What are your income-producing activities? How much time are you spending on your IPAs (Income Producing Activities)? Entrepreneurs have to wear many hats when they start out. Especially if it’s a one-person show. Jack of all trades master of none… better become a jack of all trades master of “One.” That trade is sales and marketing.
Bogged down with training, calls, team meetings, customer orders, putting out fires, and that pesky dirty desk? According to Sue Clement of SueClement.com, salespeople spend less than 30% of their time producing sales. What are they doing 70% of the time?
Ms. Clement, says, to adopt the 60-30-10 rule. Spend 60% of your time marketing, 30% of your time on customer service and product development, and 10% on administration. As an online entrepreneur, I am telling you to spend 70% to 80% of your time on Income Producing Activities especially if you are new.
Get Those Leads
It would help if you had eyeballs on your sites. Plain and simple. Spend time on driving traffic or learning how to drive traffic. If you only have 4 hours per day to work on your business spend three of those hours on marketing and sales. That is the only way to survive. But with your large to-do list, how do you accomplish that?
Read Related Post: Don’t be the Hare
The answer is simple. Adopt the United States Marine Corps Maxim Do It, Delegate It, or Delete It. I will also add Defer It. Why not follow one of the most feared military forces that has ever walked the earth?
Most online entrepreneurs fail because they spend most of their time not making sales. When I speak with my team they spend 30 minutes on IPAs and the rest of the day on crap. Understand that marketing brings in sales. Sales are the lifeblood of your business. No sales you die. Please spend the most time on IPAs.
Do, Delegate, Defer, Delete
Do
I understand that you have a to-do list. In fact, every time management book tells you to make one. But 70 to 80% of your time should be focused on generating leads. If you are new spend some of that time on how to generate leads. Do lead generation first. Marketing is your cornerstone don’t drop the ball on this.
Hit your to-do list after your marketing activities. There will always be fires to put out that is part of the grind. No one promised an easy road if they did they lied. When it comes to those nagging things on the list work with the attitude of good, better, best.
Work on the best thing that will help you produce more sales. Sales keep you in business so say to yourself, “Do It, Do It, Do It!” or “IPAs, IPAs, IPAs!” Now if you find you can’t do everything on your list it is time to…
Delegate
Hey, lone soldier, it’s okay to pass on the mundane grinding stuff to someone who is more qualified than you to handle it. Successful businesses run on a system and when you grow you will need delegation. Having professionals handle your bookkeeping, taxes, insurance, or investments frees up time for you to get back to your income-producing activities.
Hire a personal assistant to pick up the kids, get the mail, proofread your websites, set up appointments, or schedule meetings. Can’t afford a personal assistant now hire your kids or outsource to sites like Fiverr, Odesk, and Elance. I delegate out my funnels, syndicate my articles, and add the system to free up my time for writing and speaking. I am looking to add an executive assistant at the end of the year.
Partner up with other online entrepreneurs and share the workload. Just make sure there is clear communication on what each other duties are. Author, Dave Ramsey once told me that the only ship that doesn’t sail is a partnership. If you can’t Delegate It…
Defer
Emails, phone calls, and cleaning your desk. Defer these things until your marketing is done. Deferring tasks can be tricky. Be careful that you are not avoiding anything that will overwhelm you later. Deferring means it is not important now and you will complete it later.
For example, checking and answering your emails every hour is a waste of time. In my years online and as a real estate agent I have never missed a sale because I didn’t check my emails. Schedule a time to check and answer then move on.
Time chunking will help you free up time for marketing. Schedule your phone calls, emails, and chats for a certain time. Plus don’t become a slave to technology. Your phone, tablet, and computer have you conditioned to jump at every ringtone. Stop that. Do It, Delegate It, or Defer It, but there are things you need to do…
Delete
There are some things that should just be deleted. TV, the news, the everyday webinars, training, and sales calls. Only go to the webinars that will help you get better in marketing. Watching every new shiny object is a time killer.
Delete spreading gossip and joining in on the pity party of failed programs and companies. Delete everything you know that is stealing your time. Delete the busyness that you fill your day with so you can feel that you did something.
Implement Do, Delegate, Defer, and Delete. Focus on your income-producing activities.
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