Perspectives

Starting Over? How to Write a Business Plan for a Post-Pandemic World

U.S. Chamber of Commerce Article about planning in a pandemic, and talking about CNP’s agile approach to business planning.

“The future is still unpredictable, which is why building flexibility into your business plan is critical.”

Read the article here.

“Ignore”​ or “Accept”​: the Six Golden Rules to Capturing Valuable Connections via LinkedIn

Networking and lead generation is tough right now. LinkedIn is one of the few viable ways to generate organic leads, so make the most of it

Six golden rules of for creating valuable connections over LinkedIn:
1. Choose potential connections wisely
2. Personalize your approach, and be personable.
3. Show me that you’re someone that I want to do business with
4. Before your ask for anything from me, give
5. Invest the time to build a relationship
6. Reduce friction: make it easy for me to understand the value of what you offer

M&A: Five questions to ask the buyer (and five questions to ask yourself) if you receive an unsolicited approach

Most businesses will at some point be approached as an acquisition target. Many businesses (especially those that are looking towards a transition in ownership) will anticipate this and be ready to respond.

But if your business hasn’t given some thought to this yet, here are five questions that you can, or rather should, ask the potential buyer, and five questions that you and your team will want to consider early on.

7 Ways to Make the Most of Networking in a Virtual World

The global pandemic has caused innumerable shifts to the way that people live, work and do business. One such change is how we connect with others. Since March, people have been called to master video conferencing and new technologies that make business and communication possible in a socially-distanced world. 

Read GHP’s full article here

Getting Back to Growth: Confidence Matters

Although government restrictions on social interaction, travel, etc drove the decline, there is an equal – if not bigger – challenge for businesses to overcome in order to get back to growth…

CONFIDENCE, specifically confidence that buying goods or using a business’s services will not expose the customer and/or their employees, family, etc to COVID-19

So what should business owners do?

In simple terms, everything they can do to make consumers feel safe (without improperly playing-down residual risks). Key is communication, reinforcing trust, protecting employees and using customer feedback

Get Your Digital Store Front (LinkedIn) in Order

COVID-19 has thrust digital sales & marketing into the category of business-critical activity for pretty much any business you can think of. It’s likely to stay that way the foreseeable future (if not forever!). For individuals, especially professionals and others that work in B2B companies, LinkedIn has gained even greater importance during the pandemic. The ubiquitous business platform serves as a personal digital storefront and online Rolodex for a growing number of us.  Just like for companies, your online ‘brand’ can be critical to your success. So, it’s time to get your storefront in order! 

Read Full Article Here. 

FREE Resources to Help Your Business to Grow

One of the things that we love is FREE tools and resources that help businesses to grow. We have pulled together a list of more than two dozen tools and resources that CNP has used (or used with with our clients) to drive growth/development and which are free… genuinely free, no credit card needed, no limited trial.  Check them the list here out and let us know what you think!

Prefer a visual map? Navigate through an interactive Prezi by clicking here.