Imagine the following situation.
Your company started some time ago. Your idea sparks, and you were able to celebrate remarkable initial successes and generate solid business growth. They're proud and a bit euphoric. You now know that there is a market for your product/service and you are planning the steps for further expansion.
The plateau
But suddenly your company doesn't really get off the mark anymore. Growth is stagnating and your plans are stalling. They have reached a plateau and must open up new growth channels.
You are researching possible growth measures and want to use the opportunities and potentials of digital development and the Internet. But even initial research makes it clear that you are overwhelmed by the number of possible options. The list of possible measures ranges from
- SEO
- invest in Google Adwords or Facebook advertising
- one company blog start
- Social media (Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, Snapchat)
- sell on Amazon
- Start email marketing
- Introduce marketing automation
- Selling on marketplaces
- Start a crowdfunding
- Site redesign
- Introduce a CRM system
- and many more
There are tons of opportunities to move your business forward.
As a result of the developments of the digital revolution, marketing software has become established in recent years in particular, which also enables small companies to use professional tools.
These tools can be used correctly, extremely successful, and potentially give you the impetus for the next stage of growth.
The problem, however, is to develop the right applications for your specific problem from the number of possible tools.
The diagram below explains the rapid development of so-called marketing technology. These are software tools that can help you market your company.
Marketing technology for digital business growth
Source: chiefmartec.com
The number of providers of so-called marketing technology software has therefore increased twenty-fold.
Just click on the image and download the high-resolution graphics from chiefmartec.com
Or download the PDF version below for a better view
Your most important task is now to recognize which measures you take not seize
Before you introduce a specific growth tactic, you should consider where your company stands and which steps and measures are really relevant to you.
The advice of marketing agencies should often be taken with caution. Agencies recommend measures that you know and understand. Very often, these measures are not relevant for your company at the moment or they do not fit your very specific problem. During the conversation with agencies and service providers, pay particular attention to how interested the provider is in your specific business model and define clear goals.
In this article, we explain how to create a SMART marketing plan article.
If you put a lot of energy into the wrong action, your chances of success drastically dwindle, especially during the early phases of business development. 8 out of 10 small companies fail early on. Often, a strategic mistake causes a crisis that expands and leads to ultimate failure.
“Use the map before you set off into the forest”
Companies are like living organisms. They are 100% unique, yet they still grow and thrive through stages of development that follow predictable patterns.
During every new stage of development must a company deal with a number of specific challenges. How well or poorly a company deals with these challenges has a significant impact on the success or failure of an organization. It is neither easy nor obvious how to guide a company through these different stages.
Test here what level your company is at
The same method that still leads to success in one stage can contribute to failure during the next stage.
For this reason, standard solutions should be treated with caution as there is a high probability that you will focus on the wrong action. You must try to find the right solution for your level and implement it with a minimum of stress. Your goal should be to anticipate upcoming problems so that you can react immediately instead of slipping into an unexpected crisis. Your task is Search, find, and deploy the right solutions with a minimum of stress for the company
Most problems occur in predictable patterns and have similar triggers. But first, we would like to explain the typical growth phases with a brief description:
- Incubation phase: The idea is developed
- Startup phase: You get the company up and running safely
- Stable phase: you reach the plateau
- Growth phase: Stormy and exciting
During each of these phases, there are certain focal points that you should look for
- strategy describes how your company will be able to achieve its corporate purpose
- checkpoints are the most important development milestones that your company must overcome at every stage as a prerequisite for the leap to the next stage
- accelerators are tactics that work particularly well at each stage and accelerate your growth at this stage
- Stolpersteine are typical problems that arise in the respective phase and that you should avoid if possible
Now you may be wondering how you can proceed to define important growth drivers and avoid the risk described above.
In our strategy process, we therefore focus intensively on your goals and the challenges of your customers. Only when we have defined the so-called user journey (all points of contact between your customer and your company) do we start to review strategies and tools. Finally, the ideas are prioritized using the 80/20 method before we start implementing them.
If you click on the image below, you will be taken to our free Greenblut Business Assessment. The aim of this self-test is to analyze the current stage of your company development and at the same time to find out whether the conditions for further growth are met. After you have answered the questions, we will send you the results and some recommendations by email.
You'll learn:
- possible causes and barriers to growth
- Suggestions and tips for change measures
- Options for action and immediate measures
