Tom Cattarius, CEO of Arktisquelle and a trusted advisor in the water filtration industry and e-commerce sector.
In the age of LinkedIn, business coaches and countless agencies, it’s easy to lose focus—or never find it in the first place. Everywhere you look, there’s the next big “business hack” or “shiny object” promising to change everything. However, I’ve found the real key to business success often lies in mastering the basics and doing them consistently well.
So, how do you figure out what to focus on?
1. Take a step back and look at your business from a bird’s-eye view.
Start by analyzing your business on a meta-level. Identify the different departments and assess their contribution to your overall success. Then, examine each department more closely. You’ll quickly notice that there are countless metrics you could track. The goal is to distill this down to the one or two metrics per department that truly matter—the ones that give you a clear, at-a-glance understanding of that department’s performance.
By identifying and focusing on these core metrics, you gain clarity and protect yourself from being swayed by flashy pitches from agencies or consultants. You’ll also develop a more realistic view of how your business is actually performing. For example:
• Just because your Google Ads are generating great numbers doesn’t mean your overall marketing strategy is efficient.
• A logistics team shipping 10% more packages than last year doesn’t guarantee that your promised delivery times are being met.
• A customer service team closing every ticket on time doesn’t necessarily mean customers are happy with the service.
This is why defining core key performance indicators (KPIs) is essential.
2. Define your core KPIs.
Take your marketing department as an example. Metrics like Facebook’s or Google’s return on ad spend (ROAS), retention rate, customer lifetime value (CLV) and marketing efficiency ratio can all be relevant. But which is the most important for your business?
I often recommend focusing on the acquisition marketing efficiency ratio (aMER)—a metric that measures how efficiently your marketing efforts acquire new customers. Of course, the most important KPI will depend on your industry and specific business model.
Repeat this process for every department, narrowing down your focus to a maximum of 10 core KPIs for the entire business.
3. Regularly review and act on your core KPIs.
Once you’ve identified your KPIs, schedule a recurring weekly meeting to review them. This isn’t just about looking at the numbers—it’s about translating the data into actionable insights. Regular reviews help you quickly identify strengths, weaknesses and areas for improvement.
But it doesn’t stop there. Revisit your KPIs every few months. Ideally, involve an external expert for a fresh, unbiased perspective. Adjust your review timeline based on your business model. For example, if you sell high-ticket B2B products with long sales cycles, weekly marketing metrics might not be meaningful. In such cases, consider looking at trends over the past six to 12 months instead.
What should you do next?
Grab a piece of paper—digital or physical—and start identifying the core KPIs for your business. This clarity will help you maintain focus, even in challenging situations, and help ensure that you’re consistently working on what truly matters.
I truly believe that mastering these basics can give you the foundation to grow your business sustainably and confidently.
Forbes Business Council is the foremost growth and networking organization for business owners and leaders. Do I qualify?
Read the full article here
