My Favorite Quarterly Tasks for Growing My Business

It’s easy to get caught up in the day to day actions and tasks that make up a service business. Many times we spend so much time serving and over delivering for our clients that we forget to focus on our own businesses.

I’ve found that establishing a few key recurring tasks within each quarter helps me grow my business in different ways.

Here’s what I like to accomplish quarterly:

1. Review recurring expenses

While I have a bookkeeper who provides me with fantastic monthly reports, I find that taking a look at what I’m paying for on a monthly, quarterly, or annual basis is just as critical. I keep a simple list of the recurring charges in my ops folder that I update at the end of the quarter.

Once it’s updated, I assess each expense and ask whether I still need it. As we add small expenses here or there, it’s easy to duplicate functions or forget a $10 charge here or there.

But looking at each one in turn helps identify what I need and what I can cancel.

This process generally takes less than one hour and can sometimes save several hundred dollars for the year. Alternatively, it sometimes costs money if I identify something I should add but even that is helpful — spending more isn’t always a bad thing!

I want to be sure I’m paying for the right things in my business even if I need to invest a bit more for an improved tool.

2. Review offers and pricing

Many times when I start working with a client, we evaluate all their current offers. Sometimes, it’s been months or years since they last considered what they’re offering and how much they’re charging.

This can lead to leaving money on the table by undercharging, offering services you don’t want to promote, or underestimating the time you’re spending on various offers.

So, each quarter I review my offers for a few things.

First, I look at what my current pricing is for new clients and existing clients. I look at any associated expenses for these offers as well to see what I’m really earning.

Then, I review the time I’m spending with each offer to make sure there’s no scope creep going on that I need to nip in the bud.

I also ask myself how I feel about each offer. It’s important to assess whether I still want to offer each item and if it still fits in with my overall business model and goals.

Both my preferences and the fit are important because even if something looks brilliant in theory but I hate delivering it then it needs to be re-evaluated. Similarly, just because I love something, if it doesn’t match my overall goals, I need to evaluate it.

This can take a bit longer than reviewing my expenses but I’ve found that setting aside two hours is typically sufficient.

3. Review current goals & establish new ones

I prefer to use 12 week goals over annual goals so at the end of each quarter I assess and re-establish. I also work in 12 week sprints for larger projects that support my goals, so I start by reviewing where I stand on sprints.

Then, I determine if I’ve missed, met, or exceeded that quarter’s goals. This helps me decide what the next quarter’s goals will be.

I like to set a revenue goal, an operations goal, and one other type of goal. The third type varies based on what’s going on with clients, marketing, or overall business needs.

For instance, a second quarter goal was to launch my new batching service (link). While my third quarter goal is launching a new website.

Again, this process isn’t ridiculously time consuming but critical to my business growth. I generally need about two hours for this.

Overall, taking time to assess and review helps me stay on track for my long-term business plans. It also helps remind me to set aside time to work on my business and not just in my business.

This kind of planning and evaluation is what makes it possible to truly succeed as a business owner.