I was delighted to read that the number of number of new businesses created across the UK hit a record high last year, according to figures published yesterday, with the 581,173 registered at Companies House beating the previous high of 526,446 in 2013.
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/business/news/number-of-new-uk-businesses-hits-record-high-in-2014-9958879.htmlIn
That’s all well and good, but what are the business growth strategies which companies can deploy post their-set up?
Growing your business isn’t an aspirational goal; growing your business is an absolute necessity for your business’s survival and your economic well-being.
What can you do to get your business beyond mere sustenance level? Here are 5 Top Tips for growing your business that have been used successfully by other companies and with some planning and investment, will work for you too.
1. Penetrate your existing market
The first thing that comes to mind when thinking of growing your business is getting new customers.
But the customers you already have are your best bet for increasing your sales. It’s easier and more cost effective to get people who are already buying from you to buy more than to find new customers and persuade them to buy from you.
2. Extend your market reach
There are several ways of growing your business by making your product or service available to a new pool of customers.
The most obvious is to open stores in new locations, such as opening a store or kiosk in a new town or in a complimentary company’s location.
New locations can also be virtual, such as a website with an online store.
Another approach is to extend your reach through advertising. Once you’ve identified a new market, you might advertise in selected media that specifically targets that market.
3. Be a niche player
Remember the analogy of a big fish in a small pond?
That’s essentially how this strategy for growing your business works. The niche market is the pond, with a narrowly defined group of customers.
Think of them as a subset whose needs are not being met by the broader market and concentrate on targeting those unmet needs.
A PR company for instance, might chose to specialise in politicians.
4. Contain your costs
Keep in mind that growing your business actually involves growing your bsuiness’s bottom line.
And the difference between pre-tax and post-tax money can make this a very affective growth strategy.
There are two main approaches to cutting costs: liquidating your ‘loser’ products/services and improving your inventory turnover.
5. Diversity products/services
The key to successfully growing your business through diversification is similarity.
You want to focus on the related needs of your already established market or on market segments with similar needs and characteristics.
For example, an artist might also sell frames and framing services.
Or a boat business might switch to renting out jet skis during the summer season.
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