7 Ultimate Business Growth Strategies

What are Business Growth Strategies?

A business growth strategy allows entrepreneurs to navigate their development and expand their operations. Planning for growth is a fundamental component to ensuring a business's longevity and success. As reported by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, about 20% of new businesses shutter within the first 2 years of being open. With growth strategies in place, business owners can effectively keep their doors open and withstand evolving market demands.

7 Best Business Growth Strategies

Growth strategies will vary from company to company, depending on their mission, target consumers, and industry. The most common practices that entrepreneurs include in their growth plans include product development, customer acquisition, and global expansion. Other forms of growth include opening new channels to sell products and services and hiring more employees to new business teams. Whichever the growth goal is, organizations can follow these 7 tips to make their strategy.

1. Create a Growth Strategy Template

A growth strategy template will help guide the organization leaders through the planning process. The template should have prompts that business owners and stakeholders can answer. Some important questions the template should ask include the following-

• What is the business's mission?
  
• What does the business want to be or become?
  
• What is the business's vision?
  
• What is a growth opportunity and how does one identify that?
  
• Can this company grow quicker than competitors? And how?
  

2. Establish Where the Company Can Grow

Business executives need to decide which part of their company they want to grow. Determining this factor will ensure the growth plan targets the exact area for development. The following are common growth targets.

• Increase to employee roster
  
• More space in the office, retail store, and warehouse
  
• Global, local, regional, or national expansion
  
• Increase in-store or office location
  
• More products or services
  
• Adding new products to inventory
  
• Creating new purchase platforms, such as stores, online websites, and mobile apps
  
• Boost in profits
  
• Expand consumer base

Some brands will find that their growth plan focuses on more than one area for development. For instance, a shoe retailer may want to expand their purchasing platforms, increase profits, and scale up their brick-and-mortar store. In this case, the growth plan should touch on each initiative and how it can be accomplished.

3. Research the Market and Industry

Market and industry research will help business leaders see if their target growth areas are attainable. It will also help them justify the necessity of growing the specific area. For example, through market research, small business retailers find that people prefer shopping online. This shows just cause for wanting to expand online buying channels.

A few ways to conduct research into the market is by sending out surveys to customers. Companies can also hold focus groups with their current and potential consumer base. There are also published industry-specific analyses online that executives can study. With these insights, entrepreneurs can hone in on their target growth areas and objectives.

4. Have Growth Goals

Now that organization leaders have determined what parts of the business they want to expand, it is time to identify how much they plan to grow. These growth goals should be measurable and realistic. A restaurant owner, for instance, may set a goal of growing sales by 25% each quarter. Identifying a goal percentage or number will help clarify objectives and allow for easier progress tracking.

5. Create an Action Plan

At this stage, business owners can begin thoroughly outlining all the steps they plan to take to meet their growth goals. This part of the growth strategy should include deadlines and projects. It should also list all employees and teams that are responsible for helping the business achieve objectives. Following the previous example, to boost sales by 25%, the restaurant owner can create a social media team. Their tasks are to build a large online following of over 1,000 people by the end of the year and post restaurant food photos daily.

6. Confirm the Necessary Growth Tools and Resources

The teams may need specific supplies and resources to effectively carry out their responsibilities. The company growth strategy should detail all the important tools that will help the business meet growth goals efficiently. These resources may include the following.

• Capital - Projects and expansion require money, whether it is through an investment, loan, or budget allocation.

• Technology - The latest tech and software can help business teams automate tasks, work more productively, and gain data insights.

• Professional Services - This includes consultants, experts, product designers, engineers, and media planners who can help give the business direction.
  

7. Plan Execution

After identifying goals, necessary tasks, and resources, business owners can finally put their growth plan into motion. While the plan is in execution, executives should regularly check their goal attainment process and make improvements accordingly. It is also helpful to communicate with teams and ensure stakeholders are held accountable.

Key Takeaways to Business Growth Strategies

• Business growth strategies are plans that will help a company expand operations.
  
• Creating growth plans is fundamental to the business management process as it helps companies achieve goals, such as global expansion and customer acquisition.
  
• With initiatives for growth, business owners can ensure their brand's longevity and profitability.
  
• Organizations from all sectors can follow the 7 key steps to create a successful business growth strategy.