Create a solid financial base
If you want to take advantage of upcoming trends in the market, you may need to increase your working capital or take on new staff in a short space of time. If traditional sources of finance such as high street banks or venture capitalists are taking too long to make a decision or decline because they fail to share your vision of the future, you might want to look into financing your business through peer to peer lending instead.
Take on new staff
In the early stages of a business, most entrepreneurs want to be as hands-on as possible across all areas of company activities. However, it is only by being willing to give your employees a greater degree of autonomy and responsibility that you can put aside enough unnecessary tasks to allow you to move forward and expand your business.
Although taking on new employees involves an element of risk and you may be concerned about a wide range of potential hassles, it is unlikely that your company will be able to move forward and expand until you do. Depending on the stage your business is at, you might want to consider taking on an apprentice. This can provide you with an additional member of staff, subsidized by the government, and enables you to put something back into society by giving a young person a great opportunity to develop their own business skills.
Become an Influencer
Social media is a great way of expanding the reach of your business and finding new customers, but users dislike the idea of being sold to in a way that seems direct. The key is to ensure the information you put out on social networks is of genuine use to those who see it, and in this way, you will benefit from a higher profile through increasing numbers of shares and likes.
If you can become an expert in the field of your business, all the better. Use platforms such as Twitter to further boost the profile of you and your company by issuing statements that add to the debate on key issues. You can then leverage this influence to make appearances on more traditional forms of media, such as radio and television, further boosting your profile.
Reduce the risk
No matter how well you plan, there will always be external and internal threats to your company that have the potential to stall growth. If you want to be sure your business enjoys expansion, it is vital to take steps to mitigate such risks as early as possible.
Having the right business insurance policies in place to cover everything from intellectual property theft or a data breach to an office break-in or public liability claim is essential. Should the worst-case scenario happen, you will be far better placed to continue moving forward.
