Top Things to Consider When Planning a Business Expansion

Business expansion? Am I crazy to be writing about a business expansion when COVID is still here, no vaccine in sight, offices are still closed, and businesses are closing down?

Well, maybe not. At least, not everyone is closing up shop at this time, right? Some are just starting. In fact, some businesses just opened up in response to the demand that the pandemic brought in.

So let’s say you have a business that you have been running from home. And that you are still going strong amidst the present challenges. It may be smart to look at the opportunities that opened up during quarantine and plan to scale up for when we ease into the new normal.

Business expansion can be done in several ways. You can maybe expand your service or product offering, expand to a new target market, expand to new locations, or even expand globally by going online. That is if you are not doing it yet.

Here’s a tip: Look at the influx of informal online sellers. Check out what they’re offering, and go from there.

If you are seriously thinking about a business expansion, consider the following:

Know who your next customers are

You have to know who will avail of your services or products next. Are your new offerings things that they would need or want? Can they afford them? Where are these people located? Do they shop online? Or do they prefer a brick and mortar store?

You would also want to identify other demographics of your new target market like age, gender, marital status, income, ethnicity, and occupation, to name a few. Be ready to adapt to how your customers react to stimulus so you know what type of advertising you’ll put in place. Be prepared to be flexible and tweak strategies based on how your new target market responds.

Hiring additional manpower

If you are expanding your business, there’s a fair chance that you won’t be able to stay at the same level of logistics that you have presently in place. You might have a small team already or may already be outsourcing. But you may need more, especially if you are branching out to different areas. Or maybe you’ll be offering a new service that will need a different skill level from people that you already have on board.

When time is short and money is tight, it can be difficult to train people up for what you want to do. Maybe you could even hire someone else to do the training for you, so you can focus on working on the strategies for your business expansion. For example, ELMO onboarding can help your new employees to acquire the necessary knowledge and skills they need for your business. This is another level of outsourcing, but it offers tremendous help for your business.

Being consistent

So you expand your business. You add more products. More services. You acquire a new customer base. You implement new processes to keep up with the change.

Do you just forget your old products? Ignore that old customer base? Let go of the old processes?

Of course not!

The key is consistency. You have to maintain the same level of service you provide to your existing customer, if not better. You have to continue to improve on your existing products and services. You have to keep the processes that worked and helped you get to where you are. Be consistent with your message. Be consistent with your brand.

Remember, you won’t even be in a place where you are able to expand your business without your existing products and services. You have your existing customer base to thank for your ability to grow your business. And you can always upsell to your existing customers.

And there you have it. I hope you find this helpful.