Levelling up is always going to be a tricky business. There cannot be that many business owners out there who are actively looking to take more risks and add more pressure than they already have.
Things have been incredibly difficult for everyone in recent months, and there has been very little indication that things are going to change any time soon.
However, the truth of the matter is that businesses need to keep growing if they are going to keep operating. The marketplace is furiously competitive at the moment as business owners are fighting even harder to ensure that they are the ones that are getting customers.
If you are not growing as a company, even in these challenging times, then you run the risk of falling behind. And as we have seen over the last couple of years, falling behind is pretty much an admission of defeat.
There have been so many companies out there in recent months that have closed, and you do not want to end up among that number. Here are a few ways that you can level up more effectively and more safely this year.
Do Your Research
When it comes to expansion and growth, you know that you are always going to be taking a step into the unknown to some extent. This is a gamble, but there are ways that you can improve the odds for you and your company. The best way that you can do this is by conducting as much thorough research as you can.
Look at what other businesses in your sector are doing. Find out if other companies have gone through a similar process recently, and how they fared if they were expanding into the same areas that you are looking into. You will need to think about what additions and improvements you need to make to your business, what risk factors you could be setting yourself up for, and so on. Do not be afraid to reach out for expert advice, too.
Get Smarter With Your Hires
Expansion can mean a lot of different things, and sometimes it simply means bringing on new team members to help you handle the load. This is always an exciting time for business owners because it demonstrates that what they have been doing is working. But it is important to note that this can be somewhere where a lot of businesses falter.
Make sure that you are crystal clear on what exactly you are looking for in your new staff members before you start interviewing. Talk to your team leaders and put together a detailed person specification. Identify the skills that are absolute must-haves and work up a list of desirables.
It is also worth thinking about whether you really need new hires, or if this is an opportunity for you to reward and retrain some of your existing employees to boost morale at a critical time. If you are hiring because you are expanding into a new area, which many businesses are in the wake of the massive shift to digital, then offering your staff specific training could be a win-win.
Find Software That Helps You Make Things Easier
When you are in the midst of an expansion, you are going to be faced with a lot of different duties on a regular basis. There will always be new questions to be answered and new problems to be solved. You will be running hypotheticals and worst-case scenarios, and you will not have a lot of time to dedicate to the usual day-to-day. This is why it is so important that you find ways to ensure that things are running smoothly. Investing in new software and tools can make a massive difference to your company in these difficult times.
They can ease the load on your department heads and on the members of your team that have enough on their plates already. Take your CFO as an example. They will be pushed to their limit at the moment, making sure that your finances are going smoothly even before you think about adding to their workload with expansion questions.
But something as seemingly simple as a new corporate credit card can smooth out the workflow and make their processes a lot more straightforward. If you are asking what a corporate credit card is and how will it save me time and money? Talk to the team at PayHawk. Their company cards can be tailored to suit your business and offer a platform that will streamline your finances.
Get Serious About Social Media
If you are looking at taking the next big step with your business, then it is high time that you start taking social media seriously. For a lot of companies, social media channels are something that are one of those “and when you have time, it would be good to get to” tasks. As a result, many businesses’ social media accounts are bland and purely promotional. But you could be doing so much more with your channels.
They should be a way for you to engage with customers and clients both old and new. They can help you to get your brand out there, not only in terms of promotion but in terms of establishing your personality and expertise. If you are thinking about levelling up, then it would be a smart investment to bring on a social media expert who can show you how you can properly use your channels. They can help you identify where your time is best spent, and which ones to avoid.
Make Sure To Look Back
Levelling up is about moving forward, but it is also about making sure that you have a foundation that you can build from. If you are planning an expansion this year, then the best place to start is by looking at how your company has performed over the tough last couple of years.
Every business faced unexpected challenges, and auditing your wins and losses will show you that there are certain areas that you should shift focus away from. It can also show you how well your team has adapted to new circumstances, from working at home to switching the focus to digital.
This is particularly important because even though the major challenges of 2020 may no longer be that relevant, there will be many more challenges that everyone will have to face in the months ahead with rising prices and supply shortages. If you can identify areas that need improvement, you can start work on bolstering them now before you start making those big forward strides.
Don’t Neglect Your Customer Service
Finally, one of the most important things to remember about levelling up is that you cannot afford to lose focus on your customer service. With things as competitive as they are currently, you cannot give your clients a reason to look elsewhere. This is a particular problem for smaller businesses, where customer service can end up being something that is shared among different members of the team.
Bad customer interactions are the kind of thing that can have a slow burn but a serious impact on your reputation. Make sure that you assign someone the task of responding to queries and concerns, and think about investing in software that makes it easier for people to get in touch with you.
