Are you ready to take your small business to the next level? You have gained a footing, established your brand, and acquired a healthy customer base. Yet now, the goal is to push on, generate bigger profits, and become an industry leader.
It’s true: there are no shortcuts to business growth. You need to put in great effort and dedication to extend beyond those current “small” dimensions.
However, there are methods available that can give your efforts a welcome boost. Here are five steps to accelerate growth for your small business.
Step #1: Get the financing you require
As the saying goes, you need to spend money to make money. So the first step is to secure the financing that’s necessary to grow your business.
A traditional loan is an obvious option, although securing one can be tricky – for example, it can take time to get one, particularly if you’re in a position to grow rapidly. The same can also be said if you decide to raise funds with your finances.
If you have any outstanding invoices and you need funding fast, arguably the best route to take is debt factoring. This is where you gain a prepayment from a financial institution against your outstanding invoices. A rapid cash injection from debt factoring can be ideal if you’ve taken on a large new project or client and need to expand instantly with new hires and supplies.
Step #2: Utilise a customer loyalty program
When growing a business, you might think it’s all about acquiring new customers. This is not the case. In fact, it’s much cheaper to keep an existing customer around compared to bringing a new one on board.
To turn a one-time customer into a loyal customer, it’s recommended to use a loyalty program. If you give them an extra incentive to stick with your business, they are more likely to spend money on a long-term basis.
Step #3: Find new opportunities
To grow fast, it’s wise to discover new opportunities your business can start pursuing immediately. These could be everything from different international markets to target to new products and services to offer.
Analysing current statistics, looking at new industry trends, studying the competition – there are various ways to find out about these potential opportunities.
Step #4: Outsource work
You don’t necessarily have to hire permanent employees. You could make your finances go further by outsourcing work to agencies and freelancers. This is also beneficial for more reasons than simply being cost-effective. For one, you are able to benefit from the expertise that wouldn’t necessarily be available from a local talent pool.
Step #5: Branch out with the help of others
You don’t have to only rely on your own efforts to grow. For example, if you decide to let others sell your original products, you get a cut of the revenue.
Another option is to opt for a franchise model. While complex and expensive to get going, franchising your business is one of the most effective ways to grow rapidly.
