Energize Growth Now

A strategy and marketing guide for growth companies

Growth at any price can be exhausting for B-2-B companies and professional service providers who want to win more clients. Many entrepreneurs watch their bank accounts grow, but sacrifice too much in the process. Since 2001, wealth has taken on a whole new meaning. In this tell-all marketing guidebook, Lisa Nirell reveals a contemporary, contrarian, and field-tested view of marketing and planning. Successful growth and exit planning aren't about maximizing revenues or launching Internet marketing campaigns. Instead, they're about creating a compelling vision of the future, winning clients' hearts and minds, and defining the "wealth quotient" in a holistic way. This practical, real-world guide shows readers how to develop a strategic marketing plan that really works–and avoid the attitudes that sabotage great ideas.

Foreword by Guy Kawasaki xiii

Plug In xvii

Accolades and Gratitude xxvii

1 Running on Empty 1

Ever wonder why you're feeling drained—even though your company appears successful on the outside? Hear a story that may just sound similar to your own.

2 Brains, Beliefs, and Growth Blunders 9

There are two main reasons why businesses fail—lack of a written plan and our limiting beliefs. What are the most common limiting beliefs? What is the medical evidence that our beliefs and written plans determine our outcomes?

3 Say No to the Good, and Yes to the Great 29

Today's time crunch can destroy our life force as business owners. Here is a guide to prioritize your activities and focus on what you do best.

4 Increase Your Wealth Quotient 47

The definition of wealth has changed dramatically. What does it mean now? How can you prepare your company for ultimate sale or exit? Here is a contrarian view on value drivers and seven principles to position your company for higher valuation. Interview excerpts from "triple bottom line" companies such as Seventh Generation and Hollyhock Institute.

5 The Path to Planning 69

The path to wisdom begins with a common set of definitions. We define the first five steps of planning for growth companies, with real examples of each. The planning process begins from an external (market) point of view.

6 The Inside Job 93

Now harness the market wisdom gained from the first five steps, assess your internal strengths and gaps, position your company, align your teams, and ultimately increase your Wealth Quotient.

7 What's on Your Dashboard? 107

Most measures of success are prematurely selected, and usually lead to failure. How do you track the success of your plan? First, you must know what stage of growth you're facing. We show you how to determine what stage of growth you're facing and how to scale the walls of growth.

8 Design Your Dashboard 119

What success measures are relevant in each phase of growth? How do you distinguish between "leading" and "trailing" indicators? When is it time to redesign your dashboard and change your success measures? This chapter shows you how to build meaningful measures, with examples from The Beryl Companies.

9 Plan Your Brand 135

Now that you have developed the first draft of your Energize Growth plan, how do you ensure that your plan is aligned with your brand? We interview branding expert Samantha Hartley to find out. Branding is not just for well-funded, mature companies. Includes contemporary examples of strong brands in large and small companies alike.

10 More Revenues, Fewer Clients 151

It's time to kiss old value definitions goodbye. Ancient "hours for dollars" business models drain many companies of their wealth potential. We present 16 proven methods to help you build a more predictable stream of lifetime clients. Hear how Zipcar and Eversheds are leading the way.

11 Future Energy Sources: How to Grow Your Wealth Quotient with Social Media 173

Will social media increase your company's Wealth Quotient—or destroy it? We take a closer look at social media and its impact on growth companies. Read these tips before you launch your social media plan. We include interviews with companies who have generated six and seven figure sales using LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter.

Appendix A: Sample Energize Growth Plan 187

Appendix B: Sample ProfitCents Report 194

References 202

About the Author 206

Index 207

Lisa Nirell is a strategic growth expert, consultant, and keynote speaker, as well as the Chief Energy Officer of EnergizeGrowth LLC. An award-winning business columnist, she has written for San Diego's Daily Transcript, Computerworld, Custom Builder magazine, and Women in Technology. For more information and to download your bonus gifts, visit www.energizegrowth.com/egnow.shtml. Here's a familiar scenario for successful entrepreneurs: You start a company and fuel its growth with your own passion and hard work. But after you expand, the company takes on a life of its own. Systems, procedures, politics, and financial pressures compete for your attention. Those demands begin to undermine your passion and your purpose. Your company culture changes, your profits are strained, and your own health and happiness suffer. You either give up, sell out, or drop out.

But it doesn't have to be that way. With thoughtful planning and guidance—and with the contrarian wisdom you'll find in this book—you can combine strategic planning with smart marketing to spur intelligent, long-term growth without working 100-hour weeks. Energize Growth NOW is the perfect resource to help you transition your company from a growing start-up to a successful, wealthy business.

Growing a business is difficult, demanding work. Keeping your business on the right track over time can be tedious, difficult, and boring. In a business world filled with headlines touting the latest business planning models and cool new marketing ideas, it takes real commitment to focus on the fundamentals that help you build a sustainable business. Energize Growth NOW is the resource you need to help you achieve just that. It shows you how to build deep relationships with clients and customers, stop obsessing over the numbers so you can think about the big picture, and build systems that free you to focus on more strategic activities.

It takes clear vision and enduring principles to succeed over the long term. Energize Growth NOW shows you how to:

• Avoid the pitfalls of running a growth company
• Tackle the common misconceptions that distract from your goals and sabotage good ideas
• Create a vision of your business's future that keeps everyone focused and energized
• Develop a strategic growth plan thatactually works
• Adapt quickly to changes in your market andyour business
• Link your brand to your growth plan to maximize market traction
• Launch online communities and social networks that foster long-term relationships and develop true customer evangelists

Most importantly, Energize Growth NOW helps you stay connected to your customers, partners, and yourself. After overcoming the start-up hurdles, it's easy to stray from the vision and values on which you founded your business. This book shows you how to continually grow-without losing sight of the principles that got you here.

Praise for Energize Growth Now

"Effective, timely, balanced-this book captures the critical steps for growing a business the 'right way' and avoiding the usual pitfalls of a poor growth strategy."
—Stephen R. Covey, author, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People and The Leader in Me

"Much like my experience at Apple, you will need to know when it's time to stop acting like a bootstrapper and start operating like a growth company. This book is a great resource to ease the transition. By applying these core principles and time-tested planning guides, you will have changed the world for the better."
—Guy Kawasaki, author, Reality Check and The Art of the Start, and cofounder, Alltop

"I wish I'd had access to this book's wisdom in the past. It's a wellspring of invaluable marketing ideas and wealth-building strategies business owners and management teams can-and should-use to take their companies where they need to go. There's no abstruse theory or hard-to-understand doublespeak here. Just actionable plans anyone can literally start using tomorrow. That makes Lisa Nirell the growth strategy guru for sustainable businesses."
—Jeffrey Hollender, President and Chief Inspired Protagonist, Seventh Generation

"Energize Growth NOW appears at an ideal time to provide small business owners with their rightful wealth, life balance, and peace of mind through great advice, easily applied. Lisa Nirell's advice is more important than any business plan you now have in place."
—Alan Weiss, PhD, author, Million Dollar Consulting

"Energize Growth NOW is simply a fantastic how-to guide for building a great company. Try the ideas in this book and not only will your business grow, but so will you!"
—Marshall Goldsmith, New York Times and Wall Street Journal #1 bestselling author of What Got You Here Won't Get You There and Succession: Are You Ready?

"In Energize Growth NOW, Lisa Nirell has written a smart, concise guide for business leaders looking to navigate growth successfully. The book provides valuable tips on how companies can grow better as well as bigger, and how leaders can create the kind of vibrant culture that's critical now more than ever."
—Ray Davis, CEO, Umpqua Bank, and author, Leading for Growth

"Lisa Nirell has captured the essence of what it takes to grow an entrepreneurial venture into a successful,sustainable enterprise."
—Jerry Andres, CEO, Jeld-Wen Development, and Chairman of the Board, Clear Choice Health Plans

"What's uniquely cool about Lisa's book is the way she interweaves values with financial success. Making big bucks without values smells. Having high values go unrewarded ultimately destroys beliefs. She keeps them together."
—Gary Sutton, author, The Six-Month Fix and Corporate Canaries