How to Expand Your Growing Business In 2019

Scaling your business – it’s the goal that the majority of entrepreneurs aspire towards, but in reality, it’s certainly not as easy as it perhaps first seems.

For most business owners, it involves learning to be a jack of all trades – and very quickly. Once your business has grown a considerable amount, you might be in a position to delegate important aspects of running your business to the experts.

You can outsource your marketing needs, hire an entire sales team and work with a trusted accountant to ensure you are ticking all the required tax boxes.

But until you reach that point, you’ll likely be doing the majority of the hard graft yourself, so it’s vital that you spend your time wisely and that you know exactly what is needed in order to grow your business this year.

Nucleus Commercial Finance love working with growing SMEs and even start ups. Our products are tailored specifically to give every business a chance, regardless of its size or age.

Whilst there is no denying that the key factor in growing your business is hard work, dedication and a lot of long days, there are ways in which you can ramp up your efforts. Check them out below:

Always Keep Up with Your Industry

This one is a given, yet it’s a common mistake amongst a lot of businesses – usually the ones that are struggling to stay afloat. Research is key and as a business owner, you need to ensure that you are making time to keep up to date with the latest trends in your industry.

Put aside a few hours a week to check out what’s going on in your marketplace, what your competition are doing and most importantly, what you can do to stay ahead of them. Whether you invest financially by hiring an external marketing team or whether you decide to invest your time and do it yourself, you can’t neglect your business’s marketing efforts.

With the answers at your disposal with just a tap of your phone screen, there really is no excuse to be ignoring this hugely important aspect of growing your business. Marketing enables you to tell the world about your brand and we can assure you that your competition, especially those who are ahead of you, are spending a considerable amount of time and money on it.

Invest in Marketing

Creating awareness around the services or products your business offer is a fundamental part of growth and with marketplaces being more competitive than ever before, it’s essentially a prerequisite that you put an emphasis on improving your marketing efforts.

A simple way to start is by creating an email list. There are various email automation tools available for businesses to utilise and regardless of whether you are particularly apt with technology or not, these tools are easy to use and very user friendly.

Email marketing allows you to stay closely connected with your well-earned customer base and with a simple call to action (CTA) embedded on your website, you will be able to build a strong email list – a powerful tool in the arsenal of any business in 2019.

Access the Funding Required to Grow

It is definitely no secret that companies require capital in order to develop and meet their growth targets. Having cash to use to develop and launch new products or services plays a vital role in a business’s ability to grow – as does having the capital to hire a bigger team or buy a new premises.

The mistake many businesses make is scraping by until they reach a point where they simply cannot continue operations without a cash injection from additional sources – it’s at this point when businesses start to frantically apply for funding.

Applying for a business loan is often seen as a last ditch effort to save a business due to the fact that borrowing money is still considered taboo – yet it is those businesses that reach out at an earlier stage and get a boost financially whilst they are in a stronger position that end up faring better.

Usually, secured business loans are the best choice for SMEs that are hoping to grow as the rates and terms are more favourable. Lenders tend to place higher rates on business loans that are not supported by collateral as these types of loans are seen as high risk.

Using your property to grow your business is a strong move to make and ultimately, it’s a choice that makes sense too. If you don’t have faith in your business, why should any lender?

Property Finance allows you to borrow a considerable amount and with this additional funding you will be able to do the things necessary to scale your business.

Embrace Technology

We are living in a world that has never been as technologically advanced as it is today, so if your business is to keep up with everyone else, you need to embrace technology at every possible opportunity.

Running an SME has never been easier thanks to the digital tools available in today’s business landscape. A good place to start is by looking into the most frequently used software applications out there.

A reliable Customer Relationship Management (CRM) platform is essential for businesses that want to capitalise on lead opportunities.

Next up is a fast, easy to use Content Management System (CMS) – popular choices are WordPress, Magento and HubSpot.

With the right business funding in place, you business will be able to purchase the types of software required to ensure your business stands out from your competition.

Perfect Regular Cash Flow Forecasting

According to a recent study, 82% of small businesses fail due to cash flow problems, with 23% of small businesses running out of cash entirely.

Regular cash flow forecasts will mean that you can spot a cash gap before it’s too late and with this indispensable foresight, you will have the opportunity to make strategic financial decisions in time to save your business.

Cash flow forecasting gives you the chance to secure finance to bridge any gaps that may arise.

Implementing the above-mentioned tips will help you to stay relevant within your industry, which in turn will help you beat your competition to make the profit your business needs to achieve its growth targets.

For more SME advice and tips, read our related posts below. If you are experiencing cash flow challenges or want to realise your business growth plans, get in touch with our team of Funding Specialists today on 020 7839 9451 or email [email protected].