Small businesses often want to grow and flourish. Yes, I say “often” because there are times when a business owner doesn’t want to expand. Some owners strive to own a single store or have a client list that’s logged for months on end.
There’s a lot of overhead and work involved in running a business that is always chasing growth.
But when a small business wants to continue on their growth trajectory, there are fundamental practices that can help.
1. Continue Building Your Brand
A powerful brand is one that consumers and clients continue to trust. Branding has helped Elon Musk grow Tesla because he has engaged in strong personal branding. Businesses need to work on their own brand, too.
Brands can build equity and create those emotional connections with customers that lead to long-term relationships.
Small businesses can build a strong brand through:
- Strong customer service that big brands have lost
- Influencing the industry
- Connecting with locals on a personal level
Product and service are just as important, so always go the extra-mile for customers to ensure they’re happy.
2. Invest Profits Wisely
Small business owners often make the mistake of not investing their profits wisely. It may seem like a time to celebrate, and it is, but instead of spending all of the profits on one night of celebration, it’s better to invest your money in:
- Business improvement
- Marketing
- Yourself (education, books, classes)
- Your team
You can also start to outsource some of your most time-consuming tasks. If you spend a lot of time on the phone answering customer service calls, you can hire someone else to handle these tasks or outsource the task to a call agency.
Small business owners often take on roles that they’re not experts in all for the sake of building their business.
A lawyer may take on the role of marketer, customer service, accountant and others to be able to grow her firm. But when profits start rolling in, this frees up valuable time and allows the owner to hire someone more qualified to take on key roles.
Small businesses will want to avoid investing in stocks and other products because they have little control over the direction of the investment.
Invest in your own business before investing in another entity’s business.
3. Focus on Customer Retention
Statistics show that the average business will lose 50% of their customer base every five years. Losing half of your customer base is not profitable. Customer retention is the key to sustained growth. In fact, customers that have already done business with you are 60% – 70% more likely to buy what you’re selling than a new customer.
You also don’t have to perform the same level of marketing or work to make sales to existing customers.
When you work on customer retention, you’ll be spending less to make sales, earning higher profits and also:
- Improving customer service
- Building lasting relationships
A customer that has been happy for years is also more inclined to recommend your business to others. The key is impeccable customer service and working with clients to offer a solution that meets their needs.
