Ideas, Reality and an Online Store
A year ago, I met Anat, a gifted designer and an owner of a Graphic Design & Branding Studio.
The Ideas
Anat has been dreaming for years to open an online store for designed products.
She had many reasons “why not” opening an online store: workloads, life, timing, Coronavirus, manufacturing cost and more.
At the beginning of 2020, Anat decided to make it happen. 2020 will be the year that her online store will be launched. She worked on various designs and filled herself with optimism. But then, came the operative side of the execution. When she needed to deal with quotations and understand the different manufacturing methods, it was too much for her. The long list was too frightening to deal with.
During the Quarantine, I had a long talk with Anat, I asked her about her goals, what she want to achieve, what is holding her back, her fears and her vision. Her honest and brave answers convinced me that her ideas could become a viable business. Now she needs a plan, and a trusted advisor to walk her through.
Working on a strategic plan can be frustrating if you don’t know how to do it. Sometimes, it is hard to draw the path for your success. It can prevent you from taking a courageous step forward to fulfillment.
The thing is, that you don’t have to do it by yourself. You can always use a professional to work with.
The Plan
The next morning, we started working together on the strategic plan for the online store. We made our preparations, went over the old drafts, mapped all the aspects of an online store and attacked each vertical. When the buyer persona was characterized we surveyed the targeted audience and made additional fine-tuning before launching the website.
The next step was the execution. I have walked her through all the phases we marked to open the online store. We celebrated each milestone — logistics, customer service, manufacturing, finance, The website and more.
The Launching
Today, the hard work has paid off, as Anat officially launched her online store. Her idea became a reality.
As I learned in the defense world, working as an intelligence officer, preparation, vision, and purpose are the foundation for strategy. I believe that in order to achieve our goals, we have to draw a map, understand the market we live in, find our differentiators, mark significant milestones. Once we have it written and mapped, execution is much easier.
If you need to review your strategic plan, if you feel stuck or wishing to make a change — I am here for you.
