Several years ago, I sat in a conference room and brainstormed how to grow a business and expand its audience. I was part of a vision team charged with developing a growth plan for a specific organization. The vision team included two employees, two vendors, two customers, a banker, an attorney, the president of the local BBB, and two respected businesspeople. We met on four occasions and took a hard look at the business and opportunities that were being underutilized or missed.
How to Grow a Business
The Plan
We developed a plan that included day-to-day operational recommendations and big-picture guidance. The vision team offered three initiatives to expand the audience.
Add Locations
The company had proven systems based on procedures, not personalities. So, we determined these systems would be successful when implemented correctly in other geographic areas. The prerequisites included a source of available labor, some skilled and some unskilled, affordable space, and a local economy that would fit the product. Secondary considerations included advertising costs in the marketplace and potential tax breaks. The organization now has several offices located throughout the country.
Expand Marketing
The company had developed a targeted audience and primarily reached it through direct marketing. The vison team suggested that it was time to expand that reach by A—B testing other advertising and marketing avenues. The suggestions included experimenting with PPC (pay-per-click), expanding the website to include more CTAs (Calls to Action), and developing TV ads. All three were successfully implemented.
Offer More Products
At the time, the business (B2C) had thousands of loyal and satisfied customers for its two products. Therefore existing clients were surveyed to learn what other problems the business might solve for them. Today, the company has five divisions, each with separate product lines.
It Didn’t Happen Overnight
Don’t get me wrong. The organization didn’t tackle every recommendation at once, and not every suggestion was followed, nor was every initiative successful. However, by methodically developing all three growth sources, the business grew to be recognized as one of the top providers in its industry.
Set the Stage
Are you ready to grow your audience? I purposely didn’t mention the type of business in this post other than it’s a B2C, and there’s a reason. It doesn’t matter. If I had named the business, many may have thought this approach was only for that industry. It’s not. It can work for any company in any industry.
So, what stage should your business be on? Where’s your vision for growth? Do you know how to grow a business?
How Can I Help You?
I like to help people and organizations, but I consider three criteria before taking an assignment: I believe in what the organization stands for, I know I can help, and it looks like fun. If you have any questions, contact me.
Does your business have a management training plan? Many organizations, large and small, use my book, The New Manager’s Workbook a crash course in effective management, as the basis for their leadership development program. Check it out.
If you enjoyed this post you might also like Growing Your Small Business.
Photo by Nikola Jovanovic on Unsplash.
