5 Essential Steps to Take to Successfully Grow Your Startup

5 Essential Steps to Take to Successfully Grow Your Startup

Whether you’re a self-taught business owner or an industry professional with an MBA, you’ll need tools to grow your startup. Here they are. 

With so many businesses on the market, you need consistent growth in order to stand out amongst the crowd.

Here are five steps you can take to successfully grow your startup.

 

Step 1: Understand Your Market

When developing your product, it’s important to know exactly which corner of the market you’re hoping to occupy, and what will make your business different from others in said corner.

To hone in on your target market, consider the following:

  • Your estimated price point (and, therefore, the average socioeconomic status of your target customer).
  • The most common market(s) for your type of product or service, historically. 
  • The pain points you are addressing with your startup (you might realize that you can actually tap into more markets than you previously thought!).
  • Results from market research through surveys and focus groups.
  • Current cultural or media trends.

While these are just a few of the considerations you have to make to determine your target market, you’ll want to invest even more time, labor, and effort into your market research and analysis—believe us, it’ll be well worth it once your startup launches. 

Step 2: Maintain a Healthy Work-Life Balance

When first, well, starting up, it can be tempting to try to cover your entire workload with the minimum amount of manpower. As they say, in a startup, one has to wear many hats. But when you have to wear more hats than you have limbs, something’s gotta give—and it’s usually your health.

No matter how tempting it is to cut your labor costs at the expense of your sleep and social life, try to avoid spreading yourself too thin. While the idea of “sleeping at the factory” sounds cool in interviews, this philosophy will only harm your business (and your body) in the long run.

Maintaining a healthy work-life balance is the key to the growth and longevity of your startup (and your sanity).

Here are some ways to avoid an unhealthy, high-stress lifestyle:

  • Exercise – Frequent exercise is vital to maintaining a healthy lifestyle. Even if it’s just a brief walk around the neighborhood, exercising helps to regulate your hormones, blood pressure, sleep cycle, and overall cardiovascular health. Check out https://ouraring.com/ to see how you can better monitor your health.
  • Develop good sleep hygiene – Make sure you get the recommended seven to nine hours of sleep every night—and if not, make sure you sleep at a healthy hour, so your circadian rhythm never gets too out of sync.
  • Treat yourself – Work isn’t everything! Take the time to indulge in products that make you feel happy and relaxed. At the end of the workday, pour yourself a glass of wine or whip out your CBD tinctures to de-stress (grab them here: https://cbdfx.com/collections/cbd-tincture/.

Step 3: Take Advantage of Popular Social Media Platforms

In 2020, if you aren’t savvy about social media marketing, you’re already miles behind. The marketing industry has gone almost entirely digital, especially for startups—reaching consumers on social media is crucial when it comes to growing your business.

To hone in on your target market, consider the following: Your estimated price point (and, therefore, the average socioeconomic status of your target customer). The most common market(s) for your type of product or service, historically. The pain points you are addressing with your startup (you might realize that you can actually tap into more markets than you previously thought!). Results from market research through surveys and focus groups. Current cultural or media trends. While these are just a few of the considerations you have to make to determine your target market, you’ll want to invest even more time, labor, and effort into your market research and analysis—believe us, it’ll be well worth it once your startup launches. Step 2: Maintain a Healthy Work-Life Balance When first, well, starting up, it can be tempting to try to cover your entire workload with the minimum amount of manpower. As they say, in a startup, one has to wear many hats. But when you have to wear more hats than you have limbs, something’s gotta give—and it’s usually your health. No matter how tempting it is to cut your labor costs at the expense of your sleep and social life, try to avoid spreading yourself too thin. While the idea of “sleeping at the factory” sounds cool in interviews, this philosophy will only harm your business (and your body) in the long run. Maintaining a healthy work-life balance is the key to the growth and longevity of your startup (and your sanity). Here are some ways to avoid an unhealthy, high-stress lifestyle: Exercise – Frequent exercise is vital to maintaining a healthy lifestyle. Even if it’s just a brief walk around the neighborhood, exercising helps to regulate your hormones, blood pressure, sleep cycle, and overall cardiovascular health. Check out https://ouraring.com/ to see how you can better monitor your health. Develop good sleep hygiene – Make sure you get the recommended seven to nine hours of sleep every night—and if not, make sure you sleep at a healthy hour, so your circadian rhythm never gets too out of sync. Treat yourself – Work isn’t everything! Take the time to indulge in products that make you feel happy and relaxed. At the end of the workday, pour yourself a glass of wine or whip out your CBD tinctures to de-stress (grab them here: https://cbdfx.com/collections/cbd-tincture/). Step 3: Take Advantage of Popular Social Media Platforms In 2020, if you aren’t savvy about social media marketing, you’re already miles behind. The marketing industry has gone almost entirely digital, especially for startups—reaching consumers on social media is crucial when it comes to growing your business.

 

Make sure you’ve got these platforms tucked into your social media toolbox:

  • Instagram – Instagram is, by far, the most efficient social media marketing platform that entrepreneurs have at their fingertips. Targeted Instagram ads and influencer marketing can massively grow your business by engaging your target demographic.
  • LinkedIn – A huge component of growing your startup is networking. Connecting with important people on LinkedIn and joining professional networking circles can help get your name out there to potential investors, partners, and clients.
  • Twitter – Twitter, like Instagram, is one of the most popular social media platforms among young people. It’s also crucial for expanding your brand’s online image.

Step 4: Establish Strong Communication Channels

As a founder, the most important part of your job is acting as the liaison between your company and its stakeholders. From taking meetings with clients on the fly to troubleshooting with your employees at a second’s notice, communication is key.

Here are some ways to take your communication game to the next level:

  • Be Prepared – You never know when you’re going to receive that important phone call or be dropped into an emergency meeting. Wireless headphones and an unlimited data plan are both worthwhile investments for entrepreneurs on the go.
  • Be Integrated – Make sure all your company’s communication channels and data storage programs are fully integrated through platforms like Lark, Google Suite, Dropbox, and Slack.
  • Be Safe – Always protect your intellectual property by understanding patent and copyright law. Investing in a virtual private network (VPN) for your workplace will help protect your startup and make watching the World Cup at the office way easier (pssst: you didn’t hear it from us).

Step 5: Grow a Strong Team

At the core of any successful business is the vision behind it. However, that vision can only be made possible through the collaborative efforts of a dedicated and talented team of people—which you have the responsibility of sourcing and nurturing.

Whether you have an HR team, or you are the HR team, utilize the following platforms, so you never skimp out on talent:

  • Linkedin Premium Business
  • Handshake
  • ZipRecruiter
  • Glassdoor
  • UltiPro

Grow Your Business in the Modern Age

While the odds aren’t always in your favor when it comes to launching a new startup, you have everything you need to succeed—the creativity, the boldness, and the stellar idea. If you can tap into the wealth of resources at your disposal—and gain inspiration from the exciting success stories that do exist—you’ll be more than ready to carve your own space in the startup scene.

Like in Jack and the Beanstalk, if you nurture your magic-startup-beans with some patience, innovation, and chutzpah, it will one day pierce through the clouds and live amongst the giants that came before it.

Now get planting!

 


This guest post is contributed by Eliza Picot. 


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