Keeping up with and surpassing the competition is a primary objective for every business owner. Whether you are involved in insurance, construction, marketing, travel, real estate, healthcare, or any other industry, your brand will not survive if it cannot hold a market share.
Decision-makers are tasked with figuring out the best way forward for their companies. They make decisions that affect the day-to-day operations of the company as well as the big-picture goals. For less experienced business owners, this challenge may be beyond your capabilities.
Luckily, this article can provide a little bit of guidance if the business is struggling to grow or maintain success. Here are a few cost-effective strategies to improve your brand and position it for a brighter future.
Embrace Social Media Marketing
Social media have become valuable resources for businesses across the board. They are perfect tools for getting to know the audience and engaging them on a personal level. The best part? They are either free or extremely cheap. Social media marketing is critical in 2023, especially if you have an audience that uses these platforms regularly. Plus, there are numerous methods for online engagement. You can share posts, host live streams, join groups, create animated videos, promote sales/events, and conduct audience research. If you hope to be successful in the future, then your advertising efforts must involve social media at some level.
Invest in Promotional Products
There is a reason why marketing is so important when you need to improve the business. It is how you communicate to your target audience and convince them to buy what you are selling. Social media is a great way to get started, but you should also consider a campaign involving branded merchandise. This method allows you to spread brand visibility without investing a ton of money since promotional products can create additional impressions with every use. Some examples of popular giveaway items include custom tote bags, water bottles, office supplies, stress balls, cooling towels, stadium cups, and beer steins.
Refine Your Tech Stack
Tech tools are vital to most business operations in 2023. In the age of artificial intelligence, automation, and cloud computing, manual tasks are becoming less frequent, especially for internal processes. The problem is that some business owners will adopt more tools than they need, or at least more complicated programs than are necessary. Rather than saving your team from wasting time on busy work, you could be adding to their burden by forcing them to use too many programs. Refining your tech stack means choosing fewer tools that can integrate seamlessly with each other. This will optimize operations without you having to spend more money on subscriptions or service fees.
Pursue Competitor Research
Knowing your competition is a pillar of ambitious brands. Your company does not operate in isolation with customers but as part of a group of competitor brands. Understanding how your competition conducts business and interacts with the audience can inform your strategy to take advantage of their weaknesses and maintain your strengths. For example, if one of your main competitors is missing a segment of the audience with its marketing, you can target this group to exploit a weakness. Competitor research is an effort that does not require a huge investment, and can often be done for free if your team has the time to do so.
Go Public
When companies reach a certain level of success, their growth beyond that capacity may be limited by available resources. However, your ambition makes you want to expand the business, and you cannot do so without an influx of cash. Going public is an option for businesses that are past the startup phase. A company undertakes an initial public offering, also known as an IPO, to allow members of the public to buy stock in the company. This raises funds but also makes you responsible to the shareholder as opposed to just yourself. It is a good option when a company lacks the funds for expansion but is on a growth track. There is a lengthy process involved if you want the brand to go public, and you will need to research the pros and cons before committing to this big step.
Always Start By Evaluating Your Resources
Before you start adopting big changes in how your company operates, it is crucial that you conduct a thorough internal analysis first. The company should not transition to certain projects unless it has the resources or capacity to do so first. Whether you plan to switch up marketing strategies or take the company public, make sure that your operations and team members are ready to handle the transition so that the change is effective.
