10 Tips for Growing a Successful Business in 2023
The economy is recovering from the hits it took during the last couple of years when the pandemic turned lives upside down. Despite the uncertainty caused by global events, many entrepreneurs are finding this is a good time to launch or grow their businesses.
A Maryland business attorney can provide the guidance you need every step of the way. Here are 10 tips for growing a successful business in 2023.
Explore the Possibility of Doing Business with the Government
Although they come with a great deal of paperwork and regulations, once you learn the ropes, you might find that securing contracts with state or federal government agencies could be lucrative for your company. These contracts often allow the contractor to earn a healthy profit margin from a client who is usually more reliable at paying its financial obligations than a private sector customer who might be experiencing financial struggles.
If you fit into certain demographic categories, you might have an advantage over the competition for winning a government contract. For example, companies owned by veterans, women, or minorities can get preferential treatment in the bid process than some other businesses.
Embrace the Reality of Online Shopping
With so many people shopping online, businesses that do not cater to that vast market will get left behind by companies that make it easy for their customers to find them and buy their products online. To capture the largest market share, you will want to optimize your website for both computer and mobile shopping. If a potential customer finds that your website does not allow them to view your products and complete their purchase conveniently, they will move on to your competition.
A good starting point if you sell items to the public is to open a seller account on one of the online shopping sites. Depending on your products, you might want to compare the costs of having a seller account on one of several platforms, like Etsy, Amazon, or Shopify. If your business involves providing services rather than goods, you might explore the possibility of listing your company on contract or freelance websites.
Video Marketing for Your Business
Using videos in marketing is here to stay, at least for the moment. You might feel as if you are constantly chasing the latest advice on how to get traffic to your website and other SEO strategies. One of the current trends is using short-form videos in posts on your website.
Videos generate more consumer traffic to platforms than any other marketing device. To stay on top of the marketing trends, learn about video SEO strategies and incorporate short videos in your website articles and posts.
Hang On to Your Valued Employees
For decades, employees have complained bitterly about toxic workplace cultures and being paid a pittance while CEOs rake in millions of dollars a year. Flash forward to the “Great Resignation” that happened during the pandemic, with droves of people quitting their jobs.
Many took early retirement, while others started their own businesses. Companies across America are scrambling to hold onto their valuable valued employees. When a worker can quit a high-pressure job that gave them ulcers and high blood pressure and walk into a less demanding position in a different field making just as much money, if not more, and working fewer hours with less stress, “old school” companies that do not treat their employees well now struggle to have the workforce they need to keep their doors open.
Large companies are rethinking how they distribute pay among their workers. Unless you want your best employees to go elsewhere, you might need to perform an uncomfortable pay and equity assessment of your business.
Consider Freelancers
The old model of working full-time for one employer for decades is fading quickly. In today’s gig economy, quite a few workers treasure the freedom of being able to pick and choose their work assignments and their hours. Although these people sacrifice job security and benefits, many find the trade-off worthwhile.
With so many people wanting to work remotely, there is a much larger pool of experienced freelancers than ever. When you hire freelancers, you save your company money by not having to pay these expenses:
Benefits like sick pay, vacation time, health insurance, and other perks that a full-time worker would expect.
Training the worker. Freelancers are already experts at what they do.
The expense of renting or buying office space for that worker.
The matching portion of the worker’s tax withholdings and other employer taxes.
Also, you have more flexibility with freelancers based on your current needs. Most industries have busy times and slow times. If you have full-time employees, you still have to pay them the same income when business is slow. With freelancers, you would simply not engage their services if you don’t have the work for them to do.
Stand Out from the Crowd Online
With so many companies crowding the market online, savvy businesses are devising creative ways to market their goods or services and make sales. The solution for your company will depend on your unique marketplace situation. The bottom line is that you do not want to be doing the same strategy as all of your competitors.
Use Supply Chain Problems to Your Advantage
The economic disruptions caused by supply chain challenges during the pandemic sent many industries into a tailspin. A clever entrepreneur will realize that the flip side of this problem is, when you get an item in stock that has experienced scarcity, customers will flock to your physical or digital store. By developing close relationships with your vendors, you could capitalize on this situation.
Talk to Your Clients
Selling goods or services used to be a more detached experience. For many companies, the customer’s experience is still limited to the client selecting the items they want and paying the company to purchase those things. For a business to thrive in 2023, it could help to let the customers know any new or enhanced goods or services you now offer and get feedback from them on how you could improve.
Pitch Your Product to Influencers
You might be surprised at how many people make a purchase because one of their favorite micro-influencers recommended the item. Many of these influencers love to “discover” a new product and share it with their followers. Cultivating a relationship like this can be far less expensive than traditional advertising or marketing campaigns.
Market Collaboratively
Speaking of advantageous business relationships, if you collaborate with another company that offers goods or services that compliment your products, you can both win. Packaging your products together in bundles can attract customers who cannot resist a discount. You and the other company can split the marketing expenses by partnering on your campaigns.
Talk to a Maryland business attorney to ensure you comply with state and federal regulations when you develop and implement innovative strategies to grow your business in 2023.