Obstacles to Avoid if You Want to Grow Your Business
Growing pains in a new small business are to be expected; and, can seem like a never-ending process.
Or, maybe your business isn’t new, but you’ve lost that loving feeling for your business. The passion which propelled you to start your business in the first place can quickly become squelched by over extending your resources and time.
With the right balance and patience you can ride the waves through the good seasons and bad, and make it past the typical five-year mark for business survival.
“About half of all new establishments survive five years or more and about one-third survive 10 years or more. As one would expect, the probability of survival increases with a firm’s age. Survival rates have changed little over time.” – U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, BED
There is an upside to all of this, and with several techniques you can stay ahead of the game and turn your obstacles into stepping stones of achievement. With a well-laid out plan your business can smooth out the rough edges as long as your expectations are realistic and within your financial budget. Whatever problems your business may be experiencing right now there are several ways you can get back on track and become more successful.
Here are some key areas to focus on in your success strategy:
● Knowledge is power – Decide today to make the most important investment and that is – you. Take time to join webinars, conduct research in your niche, attend offline classes, and learn from successful business mentors. Start with the most important element needed to move your business forward and work your way up from there. This education is priceless, and helps you better define the mission of your company.
● Tap into freelance resources and outsource – Are you finding that you do not have enough time in your day to do all the things that you need to do? Your business may be running you instead of vice versa. The goal is to make the time to build, not just manage your company. Try out some really great resources online to accomplish tasks that are taking you away from the important things such as sales calls, lead nurturing, ect. Take a moment and evaluate the areas you could let go to someone else who can accomplish the job quickly and efficiently.
● Use online tools – Take advantage of the many free and paid resources available for businesses and entrepreneurs without having to spend a ton of money on expensive professional services. Your business could be creating business cards, social media memes and graphics, management your marketing, and more. For example, Canva has a host of pre-made templates for business and marketing graphics. Google Docs is a free way to create reports, presentations, and spreadsheets. Depending on your niche research the right tools that could be useful for you. A simple Google search can take you to a number of resources, like this example for a search for tools for web designers 2015:
● Tap into LinkedIn for new leads – As your business starts out the process of building subscribers and leads can be slow, but LinkedIn can help as one of the fastest growing social networks for individuals and businesses. By participating in professional groups and connecting with like-minded individuals you can quickly start building a lead base and attract subscribers to your website. It’s important to have a good optin set up on your homepage to capture your leads with a follow up system in email services like Mailchimp, Constant Contact, Aweber or Infusionsoft.
With focus, planning, and knowledge your business can move from stagnant to profitable, and when done efficiently, you will have more time left over to build. It’s important to assess your current issues and discover the areas that are most vital to improve upon first. Remember that this is a day by day process and to celebrate your successes no matter how small.
Susan Gilbert
Latest posts by Susan Gilbert (see all)
- 12 SEO, Digital Marketing Automation, and Live Chat and Chatbot Tools - January 24, 2023
- 12 Time-Saving Blogging, Newsletter Creation, and SaaS Tools - November 29, 2022
- 12 Customer Communication, Instagram Brand Reach, and AI Marketing Plan Tools - October 25, 2022
