Who doesn't want great advice?
But with the plethora of knowledge out there, who has the time to keep track of which advice is the have-to-know's or must-do's?
We do!
By sifting through recent articles, guides, top ten lists, and infographics written by experts around the web, we've distilled the Top 3 pieces of advice that entrepreneurs need to know on a key topic.
Featured across 8 sources, this week's topic focuses on growing a business.
1. Emphasize Customer Satisfaction.
Few would deny that customers are vital to a company's success, yet so many companies have failed because of a lack of customer retention, which is generally the result of poor customer communication. Babette N. Ten Haken , in an Entrepreneur article titled 4 Tips for Preparing Your Business to Grow, highlights the importance of maintaining connections with early customers: “Some early adopters will perceive that you have become ‘too big and famous’ to meet their ongoing needs. Create a strategy for maintaining contact with and reassuring your first customers that your success is founded on their belief in you.”
In another Entrepreneur article, 5 Ways to Grow Business Without Adding More Resources, Gregory Kennedy stresses the advantage of building a business through customer referrals: “Referrals are a simple way to grow a business. Asking customers for referrals directly is low-hanging fruit that everyone should take advantage of. It’s simple to develop a rewards system to encourage customer referrals.”
2. Know Your Market.
Knowing who you’re targeting your product or service to provides a multitude of benefits for a company looking to increase expansion. Check out what StartupNation has to say on the subject in an article on business growth: “Customers you currently cater to might be supplemented by an altogether different type of customer such as a younger one, a wealthier one, women vs. men, etc. You can also delineate different customer niches by behavioral and psychographic classification. For example, you may want to reach people who like hip-hop, or people who have long commutes to work, etc.”
3. Make Efficiency a Top Priority.
Efficiency is another overlooked ingredient in the recipe for expansive business growth. According to Grant Cardone, in an Entrepreneur article titled 5 Ways to Get Out of Startup Mode, an easy way to increase employee productivity is to create a sense of urgency for tasks: “Being an entrepreneur is a marathon activity with lots of sprints. Win a lot of little races and you will provide your people and company with momentum.”
In an Entrepreneur article, Mitchell Harper reiterates the importance of running an efficient company: “To grow a company, figure out what's keeping you from getting work done and then hack your schedule. Set aside blocks of uninterrupted time, hire someone to screen your calls and strap on your own CamelBak and get to work.”
While there are countless other strategies for expanding a business, these are just a few of the more important ones to keep in mind. Entrepreneurs must always be on the look out for new ways of stimulating business growth, and should not be afraid to take risks.
What do you think is necessary for business growth?
(plant on gold coins and graph them photo by Shutterstock)
