What is Scaling in Business?
Have you ever failed at a business? Starting a business can be stressful but failing at a business and having to give it up after all the hard work, time and money can be even more difficult. While some businesses do not fail at the initial stages, they might bite more than they can chew while trying to scale up and this can lead to bankruptcy.
Scaling refers to a company's process of handling an increase in customers, purchases and orders. Scaling does not necessarily refer to growing your business. In the case of scaling, the most important thing is putting structures and systems in place that help you prepare for long-lasting profitable developments.
Tips to scaling your business
Scaling your business involves implementing strategies for growth for your business that
•Build your brand: As a business, being able to answer questions like what you have to offer, what makes you different from your competition, what your weaknesses and strengths are and what exactly your company is about- is very important. These questions can not be answered all at once, it takes a couple of years. Building the brand for your business helps to give your business an identity and sets values that can potentially determine the answer to some of these questions. Your brand selects the manner of operations. It determines your business' culture. You can see steps on how to build your business brand here
•Learn from mistakes: There is a very high tendency for you to make some mistakes at the start of your business. One such mistake can be trying to scale your business too quickly. This can be dangerous and if not properly attended to, can lead to bankruptcy. Scaling is a step-by-step process that should not be rushed. Ensure that you do not try to increase your business capacity to accommodate the largest possible customer base without taking proper steps to cater to them. Build the capacity of your business by taking into account the different aspects of your business operations and determining what structures and systems to put in place for scaling.
•Focus on customers and their satisfaction: Making a profit should be one of the goals of your business but ensuring that your customers are satisfied with your product or service should be a priority. Scaling your business will only be successful if the focus remains on your customers and their needs. Ensure that while trying to implement structures to produce and cater for more customers, your existing customers still get the best quality of products and services. This helps to spread the word about your brand and builds loyalty.
•Prioritize sustainability and innovation: Ensure that your structures and systems are sustainable. It is good to be creative with your ideas but always ensure that when you come up with ideas, they are sustainable for your business. Realising that there are several methods to scale a business and being adaptable is very important. It is okay to come up with innovations but make sure that while they are solving problems they are not affecting your business' long-term well-being. Don't just create changes in your business but ensure that the implementation of these changes has a positive impact on your business in the long run.
•Develop strong networking skills: Knowing that you can't do everything by yourself is important, this is why as a business owner, finding and surrounding yourself with other-like minds is important. Build relationships with people that have stayed in the business longer than you. Learn from them. Employ professional help when necessary. Attend events and connect with people. Ask important and relevant questions. The more people you have, the higher your chances of successfully scaling your business.
•Create a good work team: Having people that can help manage your business and adapt to it as it grows is important. This does not include only your employees but external relationships like your partners, suppliers and other parties that are generally part of your business growth. Taking your time to build a capable team, knowing that everybody on the team is involved in how far and how well the business goes is very crucial. Ensure that your team consists of capable people so that tasks can be delegated and know when to delegate them.
•Have proper financing: Money is a very important element in business and like most things in a business, scaling comes at a cost. Finding a financing option that works best for your business is important. Also, taking a conventional bank loan might not be what's best for your business. Your business might not even have the credit score to qualify for a bank loan. Therefore you might want to consider other financial options that can help you maintain positive cash flow in your business while diverting funds to other parts that need it during scaling. These other options can include invoice financing and purchase order financing.
Bridger is a finance company that provides these services. Want to find out more? Click here