Many of the requests I get for marketing advice require me to be a very good listener, to see patterns and to share simple, easy-to-follow solutions. One tactical approach that often comes up is the one hundred day challenge. It has been successful with a range of clients. It is both practical, easy to implement and clear.
The One Hundred Day Challenge
This idea, like most valuable ones, is simple. Whether you are in a start-up venture, a turn-around situation or just trying to grow your existing business, the demands on an owner can be overwhelming. Whether you are trying to expand your brand with new clients, streamline your operation or do something crazy and outside of the box, this tactical approach requires that you ask yourself these question:
In one hundred days, how would I know that I have made progress with the problem at hand? How would I measure success? What could I do to make a more informed decision?
With the end in mind, you can build a simple tactical plan of action.
Last month, while coaching an entrepreneur with a food business, she was struggling to figure out how to maintain control over distribution but to find a path to use her time most efficiently. In this case, she wanted to see if she should turn over her new product to a distributor or if she should distribute the product herself by building her own infrastructure. Another option was a hybrid-model that she hadn’t considered. She just was stuck and didn’t know what to do next to make an informed decision.
We agreed on four metrics that we wanted to achieve in one hundred days.
- Visit 100 potential customers in person at their retail store.
- Get pre-orders from fifty stores by sampling the product and explaining why it is unique.
- Commit to getting them product to sell by a date certain either direct or through distribution.
- Get recommendations on which distributors those fifty stores would like you to use versus self-distribution.
This one hundred day plan is simple. The owner knows what has to happen and has a deadline. In one hundred days, she understands that she will have the right information to make a more educated decision about the distribution question that had her stuck. Instead of sitting around talking, she is in action mode. Instead of speculating, she is capturing first-hand data. Instead of investing up front in equipment (trucks/staff/, etc.), she is gaining first-hand knowledge. After one hundred days, she will instinctively know what is right for her business from the first-hand experience.
What business issues are you wrestling with? Can you project yourself into the future – a hundred days ahead and describe a few key things you want to achieve? Can you outline a few simple steps to get there or to move the process along?
Sometimes collecting more information in the marketplace from real live customers is the most useful thing you can do. One hundred days is a short enough period of time to move your business forward. Making progress, moving forward and creating momentum can be the most helpful way to move the needle when you are wrestling with a marketing issue. Take action but do it within a limited time frame.
What will you do in the next one hundred days to move your business forward?
Need help to create a one-hundred-day plan? Step #1: click here.
