Expanding a small business can be a daunting task. You may hear advice such as, “Grow quickly,” “Become Viral,” or “Automate Everything,” but when you’re busy dealing with cash flow, customers, and managing daily operations, these strategies won’t help you much. Rather, true sustainable growth comes from creating a structure of steady, well-focused, and repeatable strategies that build on each other.
The following list contains proven small business expansion strategies that work because they have been implemented successfully in real-world situations and not just based on exaggerated claims.
1. Identify Your Ideal Customer
Many small businesses make the mistake of trying to attract everyone as customers. Creating an “all things to all people” type of advertising does not support efforts to grow a small business, but rather promotes focus.
Instead of considering how to get more new customers, small businesses should be considering these three important characteristics of their highest income-producing customer(s):
- Which customers continue to buy from your company with the least amount of resistance (e.g., minimal hassle with purchasing)?
- What customers have the most satisfied customer history and continue to refer new customers to your company?
- What is my most preferred way of reaching my target audience to get maximum exposure (e.g., advertising, social media, etc.)?
Once you identify the core customer for your small business, you can create everything related to the business around your highest income-producing customer’s needs:
- Messaging (advertising)
- Product or service features
- Pricing
- Distribution/Marketing
By clearly defining your offer to meet the needs of your ideal customer, the likelihood of converting customers will significantly increase. Clarity in a message is always more effective than quantity.
Action step: Analyze the last 20 new customers to identify trends related to industry, purchasing behavior, price range, and reasons for purchase.
2. Focus on Retention before Generating New Leads
Business owners pay a premium to acquire new customers, however retaining existing customers is typically quicker and cheaper than.
The majority of small business focus on generating new leads rather than –
- Follow up with clients
- Onboarding
- Customer success
- Post purchase engagement
Increasing retention by 5 to 10 percent or more could yield significant increases to your bottom line, without additional ad spend.
Some methods of increasing retention include:
- Establishing an onboarding process that is clear and easy to understand, so that customers understand how to get started.
- Establish a method of proactively checking in with your customers to ensure they are satisfied.
- Encouraging repeat purchases through loyalty programs or incentives for repeat clients.
- Request and actively respond to feedback received from customers.
Customers that are satisfied will spend more, will complain less, and will market your business for you at no expense.
Action step: Determine how and at what point your customers are dropping off, and correct the issues prior to adding additional marketing dollars.
3. Create One Stable Acquisition Channel
When companies try to establish themselves on multiple platforms, they experience what we call “stalled growth.” Posting across all social media sites, running all forms of ads, and attempting every method at your disposal results in burnout and dismal performance metrics.
Instead, find one reliable acquisition channel:
- Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
- Email Marketing
- Word of Mouth/Referral Marketing
- Paid Advertising
- Partnership Marketing
- Social Media Marketing (pick a single platform to focus on)
Once you have established a successful acquisition channel, then you can branch out with additional channels.
Deep mastery on one channel will deliver more consistent results than medium level success across five different channels.
To determine which acquisition channel is best, measure where you acquire your most qualified leads from and invest in that channel for the next 90 days (and beyond).
Action step: Track where your best leads currently come from and double down there for the next 90 days.
4. Price for Longevity vs. Fears
Many owners of Small Businesses underprice their services/products out of fear of:
- Losing business
- Competition
- Being Thought of as Too Expensive
When prices are low, customers tend to be lower commitment and margins are extremely thin which creates a barrier to growth.
Sustainable pricing:
- Reflective of the value you are giving the customer
- Comfortably absorbs the costs to deliver value to customers
- Enables you to reinvest back into the business
Raising Your Price-Even a Small Amount-Can Create Immediate Increase in Profit and No Extra Work on the Owner’s Part
Action step: Consider a modest price increase or test a premium tier for your higher value customers.
5. Create Systems That Work
Chaos is created by Growth Without Systems. If your entire business relies on you for everything, your level of stress will increase as you grow.
Start A Document of
- Sales Process,
- Customer onboarding
- Fulfillment
- How to Respond to Customer Support Requests
You do not need to use fancy software. A simple checklist or template, along with a Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) is sufficient.
Benefits of a System:
- Less Errors
- More Time Saved
- Easier To Hire
- Consistent Delivery
You Cannot Scale a Process That Only Exists In Your Head.
Action step: Document one process this week that is repeatable then refine the process as you implement it.
6. Use the Numbers to Help You Make Decisions (the Right Numbers)
You do not require a complex analytical dashboard; you just need to pay attention to the correct numbers.
The Numbers to Track:
- Cost to Acquire Customers
- Average Order Value
- Customer Lifespan
- Conversion Rates
- Churn / Repeat Purchases
Using Numbers Will Remove The Emotion From Your Decisions. Instead of Taking a Guess, You Will Know What Works.
Action step: Determine Which 3 Numbers Are Most Important To Your Business. Review Them Weekly.
7. Use Strategic Partnerships
You Can Create New Opportunities Through Partnership. Strategic Partners Provide Expansion Opportunities at No Cost , Much Larger Audience Access Without The Need For Expensive Marketing Agendas.
A Good Target Partnerships Will:
- Target Same Customer / Market Segment
- Provide Complementary Services (Rather Than Competing)
- Provide Both Beneficial To Each Party (Complementary Services)
Examples of Strategic Partnerships:
- Web Designer and Copywriter
- Fitness Coach / Nutritionist
- Café and Local Businesses
Partnerships Allow Faster Build Up Of Trust Than Advertising Because They Have Built-In Credibility.
Action step: Identify Potential Partner; Propose To Work Together On Creating A Partnership Agreement.
8. Invest in Brand Trust Rather Than Just Brand Awareness/Visibility
Brand Awareness/Visibility Alone Does Not Increase Sales Conversions. If Your Customers Do Not Trust Your Brand Then They Will Be Less Likely To Make A Purchase From You.
Grow Customer Trust In Your Company By:
- Staying Consistent In Your Messaging
- Establishing A Clear Positioning Statement
- Acquiring Social Proof (Reviews/Testimonials/Case Studies)
- Providing Transparency Regarding Your Company’s Prices And Processes
People Purchase The Product They Trust Rather Than The Best Product.
Action step: Gather Your Real Customers’ Testimonials And Include Them On Your Website/Marketing Materials/Promotions.
9. Delegate Sooner Than You Think is the Lesson Learned
Ultimately, trying to do everything yourself leads to bottlenecks in your business.
Delegating does not necessarily mean that you have to hire someone full-time right away, it can mean hiring the following:
- Freelancers
- Virtual Assistant(s)
- Part-Time Contractors
- Automation Tools
By delegating and freeing up your time, you are able to concentrate on the following:
- Growth
- Strategic Relationships
Action step: Identify what tasks you perform that are outside of your areas of expertise and delegate at least one of them this month.
10. Commit to Consistency Over Perfection
The companies that grow in size and success are not necessarily better than other companies, rather the companies that grow with established growth goals and provide consistent service to their clients are the most successful.
Growth is achieved through:
- Regular appearance
- Incremental improvement
- Feedback
- Patience
Most of the time, growth strategies fail not because they do not work, but because they are not given enough time to develop.
Action step: Select one growth initiative and commit to doing it consistently for 90 days.
Final Thoughts
Growth for businesses will not be achieved through shortcuts or hacks, but by being clear on your goals, creating systems, focusing on them, and executing them consistently.
Prioritizing customer retention while confidently pricing your products/services and establishing trust with potential customers will make growing your business predictable.
