When you want to achieve anything in life, you must be consistent. Whether you aspire to gain a degree, run a marathon, or learn a new language, the secret to success is showing up day after day and working towards your goals.
Running a business is no different. Consistency is crucial to keep things running smoothly at all levels. Right from staying on top of the bookkeeping to providing high-quality customer-service without fail, and not to mention the quality of your work or products. Your entire team need to prioritise consistency.
Why is consistency so important?
Without it, people won’t know what to expect from you or your business. Being all over the show will not do you any favours. In fact, it can have a negative impact.
That is just part of the reason why consistency is so essential. The other reasons are…
Keep Your Team Running Smoothly
Being consistent with your team is ground zero. When you have well-thought-out processes and systems in place, everybody knows what they should be doing and what is expected of them. That is why it is helpful to have process manuals and documented procedures so that everyone is on the same page. Accordingly, the team will work more efficiently and can provide high-quality service to your customers.
Creating Brand Recognition And Developing A Positive Reputation
Another key area it is absolutely vital to be consistent is in your branding and messaging. Consumers are constantly overwhelmed by people trying to sell them things every day. For that reason, it is hard to be noticed among all the competition.
To stand out, you need to be seen again and again to create recognition. It will be hard for people to recognise your brand if it is always different! So, a consistent look, feel and message is needed. This can be achieved through consistent branding and a well-planned strategy that gets your business in front of the right people on a regular basis.
Building Trust And Loyalty With Customers And Partners
Your customers should know what to expect every time they interact with you. If your processes keep changing, or they receive a different level of service each time, they will lose trust in your business and look elsewhere quick-smart. The same goes for suppliers and other partners. Mess people around with confusing invoicing, irregular contact or other inconsistencies, and your reputation will suffer for it – followed rapidly by your business.
Be More Productive
Consistency is the only way to build habits. Doing the same thing day after day enables it to almost become automatic. Then, tasks can be done more quickly. Part of being consistent is identifying jobs that are regular and repetitive (such as doing the books weekly or posting on social media daily) and streamlining how they are done.
Outsourcing or automating tasks like these can ensure they are done to a high standard, on time, and consistently. This frees up you and your team to focus on the bigger picture.
How To Be Consistent…
When working out how to be consistent throughout your business, you need to make sure everything you do is sustainable. There is no point committing to posting a weekly blog if you find the workload overwhelming after several weeks and begin to post intermittently.
It is better to commit to one high-quality blog a month without fail. Your customers will learn that you are reliable and start to connect with your brand.
While you are handling all the daily and weekly jobs, don’t forget about the big picture. To keep growing, businesses need to be proactive with their planning and strategy. Consistently take the time to look at your long-term goals and how you are tracking towards them.
If you are finding yourself overwhelmed and with no time to check in on how your business is tracking, then it is time for a change. Consider outsourcing some of your day to day jobs so that they get done consistently, without detracting from your core business.
Bookkeeping and administration are two areas that can easily be outsourced and will free up hours of your time every week. The team here at Admin Army specialise in waging war on the tasks you don’t have the time to do! Drop us a line today to see how we can help you achieve the consistency you need for greater success.