Many people start their own business in hopes of it becoming an overnight success. While shooting for the stars is certainly admirable, the reality is that only a small percentage of family businesses actually make it past the first five years.  In order to grow your business, you’ll need to devote a lot of blood sweat and tears, and ultimately, hard work. 

To help increase your chances of success, and avoid some of the most common mistakes other business owners name, here are some of the most essential tips for growing your business.

Establish an Online Presence

One of the first places you should start to put yourself on the map is online. A website is an essential part of establishing your online presence, and getting Google to notice who you are. A well designed website does more than just look good for your potential clients. 

It can produce more revenue in a wide variety of ways. Not only can you offer your services or products online, but you can also generate leads by creating content that leads web visitors back to your website. Statistics show that businesses that have an optimized website have significantly more customers than companies who don’t.

Get to Know Who Your Competitors Are

Get to know who your competitors are and remark what they’re doing and what they’re not doing. The more you can keep your eye on their habits, the better you can improve how your own operations are. 

Businesses that are working better than you may offer helpful insight for what kind of strategies are working for them. Even businesses that are less successful than you can provide a helpful window into what works and what doesn’t by observing what they’re doing or not doing.

Value Your Clients

Whether you’re a small business or a big one, one thing is for sure— your customers are the very backbone of your success. It’s important that you make each customer feel appreciated and valued if you hope to grow. 

From a marketing perspective, there is no better marketing than a happy customer that tells their friends and family about you.  Customer loyalty starts with making people feel like they’re your only customer even though they may be one of many.

Encourage Online Reviews

In today’s modern world, statistics show that people value online reviews as much as they would a recommendation from a close friend. Anytime you have a happy customer, encourage them to leave for review online. 

Whether it’s on your Facebook page, or Google business page, the more stars you can get, the more credibility you’ll have as a business, and the more leads you’ll generate as a result of your five star reputation.