When you have a great new idea, launching it successfully and refining into a unique value proposition are enormous accomplishments. But don’t stop there. To truly explore the potential of a new idea, you need to keep finding ways to communicate your passion and reach new audiences.

With my big idea, The Latimer Group, I’d spent several years researching the field and building my network and skills. In the next phase, I concentrated on refining my goals, differentiating my message and investing what I needed into the company in order to grow more. I wrote two books, hired a colleague to collaborate with and increase my capacity and developed a strong client list.

What was next? For any big idea, the next two phases could be called Document and Deliver.

Document: This is when you find a way to make your idea tangible, systematic and replicable. You need to be able to deliver it to your clients (be they internal or external) in a way that they can grasp quickly and easily, and turn your message into action.

Deliver: This phase is about both breadth and depth. You want to deepen your relationship with your clients so that it’s not just about delivering great service one time but building a long-term relationship. In this phase, too, you can find ways to broaden your reach, finding new ways to communicate value to new potential clients or partners.

The key developments for The Latimer Group during these two phases were tied to the hiring of three new staff members: Amy, Hannah and Kendra. Each one played a crucial role in refining our message, packaging and supporting it in ways that increased its value to our clients and disseminating it to wider audiences and through new formats.

Our first hires happened during the Document phase, which for The Latimer Group, took up about two years. I realized that we needed to bring on new employees, both to handle our current rate of business and to achieve our growth goals.