How to grow your business in 10 months without an expert’s opinion
There is no sure-fire recipe for immediate success, but you can accelerate your business with discipline and hard work. When you start your business, your main goal is to build your brand and it takes a lot of patience and dedication. There is no secret way to outperform other companies in the industry who have been here before you. However, there are proven ways to achieve growth milestones that can catapult your business to success.
In my opinion 10 months is what it takes for your business to make its place and have a name for itself. But a lot of work needs to be put forward by you in those 10 months, especially when you want to organically grow it on your own without an expert’s opinion. An expert’s opinion is obviously a better option but with proper research and hard work you can achieve your goals without an expert guiding you.
In this article we discuss some points that anyone planning to start a business or planning to bring his business to the modern digital world.
Simplify your business
It is important you know what your customers usually buy from you. This way you can keep it simple for them and sell them what they usually want. Get rid of sales that don’t bring you profit or never sell.
Always keep data of your sales so that it helps you analyse and get a better picture. Use the data whenever possible to help you make decisions, and be prepared to cut costs that are too expensive.
Hire the right people
You cannot run a business alone, you will need to hire people to help you with better management and sales. Before you can even think about your company’s growth trajectory, you need to have a solid staff to help you achieve your goals.
Your sales are directly proportional to the efficiency of your employees. They need to be driven in order for your business to excel. At the same time it is important you have a good relationship with them so you can lead and motivate them to give you their best. They need to know that your #1 rule of business is to provide a good customer experience.
Bring your business online
Online market is not only IN but also very profitable in today’s time. If you are a business that is willing to provide services or sell your products online you need to start with creating a profile on Google Business.If you have a brick and mortar location, make sure you’ve claimed your business on Google.
Google Business helps you bring your business online and it guides the customers your way when they make a search for you online. Details like your website, Instagram page, Facebook page, your shop location, contact number, reviews etc are all shared which helps you to connect with your customer but also leads the customer to trust your business and believe it’s authentic.
Encourage your partner to take risks
Encourage your partner to take calculated risks. Some of them will work, some won’t. If you only bet on what you believe will work, you may win, but you will likely miss many opportunities to generate good income.
Risk is part of growth, playing safe might guarantee you profit but it won’t be much, for your business to reach new heights you have to be ready to take risks.
Keep your team motivated
Reward your team for meeting budgets and deadlines. Give them bonuses when you have had a good sale, pay them on time, always be in the loop with them, understand the problems they are facing at work and resolve them. Conversely, don’t punish them for errors. Encourage employees to discover a more effective approach to their tasks, rather than relying on routine.
Be adaptable
A common feature of many successful startups is the ability to quickly change direction in response to market changes. It is important to be flexible in both product and business development.
Some ideas might work and some won’t but to reach new heights you have to stay open minded and welcome ideas that are outside your comfort zone. Be eager to learn something new if it helps your business grow.
Prioritize customer experience
Customer perception can help or damage your business. Provide your customers quality experiences and products, and they will praise you quickly on social media; spoil it and they will tell the world even faster. Rapid growth depends on how satisfied your current and potential customers are with the experience.
Always focus on the customer experience. Your customer support team needs to top notch when it comes to handling the customer. Always listen to them and assist them. Even if your team messes up, listening to the customer and resolving the issue can still lead the customer to give you another chance.
Maintain your store
It’s all about how you present yourself. Be it a physical store or your online store (i.e your website or social media handles). Everything should be organized so the customer can easily find what they are looking for. Categorize your products, mention your best sellers and have a detailed description of your product. Keep it simple or go for aesthetics, do what works but make an effort to attract your customer.
Don’t forget your suppliers
Always maintain a good relationship with your suppliers. Just because they are not on your payroll doesn’t mean they wont help you. Take good care of them and they might help you out for no extra charge or would understand if you are late with your payments. Your business also depends on their services so make sure there is good communication and mutual respect between you and the supplier.
Earn to support your business in the early stages
If you want to start a small business, don’t quit your daily work – just yet. Make plans and execute them in your own time. You will need to earn to support your business in the start. When profits flow in maybe then you can leave your job
Launching a successful startup is a process. Build your business in stages and gradually move from employee to entrepreneur. It is a lot of work but it is a step towards success.
Your marketing should be clear
Simplify your marketing message. When you reach out to your customer to advertise your product, be clear and meaningful. Your message should lead the customer to choose you over your competitors.
Test different methods to approach your customer through messages, calls and emails. Try to send a message that solves the problem and encourages action.
Create a business plan
Each company should have a unique business toolkit, it should include:
- A business plan to keep you on track to avoid setbacks
- A marketing plan to secure your company’s presence in the marketplace and build a loyal customer base
- Employee guide to keep staff informed, statement on the company’s principles and compliance with labor law
- Accounting software that allows you to generate current financial reports at the push of a button to track all activities
- Computers, computer networks and IT infrastructure with a qualified IT team
- A creative marketing team to work on your ads and posts on social media and newspapers.
Plan offers and giveaways
Give away something of value to your customers. Be it on your website, at the billing desk or a surprise in the packaging. Doesn’t matter if it is free to you, but it has to be valuable to your customers.
Offers like Buy 1 get 1, 30-50% off, clearance sale etc are very attractive to the customers. It not only boosts your sales but also helps you get rid of products that one would not buy at its selling price. It also puts a word for your store if marketed properly.
Attend start up convocations
If you are a new business, take part in networking events like start up convocations to showcase your product. Networking events allow you to connect with like-minded people, many of whom have unique perspectives and ideas that can help your business grow. The connections and relationships that come from attending networking events can be rewarding for many years.
Study your competitors
People may regard it as something to avoid, but a little healthy competition is what keeps us going. Whether you are an established business or a start up, it’s always good to keep an eye out, not hate but to learn and make changes. Look at the good ones to learn what to do and look at the bad ones to learn what not to do. Knowing what your competitors are and what they offer can help you diversify your products, services, and marketing. While it may not cause immediate growth, investigating competition is one of the most important first steps in starting a business. Ask yourself who your competitors are, what they do and how it is different from what you do, what works for them, and how you can tell your business from theirs.
Here are some extra points for you to keep always keep in mind:
- Provide good service but also charge for it
● Promote your business consistently
- Be a solution
- Become a trusted advisor in your industry.
- Start Building an Email List from Day 1
- Plan a Content Marketing Strategy
- Be financially fit
In the end all i want to say is that it is tough to start a business and grow it without any professional advice but it is not impossible. As long as we are eager to learn we can do anything. The most important part of running a successful business is providing a good customer experience.
Also always be kind to your employees, don’t be a boss, be a leader. Be someone they listen to and not just have to listen to. Take risks, if you have second doubts then take a calculated one, but do take risks as only those who risk make it big, at life and in business.
We all know the phrase “Rome wasn’t built in a day”and it’s true. You can create something beautiful overnight, it takes time, patience, hard work, support, careful planning and then a proper execution. During all this always, and i say always stay positive, only your mentality towards your business will make it or break it.