In July, the confidence of UK businesses sunk to a six-month low against the backdrop of Brexit. This was only to be expected given the way in which recent negotiations have stalled, of course, while it may discourage British firms from investing in expansion in the coming months.
This would be a mistake, however, as with an organic growth plan and sustainable techniques it remains possible to expand your business even in a challenging economic climate.
In this post, we will look at three key steps that will enable you to expand your venture without risking its future:
Table of Contents
Make Organic Growth Your Priority
We have already touched on the importance of organic growth, and this ensures that your business expands at a rate which is sustainable. This guarantees the integrity of your investment, and ensures that your business grows at a rate that can be managed internally.
One of the best ways to achieve this is to invest in regular, independent audits of your business finances. This enables you to evaluate the accuracy of your financial statements, while also making it possible to appraise the impact that additional work would have on your bottom line.
More specifically, you could assess the cost bases associated with undertaking extra work and balance this against potential profits, helping you to scale your plans as effectively as possible.
Regular audits may also help to improve your financial reporting process, while identifying opportunities to reduce operational costs.
Invest More in Strategic Costs Such as Marketing
Reducing operational costs is important, and not only because this reduces your total expenditure. This also boosts the cash flow in your business, creating additional capital that can be reinvested into strategic costs and disciplines.
Take marketing, for example, which is a strategic cost base as it has a direct impact on your ability to boost turnover. Successful marketing is also central to organic growth, so by investing more into on and offline techniques you can drive expansion and boost your commercial prospects.
Investing in sales represents another strategic move that empowers sustainable growth, particularly if you can identify more efficient ways of distributing products (or services) and reaching out to new markets without spending outside of your means.
Consider Temporary Solutions as you Look to Trigger Growth
Having an agile and flexible business model is central to sustainable growth, so it is important to seek out temporary solutions as you look to trigger initial expansion.
If you are looking to take on additional work or orders, for example, it may make sense to create a temporary workforce that is employed on the basis of each individual project. While you would retain a core strategic team of permanent workers, you could also access a global pool of freelance talent in a bid to reduce annual costs.
Similarly, retail outlets may want to expand onto the high street, while remaining loathe to invest in a costly commercial lease. In this instance, temporary pop-up spaces provide a cost-effective solution, but one that still allows you to access a large and motivated customer base.
These outlets can also be hired on short-term leases, minimising your long-term investment and affording you flexibility in terms of how you shape your expansion.
