If
your small business is up and running successfully, it may be time to think
about taking the next step. Maybe you want to reach new markets, offer new
products, or take your business in a completely different direction. Whatever
your goal, you'll need to make changes to get your business growth-ready and
create opportunities for expansion.
Delegate your day-to-day duties. As you grow your business, you will need to
adjust your own responsibilities to fill a more strategic role. Your managerial
duties should be delegated to another employee, contractor, or virtual
assistant so that you can spend time representing your business and
strategizing its growth. After all, both managing and business and growing a
business are full-time jobs. Just make sure whoever you delegate your duties to
is up to the challenge.
- You may want to hire outside the company to find someone to take over your day-to-day responsibilities.
- Outsourcing work does not require hiring a full time employee. Instead, it can involve building a team that may include virtual members, part-time workers, full-time employees, and freelancer/contract workers.
- Handing over these responsibilities can be difficult for entrepreneurs, but rest assured that delegation will help your business grow and succeed.
Watch your
environment. Current market
conditions can be the deciding factor in whether or not your business will take
off or remain stagnant. Your advantage as a small business, versus large corporations,
is that your business organization is small and nimble enough to quickly
respond to changes in market trends. Watch for these trends and jump on them if
they work with your product offerings.
- Try to forecast your customers' future needs and accommodate them as quickly as possible.
- Be prepared to make miscalculations and fail, but be equally prepared to get back up and move past these failures.
Build your
business's brand. Modern customers
require more than a good product; they need to believe in your business's
brand. A brand defines your business's ideals and goals, and also separates you
from the competition. As your business grows, your brand will become a signal
to customers that they are getting a good product from a reputable company.
Build a brandy by looking at the following components:
- A brand message. Make your customers associate your business's ideals with your products. They need more than just a description of your product's features.
- A well-defined audience. You can't please everyone. Locate your market and sell to them.
- Connection with your market. Make your customers feel like they are a part of your business.
- Replicate your brand message everywhere. All business materials, advertising, and employees should consistently reflect your brand message.
Use technology
where you can. With the current
proliferation of business-focused software applications, chances are you'll be
able to find the technology to fix any problem you have. Locate difficulties or
inefficiencies in your business models and then search for software solutions
to fix them.
- Technology can also be useful for automating processes.
Stay passionate
in your business endeavors.
Remind yourself of your reasoning behind starting your business, and never lose
that drive. If you find you are losing the enthusiasm, find out why. There was
a reason initially, so stay on focus, and remain positive. Without passion,
your business will not grow.
