Forget The Sluggish Economy, You Can Still Grow Your Business

The goal of most businesses is to grow, expand and gain market share. But actually achieving those goals can be difficult, especially if the economy isn’t on your side. Despite the so-called “recovery” incomes are only just above where they were in 2008, and consumer demand is still suffering, despite a pick up in the jobs numbers in recent months. It’s all very depressing news for business leaders based in Western countries. However, the sluggishness of the economies of developed countries shouldn’t be confused for the sluggishness of the global economy. Despite the hard times that have befallen many places in Europe and America, the wider world is experiencing unprecedented growth of 4 percent or more per year. This represents a significant opportunity for companies large and small to expand their operations and earn more profits.

What’s more, tapping into global markets isn’t the only way to make a return. Local markets are also full of opportunities, so long as you know how to exploit them. Here’s what to do to grow your business to the next level.

 

Snap Up Another Business

Within every sector, there are winners and losers. In some situations, the writing’s on the wall for a long time before companies start to go out of business; in others, it’s overnight. The trick for existing businesses is to find companies that are in the ascendancy before their real value becomes apparent. For instance, the big tech giants in America started buying up artificial intelligence outfits years ago before anybody realized their true potential. Now the impact that AI will have on our lives has gone mainstream, and the value of these companies has gone through the roof.

What should you be looking for in any potential acquisition? Future potential, of course. Try to look for companies that represent the next wave of disruption in your industry and snap them up before somebody else does or they take over your market, putting you out of business. Pay particular attention to any company using digital technologies to implement new business models. Just as Amazon heralded the end of physical book stores, a new company in your industry might be the death knell for your existing business model.

 

Diversify Your Product Offering

Nvidia has been in the news a lot recently. For a long time, it was the world’s largest producer of discrete graphics processors for gamers, but thanks to economic circumstances and new technology, it’s entirely changed its product stack. Rather than just making products that allow people to play games, the company is expanding into new markets as and when they become available. As it turns out, the technology underlying its graphics chips is almost perfectly applicable to machine learning applications, meaning that the company has been able to do quickly switch to new, more lucrative markets.

Nvidia is a lesson in how to adapt to changing conditions and profit from them. The company’s share price has rocketed over the last year, thanks to the potential ubiquity of AI chips in the future in everything from cars to TVs to household robots. Companies in other sectors need to do the same thing: find out how their existing products could be modified to dominate new markets made possible by technology in the future. Any business that deals with data could benefit.

The alternative route is to start planning now rather than waiting for technology to become available. Often, consumers want new product categories in the here and now, rather than having to wait for some competitor or new technology to give them what they want. A great example of this is the “phablet” – something which was relatively new back in 2013 but everywhere by 2015. Samsung, the largest maker of electronics devices in the world, decided to create a smartphone which was halfway between the size of a regular Galaxy smartphone and one of its larger Apple iPad copycat tablet products. It turned out that the 5-inch screen proved extremely popular – and now more premium phones are shipped with 5-inch screens than 4-inch screens, despite initial skepticism about the idea. Could your company do something similar and open up a new market?

 

Target New Demographics

Another way to expand a business is to target new demographics. Many companies stick with their customer base or “target audience” because they believe that this is the only group of people they can sell to. However, this is rarely the case and proven wrong time and again by the largest brands in the world. One would have thought, for instance, that McDonald’s would only be able to sell to kids and young people. But, it turns out, that it’s actually just as popular among older folks, despite the brand’s youthful overtures (perhaps this is why those in their 50s and 60s appreciate it so much).

To target a new demographic, you’ll need a carefully calibrated marketing strategy. Get a business loan and divide it up into different spending priorities. Target the marketing channels most often consumed by your new target demographic and made your value proposition clear. Keep track of your ROI and make sure that you’re getting a return for your additional spending. New markets are often those closely related to your existing customer personas.

 

Try New Sales Delivery Channels

If you just sell online or in a brick-and-mortar store, you may be missing out. If the last 20 years have taught us anything, it’s that consumers want to have a choice about where they shop. They want the option to be able to buy online, and they also want to be able to go to the store when it suits them. Outlets like Walmart have gone online, while previously online-only stores, like Amazon, are now ironically entering the real world.

To grab new market share, you need to take advantage of all possible selling channels. This applies just as much to retailers as it does other businesses. Could your business offer its services through a third party platform? Could consultations be carried out over the internet rather than in person? Find these channels and exploit them to maximum effect.

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About Dequiana Jackson

Dequiana Jackson, Founder of Inspired Marketing, Inc., helps overachieving women entrepreneurs conquer limiting beliefs and create marketing plans that grow their businesses. This includes one-on-one marketing plan development, digital product creation, web design and content marketing. Dequiana is the author of Know Your Business: How to Attract Ideal Clients & Sell More and runs the award-winning blog, Entrepreneur-Resources.net.

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