Move your firm from start-up to growth....
Starting a business is one of the most exciting endeavors you could ever undertake, but starting is the easy part. The challenge comes when you begin to seek ways of growing your small business. Often the challenges and seeming road blocks you encounter can cause your excitement to quickly fizzle out and cause you to second guess why you started the business in the first place.
This article offers three important steps that owners make take to easily move towards successfully growing their business and achieving the success they desire.
1. Make sure your company's purpose is not just based on making money.
It is necessary that in the start-up phase, you have a purpose that seeks to bring value to your customers. Most entities that succeed focus on serving their customers. This concept is often overlooked, but it is one of great importance because when you have a focus of serving your customers, it forces you to listen to them and take their needs and wants into consideration.
2. Have a plan or strategy detailing the steps needed in growing your small business.
Many individuals skip this important step, assuming it will be too time consuming or require a professional to do this step for them. If you write a plan that focuses on the three items listed below, at minimum, you will have all the plan you will need for now. You can make modifications to it as you go along. The primary focus of your plan should include:
* Product/Service - benefits, pricing, distribution channels, etc.
*Customers - target market, their needs and wants, how to reach them, etc.
* Operations - production, staff needs, accounting, etc.
3. Get the appropriate knowledge or skillset through self-education or hiring experts who can help your enterprise succeed.
Business growth is very closely tied to your skillset as a business owner. Expanding your business skills and having a plan for obtaining additional training in areas that relate to your business will benefit you in the following ways:
* Allows your company to stay agile when faced with challenges
* Assures that your company remains relevant in changing times
* Helps you to modify or create products/services that stay aligned with consumer preferences
Some other blog articles that may interest you are:
5 Steps to Protecting the Assets of Your Small Business
