3 Basic Rules for Small Business Growth

This week, SurePayroll suggests a few guidelines to follow to grow your business.

Know your target audience

You know the saying, ‘you can’t please everyone’? That goes for small business owners too. In order to grow your business, you need to identify and reach the customers you’re targeting. Identify their needs and focus on that. Rhonda Abrams, writing for USA TODAY in her article “7 rules for small biz growth,” she cautions that offering too many products or services is often confusing for customers, especially when it comes to marketing and promoting your business.

In order to identify your target market you need to do three things: create a customer ‘persona’, do your market research, and determine whether you’re offering services or products of interest to your potential customers. Along with knowing what your customers want, dedicate yourself to quality service. Online feedback, social media, and word-of-mouth often travel faster than your advertising ads.

Watch your inventory

You may believe that the more inventory you offer your customers, the better. After all, who wants to see ‘Out of Stock’ when browsing your online or shelves? Even so, small business growth relies heavily on your bottom line. If you’re spending all your money on inventory that’s just sitting there, you’re not only losing out on sales but profits. Inventory management software is one avenue that small business owners can use to track not only products but customer demand and experience as well. In his article “The Best Inventory Management Software for 2020” for PC Magazine, tech expert Ted Needleman provides some affordable options.” (This is not to suggest that SurePayroll endorses any of these software options, but that such software may help you track your most profitable products or services.)

Don’t ignore the impact of SEO

Search engine optimization is not passé. It’s just as important today as it was the article that Preston Pysh wrote for Forbes titled, “5 Ways Small Business Owners can grow in 2017.” If your business is online, it must be search engine optimized. You’ve got a lot of online competition, so you’ve got to make your presence known. Search engine optimizing (SEO) is essential in your goal of seeing your website listed in the top search pages of Google and other browsers. SEO:

• Is a cost-effective marketing strategy that increases your online visibility
• Promotes and drives traffic to your website
• Offers you the chance to establish authority/credibility in your business niche

If you feel overwhelmed about SEO or don’t have the time to do your own research, hire a freelancer to do it for you. When done right, SEO can pay off for your online presence in just a few months.

SurePayroll supports small businesses everywhere. Tune in again next week for more tips and resources that can help you reach for the stars!