Growth Strategy Of Business Definition – A solid growth strategy is more than just a marketing strategy, it is an important foundation in your business machine. Without one, you’re at the mercy of the user base and fickle market changes. So, how do you plan to grow? If you’re not sure what steps are needed to create an effective growth strategy, we’re happy to help. Business Growth Business growth is the stage a company reaches where it expands and needs more ways to make a profit. This can happen when a company increases sales, produces more products or services, or expands its customer base. For most companies, growth is the main goal. With that in mind, business decisions are often made based on what can contribute to the company’s growth and overall success. There are several ways to promote growth, which we will explain in more detail below. Types of Business Growth As an entrepreneur, you have several opportunities to grow. Business growth can be divided into the following groups: 1. Organic In organic growth, the business grows through its activities using its internal resources. This is different from having to look for external resources to enable growth. An example of organic growth is making production more efficient so you can produce more in less time, leading to more sales. The advantage of using organic growth is that it relies on self-sufficiency and avoids going into debt. In addition, higher revenues from organic growth can help fund more strategic growth strategies later on. We explain that below. 2. Business strategic growth involves developing plans that will help your business grow in the long run. An example of strategic growth could be inventing a new product or developing a marketing strategy to appeal to a new audience. Unlike organic growth, these initiatives often require significant amounts of resources and funding. Companies often take an organic approach first in the hope that their efforts will generate enough capital to invest in future strategic growth plans. 3. Internal growth strategy is aimed at improving internal business processes to increase sales. Similar to organic growth, this strategy relies on companies leveraging their internal resources. An internal growth strategy is about using existing resources as effectively as possible. An example of internal growth is reducing waste and driving inefficiency by automating some of its functions rather than hiring more employees. Internal growth can be more challenging as it forces companies to look at how their processes can be improved and made more efficient rather than focusing on external factors such as entering new markets to facilitate growth. 4. Mergers, Joint Ventures, Acquisitions Although riskier than other forms of growth, mergers, joint ventures and acquisitions can yield high rewards. There is strength in numbers and a well-executed merger, partnership or acquisition can help your company enter a new market, expand your customer base or increase your product and service offerings. Business Growth Strategy A growth strategy enables companies to expand their business. Growth can be achieved by, for example, adding new locations, investing in customer acquisition or expanding the product line. A company’s industry and target market influence the growth strategies it will choose. Come up with a strategy, consider the options available and build some into your business plan. Depending on the type of business you are building, your growth strategy may include factors such as: Adding new territories Investing in customer acquisition Financing options Expanding product line Selling products online across multiple platforms Your specific industry and target market will influence your decisions, but recruiting new customers will play a major role. Not sure what your business looks like? Here are some strategies that can be followed to achieve growth. Successfully grow a business Use the growth strategy template. Choose your target area of growth. Conduct market and industry research. Set growth goals. Plan your move. Determine your growth tools and needs. Execute your plan. 1. Use a growth strategy template [free tool]. Image source Don’t touch the basics without planning and documenting the steps of your growth strategy. We recommend downloading this free growth strategy template and reviewing the tips in the included section to outline the intended growth process in your organization. 2. Choose your target area of growth. Nice that you want to grow with your company, but what exactly do you want to grow? Your business growth plan should focus on specific growth areas. Common goals of strategic growth strategies may include: Increasing the number of employees Expansion of current office, retail and/or warehouse space Adding new locations or branches of your company Expanding into new areas, regions, cities or countries Adding new products and/or or services. above, which makes sense – the best growth doesn’t happen in a vacuum. For example, increasing your unit sales will lead to revenue growth – and possibly additional locations and residents to support increased sales. 3. Conduct market and industry research. After choosing what you want to grow, you need to justify why you want to grow in this area (and whether growth is possible). Researching the state of your industry is the best way to determine whether your desired growth is necessary and achievable. Examples include conducting surveys and focus groups with existing and potential customers or delving into existing industry research. The knowledge and facts you will discover in this step will create the expectations and goals for the growth of this project to better define the event schedule, budget and main goal. This brings us to step four… 4. Set growth goals. Once you’ve decided what you’re growing and why you’re growing, the next step is to decide how much you’re going to grow. These goals should be based on your ultimate vision of where you want your organization to be, but they should also be achievable and realistic. That’s why setting goals based on industry research is so important. Finally, take steps to quantify your goals based on metrics and a timeline. Aiming to “grow sales 30% quarter-on-quarter over the next three years” is clearer than “increase sales”. 5. Plan your move. Then outline how you will achieve your growth goals with a detailed growth strategy. Again – we recommend writing a detailed growth strategy plan to gain your team’s understanding and buy-in. Download this template This action plan should contain a list of action items, deadlines, responsible teams or individuals, and resources to achieve your growth goal. 6. Determine your growth tools and needs. The final step before working on your plan is to identify any requirements your team needs to get through the process. These are specific resources that will help you achieve your growth goals faster and more accurately. Examples may include: Funding: Organizations may need capital investments or internal budget allocations to complete this project. Tools and software: Consider what technological resources may be needed to accelerate the growth process and/or gain insights. Services: Growth is best achieved with the help of consultants, designers or planners in specific areas. 7. Execute your plan. With all of your planning, resource allocation and goal setting completed, you are now ready to implement your business growth plan and achieve business results. During this time, make sure you hold your stakeholders accountable, keep the line of communication open, and compare past results with your forecasted growth goals to see if your expected results are still achievable or if anything needs to be adjusted. Your growth plan and the tactics you’ll eventually use will be specific to your business, but there are some general strategies you can adopt as you get started. Freelance Growth Strategy Template Fill out this form to access your template. To expand their business and revenue, companies can implement different growth strategies. Examples of growth strategies include: Examples of growth strategies Milestone references The “When They Act, We Deliver” approach The “When They Act, We Deliver” approach Market access Market access Product development Development Alliances Acquisition growth Organic growth Social media Better customer service 1 Viral loops Some growth strategies have been designed to be completely self-sufficient. They need an initial push, but in the end they mainly (if not exclusively) rely on the enthusiasm of the users to keep going. One technique that fits the bill is the viral loop. The premise of the viral loop is simple: someone tries your product. They get an important incentive to share it with others. They agree and share with their network. New users sign up, experience incentives and engage with their networks. To repeat. For example, a cloud storage company trying to get off the ground may offer users