Preventing Your Small Business From Being Stuck In Second Gear

You’ve started your small business, a time of great excitement and a little bit of nervousness. Just getting the ball rolling deserves admiration. However, while the honeymoon period of those early days had you zooming along, picking up speed and customers, it’s easy for that momentum to slow a little. However, sometimes it can slow so much that now it feels like you’re stuck in second gear. You’re moving, sure, but not as fast as you’d like. In these circumstances, you can feel a dilemma. Do you power ahead? What if that dries up any business you’ve managed to achieve already?

It’s a usual problem for small businesses. After the initial rush, it’s easy to find yourself in a bit of a rut, especially if you’re not growing into a new space without a reputation that has been cemented yet.

Thankfully, you’re not the first one this has happened to. As such, a wealth of business insight is out there to assist, and we’re more than happy to share it. So, in this post, we’ll look at some ways to shift your business into high gear and get moving again. Without further ado, let’s begin:

Reassess Your Business Strategy

There’s a hidden opportunity involved in any business that slows down, and that’s the fact it might be time to take a good hard look at your business strategy. For example, maybe your target market has changed, or new competitors are already trying to ape what you do. 

Taking some time to analyze your strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats from those first few months of operation. This “SWOT” analysis can help you see areas where you might need to pivot, for example, perhaps your communications strategy has been wanting, and outsourcing to a marketing and advertising company could be your next best bet. Remember that this isn’t about chastising yourself for failure, as quite literally zero businesses perfect everything in their first year. Be grateful you caught the issue now instead of when it really mattered.

Consider Your Workflow & Tools Used To Manage It

It’s a simple question – are you using all the tools available to streamline your operations and reach new customers? You might not have integrated the same conveniences your competitors have which is why they seem to be outshining you. For example, Customer relationship management software could help you retain clients and keep that dialogue going, and because you’ve been so stretched you’ve had a hard time doing that manually.  You may be surprised just what features are worthwhile if you give it a chance.

Invest in Your Team

Now is the time to trust in your team as opposed to limiting them or micromanaging their actions. For example, have you provided even modest development opportunities? Do your staff feel valued and motivated in the business? Could you find out with anonymous feedback? It might be that offering a workshop on a new software installation or just having an open dialogue about how clients are treating them can help you move forward to a better, more realistic approach.

With this advice, you’ll be certain to prevent your small business from feeling stuck in second gear.