Google started in a garage, Amazon began as an online marketplace for books and wasn’t profitable for 14 years, and McDonald’s began as a single restaurant in San Bernardino, California.

All big businesses start as small ones. By starting a business for the right reasons, creating a strong business development plan, hiring the right people, and staying the course, you can build a successful business empire.

It’s important to plan and structure your business, regardless of its size, to prepare for the future. Being proactive when it comes to growing a small business will pay off in the long run.

Here are a few tips on how to grow a business:

Build a sales funnel.

The first way to quickly grow a business is by building a sales funnel. If you don’t have a sales funnel, you’re making a huge mistake. Sales funnels can help to automate your business, scale and grow it quickly and easily. While there’s some front-end work involved, once those processes are in place, it’s smooth sailing from there.

Identify new opportunities.

Analyze new opportunities in your business by understanding the demographics better. Understand everything from distribution channels to your direct competitors, and even analyze foreign markets and potential industries. There are likely dozens of new opportunities that your business could pursue immediately with the proper amount of analysis.

Reduce the risks.

Risk is an inevitable part of starting and growing a business, but there are many ways to limit internal and external threats to the company and its growth. One important resource to help accomplish this is a business insurance provider.

Be adaptable.

One trait that many successful startups have in common is the ability to switch directions quickly in response to changes in the market.

Focus on analytics

Many companies, especially tech giants like Facebook and Amazon, realize the value of utilizing data. The big data analytics market will surpass $200 billion per year by 2020. You should consider focusing on analytics as well.

Consider Franchising Your Small Business

Franchising is a common growth strategy for small businesses. This means you sell your business rights to an independent owner, who then opens and operates their own franchise of your business. Many well-known companies sell franchises, like McDonald’s, Starbucks, and Marriott hotels. When a new franchise opens, it increases the number of locations of your business, which helps bring in more revenue.

Focus on scalability

When money, time, and expertise are in short supply, it can be tempting to go with the quick (or cheap) fix, but investing in basic solutions that don’t require a huge financial investment or learning curve can seem wise.

Practice Corporate Social Responsibility

Many customers want to do business with a company that matches their own values. Corporate social responsibility (CSR) means you recognize the impact your business has on all aspects of the community. Letting the public see what your business is doing to have a positive impact can help your business’s bottom line.

We have always emphasized the importance of having a good website for your company because it can act as your best tool for marketing and sales. A poorly designed website can repulse people from your business and can cause you to lose customers before you even have them. Get in touch with HyperEffects to work on creating, enhancing, and making the website of your company more user-friendly.