Rapid business growth is a critical motivator for business owners. Bare Metrics mentions that businesses should be aiming for a value between 15% and 45% in year-over-year business growth. However, these numbers seem pretty unattainable when you’ve first started the business off. For the first few months, you’re probably going to be operating in the red. Profits might not even begin to roll in until well after the initial start.
In some cases, this never happens, and the business fails to get off the ground. It’s always better to aim for the sky when it comes to business. However, to do so requires the business owner to be dedicated, motivated, and determined to make growth happen. How does a business owner do that? Let’s explore some of the ways that entrepreneurs can help their businesses grow rapidly.
Take Time to Consider Aspects of the Company
Communication first starts with understanding. The growth and development of a business idea begin with outlining the concept to appeal to investors. A proper business plan should focus on every aspect of the business, from its supply to its core demographics and market competition. Ideally, you’d spend a bit of time brainstorming what questions investors are likely to ask. If you’re not new to the world of startups, you’ve probably heard most of those questions before. However, if you’re only just getting started, some of those questions might seem strange. Some business owners rehearse their answers, but the best thing to do is develop a firm foundation of the business’s practices and use that to convince investors of its merit.
Investors are less likely to invest in a business that isn’t tangible to them. The more concrete you can make your idea short of building it out yourself, the better off you’ll be when investors start asking hard questions. Sometimes, investors will see merit in your vision, but not you as a business owner and innovator. This approach helps you to exude confidence in any investor interview.
Invest in Resources Early On
What do you need to get your business off the ground? Any component of the company, from manufacturing equipment to office space and materials, should already be acquired before your business starts operating. No matter how small your business is, these elements are crucial to producing a high-quality product. Smaller companies especially can’t compete with larger ones on sheer volume. Their selling point is not quantity but quality. As a small business, you want to ensure that the quality of the product you develop far surpasses what the larger competitors may provide. Unfortunately, many new business owners go for mediocrity, waiting for the initial profit to invest into a better system. Unfortunately, this leads to a loss of consumer confidence and might even sink the business.
There is a line between overspending and underspending. The best way to ensure you don’t do either is to ask yourself whether your business really needs this to function. If it’s not a core aspect of the company, it can probably wait until later. However, if you need to have this element in your business, spending the money now may help you save money in the long run. Determining the drivers of business growth as far as infrastructure is as vital as figuring out how to acquire these things. Since the pandemic, many companies have shifted focus to working online, meaning less physical equipment but more focus on digital security and software. This shift might be a blessing in disguise since working remotely requires fewer resources from the home company.
Don’t Forget Marketing
Businesses, especially startups, believe that people will automatically know their product exists if they build something good. While word-of-mouth is a viable marketing strategy, it only works if there’s an abundance of “mouths.” Marketing is about spreading the news about the business to areas where it will generate the most interest. Clearly, marketing for a small company can’t take up hundreds of thousands of dollars in the budget. However, the internet age has given businesses a way to market that reduces cost while maximizing impact on business growth. Inc. mentions that content marketing can drive more social and search engine traffic if done correctly.
There’s no need to expend thousands on print and electronic media anymore. A company with the extra marketing budget could take a chance on those outreach methods, but that same funding could go a much longer way in doing content marketing to draw users to the company’s online presence. Social media is a godsend for the business growth of smaller companies, and a few digital channels like LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter can make a world of difference to a company’s visibility.
Get a Professional Accountant
This suggestion might sound a bit strange, but doing the books yourself as a business owner gets complicated really quickly. Many small business owners teach themselves the rudiments of accounting to get by. In mom-and-pop retail stores, this might be sufficient to deal with everyday transactions. However, in a startup environment, especially one with a global presence on the internet, money will quickly spiral into an untamable beast. Professional accountants can help the business by keeping track of its expenses but also by ensuring the company remains tax compliant. If the IRS comes knocking for an audit, you’d realize how vital having a professional accountant running your books can be.
Set Solid Goals
Businesses without goals are like boats without a rudder – they’re likely to be spinning in circles and getting nowhere fast. It’s a tired cliché to many people in the industry to set up a mission and vision statement, but they help the business find its direction and its sources of long-term business growth. Companies, like people, need to have something to strive for. This goal helps to define how the business functions and to what end it does what it does. Starting a business is a massive undertaking, but it’s not nearly as complex as some people make it out to be. If you’re interested in registering your own LLC to start a business, you can get some additional details here. Don’t be afraid to start something new – it might re-invigorate your spirit.
