to focus on your goals and see the progression in your business. It will help you get creative and think of what new and innovative marketing tactics you can use. If you see it, you can manifest it. Not only can you manifest it but having something you can view regularly and evaluate, provides an avenue for accountability. Hone in on what you want by placing your goals in an easily digestible format, helping to increase your focus and clarity.

What to include?

You have heard it before. Pictures are worth a thousand words. When structured it can help organize the many thoughts that continue to live in your head and provide clear intentions. First, you have to have goals. Conduct a small activity to discover where you want your business to be. Ask yourself:

  • What do I want to accomplish this year?
  • What tools will I use?
  • Are there people or companies I would like to meet with that can help me achieve my goals?
  • What is my theme for the year?
  • What percentage would I like to grow my client base or revenue?

Then once you have your answers, it’s time to strategize! Find images or quotes that align with your responses.

Let’s Get Your Board Started!

Vision boards can come in many formats. You may want a physical one you can hang on your wall. If this is the case look for magazines, grab some glue, poster board, scissors; take it back to Elementary school and get to work! Cork Boards and thumbtacks work well too. Interested in a digital option? Start a board on Pinterest or develop a digital graphic using platforms such as Canva. Once you have the format in mind, go to work. Begin the creation phase by assembling your board in a collage format and be creative. Your business’ vision board is for your business and does not need to match any others. It is solely for you and your team. From here, all you need is a little free time. Sorry, we can’t help with that part. While this may be difficult, remember one thing, people find time for what’s important to them, business included.  

Once complete, hang it where you can view it often. If it is digital, think about making it your computer, tablet, or phone screen saver.

Creative Goal Setting that Works

Remember to make goals realistic and achievable. Long-term vision goals may encompass the BIG picture. But yearly boards should be focused on what you can achieve this year. Once you have your vision and board established, work on a strategy that will help you achieve your goals. Do you need support with strategy development? We are here to help guide the way! Email [email protected]. We are eager to see you win!

New Year, New Goals – Make them “SMART”

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It has officially started! Many start the New Year by assessing what they have done in the year before and how they did it. We, at Bekoz Marketing, have done just that! If the goal was not accomplished – we considered what can be done now to get to where we need to be. If you haven’t started at all, let’s set some goals right now! Experts say it takes approximately 15 days before something can become a habit. Have you missed the mark of meeting a goal? It’s ok, just start again! You have a whole year to make it work. As we embark on a New Year, here are our resolutions to you!

1) Stay abreast of the latest and greatest in marketing to help keep you informed.

2) Share ideas that will help you take your marketing efforts to the next level.

3) Help you experience all the great things we are doing here at Bekoz Marketing to spark new ideas.

4) Serve you, our customers, supporters and partners, the best way we can.

However, simply stating the resolution or goal isn’t enough. How will you know what worked? What didn’t? Or what needs to be adjusted? Set monthly or even quarterly check-ins to focus on where you are with your goals. By making them “SMART,” you will be able to see where adjustments need to be made and what changes are needed to ensure at the end of the year the goal(s) has been reached. Check-ins will also help refresh the goals in your mind, rather than have them sit stagnant from one year to the next. “SMART” goals ensure the goals are Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Timely. But how does all this work? Take our first resolution to you;

“Stay abreast of the latest and greatest in marketing to help keep you informed.”

Now…let’s turn it into a “SMART” goal so we can tell if we kept our promise when its time to evaluate.

  • S = Specific

First, we will insert action words that will help us determine how we will achieve the goal, while stating what we will do.

“Stay abreast of the latest and greatest in marketing by attending training, conferences, webinars and reading industry articles that will educate our staff so they can keep you, the client, informed.”

  • M = Measurable

While the goal sounds great, how can it be measured? How do we know if our team is taking action? Let’s add some key data points or metrics that can be evaluated. Also, if/when they get the information how will we know it was shared? Here are some things we can look at:

1.    The number of training/conferences/webinars attended.

2.    The number of blogs posted or updates shared via our newsletter, along with the open rates or post views.

  • A = Achievable

Remember, try not to make the goal and measurements so large that it is no longer obtainable. Make the goals realistic; this includes financially and physically. Make sure items will fit in your schedule and that you can afford to do what it is you said you would do. Fortunately, there are several FREE webinars and can be viewed right from your office!

1.    The number of training/conferences attended.

a.    One a month, totaling 12 a year

2.    The number of blog posts or updates shared via our newsletter, along with the open rates or post views.

a.    Write at least one blog post a month on the information gained regarding updates in the industry or what may be on the horizon.

  • R = Relevant

This one is easy. Simply make sure the goal makes sense to you, and it is relevant to what you are doing. Think about how it will improve your organization or life and what you are trying to achieve. For us, keeping abreast of industry trends help both our customer and our team. It allows us to stay on the forefront of what is happening so we as a business will not be left behind. By sharing it in the ways stated, blog post or newsletter, it keeps our website relevant for Search Engine Optimization (SEO) purposes. It also, keeps people coming back to our online office (website) so it’s not just sitting and outdated, and it gives us a voice which helps position us as subject matter experts. Additionally, customers (past, present, and future) will know where to come when they need information or marketing support, which can lead to potential opportunities for our team.

Think of what your goal will do for you and how it is relevant to what you are really trying to achieve.

  • T= Timely

The great thing about goals is that they are made, to be achieved. When will you achieve yours? Add a due date, so your goal will not continue to linger. Be specific on the date. Will it take you 15 days, 6 months, or a year? Our goal is set for one year, 12 months, 365 days and the clock is ticking. Of course, that doesn’t mean we will look at it now and not again until 2020. Even though the goal is set to be achieved at the end of the year, we have included bi-monthly evaluation days to see if adjustments need to be made. Maybe we get so much information from a three-day conference, we can write two months’ worth of blogs and may not need to attend anything the following month. Maybe we missed a month due to whatever the reason and we need to step it up! In either case, we are always continuously evaluating.   

Now that your goals have been set, and you have made it “SMART,” it is time to achieve!  We know making the change to achieve a new goal can be hard, but adjustment takes time. It will be ok, and remember, we are here to help!

New year with new goals or let’s just simply revamp some old ones into SMART goals. Then let’s make it happen!