7 Tips On How To Grow Your Startup

Do you have a start up you’re trying to grow? Here are some great tips to make the most of it and get it’s name out there.

1.Research

Understanding the market is crucial when figuring out how to grow your small or budding business. It gives you a better picture of the customers, and you can find potential ones to help your company grow. Therefore, learn about your target market and the needs they need addressing. It will inform you on the areas to focus on that will ensure your growth efforts align with those needs.

And while at it, remember to check out the competition. Discover their strengths and weaknesses to know how to make better decisions that scale up your businesses to be advantageous.

2.Create A Sales Funnel

Sales funnels can be a hand strategy to take your business to the next level. The funnels give you insights into the customers. They are taken to the top of the funnel whenever they visit the business website and will have gone through the funnel successfully with a purchase or sign-up.

Develop ways to help move customers up the funnel when driving a sale. Do it even when requesting their contacts, sending them updates/newsletters, or offering a discount.

3.Increase Customer Retention

Getting new customers is essential in growing the business, but more is needed. It would be best if you also found ways of retaining them by making them come back. Increasing customer retention helps establish loyalty, and this turns into more sales.

According to statistics, getting a new customer costs five times more than keeping the existing one, especially since it is never guaranteed that the person will make a purchase. Hence, it means your company will not lose money on something likely not to give any returns on investment.

Some of the strategies you can implement that help increase customer retention include:

• Prioritizing Customer Service: Treat your customers right, and they will respond in kind by supporting your business. Ensure you listen to their concerns, address their needs and offer the best experience. Such measures show them that your business values its customers.
• Investing In CRM Systems: CRM (Customer Relations Management) systems are designed to help manage customer information with potential and existing customers, leveraging the data to increase sales. The information is kept in a secure place accessible by all employees with valid authorization.
• Creating A Customer Loyalty Program: They are reward programs that can help increase or grow your customer base by rewarding people who support the business by purchasing your goods or services. You also can use loyalty programs to attract new customers or gain the ones who left.
• Launching An Email Campaign: Email campaigns are designed to get the word out to the market, helping your company be on customers’ minds. Furthermore, you can leverage it to push customers through sales funnels.
• Engaging With Customers On Social Media: Being active on social media is essential because customers might reach out to your company via social media to share feedback, complaints, or ask questions regarding your business. So, take the time to engage with them. Respond to their queries and who them that you take their concerns and opinions seriously.

Honor Your Word: If you promise a customer something, do it; it could be an assurance that you will do a follow-up or contact them with more information. Failure to honor your word give customers a negative impression of you and your business.

4.Participate In Networking Events

Networking helps your business get noticed. It is an effective way of increasing brand visibility and attracting more customers. Therefore, identify and attend networking events relevant to your business or industry. Link with various local organizations and register with several professional events. It could help shine the spotlight on your business.

Some tips on taking an active interest and participating in events include:

• Putting up a promo booth with wall vinyls to advertise your business
• Meeting with other business owners and attending professional occasions with other industry players
• Speaking as an industry expert

5. Practice Corporate Social Responsibility

People prefer doing business with companies that match their values. It is a fact that calls for businesses to invest in CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility). Companies that understand and value CSR can relate to their impact on different aspects of the community. Moreover, CSR gives the public a better picture of what your business does in ensuring it positively impacts the community, which benefits the company’s bottom line.

Top CSR practices worth emulating include:

Going Green: Running your business to ensure it is eco-friendly can bolster its reputation. It involves more than reducing utility costs. It can also get a business in the news. Do everything you can to show your customers and the community you want to reduce your environmental impact. Make changes in the business that lower its carbon footprint. Prioritizing energy-efficient projects and getting LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certification are steps in the right direction.

Giving Back To The Community: Encourage your staff to participate in community volunteer programs. It can be cleaning up public spaces or running a disaster response campaign. Such activities help show the public that your company is serious about the area it is in and is ready to invest in the community’s well-being.

Producing Sustainable Products: Research the changes in your production materials and processes that can help you develop more eco-friendly products.

6.Form Strategic Partnerships

A strategic partnership with an investor or another business can be a platform that propels your growth objectives. It can broaden your network and connect you with new customers. A successful example of such partnerships is between Starbucks and Target, Barnes & Noble, and other national stores, putting their coffee shops into retail stores nationwide. The strategy increases Starbucks’ reach and revenue pool.

Overall, get into the partnership to expand your business. Ensure that you have a firm grip on how you manage business relationships. Maintaining mutual and effective relationships with various vendors should be a top priority.

7.Consider Franchising Your Small Business

Small businesses that want steady growth can turn to franchising. It is a strategy in which they sell the business’ rights to the franchisor (independent owner) and then open and operate their business under the franchisor’s business system. Marriot Hotels, Dominos, Starbucks, and Mcdonalds are well-known companies that attribute their growth and success to franchising. It is a business model that helps increase your business locations, opening more sale opportunities therein increasing your revenue.

However, it is wise to find out if you can franchise your business before agreeing to sell its rights. Franchising is a business model that works best in some industries, like health fitness businesses and fast-food restaurants.