Whether you are just starting in business and taking the first steps with a start-up firm or wanting to grow your small business into a medium-sized corporation, there are several strategies you must know.
Growing a business takes time, strategy, and significant amounts of effort to build a customer base, increase brand recognition and loyalty, and ensure repeat custom.
Whilst there is a range of strategies that can be applied to different industries to cultivate growth, there are also some universal methods that can be applied to most small businesses.
In this article, some of the key ways in which businesses both grow and consolidate their position will be discussed in detail. By following this advice, your business will have the tools and knowledge at its disposal to take the next steps to be a larger and more profitable concern.
Top 4 Pillars To Grow Your Business
Overview:
- Brand Development
- Secure IT Infrastructure
- Highly Motivated Staff
- Investigate Franchise Opportunities
1. Brand Development
In today’s world of business, all organizations need to have a distinctive and unique brand.
Corporate branding must send a consistent message across multiple touch points with similar styles and themes on main web pages, social media platforms, and other publicity materials.
Having consistent branding helps to promote brand recognition in the eyes of your customers and service users. This can be instrumental in driving brand loyalty and repeat custom.
An excellent brand is instantly recognizable to the public and in addition, its logo or moto conjures up a positive association with them. A good example is the car manufacturer Audi.
Most people (regardless of whether they are petrol heads or not) will recognize the distinctive Audio logo on a car bonnet and will subconsciously associate this brand with premium and performance cars.
This is a result of intelligent marketing, using Audi vehicles in motorsports competitions, and the positioning of the brand in general. A strong, positive, and consistent brand is imperative in business growth as it leads to brand preference in the eyes of customers, which means that they would choose your brand over a competitor when given the choice.
2. Secure IT Infrastructure
Having a secure IT infrastructure may not be high up on the lists of business owners and leaders who are looking to grow their business, but it is an integral part of any corporation’s ongoing business success.
It is worth noting that the effects of weak IT infrastructure can be disastrous for any business. A cyber attack can cost an average business $200,000 to rectify and can come in the form of malware attacks, viruses, phishing, and denials of service.
This significant amount of money can force the closure of smaller businesses whose budgets cannot cope with such a costly amount. All businesses should therefore undertake a thorough IT health check on an annual basis as a minimum precaution.
This will ensure that a comprehensive test and check of all IT systems are completed and any potential weak points in the system are identified. As well as the financial costs of cyber attacks, they can also negatively impact the public perception of a business and can damage the brand image in the eyes of consumers.
3. Highly Motivated Staff
It is a fact that highly motivated staff are an integral part of any successful business. A motivated staff is likely to work to the best of their ability and “go the extra mile” to ensure that the business functions effectively and corporate goals can be achieved.
Tasks may be completed quicker and in addition, high levels of motivation tend to unleash greater levels of creativity in the workforce which can help with solving complex problems more effectively.
When employee motivation is high it also has a knock-on effect of reducing employee churn. An organization that has a high employee churn rate will need to spend more money and resources on the recruitment of new employees. This can be a costly and time-consuming operation.
It is compounded by the fact that new employees are likely to be less knowledgeable about the firm and the best ways to approach tasks so expertise will need to be built up again over time.
4. Investigate Franchise Opportunities
One highly effective way to grow a business is to adopt a franchise model of operation. This is used most notably in the fast-food industry with companies such as McDonald’s, Burger King, and KFC all adopting this business practice.
Franchising is when individuals are given the branding, premises, and products of an established company to sell themselves. In return, they give an agreed amount back to the company in the form of franchise fees and royalties.
In all spheres of business, this can be one of the most effective ways to grow your customer base and reach new markets quickly.
In Conclusion
Brand development, a secure IT infrastructure, highly motivated staff, and considering franchise Topportunities are all highly effective ways to grow your business.
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