Helping clients to create a smoother way of working
Last month, for me, there was a focus on processes. For one client it’s about the steps through his sales pipeline, for another mapping her client onboarding process and for another sending out her privacy policy and asking people to opt-in for her GDPR compliance. For another I’ve been working through old contact records to pull together client data which can then be checked to ensure it is still correct.
I have been working with developers to create system fields and liaising with account managers to understand the best solutions. I’ve had to get up to speed with some new systems pretty quickly. Essentially, these are all the same, tools to help companies to better manage their processes.
Where to Start?
You don’t need to spend a lot of money to get started though. The simple act of jotting down a workflow can be very helpful in identifying problem areas and key priorities. Just sketch it out on a piece of paper or use a tool such as google docs. Do you know the steps, have you considered the things you could do to make things more slick?
What are the Key stages?
A process is there to decide what you will do in various situations so that you don’t have to think on your feet when a situation arises. Think about steps and timing. How soon after initial contact should follow-up happen? Should it be by phone or email. What should be done if there is no answer, do you leave voicemail? Do you want to reach out annually to see if they want to buy again? Or check their details and if they are still happy for you to hold their details for GDPR requirements
What are the next steps?
If someone signs up to your newsletter do you have to manually respond? You could have a set-up that means standard responses, like a welcome message, are sent automatically?
How can the process be slicker?
Do all of your emails go into your inbox. Can you set rules to divert messages from important people into one folder and non-urgent into another. Even use a separate email address just for signing up to newsletters and systems or apps. This means these general messages can be read weekly, or even monthly, when you have time and they won’t clutter your inbox
Do you have standard messages for different scenarios that can be created as templates to be used time and again, or even sent as automated responses?
- Can you set tasks with reminders for what needs to be done at different times?
- Could you use a system to report daily, weekly, monthly on progress and actions needed?
- Could you delegate tasks to others so that you don’t have to handle everything yourself?
Aim, to take away bottlenecks and enable the team to see what needs doing so that nothing is missed
If you would like to talk through your processes to see how you can save time and make them more efficient get in touch.