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How to Scale Your Business: Essential Tips for Success

Business growth is the ultimate goal for everyone that ventures out to create an enterprise to sell a service or a product. That being said, scaling your business can vary from conventional growth strategies as growth usually means operating on a larger scale, investing in new machinery and generating more revenue on the basis of increased investment expenditure. 

Scaling is more on the lines of increasing revenue without necessarily increasing the capacity significantly, so it simply means making efficient use of the existing and current resources available to a business. 

That is however easier said than done as scaling your business requires a plethora of skills, techniques, unique selling points, sensible marketing and much more. Here are some essential tips for success that guarantee you will not go wrong when attempting to scale your business and prime it to generate a greater impact. 

A Procedural Approach 

Scaling never happens overnight or over a short period of time. A minimum of 6 months should be allotted for the goal of scaling your business successfully. In many businesses, major decisions related to restructuring or production need to pass through multiple stakeholders so a written or visual plan should be crafted regarding how the scaling is going to take place. This will speed up decision making and bring up positive criticism and feedback which can be helpful. 

It is important to not let the plans get too complicated as that will require more time for the final decisions to get through, depending on the hierarchy that is present in the business. Standard operating procedures matter a lot for scaling a business as they streamline operations and communications between departments. The possibility of error is reduced and human resource can be utilized more efficiently. 

An Increase In Sales Versus Increase In Investment 

Create a strategy for increasing sales. A well known and practiced principle of business is that it always costs more to attract new customers than it does to retain existing customers or clients. In many cases the difference can be that attracting new customers may cost 7 times more in terms of marketing, time spent or additional investment. For any business the first priority in scaling should be retaining one’s existing customers and not driving them to the competition. 

A few time-tested ways to increase sales are as follows:-

  • Have a clear brand image and message that you are trying to get across and follow that through to all the marketing and advertising you do whether on physical or digital platforms. Social media marketing has become intrinsically important for business success so having a strong, relatable message to share on social media in the form of content is invaluable. 
  • Lead generation comes second and this is a term deeply connected to forms of digital marketing for businesses. Lead generation is basically the number of leads that are popping up (potential customers) in any marketing initiative. There are many forms of lead magnets you can use to generate strong leads, for example a quiz. Look into how to create a quiz lead magnet, as well as construct good customer and client relationships using an excellent customer care staff and maximize sales. 
  • Marketing should never be random. Identity a target audience and a target demographic and design your marketing campaign to reach out to people who will be inspired by your product or service. Great marketing results from market research and a keen understanding of consumer behavior and motivation which is an entire subject in itself. 

Faster, More Efficient With Less Man Hours

In order to scale a business, you need to have operations running more smoothly and efficiently with less delays and time lags. The faster and more efficient the production process is, the more you will produce and greater sales revenue will result. Oftentimes to make production run more smoothly and efficiently, it is vital to invest in newer technology such as machinery or software. Depending on the stage of growth your business is at, you can make the decision about how to make the investment feasible. In some cases, certain updates may be desirable but not necessary so a business always needs to consider the opportunity cost of certain timely investments. 

Administration tasks which are often done by hand or manually by a group of employees slow processes down and affect efficiency. Invest in appropriate and relevant software that can automate paperwork and administrative tasks so that time is freed up and production can rise. Furthermore, automation renders many employees redundant which also lowers the cost of hiring and maintaining staff in businesses. 

Specialized Talent and Endorsements

It is not uncommon to find that businesses have hired or signed contracts with celebrities or other public figures in order to sell a product or service or revamp the look of the brand. Specialized talent can come in many forms whether it is a celebrity endorsement or a specialist’s endorsement such as a renowned medical doctor or any other relevant professional. This increases the credibility of any business and increases sales and market share which is the ultimate goal of scaling. 

Secondly, hiring experts in your field remotely or part-time can enhance the efficiency of the business without the considerable investment of having these professionals work full-time. Staff trainings can have the same effect although some initial investment is needed by the business but the ripple effect can go on for years depending on employee retention at an organization. Online freelancing platforms can open doors as experts all over the world can be available for consultations on how to scale your business and the best specific strategies that can be helpful. 

Main And Unique Selling Points

Each company has something which sets them apart from the competition and in most cases, it is the product portfolio or the range and quality of services they provide. Scaling your business should be the done on the basis of unique selling points and effective marketing based on them. Focus is important as many companies go too diverse with their product portfolio and problems with quality control arise which can affect growth and scaling. 

The principle of competitive advantage is vital in business as it is always more useful to have the edge in producing one kind of product than to produce several kinds but to lack market share or adequate popularity in all of them. The aim is to scale over several months to years. Market share is not obtained overnight and continuous innovation is needed to remain relevant and competitive in an ever-changing market. Think about the future of your business a decade or two down the line and make decisions accordingly. 

Protect The Patent 

Many businesses take out patents on their innovative products or inventions. This is essential for scaling a business otherwise cheaper copies can appear on the market affecting your sales and reputation. Using any form of product destruction for example is often necessary to prevent lawsuits and unlawful copyright infringement and to protect company secrets. 

Conclusion

Employ strategy and a customer-centric approach to scaling and you will see the best emerge from your business with longevity in sales increases and customer trust. Maximizing the use of resources takes time as new operations management systems take hold which is why scaling done right can even take years depending on the industry the business operates in.

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