There may well come a time in which, as a business owner, you want to grow.
What does that mean though?
There can be many ‘takes’ on what growth looks like in business as people define it in different ways.
Is it an increase in turnover?
Are you aiming for a larger profit?
Perhaps a gain in market share?
Could it be a physical growth in numbers of people within the company?
As a business owner, whatever you define growth as, there are a number of ways to achieve this and below sets out five of them.
1. Research
As a business owner, you will know how much time goes into the research of anything related to your business.
At the start of your journey, research might have been all that you seemed to do and it took a huge amount of energy with an overload of information that took time to digest, consider and implement.
The large amount of research that is invested in at this time and throughout business ownership will most certainly allow you to reap the rewards in the future.
My belief that research is integral to success of any business leads me to categorise the research tasks into three rather than grouping them under the one heading of ‘Market Research’.
SMART & SWOT
By putting SMART goals in place that are Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic and Timely for each type of research objective, it gives a clear indication of what Is required, how to go about it and how long it might realistically take.
Consideration of a SWOT analysis within any research provides a clear understanding of what your Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats are and how to operate your business in the current, near future and further term.
Both these tools make it visibly easier to understand where your business can head to in the future and the feasibility of what you have in mind.
Once they have been practised many times, it becomes subconscious to a business owner to apply these strategy planning techniques and gain an insight to matters that can unintentionally get swept aside otherwise.
They are both effective tools to understand how you and your business can and should grow to determine its success.
Market Research
Market research is one of the first tasks a potential business owner carries out.
What you can often forget, as a business owner, when you have set up your business and are progressing effectively, is that markets can and do change.
New markets often emerge which will require a considered and strategic diversification strategy to be put in place.
Market shares flex as they ebb and flow in supply and demand. Being able to allow for that puts you on the front foot. By ensuring your business adapts accordingly, the longevity of it is more
likely with the intention that you will grow with it.
Customer / Client Research
Whilst market research often encompasses customer research under its banner I believe you should focus more precisely on your customer as a business owner. More attention to customer satisfaction and retention is key.
It is also important to consider how customers change as their needs and wants evolve, just as your business does.
This doesn’t mean to say that, as a business owner, you should drop your core offers because your customers might demand something different, however, by knowing your customer and pre-emoting what they might require keeps you one step ahead.
It is also important for a business owner to identify its target audience and how this changes over time.
By doing so, the proactive approach to marketing seems to attract those who best fit your needs and wants as a business owner.
There is little value in growing your customer or client base if there is no synergy or future potential for you by doing so.
Competitor Research
The Weaknesses and Threats come
under this heading and whilst it is important to keep focused on your own business and everything it offers, without placing your attention too much on others, it is helpful to be aware of what it is that they offer (that you don’t) so you can decide if it’s something to add to your business plan and mitigating the stagnation in growth that may occur if ignored.
Likewise, by having an understanding of what the competition is up to, you may wish to shout about and market your USP (Unique Selling Point) if they don’t offer something similar, differentiating yourself from them.
Equipping yourself with undeniable answers to objections that may be raised is important in business.
For example: if a competitor’s pricing is lower than yours, you could advise the potential customer or client that it’s the years of experience and qualifications that you have which sets you apart from your competitors which allows you to offer the expertise they require.
What opportunities are there in the market and how much share has the competition secured in comparable terms to you? How can you grow without over-saturating yourself or the business?
Applying the frameworks and asking yourself such questions in all research that you do enables you to look at your business subjectively and by taking out a conscious bias allows free thinking to better your business game and grow in a logical and commonsensical manner.
2. Marketing / Advertising
Advertising of yesteryear took place in newspapers, magazines and catalogues, on television, radio and notice boards and other means of hard copy material.
Social media is by far the biggest way to market modern businesses today.
Free, easily accessible and with a global and immediate reach, it has fast become one of the most powerful tools in messaging and promoting businesses.
The modern businesses of today are getting more agile and sophisticated in marketing what they need to in ingenious ways.
The one thing that hasn’t changed from years gone by to the modern business world is marketing and advertising by word of mouth.
Personal recommendations are still, by far, the most powerful way to receive marketing and advertising for your business.
People like working with people they like and so when people refer a business to someone, it is likely they have liked doing business with them themselves.
I am yet to come across a business owner that does not like being introduced to new business through a recommendation. In fact, I have rarely heard they have a preference other than this way of gaining new customers or clients.
3. Networking / People
Following on from this, by being a visible business owner you become credible (on the assumption you know what you are doing and you are good at it!)
Through meeting with people regularly, they will get to know, like and trust you and they will then be more likely to keep you in mind when their extended network of contacts is looking for someone or something just like you and what you offer.
Having a 60 to 90 second elevator pitch in your head prepares a proactive business owner to seize an opportunity that presents itself at a networking event and even ‘on the fly’ unexpectedly.
There are many networking events that offer business owners a variety of environments; from the formal to more informal, and weekly to monthly.
Undoubtedly there will be at least one networking event that suits any business owner and even if you do not put yourself in the category of ‘most sociable of people’, it has been said that being a business owner can feel lonely and so having a good network of people around you creates a supportive community of like-minded people.
With this support it naturally leads to people championing you and your business which is a great marketing and advertising opportunity with growth occurring organically.
4. Partnerships / Collaborations
Whilst it is possible from Day One, it is often easier to venture into partnerships or collaborations once you and your business have hunkered down and are clear in what your business offers and values.
By bolstering the business through a partner or working in collaboration with someone, it is important to know what’s ’in it for you’ and how your business can bring value to them.
When the time is right, it presents an opportunity to you, as a business owner, to consolidate the business and reaffirm the values and mission of your business.
By partnering or collaborating with a like-minded and credible business, you are giving yourself double the chance of growing.
It is often the case that being associated with someone reputable can open many more doors so it is worth considering this if you are aiming for business growth.
5. CSR
In today’s business world, people like the thought of giving back and being more conscientious.
There are numerous studies on Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) in business, with those that practise it making the business more appealing to investors and partners.
Not only is the brand image of the business positively affected, the retention of employees is likely to be higher with the bottom-line financials benefitting as well.
ESG (Environment, Social and Governance) has become more popular in today’s business lingo and whilst it is similar to CSR, ESG is more easily measured than CSG.
By leading the way and doing the right thing in terms of CSR / ESG, anyone that comes across you is likely to choose doing business with you over someone else who chooses to ignore matters identified as important to consider in today’s society and environment.
If people are on the fence about using you and your business versus a competitor, the CSR or ESG it adopts could be the deciding factor.
In theory, a considered growth strategy is the best way forward for you and your business when the time is right.
In practice, it doesn’t work like that.
At times, the business grows suddenly organically with a sudden increase in demand.
When this does happen, you should feel pleased that it has and, after a little celebration, return to a considered viewpoint of how to support the growing business.
Systems and procedures should be watertight by now and, if they are not, they should become a priority.
The more a business grows the more it should have standardised processes that are clear and can be followed easily.
Growth is a hugely positive occurrence for you and your business....
Just make sure it doesn’t become your downfall.
If you believe you are ready to trust an experienced professional that will help support and assist you in this exciting stage of your business growth, please get in touch.
Anna
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