4 Ways To Sustain Growth For Your Small Business

After the initial business opening, growth can be one of the most exciting times for any entrepreneur. However, periods of growth may not always be sustainable, as each business has its ups and downs. Fortunately, there are steps you can take to make your business grow in a more sustainable manner. Strategic growth can help your business become more profitable over time and weather any lulls. Follow these tips for growing your business more sustainably.

Stay Efficient

One way in which to grow your business is to maximize your operational efficiency. By doing so, you can eliminate unnecessary duties, allowing your employees to focus on working more productively. Score.org, a small business resource, offers the following advice: "Don't be afraid to delegate tasks to employees. What you as a small business owner can't forget is that delegating helps save you time, provides an opportunity for you to focus on your many other tasks and helps to ensure you keep your priorities in order."

Capitalize On Your Brand

Building a reputable and trustworthy brand can go a long way toward helping your business grow. It helps keep your business fresh in the minds of customers, while allowing your business to stand out among the competition. It's best to stay simple, as detailed in the article "7 Stupid Branding Mistakes Your Small Business is Making" on entrepreneur.com. "Clean, simple elements are more likely to be recognized and remembered by consumers, so steer clear of over-complicating your company's branded elements."

Keep Your Customers

An important component of business growth is repeat clients. Creating client loyalty helps you keep your sales up, and it can help create advocates who will bring more business. According to Forbes, employee interactions key in building loyalty among customer. "Setting standards within your own hiring and training habits can strengthen this, while delivering quarterly, bi-annual or at the very least, annual reviews can help, also." Keeping in touch with clients and using their opinions to help make your product or service better is also a great method for ensuring repeat business.

Connect With The Community

Being present in the community can help keep your business connected and viable in the minds of customers, which is especially important in smaller communities. The Center for Small Business Performance Analytics states that economic growth in small communities "help[s] existing places to thrive by taking care of assets and investments such as downtowns, Main Streets, existing infrastructure, and places that the community values." Becoming part of the community allows your business to build its credibility in the industry, and it allows you to connect with potential customers.

Business growth can come in spurts, specifically with outside pressures constantly changing the market, it's important to grow strategically. Managing your growth by building long-term strategies can help your business weather dips in the market and remain viable for years to come.

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For more tips and inspiration for small business owners,
visit CBS Small Business Pulse Chicago.