As an online business owner, you might have heard a lot about growth. You know, the “magic” word that will bring your business back to life? growth. You might have read that shrinking your business is a sure path to bankruptcy. Or maybe it was just something you heard over and over again… in the marketing world, “you can’t grow your business if you don’t spend time growing yourself.” Whatever the case may be, for many owners of small businesses, it’s a message they’re deafened by. Eduardo Mello/Getty Images When businesses first appear on the Internet, many small startups run out of resources to begin growing their businesses. But as they become more successful and hire more staff members, they realize they have much more than they imagined when they first started thinking about starting their businesses.
What makes a business grow?
The root of many companies’ problems lies in a lack of leadership. If you’ve failed to lead your business growth, then what can you do to make it succeed? The core of growth is having the “the ability to change direction,” which is exactly what a business owner needs to do. To grow, a business needs to change directions, either positive or negative, with the changes resulting in growth. The ability to change directions is what makes a business grow. If you can’t change directions, then a business will remain the same size regardless of how many employees it has.
The six pillars of growth
The foundation of any business is a strong foundation of customer service. Customer service is the backbone of any online business and can be the difference between survival and bankruptcy. If you can’t provide it, then how can your competitors? If you provide great customer service, you are building a loyal customer base. What’s even more amazing is that your customers will continue to purchase your products even after you go out of business.
Create great products and services
Product design and marketing strategy are the bane of any business owner’s existence. It’s a task that gets more difficult with each new business type. How do you decide what products to market and what messages to send out? You end up with a giant brochure with half-measure goals and impossibleasking clients. Marketers and business owners must have dedicated time for product design and marketing. The only way to create great products and services is to prioritize the following:
- Products and services that are needed for survival
- Products and services that can be used to survive
Create great customer service
Customer service is what builds a business. Without it, you will either not exist or fall prey to the threats that arise from without. It can seem like an impossible task. How do you respond to customer service inquiries, complaints, and complaints about your company? The best way to respond is to hire experienced customer service professionals who are well suited to the job. This way, you do not have to start from scratch and will have someone who can help you from day one. People who care about their customers will work hard for their jobs. If they don’t have a big enough paycheck to pay for their time, they will take any chance they get to help a customer. A great example of great customer service is when a customer asks if they can drop off an item at the store. If the store does not have enough employees to handle the demand, then the customer will ask their friends or family members to drop off the item. If the store does have enough employees to handle the demand, then the customer will be more than happy to drop off their item.
Diversify your business model
There are many strategies to build a successful online business. There are many owners who have a one-size-fits-all business model that works fine for one business, but not so well for another. If you have a two-size-fits-all business model, then you can easily end up with a business that is too big or too small for your customers. To avoid this fate, it’s better to have a diversified business model that can work for multiple businesses. This way, you can have a small business that works for everyone, not just the right group of people. With a diversified business model, you can have one business that is primarily for investors and another that is mainly for employees. You can have a hybrid model in which many of your products or services areinvestments and another for employees who purchase a few of your products or services each month.
Establish healthy working relationships with your customers
The relationship with your customers is what builds your business. Without one, your business is nothing. The relationship with customers will determine your success or failure. If you have a habit of ordering too much or offering too few products or services, then you will have difficulty growing your business. Why do you sell things? If people aren’t willing to buy things from you, then there is no value added, and even less value if you are offering products that are ineffective or overpriced.
Get to know your market and leverage their insights
The key to growth is relationships with your customers. You need to know what their problems are and what solutions they have. Then, you need to come up with a solution that addresses those issues. If you don’t have any customers, then how can you build a customer relationship with the rest of the market? You can’t. All you can do is learn from your customers and build a relationship with them that will last a long time. Before they stop buying your products or services, you need to learn what their problems are and what solutions they have.
Conclusion
The internet is a great place to start a business. There are a lot of great ideas out there and with a little effort, you can build a business that can thrive online. However, as noted above, it’s important to remember that a company’s growth is closely tied to the ability to change directions. If you can’t change direction, then a business will remain the same size regardless of how many employees it has.