Contents
Should You Start a Business?
Types of Businesses
How to Write a Business Plan
How to Get Funding for Your Business
First Steps: Incorporation and More
How to Get Your Business
Off the Ground
How to Market Your Business
How to Manage Your Business’s Money
How to Grow Your Business
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How to Grow Your Business
As your business grows, it will take on more costs and ideally generate more revenue and profits. Here are the most common ways businesses grow.
Method |
Description |
Pros |
Cons |
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Sell more to existing customers |
Sell a greater amount of goods or services to your existing customer
base by giving them reasons to buy from you more frequently |
Quickest and easiest way to increase revenue; lowest marketing cost |
Over time, your customer base will shrink through attrition, and ignoring new customers can be dangerous |
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Sell higher-value items to existing customers |
Upgrade customer purchases to include higher-priced goods and services as a means of increasing revenue |
Cost is still lower than marketing to new customers |
Your customer base is not
growing |
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Sell to new customers |
Look
beyond existing customers to try to bring in
new buyers |
By increasing the
size of your customer base, you increase the odds of selling to a portion of them, thereby increasing revenue |
Most expensive and least efficient approach |
To implement these growth strategies, new businesses often must hire staff and secure additional funding.
Hiring Employees
Deciding when to hire new employees is tricky. Hire too soon and your expenses may outpace your revenue. Hire too late and you may suffer declines in both customer service and the quality of the products or services you offer. The best approach is to hire only when you’re certain the business cannot grow without additional staff, and then to hire employees who will stay with the business as it grows. Some of the best sources for finding employees are:
- Colleges and universities: Contact the career placement office.
- Online help-wanted ads: Placing ads on sites such as Craigslist.org costs little (or nothing) and can yield many qualified applicants.
- Online networking sites: Websites such as LinkedIn.com can connect you with job candidates who match specific criteria you set.
- Headhunters: Though expensive, headhunters (professional recruiters) may be able to track down your ideal hire quickly, saving you time and effort.
- Temporary help firms: These firms allow you to “try before you buy” to avoid hiring someone who turns out to not to be the perfect fit for your needs.
Once you’ve hired your first employee, you’re bound by state and federal regulations regarding the hiring, treatment, and firing of workers. Check with your local Small Business
Administration or Department of Labor office to understand what you are required to do with respect to employees.
Securing Additional Funding
With growth also comes the need for cash. Established businesses typically have an easier time than startup businesses in securing financing from traditional sources, such as banks and regional loan funds, government funding that incentivizes businesses to remain in a specific geographic location. For a more comprehensive list of financing options, see How to Get Funding for Your Business and contact the organizations in the following table.
Organization |
Assistance |
Contact |
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Minority Business Development Centers |
Provides free and low-cost business start-up and management advice to minority-owned enterprises |
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Service Corps of Retired Executives (SCORE) |
Retired execu-
tives provide free or low-cost help in starting a business or managing an existing one |
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Small Business Development Centers (SBDC) |
Provide free or low-cost help in starting, running, and growing a small business |
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Women’s Business Centers |
More than 100 centers offer women free or low-cost training, counseling, and guidance
in starting
and running
a business |
| Acknowledgments & Disclaimer |
