August! The Win Win Month!
I love August! It’s a great month for business leaders, and yet I so often hear owners bemoaning that the month of August is, “dead, you can’t get anything done, everyone’s away”…
Why do I love August so much? Well, because it’s a month full of opportunity, for everyone! There seem to be two broad camps when it comes to August – those businesses who are in peak season, and those businesses who tend to be quieter than usual, both are fairly predictable and both can make August a winning month. Let’s take a look at each of these:
Peak Season-ers
These are going to be those of you involved in the holiday businesses, hospitality, attractions, event and festival suppliers, wedding suppliers, farmers, gardening, school suppliers, and retailers with their summer sales – and I’m sure a host more that I haven’t called out. This is your time to ‘make hay whilst the sun shines’ – peak season demanding peak productivity, peak sales and stacking up the profits ahead of leaner months to come. Happy days! This is your month! Yes, you might need to the weather to play ball to really make it successful, and even this is looking positive for August 2019, according to my weather app…
Quieter Season…
This is typically the Business-to-Business service providers, manufacturing, property industries, and so many more. With many team members taking their holidays, both in your business and in clients businesses, it can seem impossible to get anything done. And this is why I love August!
With so many people out on holiday, it means you too can take a break (or go to a conference) – without dreading that there’s going to be a huge mountain of work to catch up on when you return. Your email inbox is unlikely to be too weighty, as there aren’t so many people around to send you the emails. So first and foremost – now is a great month to take a break. And if you don’t want to pay those inflated school holiday prices, take the opportunity for a stay-cation or a learn-cation?
Making the most out of August
With a slower pace going on IN your business, now is a great time to invest some time working ON your business. We’re two-thirds of the way through the calendar year – so what do you need to change to make sure you’re on target to smash your annual goals? Take time to reflect on your team, on your customers, on your suppliers and even on your competitors. What’s working well, and what needs adjustment as you head into the busy Autumn.
I find that as people take time out on holiday, this ‘pause’ in their hamster wheel of business life encourages them naturally to reflect. To stop and think. To see things more clearly. And when they come back, these new ideas and priorities are going to get put into action with renewed enthusiasm. Are you and your business ready to service all these initiatives, new marketing campaigns, new web sites, new products, new investments? August has the time and space to get your house in order…
And by the way, I don’t know too many people who take extended 3 and 4 week holidays, so the reality is, you can still get hold of almost everyone at some point during August. You might just need to make a couple of extra calls and work around their dates. It’s certainly not an excuse for closing down all business development activity!
So, have you got plans to make the most of this unique month? If not, jump on to the task, spot the opportunities for you to make this a winning month, whether that means you focus internally in your business, or externally maximising your peak season. Make your’s a good one and Enjoy!
