What’s a SBSM?

SBSM is an abbreviation for the Small Business Success Method. It was introduced by Clate Mask at Infusionsoft’s ICON16. It is a complete formula for success for your business, provided that you can follow it accurately, and that is the trick.

Here I just want to outline what it is and perhaps in a future article I’ll identify why you need discipline and determination to follow the method….trust me I know! I might even tell you how I know.

The method consists of several phases and steps needed to complete each phase, then there are things to do as you move between phases. Then you do it all over again either with the same SOMETHING or with a new one.

Assess Phase

Before you can do anything, you have to complete the Assess phase so you know where you are starting from. Here are the questions to answer in the Assess Phase.

1. What is the Core Product offering you are going to work on (What do you sell?)
2. Who is your Ideal Customer (Who buys it?) - Be as detailed as possible
3. What do you help your customers avoid (What pain do you remove?)
4. What do you help your customers achieve (What pleasure or positives do you bring to them?)
5. Why do customers buy from you instead of an alternative (Why are you the best choice?)
6. Do you currently have a list containing prospects or leads that match this ideal customer

Move from Assess Phase to Plan Phase

In order to move from the Assess Phase to the Plan Phase, you need to identify and focus on one growth opportunity. Once you have decided on that one opportunity, you can now move into the Plan Phase.

Plan Phase

Before you can actually do anything, you have to plan what it is that you are going to do. Now that you have selected the one growth opportunity that you are going to focus on, you need to plan it out. Otherwise the important step of taking action will have reduced (or no) positive results.

1. Remember resources are finite. Do less and accomplish more!
2. What are you going to do?
3. What does it take to get it done?
4. Who is going to do it?

Move from the Plan Phase to the Execute Phase

We all want to get things done, but before we go there, we need to know and have collected the Assets we need, have all the Content written, have all the needed Tools available, and all the necessary Skills lined up.

Execute Phase

This is what we have been waiting for, to actually launch something! Move from theory to reality! Actually get across the “Get Stuff Done” chasm.

Before you say OMG, this is a lot of work and just now I actually get to launch something….I could have launched this long ago. First, it doesn’t have to take that long; second if you want to build a house, do you just go to Home Depot and randomly order some wood and nails?

Now that you have a plan, a simple plan (lots of simple plans coalesce into a complex one as we continue to iterate), let’s TEST launch it.

Move from the Execute Phase to the Optimize Phase

So, you launched and you thought you were done… not even close. Notice the third to last word in the previous paragraph… TEST. Yep, you test launch and measure the results.

Optimize Phase

Now we take the measurements and results data, analyze it, and make improvements.

1. How do you know what to do if you don’t know what you did?
2. Measure results and make adjustments.
3. Maximize the usage value of the asset through optimization.

Next we take the improved version and launch it again to a larger audience, but if the total audience is large, not everyone yet.

One key is to continuously create incremental improvement. As much as we’d like it, none of this is one and done.

I cannot count the number of times I’ve been in certain Infusionsoft campaigns to tweak it here or tweak it there. This is also the place where you can add some complication if needed.

With the data that you’ve collected, you will know where the process needs a little more intelligence….but why spend the time to make the most complex plan possible only to find out that most of it is not needed and all you did was frustrate yourself and delayed the launch?

The same goes for any step in the SBSM process. Say you are going to do a 6 postcard lead generation campaign. Not only would you test launch the first postcard, you’d take what you learned and tweak each and every other postcard with a test launch of an optimized postcard with everything you learned from the cards before it.

OK, now what do I do next?

1. Celebrate wins and acknowledge progress. Remember to stop and pick your head up and see what you have accomplished. You’ll be surprised how much progress you made.
2. Recalibrate in preparation for the next steps of the larger goal.
3. Translate what you learned not only to the rest of the larger plan but to plans in the future.

Let me end by saying that when you write this all out, it sounds daunting, but it really isn’t. What it is, is efficient. No more start and stop progress only to forget where you were when you start again….Why? Because you didn’t start until you had all that you needed, collected. Trust me, this method will make your life easier and more profitable. Sounds like a good deal to me.