Did you know that BREXIT has just cost YOU more than COVID?
FACT No.1: You've heard of 'Long COVID' but you may not have twigged that the much-vented devastating financial impact of COVID simply pales in comparison to the damage of 'Long Brexit'. This is going to hit you where it hurts you most - unfairly and squarely in the UK family's pocket. Governments know that bad news is best pushed out and quietly buried when the population is focussed on important public holidays such as Christmas, or when some other big news story is breaking. Don't think for a single moment that these things are purely serendipitous. They are not and that's nothing new.
FACT No.2: Did you know that UK's bill for participating in the Second World War was finally repaid in 2005? That took a whopping 50 years after the war ended in 1945. COVID is already costing the UK more than WWII and, worse still, BREXIT will cost the UK more than COVID in its entirety. The Independent Office for Budget Responsibility forecasts that over the long-term, the UK economy is to be 4% smaller with the new trade deal than had the UK stayed in the UK - that's significantly more damage to you and your organisation than the long-term immense impact of COVID. You can probably see where this is all heading... and the sorry truth of all of this is that the biggest impact is inevitably going to fall on the poorest parts of the UK. It might be worth reminding oneself of those parts of the country that were keenest to quit the EU. The broad logic applied was that when one has nothing it is all too easy to surmise that something else simply cannot be any worse. By contrast, the wealthier parts of the UK are more agile as the wealthy are blessed with having more options - though that certainly does not mean the wealthy can afford to passively watch their future unfold.
Ask yourself if there anything that you and your organisation can do right now to counter this double financial tsunami about the wash ashore? Don't hang about. You may need to take radical action in terms of thinking, planning and taking action. It's certainly time to get your thinking cap on. The next three years are to present many extraordinary opportunities for those blessed with an entrepreneurial streak - I am arguing that this moment presents the greatest opportunity in our entire lifetime though at the same time it presents the greatest risk. Can you identify ways to deliver what you do more efficiently? One of the biggest questions to ask yourself right now is how you can offer MORE to MORE for LESS? Think about that for a moment or three.
KEY MESSAGE ONE
Focus on margin - TURNOVER in the absence of PROFIT = LIABILITY.
KEY MESSAGE TWO
Focus on cash-in-bank - organisations go bust because they run out of cash rather than any shortage of bright ideas.
KEY MESSAGE THREE
Whilst costs are one vitally important part of the equation, the most important way to bolster long-term profits (and to foster long-term sustainability) hinges on exemplary sales and marketing. It's time to create services (and/or products) that succinctly answer the question 'What's in it for my clients/customers/members?", rather than "What's in it in for us/me?" Every line in your promotional discussions needs to be aligned with this fundamental thinking as it holds the clue to where 95% of organisations go wrong.
Robin Johnson supports organisations in multiple sectors including law, education and food in 11 countries in four continents.