The End Of Month Small Business Checklist

There is a lot of work that goes into running a small business, like a lot. 

One way to make running a small business a little easier is having a check-in at the end of each month. 

There are certain aspects that you need to address in your business to ensure that the next month is even better than the one you are currently in!

Here are the seven things small business owners should do every month.

1. Declutter Your Workspace

If your small business is a physical product it can easily lead to your space becoming seriously cluttered. 

Having packaging, boxes and products lying about your house can feel overwhelming. When my house feels taken over by my small business it can actually lead to me feeling burnt out and totally uninspired.

At the end of each month, I make sure to clean up my workspace and pack away any products into a designated area. 

You’d be surprised at how motivated you feel when you have a clear workspace.

Photo: Lisa Fotios | Unsplash

2. Review the Last Month

When growing a small business, taking inventory and reflecting on the performance of the previous month is essential.

I try to do this every single month and then I can adjust the strategy moving forward. 

Grab a piece of paper and take note of…

• How many products you sold that month
• How many products were returned that month (and which products)
• The analytics on your chosen social media platforms 
• The number of people who visited your website
• How how well ads are performing for you 
• How many email signups you’ve got in that month

Taking this kind of inventory can help you to determine how to move forward into the next month as well as where to invest your money and time. I

It's also a great idea to record the wins that you had this month as a form of motivation. Make sure to celebrate these wins! Running a small business isn’t exactly easy and you should be proud that you are reaching your goals!

Photo: Unsplash Andrea Piacquadio

3. Set a Business Strategy for the Following Month

Once you have reflected on how your business grew in the previous month it is now time to set new goals. 

At the beginning of your small business journey, you will probably want to set new goals every single month and adjust your strategy accordingly. 

As your business grows and you have larger business goals, you may not need to adapt your strategy every single month. Instead, you could create a new plan every quarter.

Think of your goals for the month like this…

• What is my main goal for this month? 
• How can I stay on track? 
• Is there any outside support that would increase my business goals?

Feel free to add any other goals that are relevant to your small business.

Photo: Lisa Fotios | Unsplash

4. Update Your Finances

Owning a small business is definitely an investment and keeping an eye on your finances and doing your accounting is essential. 

At the end of each month, make sure you have any receipts and expenses tracked. This will be a lifesaver when the end of the tax year rolls around as you will have everything in place. 

There are specific apps such as QuickBooks that will help you to manage this aspect of your small business. 

Photo: QuickBooks

5. Plan Your Social Media Content

If you find yourself unable to think of content ideas and procrastinating posting on social media, you need to create a social media content plan.

Taking one or two hours out of your day to plan social media content for the month is going to save you so much time, trust me. 

Bonus points if you actually create the content within these couple of hours and have the content scheduled to go out on apps such as Tailwind or Later.

Photo: Unsplash Eva Bronzini

6. Check-in With Freelancers

If you have hired employees or freelancers, checking in with them at the end of the month will help them to also plan their workload for the next month. 

Simply asking them about analytics, results that they have had and their advice on moving forward can have a huge effect on your business. 

It also just ensures that you both are on the same page about the business goals and you can inform them on any issues or plans you have moving forward. 

This is also a great opportunity to collaborate on ideas. The more creative ideas, the merrier!

Photo: Unsplash Karolina Grabowska

7. Network With Other Small Business Owners

Building a community as a small business is important but is often overlooked. 

With that in mind, networking as a small business can lead to collaborations and support from other small business owners. Which can be an amazing way to promote your products to a completely new audience.

Networking can definitely be time consuming, so instead of putting this on your to-do list and never getting around to it, instead carve out 30 minutes at the end of the month to connect with other small business owners. This is a long term game but it is worth the time investment!

Photo: Unsplash  RDNE Stock project

Key Takeaways

Okay, so those were the five things that small business owners should do every single month to ensure business growth. 

What did you think? Did I miss anything of a business that you do in your small business?

Taking a couple of hours out of each month to focus on each of these bullet points can seriously improve not only your business but also your clarity of mind.

Reflecting on the previous month and adapting a strategy is a must if you want your small business to have longevity. 

My best advice is that you should carve out a time in your calendar every single month to address these points.

The compounding effect of consistency is where the real growth in small businesses are found! 

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