In this dynamic world, business growth is not a luxury – it has become a necessity. This is not only true for well-known high-turnover and high-attrition businesses like big tech and big finance. Even in the smaller and (sometimes) quieter regions of enterprise, changes to technology and society have upended the constant-state business models of the past.
Taggart & Partners are business advisors to the mid-level and small business community, with a long and proven record of helping our clients achieve their goals. We are one of Brisbane’s leading SME accounting firms – we advise on major issues such as taxation, structuring, and asset protection, in addition to strategies for business growth.
We go beyond the numbers to be your partner in the growth of your business. Call us on (07) 3391 1188, e-mail us at enquiries@taggartandpartners.com.au or get in touch online. We are here to listen, to give you our best, and to see your business take off and fly.
The Way Forward
With all new growth comes new risk. How do we manage necessary risk when we have to expand the business in order to move forward? What business development strategies will gain the advances we need? We’ll look at some ideas for 2023.
Start With Structure
Many excellent businesses are not optimally structured. The primary benefit to the best business structure is tax minimalisation – your business is almost certainly paying more tax than necessary. You will need expert, professional advice for this complex issue, but getting it right can be one of the quickest ways to boost your company’s net, which is what growth is all about.
Know Where You’re Going
Having a business plan is more important than doing everything the plan says to do. No plan completely survives contact with reality, so expect constant revision. This is especially true for smaller enterprises – more subject to external changes, but also more sensitive to them, and usually better able to tack with the wind as needed. A good business plan has always been one of the most important strategies for business growth.
Meet Your People
You see them every day but take a moment and look at them with fresh eyes. There can be potential and talent you have not been aware of, waiting to go to work making your company better. Encourage ideas and creativity, and maybe take a step or two back to let them surprise you with their resourcefulness. This approach doesn’t need to cost any extra money, and it can bring big dividends in employee engagement. An involved employee is a more productive employee, and more productivity is growth.
Know Your Customers
We’ve all heard this one many times, but the sales landscape never stops changing, so it’s always a new idea. If your understanding of your customers drifts too much, they will drift away elsewhere before you are aware of it. Do you really know what they want – today, as opposed to the last time you asked this question seriously? The answer may surprise you, and getting up to date on what they need and want is a sure-fire path to new growth.
Know Your Competition
We can never understand our competitors too thoroughly. Know their business approach. What are they doing that you don’t understand? Maybe it’s just wrong, or maybe they’ve figured out something new and good. And look at your business from their point of view – how do you look like a competitor to your competition? Try doing more of whatever looks scary through their eyes. Taking business from your competition is a time-honoured foundation for growth.
Get on Social Media
Be visible on the social media people in your area use most. It is easy to join up and interact with current and potential customers. A comment or two a day from your business on relevant topics establishes you as a resource. There is no easier and less costly way to establish a legitimate presence with a genuine market audience.
Consider the Website
If you don’t have one, it’s time to get one. The reality of modern business is that even the smallest enterprise will benefit from an online presence, however humble and simplified. Not having one has become the equivalent of not having a telephone. Already have a good website? Look it over for potential updates. These don’t have to be anything major requiring expensive design work. Add new photos, put in customer testimonials, describe an interesting project done recently. The website should remain live and grow as your business grows.
Refocus on Customer Service
It is not too difficult to be pleasant and accommodating with clients – they are the ones who bring you revenue, after all. But it’s easy to get caught up in the challenges and stresses of running a business every day. When customer and client interaction come from a genuine interest in assisting them with their issues and goals, your goal of growth becomes that much easier – whether you are the boss or in sales or working on the shop floor.
Refine & Mine the Customer List
You have a lot of data about past customers – it can be sales gold worth digging for, as you use it to maintain contact with buyers and decision makers and develop leads for new sales relationships. Keep the list up to date with changes in your clients so your interest in their situation is made clear when sales contact them. Get customer opinions about using your services and products – feedback can turn out to be extremely valuable in planning new efforts and directions. Start thinking of your customer list in these ways, and you’ll discover an in-house growth engine.
Promotions & Events
A sales discount for visiting the website and giving a valid email address, on up to participation in local theme events and regional trade shows – the best methods will vary based on your business and location, but constant effort to make your name and message memorable at all relevant scales will work to increase sales and growth, and they will be at work even when you are not directly in contact with a potential customer.
Stay Current on Finances
Keep a sharp eye and a firm hand on the company’s finances. Know where you stand, especially regarding debt. You can’t expand a business successfully unless it is first in position to remain in business. Sometimes this kind of attention may tell you that expansion needs to be delayed until conditions improve. If that were to happen, it is a very valuable insight, and forms the basis for sustainable future growth.
Bring in a Trusted Partner
Getting professional business advice can be one of the strongest strategies for business growth. You’ll have access to accumulated years’ worth of real-world experience in what works, and what doesn’t. Your tax situation can be optimised. Your business assets can be properly assessed so you know the true value of your business. It is probably worth more than you think.
We’re Ready to Work with You
Taggart & Partners can offer assistance and advice with all aspects of business development strategies. We would like very much to speak with you about your present situation and your goals. We want to add your business to the long list of successes we have advised and are advising. It is easy to take the first step into a bright future – call us on (07) 3391 1188, e-mail us at enquiries@taggartandpartners.com.au or get in touch online.