10 Ways to Grow Your Business

Starting and growing a business can be really exciting, but it definitely comes with its fair share of challenges. If you’re a startup wanting to grow or a well-established company looking to take the next step, there are some key actions you can take to reach your goals.

In this article, we’re going to share ten key steps to help you grow your business successfully.

10 Ways to Grow Your Business

Now that you’re all set to take your business to the next level. You will have secured your customers, assembled your team to support you, and conducted a thorough financial analysis. 

But there’s something nagging at you: do you really need to put out plenty of cash to grow your business?

Growing your business doesn’t have to rely on capital or your financial resources. There are plenty of ways to grow your business using what you already have without putting a strain on your finances.

Here are 10 tips on how to grow your business in an affordable and smart way.

1. Start with a business plan for growth

The first thing you need to know is that many of the tips in this article can help you grow your business. So, does that mean you should go ahead and use all of them? No way! The growth of a small business really depends on a unique mix of factors that vary for each one.

If you try everything, you might just end up with nothing at all.

Instead, start with the basics:

• Draft a business strategy for the expansion you hope to achieve. Take a look at your original business plan and goals.
• Then, create a comparison list that shows where you started and what steps you need to take to reach your desired destination.

Having a solid strategy is essential for making growth happen. If you’re not clear on what you want for your business growth, you might find yourself experimenting or making changes that actually go against your growth goals. 

2. Do your market research

Next up, let’s talk about how you can make smart choices for your business’s growth shape. Make sure to do plenty of research.

Check out articles, tune into podcasts, search for trend forecasts in your industry or the upcoming year, and chat with business owners who have been in a similar spot.

Reaching out to the small company owner community will help you identify any gaps in growth spending. Some people might have gone through that, but it can help you steer clear of it.

Collecting data is super useful to ensure you’re not overspending on growth when it’s not necessary.

3. Take care of your existing clients and customer base

Ensuring the satisfaction of your current customers and clients is a cost-effective strategy for business growth. When focusing on growth, people often overlook retention. It’s important to remember your early supporters when trying to attract new customers.

Take care of your customers and clients at every interaction; it’s a budget-friendly way to improve your business growth.

4. Use social media

Next on the list is the use of social media. Every business needs to have a social media presence. That’s just how things are these days!

But how you actually use social media is a different story.

Businesses have the opportunity to create their own content and engage with social media to improve brand awareness, share product info, and provide customer service. You really don’t have to spend any money responding to customers effectively and efficiently on Instagram.

This is definitely one of the easiest and most budget-friendly ways to grow your brand. If you’re up for it, some tools can really help with social media growth down the line.

But honestly, you can handle most of it yourself through organic traffic. Stay responsive, get creative, and share posts regularly to keep your customers engaged online.

5. Automate time-consuming procedures and tasks

Can we use automation to replace the time we spend on manual tasks? Imagine automating some of the most taxing, time-consuming tasks in your calendar to free up your time or that of another employee.

Investing in systems and tools can save you time and money while letting you focus on other areas of growth.

Imagine all the possibilities if you had a tool like Homebase to handle scheduling your employees’ shifts, tracking their hours for wages and pay, and even filing taxes for you.

There are numerous tools available for businesses that promote growth and are cost-effective.

6. Organize strategic partnerships with other business owners and influencers

Partnering up with other business owners or influencers is a super effective way to grow your business and connect with new customers or clients. Check out businesses or people in your field who might be interested in teaming up with you.

If you think someone would be a fantastic brand ambassador for your product or business, go ahead and reach out to influencers on social media!

7. Provide incentives for customer referrals

Your customers can really be your best brand ambassadors. When your customers are happy, they’ll share with others just how awesome your business is.

How about offering them a little discount on their next purchase if they refer someone to your business? It could be a nice incentive!

8. Invest in sustainability and corporate social responsibility

These days, buyers really care about corporate social responsibility and sustainability.

For example, according to a joint McKinsey and NielsenIQ study on sustainability statements, businesses that made such claims grew by 28% over the previous five years compared to those that did not.

Demonstrating your commitment to these issues will foster the growth of your company. Even if your business isn’t quite ready to make a big financial investment, it doesn’t mean you can’t still make a positive impact on your community or the planet as a whole.

Why not turn your place into a drop-off spot for clothing donations to send to a secondhand shop?

You could also collect food for those in need and take it to a local community centre. Why not suggest to your customers that they bring their reusable bags?

And if they forget, you could have some for sale right there!

Taking these small steps toward sustainable living can really make a difference for your customers and the growth of your business.

9. Provide exceptional client or customer service

We all know that customer or client service is super important for a business to succeed, but let’s highlight that here. Your customers really are your best advocates.

Getting support through word-of-mouth is still super important. Put customer or client service at the top of your list for you and your team.

This usually involves using soft skills and crafting a unique, memorable experience for your customers. You don’t have to spend any money to make sure you’re taking care of your customers’ needs.

10. Measure the success of your business plan often

Finally, let’s head back to the start—once more. Check out your growth business plan regularly.

You should have growth benchmarks and check if you’re meeting them or falling behind. If you’ve been able to allocate additional time to other aspects of your business without incurring additional costs, it’s a wise strategy to maintain your growth without going over budget.