Easy ways to invest business money correctly

From helping people get to know your brand to increasing sales, putting together a digital plan could help you ride through the cost-of-living crisis.

When times are tight, your instincts might be to cut costs. After all, reducing spending can sometimes give you the all-important flexibility needed when you’re worried about cashflow.

However, a well-thought-out plan to guide your tech investments can go a long way – even during the cost-of-living crisis.

What is a digital plan of action?

In a nutshell, a digital plan is a considered approach around how you use technology to help your business. This can focus on whatever you choose based on what will be most useful to your business – from being focused on helping you hire new team members to creating better brand awareness among customers.

Regardless of the use, having a well-planned approach can be a powerful way to help you understand how to use your technical resources most effectively, especially when budgets are tight.

Why do you need one?

Putting a plan in place is always useful, but especially during a cost-of-living crisis, when there’s more uncertainty than usual.

Customers will be thinking twice before they buy any product or service, and you want to make sure they choose yours. So, in a time when you’re trying to get their attention, having a plan of action can help you get to know them better. Knowing what they’re most interested in, and what their needs and preferences are, can help you get your business in front of them at the right time.

Once you know what your customers want, reaching them becomes much easier; and following that, the plan can help you choose how you reach them. Targeted ads are great, for example, but can lead to overspending if you aren’t strategic about them – so you need to make sure this approach works for your customers before investing.

Social media is often another impactful way to advertise your business, but before you put time or money into this, you should check you’re choosing the right channels. While older generations might use Facebook, Millennials could be on Instagram, while Gen-Zers are more likely to get information from TikTok. When developing your approach, find out where your customers are interacting to help make sure your advertising efforts get in front of the right people.

Another reason you should consider putting a plan in place is to keep up with (and compete with) like-minded businesses. By thinking about this ahead of time, you can consider how your companies and products or services differ – and where there are similarities too. If you want to make your business stand out from the crowd, keep an eye on what others are doing and always keep a close eye on your competitors!

How can I build a low-cost plan?

The good news is putting together a plan doesn’t need to cost you a fortune.
Start by looking at your strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats. It’s important to think about these areas equally. By considering your strengths and opportunities, you’ll be able to start noticing areas that you can build on. Then, by recognising your weaknesses and potential threats, you’ll be able to pinpoint areas that need work to help make your business stronger.

Once you’ve broken down these areas, the next step is to set your main priority. To do this, we recommend setting SMART objectives for your business. This stands for Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, and Time-bound. For example, perhaps you could set a target of increasing sales by 10% in the next six months or getting 5,000 followers on Instagram by the end of the year.

By setting a clear goal, you’ll give your digital plan direction, which will make your job easier in achieving it.

Through recession and beyond

Creating a digital plan can feel daunting for any business, but it’s important to take steps to understand how you fit into your industry – and help you stand out.

Whatever you want to achieve, investing time in setting up a digital plan is always a good idea, although this is particularly important during the cost-of-living crisis. Make sure you’re putting your money in the right place, and by starting strong, it may just help your business for years to come

Not sure where to start? Chat to our V-Hub Digital Advisers for free guidance.