For many small businesses that are seeking to grow, successful scaling can prove challenging. When do you begin? Where do you focus your energy? When done correctly, scaling means increasing revenues and efficiency simultaneously. But without building the proper infrastructure and ensuring the right resources are in place, your business risks collapsing in on itself.
This process can be difficult to nail down, but at Synese, navigating the tricky terrain of scalability is one of our specialities. Here are a few things we suggest to keep in mind as you consider this process for your business.
Marketing
Focus on marketing and make sure you know your target audience well. Have you done sufficient market research? Do you know precisely how your product will help your client base? Understanding your potential customers and what they need is key to delivering compelling messages which will lead to sales.
Furthermore, rather than expecting your target audience to come to you, it’s the responsibility of your marketing plan to teach them about your product. The more time and energy you put into it, the faster you’ll grow your customer base, and the easier it will be to scale up.
Sales
Once your marketing strategy is in play, focus on sales. While marketing is a passive form of communication with your target audience, sales is active. It’s how you transform leads into loyal customers, and establish strong relationships between people and your solution. Ask yourself if the process is clear and the if sales tools are in place for each stage. Utilize data about your solution and your consumer base to inform the decisions you’re making, and ensure specific measurements are in place to track revenue and team success.
HR & Recruiting
Ultimately, the above will fail without the right people in place. When you first approach the hiring process, keep in mind the difference between general roles and specialist roles. In a small businesses, it’s natural for employees to wear many hats in their role. Don’t underestimate the value of generalists while you remain small to mid-sized. Focus on proper placement of those key people. As you scale up, then you hire specialists who can provide specific knowledge around key strategic areas. Keep your core team small and outsource everything not in your core competency.
Finance
The biggest piece of the scaling puzzle is often managing available cash. To begin, the financial infrastructure of your organization must be secured before investing in growth or seeking funding. Have you considered trademarks and patents? How is capital divided? How will use use the money and what return will you get on it? Once this foundation is in place, then begin investing your time and resources or what makes the most sense and seek investors who fit well with the values and goals of your company.
Are you looking to scale up but feeling unsure as to where to begin? Get in touch with Synese. Our team has years of experience and expertise in growing small businesses, and are happy to schedule an initial consultation for free. Get in touch here.