If there’s one thing that we can say about small businesses with a degree of certainty, it’s that almost all of them strive towards growth. Of course, there are exceptions to the rule. Some entrepreneurs feel satisfied with what they already have and sometimes even get intimidated by the ‘big game competition’. Therefore decide to accept the status quo. In this post, we discussed business development strategies to take your business at next level.
You might have read our earlier post in the business category, how to Boost Your Business Productivity Like a Boss.
But for those who want to grow, the question remains – how exactly do you take that big step? There’s no easy answer to this problem but it surely has a lot to do with great planning and execution. If you want to grow into a big business you should observe what the big players are already doing. Learn about their growth and business development strategies. Figure out which one might work for you and ways to implement it. Of course, not every strategy will be adequate for your company, but one thing is certain – they will all provide a valuable insight.
Let’s take a look at big-5 Business development strategies that you can apply to your small businesses.
#1 Leveraging Partnerships
Partnerships can be leveraged in a savvy way, which can get your path paved towards the vendor relationships that only big businesses enjoy. Let’s say that you have an amazing product technology and your product obviously stands out in the sea of similar products. However, you do not have a distribution channel, a manufacturing facility and other parts of the supply chain. You only have a product. What you can do is partner up with a production factory or distribution, and simply pay them a portion of the profit you make from selling your product.
In this way, you get distribution and mainstream production without having to pay an enormous upfront cost of hiring a shipping company or building a plant. As a small business, you are able to negotiate for partnerships that pay per sale.
#2 Market Segmentation
Pick a branch of the entire marketplace around which you can organize your sales and try to answer the question: Who will I try to sell to, out of all the people in the world? This is what market segmentation and targeting are essentially all about. Find your market space and own it. Segment your market and target a specific crowd of people, depending on the nature of your product. You will not be successful by trying to sell a high-quality set of repair tools to the under-25 crowd).
A great example of market segmentation would be the BeardBrand, a company dedicated solely to beard grooming, who offer various products for men who like to keep their beards in prime condition. It capitalizes on a trend that’s been hugely popular in recent years and it does it with style. Their target group are younger men with a distinct buying intent – beard grooming products. Talk about laser precision, right? It all comes down to making choices on who you will serve and on which segment you can focus to increase the level of profitability.
#3 Acquisitions
Making acquisitions is tough because you can break the bank with just one bad purchase. However, if you know how to make a couple of key moves, you can make a massive profit from acquisitions. Make a checklist of everything you consider a good buy in your industry, and do not let ego or emotion play a role in a major purchase. Seek to buy businesses you can improve, and just because you are small does not mean you should dismiss acquisitions. With your personal experience, use of good business analytics software. You can also hire expert help, you can choose to make a good and profitable acquisition.
#4 Checklists
Even though you do not have to manage day-to-day operations as a big business. With its complex supply chains and massive facilities, you too have to deal with a lot of obligations. Reminding yourself about having to hold yourself accountable and do something that makes money, it is easy to lose precious time by getting tangled in things that are not essential to your business. Develop a checklist for specific jobs and tasks, prioritize them, and have them remind you to do essential work every day.
If you’re a type of person who easily gets distracted and perhaps suffers from ‘shiny object syndrome’ you might want to check out the Pomodoro Technique to boost your efficiency and task execution. It’s a simple technique of breaking down big chunks of work into smaller, easily digestible tasks.
#5 Becoming An Industry Leader
Leaders make moves when other businesses sit beside, scared to take a risk. They are not scared to solve problems that everybody avoids. One thing you should believe is there is a lot of profit to be made when you are the first one to fix a problem. If anyone else is not doing it, if it is an expensive and bold move, then it is an enormous opportunity for growth.
Read also:
- 4 Simple Instagram Tips and Tricks for Business
- 20 Social Media Marketing Strategies Professionals Can’t Ignore In 2016
In conclusion, growing from the startup to small and from small to big doesn’t have to be hard if you carefully plan and execute your actions. Do your homework on big businesses in your industry. Figure out the nature of their growth and business development strategies. Try to implement it in your own business planning.
Think big, act big and you’ll surely be on your way to success.