Do you want to grow and expand your business but aren’t sure how to approach it? Here’s the secret to growing a small business so you can find success.
Only one-third of small businesses will make it to the ten-year mark. Typically, this isn’t due to a poor product or even bad pricing. It has more to do with the lack of knowledge of growing a small business.
What is Needed for Growing a Small Business?
The secret to growing a small business is that there are a number of secrets. Everyone will tell you they have a great technique for growing a business, and they are all right! The difference is being brave enough and organised enough to try different methods at once.
Read on to learn more about our favourite methods for growing a small business.
Create a Funnel
You have likely heard the term “funnel” used by self-proclaimed marketing gurus claiming they’ve found a winning combination to drive traffic. While there are some smart techniques out there, your basic funnel doesn’t have to be complicated.
It’s simply pulling a large audience in through one technique (webinar, free download, course etc.) and getting as many as you can to a second technique (email campaign, secondary course, website or social media page) to finally guide them to the goal location (buying a product or service, signing up four a larger campaign, etc).
Try a Customer Management System
Customer relationship management systems, or CRMs, are platforms built to manage and analyse a customer’s relationship with your brand. There’s often room on these platforms to add additional information, from their birthday to how many kids they have.
This helps to create a more personal relationship with the customer, increasing the likelihood that they will want to return.
Check Out the Competition
When it comes to products and services offered, you and your competition have a lot of similarities, and yet they are driving in more customers. What are they doing that you’re not? Are they taking advantage of a niche or specific pricing?
While you don’t need to outright copy them, knowing what path you’re taking could help better guide your efforts.
Start a Loyalty Programme
Everyone loves rewards, and what better activity to reward than buying from your business? Whether it’s creating a punch card or a membership card that allows customers to obtain points by buying, a strong loyalty programme is a powerful tool,
Not only are you creating a strong incentive for them to go to you, but you’re also creating the habit of them returning repeatedly over time.
Look for New Opportunities
The more open your opportunities, the more ways you can reach out to your customers. This can often be done by utilising experiential marketing. Experiential marketing is a marketing technique that allows your audience to engage in an experience with your brand.
This could be done in the form of pop-up shops, classes, or product demonstrations.
Grow Your Email List
Email lists are incredibly underrated, as they continue to be one form of marketing with the highest ROI. It’s important to grow your email list any way you can so you can create an ongoing conversation with your audience, whether it’s to share new content or simply notify them about an upcoming sale.
Use the Right Platforms
The right platforms can be essential tools in growing your business, as the more streamlined and organised you are the more you are freed up to focus on other areas.
We suggest trying platforms like Trello, Zapier, or Basecamp. You can also try platforms like UberConference or Skype four staying connected with employees in different locations.
Try Passive Incomes
Want to earn money while you sleep? Yeah, we thought you would. This is where passive income comes in. Passive income is earning money through a product, course, or service that pretty much sells itself. This could be in the form of an app, ebook, or course that has already been created.
The important thing about passive income is that you do the work once and profit from it again and again.
Hint: Funnel + Passive Income Product = Magic.
Create Original Content
So you’ve heard that content is king, but what does that even mean? Basically, it means that your audience will be most responsive to quality videos, articles, courses etc. The more content you can give them that can benefit their lives the better.
The key here is to make unique content in your area of expertise that creates brand trust and customer retention.
Try Speaking Events
Ready to get your name in front of the right audience? You can find plenty of new clients in your specific niche by simply speaking at the right speaking events.
Not only does appearing as a speaker demonstrate your knowledge on a subject, but it also gets you some great connections while introducing your brand to a large audience of people.
Join the Local Chambers of Commerce
The local chambers of commerce are great options four smaller businesses that want to grow their customers within the community. By being a part of the chambers of commerce you’ll receive more referrals, collaboration opportunities and learning experiences from business owners that may have been doing this longer than you have.
Utilise Surveys
While trying to figure out how to expand your business, customer feedback is incredibly valuable. By utilising surveys you don’t need to guess what your customers want, just let them tell you!
If you need to attach some kind of incentive to the surveys like a free product to get them filled out, do it! Some businesses pay millions of dollars for customer research because it’s that valuable!
Use Social Media
Have you heard that social media is a valuable tool, but you don’t even have a Facebook page open for your business? Well, it’s time to get on it. Facebook and social media pages are a great way to keep customers in the loop and familiarise potential customers with your brand.
From menus to reviews, there are a number of features that come with a Facebook business page that are valuable. If you don’t have time to manage a social media account, don’t worry. Platforms like Hootsuite can help do it for you.
Take it Step by Step
Growing a small business is less about one specific action and more about a series of actions repeatedly taken over time. The most important thing to remember is consistency.
If you’re going to try out a method, follow through on it. If it doesn’t work, investigate why it didn’t work and take that lesson over to your next effort.
Through consistently taking small steps, you will see your business gradually grow over time to the success you truly desire.
