Small Business Growth Strategies for 2019

With the turn of the calendar page and a vigorous economy in place, it’s time to address your small business growth plan. Here in California, we’ve seen robust gains, with taxable sales rising significantly and unemployment falling to a record low in October 2018. In short, the trends point to abundant growth opportunities for businesses statewide.

Think about these strategies that you can employ to further increase your business over the coming year:

1. Build an Email List
   Sounds simple, right? But you’d be surprised how many small businesses fail to track their customers’ email addresses. An email list can help you to easily contact customers about sales, product or service information, and to invite them to special events you plan to host.
2. Use a Customer Management System
   A customer relationship management (CRM) tool allows you to do business more efficiently. You can store contact information for your customers and prospects in one place. You also can make calls, send emails or texts, schedule appointments, add notes, and find out who’s opened the latest email – all without ever leaving the system.
3. Introduce a Customer Loyalty Program
   Customers like to feel appreciated. If you reward them for their loyalty by offering discounts, exclusive deals, or free merchandise or services, you can build the kind of customer relationships that really help you grow.
4. Try Hosting a Webinar
   A webinar can be a great way to engage customers, offering them information they can use and share. It creates trust and a bond, which are likely to spur clients to return to purchase more of your products or services in the future.
5. Diversify Your Offerings
   The coming year may be the time to diversify your product or service offerings to stimulate more growth for your business. Fresh offerings can gain new customers and boost sales from existing ones.

But don’t stop there. Follow some other small business growth strategies to gain ground in 2019 and beyond.

Identify New Opportunities

There are probably dozens of new opportunities you could pursue immediately if you did some timely analysis. Take a deep dive to better understand your business statistics, seasonal sales trends and customer demographics. Can you increase online sales with complementary products? Can you bring back holiday shoppers with special offers? Are you appealing to millennials through social media?

At the same time, it pays to know your strengths and weaknesses. A SWOT (strengths-weaknesses-opportunities-threats) analysis can help you respond to changes in the market, better position your company, and identify your customers’ demographic information. It also can help you recognize what you already do well and where you might need to improve.

Do the Heavy Lifting

Dig deeper to understand everything from distribution channels to your direct competitors. A look at foreign markets, potential industries and emerging technologies could prove valuable. Remember to explore partnerships with other businesses that could be mutually beneficial. If you’re an accounting firm, have you considered co-marketing with your referral sources?

Finally, take another look at your cash flow and investments in light of recent economic developments. Did the business tax cuts increase your cash on hand? Consider using that cash to drive further growth. Use it to invest in technology upgrades, to drive customer acquisition, or to hire and retain quality employees.

The growth of your business depends on having a clear strategy, coupled with analysis and hard work. With the right approach, the rewards can be great in months ahead.[cite::171::cite] [cite::172::cite]