If you own a business, there’s a good chance you’d like to grow it. After all, growth leads to new, exciting opportunities and greater profits. Fortunately, with some time and effort, you can scale your startup or small business and meet your goals. This handy guide on how to grow your business is bound to steer you in the right direction and set you up for success.
What Is Business Growth?
Business growth refers to a stage where your business expands as a result of new clientele, the business owner finding additional ways to generate more profit or other factors. It’s important to note that there is no single metric used to measure growth. There are a number of data points that can show a business is growing, such as sales, revenue, profits, number of customers, number of employees, profits and value.
As you scale, your business may grow in some metrics but not in others. For example, you might increase revenue, but the number of customers and number of employees you have may stay the same. It all depends on your unique business model and the strategies you implement.
In addition, business growth can be organic or inorganic. Organic growth happens within your company through strategies, such as new product offerings and process optimization. Inorganic growth, on the other hand, is external growth that is usually the result of mergers and acquisitions. Compared to inorganic growth, organic growth is usually much slower.
Why Business Growth Is Important
For a business to survive in the long run, business growth is essential. Depending on your particular company, it may allow you to take advantage of new opportunities, expand your offerings, acquire new customers, hire additional employees and, of course, increase profits.
Growing your business may also put you in a position to become a more stable, reputable organization. Additionally, it can make it easier for you to stay ahead of your competition and capture more of the market share. Lastly, business growth can lead to personal satisfaction and fulfillment.
10 Steps to Business Growth
Business growth does not happen overnight. However, if you follow these steps, you can slowly but surely achieve it.
1. Perform Market Research
Once you decide to grow your business, take the time to conduct market research. This way you can gain a better understanding of your current customers and insight into new, potential customers. You can use this vital information to determine the best ways to grow your business. Don’t forget to pay attention to your competitors as well. By becoming familiar with their strengths and weaknesses, you can make the most informed growth decisions.
2. Boost Customer Retention
Keeping current customers happy and loyal is just as important as acquiring new ones. To increase your customer retention, make customer service a top priority and keep any promises you make. You may also want to invest in a customer relationship management (CRM) system to help manage existing customer relationships with ease.
Other great ways to retain customers are loyalty programs, social media engagement and personalized email campaigns. Since it costs five times more to acquire a new customer than to retain a new one, customer retention should be top of mind.
3. Network
Brand visibility and business growth go hand in hand. It’s your responsibility to get your name in front of the right people, and networking events are a great way to do so. Do some research and find out about events related to your industry or professional networking events in your local area. In addition to attending these events and building relationships with other business owners and prospective customers, you may want to speak as an industry expert or set up a booth to promote your offerings.
4. Prioritize Corporate Social Responsibility
These days, many customers prefer to do business with companies that match their own values. That’s where corporate social responsibility (CSR) comes in. Put simply, CSR is a business model in which companies integrate social and environmental concerns in their operations. To practice CSR, you can go green, give back to the community or offer more sustainable products and services. Remember that CSR is a commitment you must focus on in the long term.
5. Develop Strategic Partnerships
By strategically partnering with another business, you can access a broader customer base. Ideally, you’d partner with an organization with products or services that complement your own and don’t directly compete with you. For example, if you own a coffee shop, you may want to partner with a bookstore that already has customers who may be interested in shopping, reading and drinking coffee.
6. Consider a Franchise Model
When you franchise your business, you sell your business knowledge, processes and trademarks to independent owners. Then, these owners replicate your success. Under a franchise model, you’ll receive initial franchise fees from the owners plus ongoing royalties, which would likely be based on a percentage of your sales. You’ll be able to grow your business without incurring new debt.
7. Diversify Your Products or Services
Take a close look at your lineup of products and services and determine how you can expand it. Maybe you can launch an entirely new product. Or perhaps you can add a new feature to an existing product. You can also find new ways to sell your existing offerings through subscriptions or bundles, for example. Your market research efforts should give you some insight on the best ways to diversify.
8. Expand to New Markets
Depending on your business model and goals, you may want to expand to new markets. If you’re currently selling your offerings at a brick-and-mortar store, you might want to explore the idea of e-commerce. This way you can gain customers online, even if they live in another state. You can also open new brick-and-mortar locations or tweak your business so that it accommodates global customers. Whatever you do, be sure you’re consistent with your brand messaging.
9. Acquire a New Business
If you can find a business in good financial shape and believe it complements your own, you might want to acquire it. However, before you take the plunge, make sure it will strengthen your own company, give you access to new customers and allow you to diversify your products or services. It’s also a good idea to do the math yourself or work with an accountant to determine if an acquisition makes financial sense.
10. Be Creative
At the end of the day, business growth takes a great deal of creativity. You have to think out of the box and constantly look for ways to stand out from the competition. Don’t be afraid to encourage your employees to do the same as collaboration can spark innovation and lead to unparalleled growth.
Bottom Line
Growth is important, no matter your industry. However, make sure you’re strategic about how you go about it. Otherwise, you may lack the adequate tools and resources to handle growth and put your company in a difficult position. Best of luck in your journey to business growth!
