When you watch a football game you most likely focus on the scoreboard. The scoreboard will tell you which team is winning along with additional pertinent numbers. No matter how well each football team played, the winner is determined by the final score on the score board. Business is no different. Business should also be viewed as a game. A game that you want to win and which boils down to the numbers.



In business, numbers are so important that if you don’t have numbers then you don’t have a business. In other words, you need to know your revenues, profit, and overhead to determine whether or not your business is a success or failure. Analyzing your business numbers is not to be taken lightly or casually. You need to get down to the nitty-gritty and determine exactly which numbers are affecting your bottom line.

What is the bottom line? The bottom line is also referred to as the income of operations. The bottom line is the amount of profit you make and you want to increase this amount. You need to examine your business numbers and determine which numbers are the “critical numbers". Critical numbers most affect the bottom line. Therefore, they should be the focus of your business number analysis.

First, look at your financials. Do you notice any trends or patterns? For example, do you find that every summer your revenues decrease? Or perhaps certain marketing campaigns are not turning a profit. These are your critical numbers because they need to be changed to positively affect your bottom line.

Second, you have determined your critical numbers so take action to improve these numbers. Perhaps you want your employees to become more efficient. You can invest in a new business system and/or employee incentives. Your business model may need fine tuning. You have to test and tweak your investments to see how the numbers play out.

Lastly, you need to think of your business numbers in terms of a score board. Define the numbers you want to achieve and do everything in your power to earn these numbers. For example, you may have two different types of products. You have an eBook that is inexpensive and a coaching program that is expensive. The eBook may be selling like hot cakes, but it takes extensive time and man power to make a profit this way compared to selling just one coaching program. Therefore, you may want to reconsider which product to promote or even sell.

Set up your business with a score board in mind. This will enable you to be focused, successful, and competitive.