As we can all probably guess, most of the growth a business will undergo occurs in the beginning. And it is much easier to grow a small business than a large one. Therefore, if your small business isn’t seeing much growth, it’s likely because you’re missing a necessary element.

To determine what’s holding you back, examine these areas of your business:

The Market
Before you even start a business, you should make sure there is a market for the product or service you want to sell. However, if you unknowingly skipped this step before you dove in, stop where you are and check yourself. Chances are you probably didn’t start a business that won’t succeed, but you may have tapped a market that either has too much attention or none at all.

Examine the demand for the product or service you provide. How vast is that market? What competition are you facing and how can you out-do them? If you have a product that no one is asking about, make it known. If there are already a number of other providers, then you have to make yourself stand out among them. This leads directly into the next element…

Advertising Exposure
Ads are all any of us deal with these days. They are every where you turn around. If you’re not taking advantage of advertising, then your business will be stuck. And if you are using advertising, you may not be using enough. The key is how many people you reach, i.e. repetition.

If you buy a radio spot for an ad, but only buy enough for it to play once a day then you must either (a) buy more air time or (b) make sure that once a day air time is during peek listening hours, such as rush hour or lunch time. Reach as many people as possible with the resources you have, whether limited or expansive. Be sure you are tapping into every advertising avenue you can: radio, TV, newspaper, magazine, word of mouth, business cards, etc.

A Believable Message
The last thing potential clientele want to hear is something far-fetched. If the message of your advertising isn’t believable, then your product simply will not sell. Roy Williams, an advertising columnist for Entrepreneur.com says to “close the loopholes in your message.” He provides an excellent example:

Open loophole: Advertisers often cry, “Everything must go!” but the listener is thinking “Or what? What happens if you don’t sell it? You’ll just come up with some new angle next week, right?”

Closed loophole: “Everything must go! Any jewelry not sold by the end of the day will be melted down and sold as scrap. This means that, until 9 o’clock tonight, you can buy finished jewelry for slightly more than the value of the raw materials.”

Couldn’t have explained it better myself.

The Customer’s Experience
Regardless of the effectiveness of your advertising, in the end, the growth of your business depends on the experience you provide to your customers. If they don’t leave your office with a smile on their face, then you’ve lost them and all of their friends they could have told about you. It is imperative that you provide your customers with outstanding service, competitive prices and fair policies. Do all that you can to make your customer’s loyal to you alone for the product you provide.

If you get all of these areas in check, anything else that might be hindering your business is a speed bump, a minor slow down that is easily overcome. Check these areas first and you’re well on your way to growth.

Source:
• Entrepreneur.com: Why Aren’t Your Ads Working?

Tags: start a business, advertising, business

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One Response to “Why Your Business Isn’t Growing”

1. Working at Home on the Internet says:
   

   […] Christopher J. Brunner presents Why Your Business Isn’t Growing posted at The Small Business Buzz, saying, “Thank you for considering my submission for inclusion in this week’s edition. Michelle Cramer” […]

   Posted February 9th, 2007 @ 6:56 am
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