Businesses need to change the course of their direction in order to stay competitive in the market. Several businesses also change their direction or want to pivot their business activities to achieve a business goal. Industry experts say that pivot is not about changing from one business model to the other. Rather, it is evolving the business model as a part of the business growth strategy.
It is said that to build a lasting business that successfully delivers value to the customers, it is important that the business owners have the confidence to make the shift. Additionally, the business must always be willing to disrupt constantly in order to remain relevant in the market.
If you are thinking to have a strategy shift in your business, here are nine tips to help you make the decision and execute your pivot smoothly.
- List down the strengths and weaknesses of the business. It is easy for you to list down what your business is good at and what are areas need improvement. This level of understanding will help you to evolve and take the next step.
- Conduct internal discussions. Encourage and urge everyone from the business to look out for the external challenges as well as opportunities for your business. This can be done with the help of an internal and continuous dialogue.
- Research: The next thing that can be done is to evaluate, analyze, and process your user data as well as the business data. Have a look at the conversion funnel, and talk to the customers in person. Tracking and monitoring your direct market competitors is also a good way to know what can be done to update your business purposes.
- Now that you have identified a significant threat to your business, it is time to think about business strategies. There can be more than one way to resolve a business problem that your business might be facing. This is the time at which you think about each scenario.
- Make predictions: A business pivot will affect each and every aspect of your business. You have to make predictions about the business redefinitions. Changes will be reflected across processes, costs, profits, team structure, technology, brand, and even the business culture. It will be better if you have open communication about all these with the department head of each team and take their opinions. This will help to make the final decision.
- Share your vision: A successful business pivot demands full support from the team as well as investors. For this, it is important that you have a discussion with these people about the “whys” and not just the “whats”.
- Sharing information about the changes you are going to bring about in the business to the customers is very important. Some of them might not take it in a positive way, but it is difficult for you to please everyone, and that is okay.
- Develop a pan: when everything is ready, it is advisable that you have a well-developed plan to execute. It must involve a team with all the members’ assigned specific responsibilities. It must also have tasks, stakeholders, deadlines, a clear communication strategy with the customers as well as within the team. The plan must also have a set of short and long term goals.
- Keep changing: You have to realize that you need to evaluate threats and opportunities and change your business approach to improve the ongoing processes. The business must be willing to threaten and disrupt from within at a constant level.
Make sure that everyone in the team is aware of how the pivot is going to impact them as a team. It is also important that you stay aware of the market changes and customer demands. This will help to give your business a completely new direction.
Source – Business news daily