As the CEO, it’s not only your responsibility to maintain your business and keep it afloat, but to grow and nurture your organization. If you are fortunate enough to make it past the 3-year point – which is where most businesses fail – then it’s time to consider expanding.
In this article, we’ll be taking a look at three methods other businesses have used to expand operations in the past. While none of these will result in rapid growth, they certainly have the potential to help your business grow.
Time to Diversify
Some businesses can only trade with so many people – that’s simple economics. Diversifying is a fantastic way of generating new revenue streams. If you own a small garden-centre and find that trade over the seasonal period is slow, then you could start selling Christmas trees. It could be that you’re a digital agency that specializes in content. If so, you could potentially expand into other relevant areas such as SEO, website development, or graphic design. Take a look at your business and find markets relevant to yours.
Is It Time to Franchise?
If you’re finally ready to share your business format and grow an empire, now might be the right to franchise. Regardless of whether you think that your idea for a home care franchise will be the next big thing in healthcare, or you’ve come up with the next McDonalds, now is as good a time as any to make this leap and take your business to new heights. After all, if you don’t do it now, when will you? However, there will be many more things you need to think about first. So, before you jump the gun, you need to ask the question – is my business franchise ready? Have people asked whether your organization is a franchise before? Do they often comment on how awesome your store is? Are there any other franchises like your business? If so, it might be the right time to start franchising out your idea
License Your Product
Licensing is a little like franchising, but instead of the whole business concept, you’re allowing another organization to sell one of your products. If you’ve developed a program which you use internally – be it a CMS (client/customer management system), SEO-tool, or even something you use to manage payroll – then you could earn additional revenue via the licensing route by offering it via software retailers. It’s a great way of earning up-front money while also earning royalties from the continued sales. One way to do this is by finding organizations that offer similar products to you. Here you can form a licensing partnership. Before going ahead though, make sure you research their business beforehand to reduce the risk of losing your product.
Form a Partnership with Other Businesses
Collaboration is often so much more powerful than competition. Say you’ve developed a clothing range perfect for toddlers, but you’re struggling to break-out into the market, then partnering up with local daycare centers to place your products on display is one way you could increase market exposure. Sure, you might end up losing a portion of money in commission, but the revenue generated – alongside the exposure – is more than worth this small sacrifice.
Open Up in a New Location
Finally, it might be time to open up new premises. There is nothing better than seeing your store full every day – but amidst all the excitement, you need to realize that you’re now limiting your revenue stream. Full stores are a double-edged sword; people are often interested in why your shop is so popular, but they also don’t want to risk going inside. You can get past this dilemma by opening up a new location on the opposite side of town. Suddenly you’ll have two premises, potentially doing double the revenue you were previously. It’s a no-brainer.
