By Henry Brown

Starting your own business may have enabled you to tick off one of the dreams you have had. Being your own boss opens up a lot of opportunities and enables you to do something each day that gives you passion and helps you to continue to strive towards your ambitions. Starting the business is one thing, keeping it going and surpassing your expectations in terms of success is something else.

Often we can be blinkered when it comes to expanding a small business. Sure you may have started out as a one-person band working from home, but now you need to think a little bigger. Obviously things like expanding your product or service ranges tends to be one of the main routes to take, but is that all you can do when it comes to expanding? Here are some of the ideas that will prompt you to think bigger when it comes to the next steps and stages of your business and brand.

Create an app for your business and brand

One of the first things to think about that could be a step forward for your business is to think about creating an app. This will be a great way to take advantage of modern enhancements, and also to reach out to a new level of customer involvement within your business. An app could be a shop or e-commerce facility, information based, or even like a loyalty program where offers can be generated. There are many ways that you can find the right sort of app for your business, and it could be an excellent way of expanding.

Open up a shop or showroom

Many people consider expanding their business by leaving the home office or home working environment and getting an office elsewhere. But why not take it one step further and open up a shop or showroom? It is another way that you can generate sales on the spot, and can also be a place of business. A shop window is another way to advertise your business, and getting the right location could be a critical move. This could be a great way to expand in other ways, such as the more products you sell or services you provide, or even being in a position to expand what your business provides.

Hire staff

There comes a time on the road to success for any business where you simply can’t do it all yourself anymore. This is when you may need to think about hiring staff or even outsourcing. Hiring staff can help you to get some order within your business. They will focus on specific departments or roles, which means that you have extra time to focus on the areas where you can make the most difference to your business. It could be a great move to make and can put a bit more acceleration on to expanding.

Create a business blog alongside your website

All business owners know the value of a website. After all, you only have to consider your own internet habits to see that a business needs a functioning website to help generate sales. But, what about adding a business blog to it? This has a lot to do with SEO and generating more traffic to your site by having more options brought up when people put in specific search terms. However, if you don’t have the time to write extensive articles, then looking into an affordable blog writing services for your business could be the way forward. Website pages and blogs are the sales leads that work continually for you as people search for different things at all times of the day and night.

Guest post on other websites to help advertise your business

The next thing you may want to think about with SEO in mind is to guest post on other websites. Each website has a domain authority, some are higher than others dependent on how long they have been used and also the amount of traffic that they get. This could mean that posting a blog on another website, that is higher ranked than yourself, could mean that their website or your blog post on their site will come up and rank higher in search engine results. Linking back to your website also helps with your own domain authority and increasing it.

Keep a close eye on the competition and business trends

It is important to keep a close eye on the competition and business trends, as these can change day to day. It may not seem like an obvious route to expansion, but spotting gaps in the market or things that you can take advantage of can help you to accelerate your business forward, even at times when you least expect it. Competition is healthy, and while you should never copy it, you can learn from it and also find areas where you can do things better.

Engage on social media; don’t just post and sign off

Social media is huge for your business, there is no denying that, but while you may think that you are doing it right, that you have a strategy in place and that you are keeping up to speed with it, you may be making one big mistake. Do you engage with your audience? Do you like other posts and comment? Do you respond to comments on your content and direct messages? This is where your audience really value your input.

Focus on the local area

Finally, it might be time to focus on the local area when it comes to your business. This is a trend where people are wanting to support local businesses and smaller outlets, and so a focus on advertising locally and getting involved within the community could really work in your favor.

Let’s hope that these tips and suggestions help you to think of the ways that you can expand your business.

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Henry Brown is an online marketing executive. When he isn’t talking shop, he’s roaming the streets of London, uncovering the extra-ordinary in the ordinary.