2020 was a rough year for so many businesses. Over 100 000 small business closed their doors forever before the middle of the year and so many more are struggling to stay alive. In these uncertain times, your small business must have a plan to thrive. Here are 5 ways to ensure your small business is profitable in 2021.
1. Have A Written Plan
So many of us are convinced that we’ll remember every detail of our small business, and its inner workings, off by heart – the sad truth is this is not the case. Unless you have a professionally written business plan, you are short-changing your business and yourself. Make sure your business plan is reviewed regularly and updated to ensure your business stays relevant in our modern world.
2. Choose A Business That Is Likely To Succeed
You don’t need to reinvent the wheel to have a successful small business. Find a gap in the market for your talents and make sure that you provide those products or services better than your competition. Tried and tested small businesses are always your best bet, for example, you could focus on how to start a vending machine business. Follow your passions or know your strengths and you will be sure to find a small business opportunity that is just right for you.
3. Focus On High-Impact, Low-Cost Marketing Strategies
So many small businesses struggle with cash-flow, especially during these trying times. It is so important that you still allocate budget to marketing your business – the more people know you exist, the more business you could get. Social media is a great place to start for two reasons; the first reason is that the potential reach on a relatively small budget is incomparable to traditional marketing platforms and the second reason is that you can target your ads to your specific audience at the click of a button.
4. Excellent Customer Service
Providing excellent customer service is the key to ensuring that your small business is profitable. Modern customers expect a certain level of service, especially when dealing with an online business
You need to test your customer service by going undercover as a customer; the only way to know where your customer service shortcomings are is by experiencing them first-hand. Great customer service is a fantastic way to get new business referrals from your satisfied customer base; ultimately your customers decide whether or not your business will succeed.
5. Start A Business Blog
Blogging is an effective way to create a larger market for your business. The only way to launch a successful blog is to consistently make sure you only share relevant and engaging content.
You need to be immersed in the blogging communities of your industry to ensure your content is fresh and unique. Valuable blog articles get shared thousands of times, creating increased brand awareness for your small business. Blogging keeps your audience interested and will handle the multimedia aspects of your business.
