An engaged small business owner is someone who does not just “set it and forget it.” We are all constantly testing, tweaking, revising, and trying again to ensure we are continuing to offer the very best experience to our customers and clients as well at meeting or exceeding our own bottom line.
The best way to grow your business is to keep setting goals and working to attain them. As the owner of a small business, though, the amount of potential business goals can be overwhelming. It can be tough to decide which ones you should be concentrating on, and how to narrow those down to the ones that will be the most beneficial for your business, and for you.
We’ve built this list of business goals based on our own experience as well as that of others. Some of these goals are professional, some are personal, but each is something worth investing in.
- Maintain or build profits. This is the most obvious, of course, and should be intrinsic. But one thing some forget is that profits can go back into growth. But you don’t want to overextend yourself. Keep your goals balanced.
- Increase your social media presence. As we’ve mentioned many times in our blogs and publications, a strong, positive, and informational social media presence pays off huge dividends. You can easily share information about your products services, sales, and specials while also learning more about your target audience, what they find interesting, and what they are looking for in product and services.
- Build your community presence. Sponsoring a couple events and donating to a reputable charity during the year is a good way to give back to those who have supported the growth of your business.
- Reduce your energy use. By being cognizant of how much energy you are using, you can not only reduce your expenses, but also reduce your impact on the environment. Ensure all your employees shut down the computers at night, which can also lessen the risk of a cyber attack. Program thermostats to automatically lower the temperature when people are not there. You may even want to consider staggering work hours so that you are you are not operating at capacity during peak hours, or even allowing employees to work from home when they choose. If you are able, purchase energy-efficient equipment. Train your people to shut off lights when rooms are not in use, and invest in LED fixtures. And unplug appliances and fixtures when they are not being used. You can get everyone involved with consistent training on how to save energy, and you should see a big difference in your energy bills.
- Increase your new product sales. Investing in a new product is expensive, so ensuring you are promoting them properly is key to their success.
- Create a new product or service. Being able to provide a product or service that is something your business created from scratch shows that you are willing to invest in your own market, and, if successful, could also allow for more business longevity.
- Providing the best customer service possible. This is something you can work on every day and actually see the results happen in real time.
- Keeping your customer relationship management tool up to date. You can’t sell to or connect with people without knowing who they are. An up-to-date customer relationship management tool pays off in the short term for allowing you to easily access customer information at the tips of your fingertips, and also provides valuable fodder for long-term market research.
- Invest in professional development. You and your small business can benefit from many educational offerings out there. In addition to new business knowledge, when you’re taking courses you also have the chance to meet other business owners who are trying to do the same thing you are. Create a network of peers who will be there long after the classes are finished.
- Allow yourself a work/life balance. This may be among the hardest business goals to achieve, but we know that a good work/life balance improves all aspects of life. You, your health. your company, and your personal relationships will all benefit.
How We Can Help Your Small Business
Emphasize Design of Calgary provides a number of options for the development of your small business. We cover all of your website design and online marketing needs. Contact us to discover what we can do for you and your small business goals.
This is such a great help for all those like me who want to exapnd or grow their businesses. This step-by-step guide is an excellent help, and I am sure that I will be contacting them soon. My hopes about good results are high, and they would be seen.