As 2024 comes to a close, it’s time to start thinking about next year and what a new year will bring for your business. Get a head start by evaluating exactly what your business needs and where your business is headed so you know exactly what to expect in 2025!
How to Plan for 2025
1. Reflect
Before you dive in to next year, take a look back at this year, 2024. From start to finish, January to December, examine how your business did. What months were good months, and why? What months were bad months? When did you make the most profit and at what times (if any) did you struggle? This will provide you with a good idea of what your next year might be like.
Determine what things you liked about your business year. For example, if you had any sales that went well, or if you had a company get together that you enjoyed. What things can you recreate in the new year?
Also pick out things you didn’t like as much. How can you do things differently in 2025? Make it a goal of yours to bring improvements to your business and weed out as much of the negative as you can.
2. Ask yourself: What are your business goals?
With a new year comes new opportunities. Thinking about the future of your business, where do you want to see it go? Maybe you want to attend more business conferences or plan more sales to draw in customers. Maybe you want to expand your staff or open a new location. Maybe you want to bring in new products or improve your employee benefits. Basically, what do you want to do with your business that you haven’t already done?
3. Create a forecast plan.
This is where your reflection on 2024 and your list of goals comes in handy. Look back at each month of 2024 (or, better, the last few years) to determine what you should expect in customers and sales for each month. Draw up a plan. A good place to start is to decide the amount of revenue you expect to earn on a monthly basis.
On your plan, you can add in deadlines and projects you’d like to take on during specific portions of the year. This will serve as a sort of calendar for your business.
4. Make a budget.
Once you have the plan for your business, come up with a list of expected costs for the year. This should include your regular bills, such as rent and other expenses, as well as any other purchases you expect to make, like upgrading equipment or introducing new inventory items.
5. Don’t let January get you down.
Following the holidays, it’s not uncommon for you to see a slump in customers and sales. Don’t let that get to you – your customers just need some time to let their wallets recover! The beginning of the year is likely to be slow, but as the year goes on, the ball will start rolling. Be logical. January might be rough, but that doesn’t mean you aren’t about to have your best business year yet!
Ariel Westphal
“Hi there! I’m Ariel, the Marketing Director for Acumen Connections. I led the team in establishing Acumen Connections’ identity and processes when Brian J. Staver purchased the company in 2017. Nowadays, Renee and Anna do most of the heavy lifting on the content writing side as I oversee all marketing initiatives, but our team works together to create an environment that supports Acumen Connections’ mission of “Building Business Connections”.
Pingback: Mentally Preparing for a New Year – Acumen Connections