NEW: 360º Business Canvas Free Tool

Understanding a whole business can be challenging. The 360º Business Canvas by GrowthWheel is designed to help entrepreneurs and business advisors get the big picture of any business. 

This tool provides a visual way to gain insights and identify blind spots when advising clients.

For example, while focusing on product development, it’s easy to miss how marketing, finances, or internal processes may be affected. This 360º view ensures that every key area is considered.

The 360º Business Canvas can be used for and by businesses of any size, industry, or stage. It covers 20 focus areas including competition, leadership, branding, and financing, and much more.

Designed for a quick overview, this tool is the initial part of the GrowthWheel’s four-step growth planning process, which also includes an assessment, goal-setting, and action planning.

Download the 360º Business Canvas for free and get a better understanding of your client’s business – and, literally be on the same page with them.

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A Deeper Dive – Focusing on One Thing at a Time

With the 360° Business Canvas, you can see the big picture—or take a deep dive into each business area, one step at a time. The tool is build on the GrowthWheel Framework which cover four growth areas that every business must consider to grow or get started:

• Business Concept

• Organization

• Customer Relations

• Operations

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New: OnDemand Training for Entrepreneurs in SPANISH

We’re thrilled to announce that the first GrowthWheel OnDemand workshops are now available in Spanish.

This is an exciting step in our mission to make entrepreneurial tools and training accessible to Spanish-speaking advisors and entrepreneurs worldwide.

These workshops cover the basics of any business and are designed to empower entrepreneurs using decision-making tools that comes with each workshop.

The first five (5) modules translated are:

• Trabaja en tu red y haz que funcione para ti (Networking)

• Envía tu mensaje de marketing a los clientes correctos (Marketing)

• Toma el control de tu proceso de ventas (Sales & Service)

• Utiliza los medios de comunicación para llamar la atención sobre su negocio (Communication & PR)

• Crea una marca fuerte y auténtica para su negocio (Branding)

We’re actively working on translating more workshops to expand this offering and are happy to integrate these into your organization’s e-learning platform upon request.

Reach out to us to learn more about this exciting project, or request your own LMS filling out this form*.

*For GrowthWheel Certified Advisors and partners only.

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New feature: New Service Menu with Programs Tracking + longer notes

You can now easily track one or multiple programs that clients are enrolled in, plus track individual session time for each program on GrowthWheel CRM.

We’ve added a new 'Services' menu to GrowthWheel Online, where you’ll find the submenu for 'Programs' – and if you report to the SBA. You will also see the 'Training' menu for your 888 tracking is moved to this new menu

If you head to the new Programs submenu, center managers can now create a list of programs with names and start dates. Later you will be able to add more details to programs.

Once managers have created a list of programs, advisors will be able to select a program for each interaction to do time-tracking per program. You will also be able to filter the client list by program. 

Additionally, we’ve extended the note limit for all clients to 3,000 characters. 

We hope this update helps you easily track multiple programs for clients and their sessions, as well as add more detailed notes to their profiles.

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In this short video, you will see how to use this new feature

Update: New Decision Sheets and Frameworks added to GrowthWheel Online

At GrowthWheel, we are constantly enhancing and expanding our training and tool offerings for our certified business advisors. This year, we’ve developed new workshops and tools to provide even greater support.

Below are the latest Decision Sheets and Frameworks, designed to help advisors empower their clients to make informed decisions and take action. Our newest tools include:

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New Frameworks

• Avenues to Market Expansion: Find the right focus for entering new markets.

• Localization: Adapt a business to different market situations effectively.

• New Market Entry: Follow the 4 pillars to serve new local or international markets successfully.

• Business Partners: Explore 40 potential partnerships to enhance your organization.

• Market Launch: Prepare strategically to enter a new market segment.

• Increase Revenue: Discover 12 alternative paths to drive revenue growth.

• Roads to Profitability: Identify 8 ways to increase revenue and reduce costs.

• Reduce Expenses: Learn 12 alternative strategies to lower costs and boost efficiency.

New Decision Sheets

• Channel Partners: Choose the right partners to support market access.

• Revenue Growth: Create effective budgets to achieve more revenue.

• Cost Reduction: Strategize how to cut costs while maintaining operational effectiveness.

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These tools are part of our newest three Continued Education Workshops developed this year, for the following workshops:

• Revenue: How to help clients increase sales

• Profitability: How to help clients make money

• Expansion: New Market Entry with GrowthWheel

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New Frameworks and Decision Sheets
— Available in GrowthWheel Online

New Growth Journeys: Digital Transformation & Profitability

The Seventh Journey: Digital Transformation

In today’s day and age, every business is a digital business with point of sale systems, inventory logs, websites and social media accounts, and online bookkeeping tools.

Rather than gritting their teeth and pushing through tasks “old school,” clients need to use software and technology to streamline their processes and save themselves time.

We curated this package of Decision Sheets to help clients that are thinking about having a digital transformation on their business:

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The Eighth Journey: Selling

Profitability is the fuel that drives any business’s growth. Whether clients focus on increasing sales or on reducing costs, they need to think through their pricing, sales pipeline, and inventory management. 

We curated this package of Decision Sheets to help clients that are thinking about improving their profitabilities strategies:

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In this video, Elizabeth shares more about the Growth Journeys and how to use them:

Update: New trainings on GrowthWheel Academy for Certified Users

This month we improved our GrowthWheel Certified OnDemand Academy. With these updates you can have an even better learning experience.

Here's a quick overview:

1. Case Studies: Newly added Case Studies, offering practical insights to enhance your advisory skills.

2. GrowthWheel Certification Course: Explore the GrowthWheel Certification Course, now organized into modules for easier learning. Stay tuned for regular updates as we continue to enrich the content.

3. Continued Education Workshops: Access our ongoing workshops for Certified Advisors to stay ahead in the dynamic world of advisory.

4. Mastering the Tools: New "Mastering the Tools," courses where you can explore our variety of Decision Sheets designed to empower your advisory journey.

Discover these updates and more on our updated Certified OnDemand Academy today!

New feature: Customize the Client invite email template to GrowthWheel Online

With our recent software update, you can now customize the email template for client invitations to GrowthWheel Online!

As business advisors, you always want to share relevant information with your clients—especially when introducing a new tool like GrowthWheel.

When inviting clients to GrowthWheel Online to work on their business, you now have the option to add or edit any information in the invitation email.

This will enable you to ensure that your clients have all the information they need to get started with your services and GrowthWheel.

This feature is now available in the 'My Profile Settings' top menu under 'Email Settings.'

New Update: NEXUS Implementation on GrowthWheel Online for SBA reporting

For the past 6 months, we've been working closely with SBA's NEXUS team to ensure that GrowthWheel NG is compatible and meets the new requirements.

True to our beliefs, we have created a beautiful and user-friendly system to assist business advisors in easily tracking SBA impact information and more.

This software update encompasses a series of updates, including data requirements from the SBA and enhancements to our system's user experience, ensuring advisors can efficiently track all client information.

Some of the NEXUS updates include the following specifications:

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New fields and selection options have been added to the client 641 intake form:

1. Intake demographic fields now include options for individuals to "Prefer to self-describe."

2. A new field has been introduced for "Business verification" and "Reportable Impact" on counseling records.

3. Additional certification options are now available under counseling (e.g. DBE, WOSB).

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Removed fields from the user interface on all forms:

1. Type of client on 641 intake form. 

2. Preferred appointment on 641 intake form. 

3. Counseling history field on interactions. 

4. Program format, attendee fee, and gross income fields on the 888 Form

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888 training fields removed and some others re-organized:

1. New demographic categories for Total number trained: LGBTQ, Active Duty, Spouse of Military Member, Total Underserved Trained, North African, and Middle Eastern.

2. A new type of training field.

NEXUS updates will be available in early January 2024 for all our SBA-funded business advisors.

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For any questions related to NEXUS please reach out to nexus@growthwheel.com

New Growth Journeys: Promotion & Selling

The Fifth Journey: Promotion

So often clients approach their advisors looking for assistance with marketing and promotion.

What company doesn’t want to be better known in their marketplace? But clients need to think through their marketing strategy from their target market customer persona,, the marketing messages, the channels of communication, and how it relates to their brand.

We curated this package of Decision Sheets to help clients that are thinking about promoting their products and services:

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The Sixth Journey: Selling

Every client would welcome more sales.

Clients need to think through their sales chain, customer pipeline, create a sales activity plan, and think through customer objections.

We curated this package of Decision Sheets to help clients that are thinking about improving their selling strategies:

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In this video, Elizabeth shares more about the Growth Journeys and how to use them:

New Growth Journeys: Getting Investors or Business Partners & Expanding Your Team

The Third Journey: Getting Organized

It’s hard to grow when the entrepreneur is the only one who can complete pivotal tasks.

Clients need to create and document processes so others can contribute. From legal documents, to documents for the lender, documenting the value chain and key processes, your clients can use this curated package of Decision Sheets to help them organize their business processes and internal operations:

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The Fourth Journey: Team Growth

Expanding the company’s team can be a great way to grow a company, allowing the business to stretch their volume and capabilities.

Clients need to think through those new team members, how they fit into the business, what training they will need and how to make sure those employees are a good investment.

We curated this package of Decision Sheets to help clients that are thinking about expanding their team and hiring new positions:

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In this video, Elizabeth shares more about the Growth Journeys and how to use them:

New Growth Journeys: Help Clients Launch Products and Services!

As business advisors you want to help your clients the most in their growth journey.

There is a lot to take care of in a business but the real problem is not having the proper resources ready to use with clients.

So we created 8 different Growth Journeys where clients can expand their business and you can help them do so one tool at a time!

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In this video, Elizabeth shares more about the Growth Journeys and how to use them:

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The First Journey: Product Launch

Releasing a new product or service into either current markets or new markets can be daunting.

Clients need to think through the value, the pricing, and the right market or customer segment for this new offering.

We curated this package of Decision Sheets to help clients that are thinking about offering a new product or service:

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The Second Journey: Market Entry

Entering into a new market or customer segment is as exciting as it is overwhelming.

Clients need to think through this new market - how are they similar and/or different from their current customers, how should products and services be priced, and who is the competition in this new space?

We curated this package of Decision Sheets to help clients that are thinking about entering a new market or expanding to a new city/country:

New feature: Introducing GrowthWheel AI 30-60-90 Days Plan

With our new GrowthWheel AI, you can now generate 30-60-90 days Action Plans – automatically. It feels like magic!

As business advisors, you need to help clients make complete action plans to achieve their ambitions – and keep them accountable.

However, one thing is to think about what decisions and action items are needed. And a complete other, to write them down to create a plan with timelines. 

You can certainly come up with action items yourself, but with AI helping you, you can do it much faster. 

The real magic happens when you add your expertise by reviewing and refining the text the AI generates.

It works like this:

1. Create an ambition or a goal for a client.
2. Make it smart by making it specific, measurable, and on a timeline.
3. Click "Generate Action Plan" and see the first 7 suggestions.
4. Click again to get as many suggestions as you want
5. Refine by editing and deleting before you share with your client.

New update: Create Outcomes directly from Create Ambitions

Now Ambitions can be converted to Outcomes with a click, making it faster than ever before to keep track of the client’s journey and celebrate achievements.

As a business advisor, you want to track your client’s outcomes to see economic impact and take the opportunity to celebrate their progress.

That’s why you want to keep a list of outcomes whenever an ambition has been achieved.

With this recent update, you can now easily convert Ambitions into Outcomes:

• Click the three-dot button located to the right of the achieved ambition(s)

• Select the ‘Convert to Outcome’ option

• Proceed to provide any additional information in the Outcomes dialog

With this new feature, you can now track the client’s journey much faster, and at the same time help clients make a more convincing GrowthPlan to lenders showing the progress that has been made.

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In this short video, Elizabeth Binning will show you how to use this new update:

Update: Easier Client Tags with Suggestions

This month we improved the Client Tags feature so you now have suggestions and standardized tags 

As an advisor, you want to keep your clients organized and have an easy way to search or filter them.

However, tags can get messy if written in different ways.

That's why we made standardized tags and suggestions based on what other advisors in your organization have used.

With our recent update to the Client Tags feature, you will now be able to:

• See a list of tag suggestions from your organization – start typing and see all similar previously added tags.

• Select any tag from the suggestion list to ensure you and your team use the same tag.

• Add new tags anytime – now all of your team will see this as a suggested tag.

With standardized tags, you can now easily keep your clients organized, and help your colleagues do the same. 

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In this short video, Elizabeth Binning will show you how to use this new update:

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Update: Improved Design for Celebrating Client Outcomes!

This month we re-designed the Outcome feature so you – and your clients – have an even better experience when recording and celebrating small or big wins – or tracking economic impact.

As business advisors, you need to track all kinds of outcomes from your work with clients – and show them their progress. 

However, by not having a good place to keep track of them, this often gets overlooked, and you miss out on recognizing your client’s progress  

That's why it’s important to have a place where both the advisor and the client can systematically track outcomes on a quarterly basis.

With our recent update to the outcome feature, you will now be able to:

• Track both quantitative results and qualitative achievements

• Add economic impact like jobs created, business started, or sustained.

• Have a new and improved design of the page which works on your phone.

You can also download the outcome directly from the pop-up dialogue,  and as usual, decide to share it with your clients with one click on the share button!

With these updated features you can now easier track both general progress and economic impact from your work with clients and as a bonus the opportunity to remind clients of all the things they have achieved through the  year.

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In this short video, Elizabeth Binning will show you how to use this new update:

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Easily Track Client’s Outcomes
— With a re-designed pop-up, which can even be filled out on your phone!

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