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Whether you’re the owner of a local coffee shop, a small bookstore or a family hairdressing salon, you probably treat it more like your child (it is your brainchild, after all) than only your company, and profits are not the only reason why you want it to succeed.
In order to keep going, your business needs to be constantly growing, changing, developing and you, as the owner, have to look for ways to enable it. If that’s your case, you’ve come to the right place – here are some smart ways to develop your small local business:
Improve customer service
If you want your customers to come back and tell other people to come, you have to treat them right – it’s obvious. According to research, more than half of clients won’t go back to the place where they encountered bad service. That’s a lot, right?
Especially if we talk about small businesses. Make sure you leave all your troubles and worries at home and keep a close eye on your employees. Maybe you will need to invest in staff training or introduce some other changes – there’s always something to improve. And it will be worth it.
Remember about marketing
It doesn’t matter if you have a small business in a small town where almost everybody knows each other – you still need to come up with ways to promote your company, especially that it is super easy in today’s world. Social media is king.
Facebook, Twitter or Instagram are great tools to build your online presence and to attract new customers – make yourself approachable, present your business, take beautiful photos and share quality content. To make people come back and keep them with you, try personalising the experience.
Loyalty programs, newsletters and giveaways are always a good idea – they spark interest, engage your clients and let them remember you. Apart from that, think about details – little things that can get stuck in people’s heads.
For example, if you have a coffee shop, check out coffee sleeve templates to order personalised sleeves for your paper cups – add your brand name, a logo and something more, something personal (funny cartoons, inspirational proverbs, pieces of advice, interesting facts, etc).
Think about content marketing
Business owners very often underestimate the power of quality content. But people really appreciate it when they get a chance to learn something new and to get a sneak peek behind the scenes of a company or the whole industry branch.
It’s not about writing only about yourself and what you’re doing; if you run a bookstore, write about books – reviews, to-read lists, prevues, secrets of the publishing industry, etc. Your potential customers will see you as an authority, therefore they will trust you and be more likely to come back again and recommend you to others. Plus, good content can really help you with your SEO strategy (if you have one, and if you don’t – you should!) and how you rank in SERPs.
Control and reduce costs
There’s almost always something that you can save your money on. It’s crucial to keep track of all your spendings to be absolutely sure that you know for what you’re paying; then, you are able to determine whether it’s worth it. It may seem tiring, but there is software available today that can help you keep everything in check, e.g. many accounting apps located in clouds and updated all the time.
Prepare regular reviews of your expenses and always look for ways to reduce them – maybe you can replace some of your devices with energy-efficient ones? Or there’s something that’s not working as it should? Additionally, don’t stop checking the prices of your suppliers – maybe you can get yourself new deals.
Engage
Show people that you are more than just a business. If you have a coffee shop, you can consider hosting events – it will be a chance to invite people that normally wouldn’t come to you, and to show them that you care about something.
If you’re living an eco-friendly life, organize meetings for those who want to learn more about how to reduce their carbon footprint; it’s also getting more and more popular to host language courses over the coffee, a beer or a slice of pie. If you run a beauty salon, you may start a series of regular meetings about health and beauty. Teach people how to take care of themselves – they will surely appreciate it.
None of these ways is magical; sometimes they might not work. The most important thing for the business owner is to observe and to come to conclusions. Build a business that you would love as a customer. And remember not to overwork; there are times where the best thing you can do for your company is to step back for a moment, take a break and relax. You will have a chance to come back with a well-rested, fresh brain and, who knows, maybe that’s how you will come up with the best ideas.