How to Take Your Small Business to the Next Level
How to Take Your Small Business to the Next Level
Are you looking for ways to give your small business a boost? Do you want your small business to shed its “small” description? Owning and running a small business has several challenges. In many cases, you have to wear multiple hats and do most of the work. The road to success can be long and difficult.
However, there are things you can do to take your small business to the next level.
Focus on the Big Things
The key is to prioritize and focus on the most important things. Every business is different, so there is no one-size-fits-all answer to improving your chances of success. However, there are some important parts of your business that you can’t overlook. How you perform on these four parts, or categories, will generally make or break your company. They are:
• Processes and Productivity
• Sales and Marketing
• Technology
• Strategy for Growth
One Step at a Time
So now that you know what you need to focus on, you need to make a plan to get started.
Productivity–You have to start by looking at your workflow, or the processes you have in place for your day-to-day responsibilities. Then look at your productivity. Could you be more productive by realigning, shifting, or changing your processes? Start by creating a list of all your tasks, and then prioritize those tasks. Keep track of how things go for a week and make a note of what works and what needs improvement. Perhaps you’ll find that you need to change your processes in order to maximize your productivity.
Sales & Marketing–although this is a vital part of any company’s success, many small business owners have trouble giving it enough attention. With so many other things to focus on, sales and marketing tend to be ignored first. That is a mistake, even if business is going well. Take the time to evaluate which marketing channels are working the best, and which ones are not as successful. Also study other potential marketing channels that you haven’t explored before. You might want to hire a professional marketing or SEO company to help with the process. Whatever you choose, don’t overlook or underestimate, the value of good marketing.
Technology–whether you embrace it or not, technology is an important part of any company. If you haven’t embraced technology then it’s time to change course. Take the time to learn which programs, software and apps will benefit your company, and then take the necessary steps to implement them. Ignoring technology is not an option.
Strategy for Growth–one of the biggest challenges small business owners face is growing their business. They are often so busy working IN their business that they just don’t have any spare time to work ON their business. If this is you, then you need to take a step back and look at your business plan. Are you accomplishing your goals? Are you headed in the right direction? Now might be a good time to reevaluate where you want to be and what you want to accomplish long-term. Take some time to examine your growth strategy and come up with a plan to accomplish it. If you don’t have one, now is the time to start one.
We hope you found this article about “How to Take Your Small Business to the Next Level” helpful. If you have questions or need expert tax or family office advice that’s refreshingly objective (we never sell investments), please contact us or visit our Family office page or our website at www.GROCO.com. Unfortunately, we no longer give advice to other tax professionals gratis.
To receive our free newsletter, contact us here.
Subscribe to our YouTube Channel for more updates.
Alan Olsen, is the Host of the American Dreams Show and the Managing Partner of GROCO.com. GROCO is a premier family office and tax advisory firm located in the San Francisco Bay area serving clients all over the world.
Alan L. Olsen, CPA, Wikipedia Bio
GROCO.com is a proud sponsor of The American Dreams Show.
The American Dreams show was the brainchild of Alan Olsen, CPA, MBA. It was originally created to fill a specific need; often inexperienced entrepreneurs lacked basic information about raising capital and how to successfully start a business.
Alan sincerely wanted to respond to the many requests from aspiring entrepreneurs asking for the information and introductions they needed. But he had to find a way to help in which his venture capital clients and friends would not mind.
The American Dreams show became the solution, first as a radio show and now with YouTube videos as well. Always respectful of interview guest’s time, he’s able to give access to individuals information and inspiration previously inaccessible to the first-time entrepreneurs who need it most.
They can listen to venture capitalists and successful business people explain first-hand, how they got to where they are, how to start a company, how to overcome challenges, how they see the future evolving, opportunities, work-life balance and so much more..
American Dreams discusses many topics from some of the world’s most successful individuals about their secrets to life’s success. Topics from guest have included:
Creating purpose in life / Building a foundation for their life / Solving problems / Finding fulfillment through philanthropy and service / Becoming self-reliant / Enhancing effective leadership / Balancing family and work…
MyPaths.com (Also sponsored by GROCO) provides free access to content and world-class entrepreneurs, influencers and thought leaders’ personal success stories. To help you find your path in life to true, sustainable success & happiness. It’s mission statement:
In an increasingly complex and difficult world, we hope to help you find your personal path in life and build a strong foundation by learning how others found success and happiness. True and sustainable success and happiness are different for each one of us but possible, often despite significant challenges.
Our mission at MyPaths.com is to provide resources and firsthand accounts of how others found their paths in life, so you can do the same.
Identify Your Firm’s Future Leaders
Identify your firm’s future leaders; leaders are increasingly being asked to identify the emerging leaders in their organizations. To help in this process, we recently examined 360-degree performance appraisal data on more than 120 emerging leaders from 18 North American companies to see what leadership competencies ranked as important in selecting internal associates for…
Key Elements to Successful Teamwork
Key Elements to Successful Teamwork At our recent leadership retreat our team focused on two topics: Trust and accountability. After reading several books and having lively discussions for two days it became clear that a firm must have trust in order to hold people accountable. This is not a new or difficult concept; however, becoming…
The Perfect Leadership Trio
The Perfect Leadership Trio Chip Conley, author of ” The Rebel Rules: Daring to be Yourself in Business, says your management team should consist of a brain trust that includes a “passionate visionary,” a “get-your-hands-dirty operator,” and a “responsible, finance-minded executive.” But how do you use this in your business? 1. Passionate visionary. The passionate…
Attorneys for the Rich Anxiously Await Trump’s Plan for Estate Tax
Chances are most people will never have to worry about paying a federal estate tax, since the value of most people’s estates don’t exceed $5.34 million. However, if president Trump has his way, not even the very few taxpayers that would have otherwise been affected by this law, will have to worry about it…