Small businesses face many challenges in this day and age, especially with the added pressure of the Coronavirus pandemic. In fact, many businesses have had to realign and change the way they operate to reflect the realities of the situation. Notwithstanding this, many businesses still struggle to stay afloat after the first year bounce and they need to think outside of the box to stand out from the pack. Here we are going to take a look at the 8 most effective ways to optimize your business and ensure success for many years to come.
1. Social Media
You will be surprised to learn that the majority of businesses may only use one type of social media and even then in a very basic fashion. Maybe you’re only using Facebook when you need visuals of your goods so Instagram would be better? Think about what media would be appropriate for what you are trying to sell. Sell your brand, not just your products, and you will find levels of engagement will increase as you position yourself as an expert.
2. Networking
For some people the idea of dragging themselves out of bed at 5 am for a breakfast networking session is a nightmare, but this is exactly what you need to do if you want to optimize your business. Get out there and get talking to other people in your field. It’s not what you know, it’s who you know.
3. Host events
Maybe you are struggling for traction in your area, so why not hold an industry event where you invite all the players from your market. Not only will you be able to see what your competitors are up to, but you will have all your potential customers in the same room too. This is a win-win opportunity to add growth to your business and to develop new relationships.
4. Use technology
You’ve always seen yourself as a bit of a Luddite and now you’re surprised that your business is stuck in the dark ages and you are using antiquated technology relating to payroll or human resources issues. If so, why not visit here, and you can take advantage of the payroll and HR systems on offer to streamline your business, saving both time and money? You can then allow yourself to concentrate on the important things, i.e. making money.
Whatever the technology you use you will need access to expert IT support like Netstar to make sure your systems are secure, working correctly, and supporting your growth.
5. Encourage feedback
Encouraging feedback is a great way of doing market research. Ask your customers to fill in surveys and questionnaires and you’ll receive valuable information about both the good and the bad aspects of your business. Have customers post positive reviews on your website and promote that feeling of success that will ultimately breed more business. Best of all encouraging feedback is free so it will not hamper your marketing budget.
6. Build brand awareness
Building brand awareness is crucial if you want to optimize your business. Why not hold community events or sponsor a local school or youth club? Fostering goodwill in the community is vital to growing your business and raising your profile, the more the general public sees you participating in local life, the more they will trust you to deliver with your products and services.
7. Reward loyalty
It is a well-known business rule that it is much easier to sell to an existing customer than it is to find new business, and this will save you time and money on pricy marketing costs. Make customer loyalty your number one priority by creating loyalty programs with Growave on Shopify. For example, if you run a bar, offer a scheme that for every 10 drinks you buy, you will get one free. Maybe you could offer long term customers preferential access to new products? Small perks will make customers feel special and will go a long way to drive brand loyalty and repeat business.
8. Listen to your customers
Ever heard the saying ‘the customer is always right’? Well, in business it pays to listen to what your customer wants. If enough of them suggest an alternative to the way you are doing things, then maybe they have a point and it might be worth changing tack. Be adaptable to your customer’s needs and if the market landscape changes, for example, due to Coronavirus, then adapt to it. There is nothing worse for your business than treading water.
As we have discovered there are many different ways to optimize your business, from incorporating new technology to allow you to concentrate on the prescient matters, to building brand awareness and encouraging feedback so that you can offer the customer exactly what they want. Networking and holding events will allow you to position yourself as the go-to company in your community, so get out there and start optimizing your business!
