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greenoak
02-28-2009, 09:13 AM
swot test and mind mapping....and the 80/20 rule

i like how these show you things on paper..especially the mind mapping....and doing the swot test and the 80/20 rule bring out the hidden list maker in you......
....they might be good excersizes for facing this economy.....
anyone else use these? .

vangogh
02-28-2009, 11:39 AM
I can't say I do much SWOT testing, but I will generate ideas with mind mapping on occasion. It's something I want to do more of since I do think it's a great way to generate ideas. The 80/20 rule is more something I keep in mind when running my business.

Dan Furman
02-28-2009, 12:01 PM
The 80/20 rule is more something I keep in mind when running my business.

Me too (keep in mind only)

That's because the 80/20 is not really true for me. In terms of large projects, most of my clients are "one and done"... I'll write their website (web copy is usually the "biggest" job I do), and maybe write a press release or two, but that's generally it - it's not like I have clients coming back time and again for larger projects. I do have a ton of repeat business, but the repeat is tiny stuff (more upkeep type stuff.)

KristineS
02-28-2009, 12:08 PM
I've always been fond of SWOT. I don't use it often, but it does help me clarify things when I'm facing a big decision.

Steve B
02-28-2009, 02:20 PM
I use Pareto charts a lot - which is really the same as the 80/20 rule.

Dan, I'm guessing the 80/20 rule may surface in your business as well. I don't have any repeat customers, but I see the 80/20 rule show up when I look at the sources of advertising that generated the phone calls (top 2 sources make up 80% of all new business for me).

I did a SWOT when I wrote my business plan. It's probably time to re-visit.

I don't know what Mind Mapping is.

vangogh
02-28-2009, 03:27 PM
Mind mapping is really brainstorming turned on its side. They encourage creativity and allow you to see connections between different ideas visually.

Here's an introductory article on mindmapping (http://www.mind-mapping.org/mindmapping-and-you/basic-introduction-to-mindmapping.html) if you want to know more.

There are free and pay tools to help with mind mapping, but a pen and paper will also do the trick. FreeMind (http://freemind.sourceforge.net/wiki/index.php/Main_Page) is one popular and free program to help with mindmapping. Scroll down the page a bit and you'll see some images of mind maps.

Steve B
02-28-2009, 04:51 PM
Thanks - no wonder you have so many rep points!

vangogh
02-28-2009, 05:21 PM
Thanks for the compliment. Feel free to add more rep. It's always appreciated.

SteveC
02-28-2009, 07:51 PM
I do SWOT's quite often... whenever we know who our competition are, or who we envisage them to be, I sit down and do a SWOT... I then use this information when preparing our quote, sales presentation so that it focuses on our strengths and our competitors weaknesses...

vangogh
02-28-2009, 07:54 PM
That's not a bad idea. I can see how it would help your presentation and lead to more sales. I guess to a degree I'm always thinking about SWOT, but it's nothing I do formally. It's more being aware of strengths and weakness in me and the competition.