Imperfect Marketing
Imperfect Marketing
241: Goal Setting for Q4: Focusing on What Matters Most with Host Kendra Corman
Kendra discusses the importance of setting achievable Q4 goals for small business owners and B2B service providers, offering practical tips and strategies to end the year strong.
Highlights from today's episode include:
- The significance of Q4 for B2B service providers
- How to set 1-3 quality goals for Q4
- Understanding the 'why' behind your goals
- Practical tips for resource management and outsourcing
- Strategies for staying on track and overcoming Q4 challenges
- Leveraging Q4 opportunities for client engagement and marketing
Join Kendra every Tuesday and Thursday as she discusses how to make progress and grow through Imperfect Marketing.
Resources:
- Full Focus Planner: For goal setting and productivity https://fullfocusstore.com/collections/planners
- Upwork: For finding freelance talent upwork.com
- Email: support@KendraCorman.com for personal support
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Hey there, it's Kendra Korman here, and you've tuned in to another episode of Imperfect Marketing, in case you didn't know where you were at. Today we're talking about something that might make you want to hide under your desk Q4 goal setting. Don't worry, we're keeping it simple, practical and, dare I say, maybe even a little fun. At least I hope it's fun. Now I know what you're thinking, kendra. I barely have time to remember to eat lunch and actually, kendra, I barely have time to remember to eat lunch, and actually last week I didn't have time to eat lunch, let alone set goals. Trust me, I get it. As a fellow small business owner, I know the struggle of wearing all of the hats CEO, cfo, cmo and sometimes even CHO or Chief Hair on Fire Officer. But stick with me, because setting the right goals for Q4 can be the difference between ending your year with a bang or a whimper. First things first, let's do a quick year in review. I'm not talking about a deep dive into every decision you've made since January 1. That's just ridiculous. I want you to take a moment to pat yourself on the back for still being in business In this economy. You're basically a superhero. Now I want you to think of one thing you're really proud of achieving this year. I'll wait for. You Got it Great. Now I want you to hold on to that feeling, because we're going to use it to fuel our queue for rocket ship. All right, I'm really proud of the fact that I wrote a book and became a paid speaker in 2024. And that excited feeling is what I'm holding with me as I set my Q4 goals. Now, why does Q4 matter so much for us, b2b service providers? Well, it's like the Friday of the business year. Your clients are looking at their budgets, realizing they need to use it or lose it a lot of times. It's also the chance to set the stage for a killer start to the new year if they want to postpone some things and line you up for that. Plus, let's be real, you've got to balance all of this with the fact that everyone, including you, is thinking about holidays, family time and whether or not to spike the eggnog at the holiday party. Spoiler alert, the answer is always yes.
Speaker 1:Anyway, let's talk about goal setting. Okay, I don't mean creating a 50-page business plan that would make an MBA student weep. We're talking one to three goals max. Okay, let me reiterate that again One to three goals max Quality over quantity. Think of it like packing for a weekend trip you don't need your entire wardrobe, just the essentials, even though you want to be prepared for everything. I get it. I sometimes think I pack more for a weekend trip than for a two-week trip.
Speaker 1:But here's the kicker, and this is something I learned from my favorite full-focus planner you need to know the why behind each of your goals. Why do you want to achieve this particular thing? Is it to finally buy that fancy coffee maker for your home office? Take a real vacation where you don't check your emails every five minutes? Retire your spouse? Whatever it is, I want you to write it down. What is this going to help you do? Why is it important? That is your motivation fuel when things get tough, and in the fourth quarter they're going to get tough because you're going to have to make some decisions.
Speaker 1:So let's break these goals down into some actionable steps. What is the very next thing you need to do to move towards your goal? Maybe it's sending that email you've been dreading. Finally updating your website bio yes, the one that says 2019. Whatever it is, I want you to make it so simple. You can't help, but do it. I know what you're thinking, kendra. I've got barely enough time to breathe, let alone add more to my plate, and I hear you. That is why we're going to talk about resource management solopreneur style. It's all about working smarter, not harder. I want you to try batching similar tasks together. This could be a two-hour block for social posts, podcast recordings, website updates, or you can get really focused and do things like dedicate Mondays to client calls, fridays to content creation. But what I want you to remember is sometimes the best thing you can do for your business is to know when to ask for help.
Speaker 1:Outsourcing is not just for big corporations. Even us, or especially us, little guys can benefit from a virtual assistant or a freelance designer now in them. I love my VA, my virtual assistant. It took me years to find the right one and until I did, it felt like everything was easier if I just did it myself, especially with AI growing in accessibility. But I don't know what I would do without her anymore. Now, upwork is a great place to go to find talent for specific things. Earlier this summer, I was starting to refresh my YouTube thumbnails. I spent over an hour in Canva and let's just say I gave up. I hired someone to build editable Canva templates for me for like a whopping $150. And I was nowhere near doing one thumbnail in that hour that I mentioned. This was a great decision on my part, as I got more than 10 templates that I can edit and leverage as I continue to make videos or my YouTube channel.
Speaker 1:Now, staying on track is key, especially when you're flying solo. So I want you to set up a weekly date with yourself Maybe a nice beverage, review your progress and plan for the week ahead. It's like a mini performance review, but without the awkward small talk. I give myself an hour on Sundays to do a review of the previous week and to look to the week ahead. It really lets me understand my priorities and what I need to accomplish and how I can work in some tasks that are going to move me closer to my goals and how I can work in some tasks that are going to move me closer to my goals.
Speaker 1:Now let's talk about the big elephant in the room, right the Q4 challenges, because Q4 is full of them. Yes, your clients might ghost you for a bit while they're off sipping eggnog. Yes, you might feel the pull of holiday stress yourself. But I want you to remember you're not alone. We're all in this tinsel-covered boat together, so stay connected with other business owners. Maybe set up a virtual accountability group. There is strength in numbers, even if those numbers are meeting over Zoom in ugly Christmas sweaters. The key here is that support is essential. We are all just too close to our own challenges and really our head trash can get in our way of moving forward. Find your support group. It can be total and complete game changers for you.
Speaker 1:I think I've talked about this before, but I was a member of a solopreneur group solopreneur support group that my friend, nancy Maurer started and it was wonderful. We got together once a month. We were able to bring up any issues we might have, and in one of these meetings I brought up how tired I was from all my meetings and I was killing myself not having enough time to do work. I really wasn't sure what to do. So another group member, andrea Walker-Lighty, said tell your clients that you're moving them to an every other week meeting instead of every week, if that will work, so you can get more done for them. Could it really be that easy? It was. I loved it. It totally changed my ability to get things done and things done for my clients, and it moved me from becoming resentful of some of my clients because I was giving them way too much time and fixed it.
Speaker 1:We sometimes grandfather too much into our calendars and headspace that we really don't think about how to change it. It's sometimes more important to us than it is to our clients, as my weekly status meetings were. But it's not all challenges. Q4 is full of opportunities too. I want you to use this time to check in with existing clients. Send them a holiday card, bonus points if it has a picture of your pet wearing reindeer antlers. Think about some simple, festive marketing strategies maybe 12 days of business tips, social media campaign, something like that. Get creative as we wrap up.
Speaker 1:I want you to remember this Goal setting is not about creating the perfect plan. It's about giving yourself a direction and taking consistent small actions. It's like building a snowman you start with a small snowball and keep rolling. Before you know it, you've got a full-fledged Frosty, hopefully without the magic hat that brings it to life and creates ethical dilemmas, but anyway. Are you ready to crush your Q4 goals or are you going to let the last quarter of the year slide by like a kid on a sled. The choice is yours, but remember, even small steps can lead to big impacts.
Speaker 1:Now, before you go, I've got a little bit homework before for you. I want you to take 10 minutes right now. I want you to write down one goal. I said one, one goal for Q4. Okay, and the very next step you need to take to achieve it. And if you need some extra help, drop me an email at support, at Kendra Kormancom, and I'll be your personal support cheerleader Until next time. I'm here reminding you that in business as in life, it's okay to start small, keep it focused, keep it practical and, most importantly, keep moving forward. Thanks so much for tuning in and have a great rest of your day.
