Studies have shown that less than 20% of small and medium-sized enterprises survive their first year, with just about half scaling early business challenges to celebrate their fifth anniversary. One of the biggest challenges the SMEs face is finding the right ways to grow their businesses. So, here are 5 ways to prepare your business for growth in 2020.
1. Create a Plan
Every company needs a plan so as to be prepared for any eventualities. So, if you decide it’s time to grow your business, remember to include it in your plan and identify what you need to change to ensure smooth development.
Poor growth planning can lead to losses and a decrease in customer loyalty, so make sure you are ready to prepare for the desired growth. In order to create the perfect plan for your business, you have to know exactly what growth means for your company.
Could it be an increase in the customer base? Increase in sales and cash revenue? Increase in brand awareness? Or increase in competitive advantage?
Once you have decided what growth means for your company, you will know better how to plan for the growth.
2. Find the Right People and put them in your Team
It is easier to manage a company schedule if you have only one location and a few employees. However, it can become an issue when it comes to finding great people after you have outgrown your small company status.
It’s all about hiring the right people in both skill and personality – if a new employee has skills but does not suit your business corporate culture, his or her work will be messy.
Therefore, before hiring, rate potential candidates based on their interaction with others. Determine how well they will fit into your corporate structure and be sure they can work within the definition of your corporate goals and visions.
Also, learn to rely on employee recommendations.
3. Don’t Overlook your Customers
No company can do without customers. If you don’t stay close to customers, you will lose them. Know what they need, but more importantly, know what they want and do all you can to satisfy them.
Most importantly, communicate. Never fail to inform customers what’s going on, particularly as it concerns them. Tell them if it’s good or bad. They deserve to know so that they can fully be committed in their loyalty.
Remember, when you have a loyal customer base, you have started to grow your business successfully. After all, loyal customers will use word-of-mouth marketing to build your business faster than any customer acquisition programme can.
4. Make your Business Foolproof
It is important you set up your business in a way that it is as foolproof as possible.
Try to make your business visible to your target market everywhere and ensure all the standard operations boxes are ticked. These should include having a strong internet presence and a corporate system that runs smoothly.
Additionally, you should invest in business insurance to help your business stand firm in the event of an emergency or business loss, so that your business does not suffer cash flow problems as a result of negative surprises that you cannot plan for.
This way you can ensure that unexpected setbacks won’t hold you back from pushing your business further.
5. Use Social Media
Finally, no matter your investment in mainstream advertising, take as much advantage of social media as possible.
As a small business owner, you probably know that social media is a valuable opportunity to build a brand and connect with customers. This does not mean, however, that you should solely rely on it for your business or brand marketing and promotion.
Depending on the type of products and services your business is involved in, look for the platform that will allow you to reach more of the people that matter to your business. This is one way to speed up your growth process.
