Mom and Pop to National – How to Transition

Taking your business to the next level takes a lot of work. It is commendable that you are thinking of expansion to a bigger and larger market. However, you must be ready to put in the required work of dedicated, sacrifice, and resources.

Many businesses started small – even Google started small. However, they are on the top of the list today as billion dollar companies. This did not happen overnight. Moving to the next level will pitch you against a competitor who has been at that level for quite some time.

How do you successfully move from where you are to where you want to be? This question will be answered with some pointers subsequently.

Have a working sales funnel. A sales funnel is the process through which a consumer takes to the purchase of a product. This process involves awareness, interest, desire, and action. You must have a model of this funnel and see that it works.

Utilize CRM systems. Customer-relationship management systems look at managing a company’s interaction with current and potential customers. This is highly beneficial as the customer’s relationship with the company is studied and how more sales can be facilitated is discovered.

Get to know your competition and your place in the market. As much as it is good to have projections, it cannot be made without knowing what one is dealing with. As a seller, you have a competition and you have the level at which you are. The knowledge of this will help you seek ways of how to push higher.

Create programs for your customers. There is a place of innovation in marketing. Creating programs to sensitize, empower, or give back to your customers will definitely encourage more sales. This is employ by stores all over. An instance of a program is “A Day with a Nutritionist” organized by a grocery store.

Foster customer loyalty. Your chance at continued and sustainable success in marketing is customer loyalty. When customers are loyal to your brand, they not only keep coming through the door, they help you advertize. Many businesses have grown through referrals and sustained customer-relations. Customer loyalty can be fostered mainly by giving the customer an experience to always long for. This is where your customer service and the genuine quality plus innovation in your product come in.

Build your email list. A mailing list is vital. This is how you can always reach customers to inform them of new deals, products, promotions, discount sales, and new services you may offer. With a mailing list, you are establishing a relationship of correspondence and they always get to hear for you. You can even conduct surveys and ask for customer reviews on products, services, and even customer service via the mail.

Formulate strategic partnerships. You can’t afford to remain a lone wolf where the competition is tougher than you. Look at ways to partner with brands and other outfits with similar products as yours. A formidable partnership can help push you to a higher level of success. However, whatever partnership you enter, be strategic about it. Know the kind of partnership, what your leverage is, what you are offering, and how your goals can be actualized.

Build multiple income streams. A sole source of income might be risky as a problem might develop. Having multiple income streams will supply needed funds to keep expansion going. It is always advised to businesses to devise new means of bringing in money. For instance, it can be another source of income to have a car wash stand at your car park. A gas station can always have a convenience store.

Conduct market research. Know your market well. Gather facts about the demography of potential consumers of your products/service. Before entering a market, it is good to know the market well enough. Projections, calculations, and feasibility studies can be carried out with enough data. It is not impossible to discover that a product may not sell way in an area after carrying out a market research.

Secure financing for your expansion. Expansion isn’t possible without financing. As a seller, you will be looking at bigger business center, bigger competition, newer markets, bigger promotions, and a host of other things. You can get a business line of credit; have a relationship with suppliers for vendor’s credit; get a loan from a financial institution. You can get your accountant to work with you on determining what kind of financing is most beneficial to you.

Diversify what you offer. Variety is the spice of life. You may offer one product or service but you can sure make it seem like you offer ten. Give price choices. Price choices are made with the notion that everyone is not equally financially buoyant. If what you sell are edibles: offer different flavors, sizes, and prices.

Use new technology and automation to stay competitive. You can’t afford to be in a competitive market and still stay in the past technologically. Apart from the fact that things are done faster and easier, it adds to prestige and elegance to be seen at par with trends.

Engage with your customers. Know what your customers want and think about your product/service. You can get their emails and request them to fill online questionnaires. You can even ask them physically when they are still within the premises.

Start with a partial expansion. It is mostly good to start step by step. This will help test the waters. Many businesses have died due to wrong expansion moves. It was hard for them to return to their former size and they couldn’t move forward. Have good projections but proceed with caution.

In conclusion, it is a good thing to expand but it requires a lot of planning. You are entering a new and bigger market; the competition is tougher. Do your market research well and be careful in your movement to the new territory.

The Independent Grocers Association is here for all of your grocer industry needs. Hopefully you have found value within this article on the Mom and Pop to National – How to Transition. We are interested in what you would like to learn more about, please let us know.