Running a small business can be tough, there is a lot of competition from bigger brands which puts pressure on your business to stand out in the crowd. Particularly in the age of covid, small businesses have faced a host of extra problems which has unfortunately led to many small businesses having to close their doors for good. 

However, studies have shown that 63% of shoppers prefer to shop locally over a big named brand, which is great news for small business owners. The demand is there, so as a small business owner you need to be doing everything you can to promote your business and improve your chances of success. Here are some effective things we believe you can do to improve your small business.

Advertising

Advertising is a tried-and-true way to promote a business and get it noticed by customers. However, there is an art to advertising; if you don’t quite grasp the tone right your advertisement could have the opposite effect and push your customers away. 

Try to keep your adverts simple and clean in design and only provide necessary information or else it could be off putting. Think about where your adverts will be placed too, an advert on social media needs to be formatted correctly so it will be well received on all social media platforms.

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Additionally, it would be a good idea to use an ad design company as they can help you create the best adverts for your business. Creatopy ad design is a good example of this as they work with businesses to make ad design easier. They give you all the tools you need to make creative adverts for whatever platform you need. 

Online Presence

Having an online presence is essential for any modern business, and perhaps even more so for a small business. An online presence is what connects your business to the rest of the world. It makes your business more approachable and establishes credibility. 

The main way customers will find a business is through the internet, so if you do not have an effective online presence then you could be missing out a lot of potential new customers. When we talk about online presence, the two main things we mean are having a website and social media accounts. Both are extremely useful business tools that can be used to boost the success of your business. 

When designing your website, make sure it is spaced out well and easy to navigate. Your information should be easy to find and should state things like prices, opening times, location, and contact details. For social media, make sure you choose platforms that compliment your brand. 

For example, if you are running a bar, perhaps use Instagram for your main account as opposed to Twitter. Your social media should act as a communication line between you and your customers so be sure to stay active and keep information up to date. For more tips, check out these 10 ways you can improve social media for your small business. 

Know The Market And Your Competitors

When running a small business, it is important to have a clear understanding of your market and where you place among your competitors. Knowing who your competitors are can be beneficial for your business as you can learn a lot from their successes.

If they are well known for a particular service, then that lets you know that there is a market and a demand for it. Alternatively, doing this sort of research can help you to find out if there are any gaps in the market that you can corner. Try and find out if there is something that your competitors aren’t doing and adapt that into your business model. 

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Knowing your audience and their demands is a key part of being a successful business. Customer care is perhaps more important for a small business, as there is more opportunity to form a close bond with your customers. 

As a small business, you need to be able to appeal to the needs of your customers and provide them with services they cannot get from your competitors. You will greatly improve your chances of success if you take the time to research your market and firmly establish a place within it.

Hire The Right People

This is an important point that can really aid in the success of your small business. Your employees play a crucial role in the running of your business, so it is important that you take the time to hire the right people. Depending on your business, you may only wish to hire experienced professionals, but if this isn’t the case then make sure you provide adequate training to those who start the job without experience. 

Additionally, it could be a good idea to refresh or offer further training once an employee has been in the job for a while. It can be easy for employees to get too settled and slack slightly with their work and offering additional training could prevent that. 

Furthermore, training exercises can be a good method of team building and can promote healthy workplace relationships. A good idea could be to create a schedule with the training, so your employees know when it is coming up. Perhaps have the training every three months so you can plan in advance and your employees can talk to you about what aspects of the job they feel they need to be trained in. 

Summary

While running a small business is demanding, there are methods you can utilise to improve your chances of success. If you are thinking of starting your own small business, these tips can help you to launch your business into success. 

Alternatively, if you have been running your business for a while, then use these methods to help pull your business from a rut. Take the time to find out what is lacking in your business and what methods you can adopt to bring your business back into success.