You’ve launched your own business. Congratulations!
Whether you’re selling cupcakes made from Grandma’s secret recipe, shooting elegant weddings, organising events, running (around) a preschool, selling handicrafts, or developing the next must-have software, congratulate yourself. The difficulty of beginning a new company and earning those initial few bucks is not to be taken lightly.
However, you must not rest on your laurels, ahem.
You now face a more difficult mountain to scale: ascending. If you’re serious about your company and its success — which we know you are — you must expand and continue to develop in order to survive year after year. Once a firm has established itself, a strong emphasis on scalability may catapult it from early profits to large-scale income.
And you’re in luck: the key element to success when it comes to expanding your company is inexpensive, accessible, and ubiquitous. Yes, the internet has become your new best buddy.
This is the twenty-first century, people; merely having a website — a necessary, vital first step — will not enough. By strategically using your business’s internet presence, you may achieve true size and success. When you combine a superior product or service with some online expertise, you may reach any peak you choose.
Allow Us to Assist You if You Are Ready to Develop!
The Following Guidelines Will Get You Started on the Road to Smartly Growing Your Company Online:
- Prior to Beginning
- Constructing Your Presence
- Customizing Your Website
- Outreach
- Developing Social Skills
- Developing Expertise
- Adding Up
- DreamHost Can Help You Optimize Your Business
Our automated upgrades and robust security defences free you from server administration, allowing you to concentrate on sustainable development.
Examine Plans
Beginning Properly
Scaling is not as difficult as it seems, but it is not for the faint of heart. Take a step back and assess your target and starting place before attempting any development techniques. Begin your contemplation by considering the following questions:
What Are Your Objectives?
Consider your ultimate goal. How do you and your company define growth? Do you want to grow a scrappy software firm (apologies for the alliteration) or just open a second (or third, or fourth) location? Attract more profitable consumers or turn more web traffic into sales? In any case, establish a timeframe, identify your objectives, and allow them to dictate your future moves. Continue to evaluate your success against your objectives — and don’t be hesitant to alter them as your small company grows.
Is Your Business Truly Doing Well?
Be truthful to yourself. If the answer is “no,” scaling is not the best course of action. “If your firm sucks,” marketing guru Dan Kennedy famously said, “the last thing you want to do is publicise it.” Prior to trying any company expansion, nail your model and master your product.
Related: Every Successful Entrepreneur Demonstrates These Five Characteristics
Are You Managing Your Business or Are You Working in It?
If you want to grow your restaurant’s menu and attract new customers, you cannot be cutting and frying potatoes during the lunch rush. As a small company owner, the broad picture is your first responsibility.
If you haven’t made a point of getting out of the kitchen and into your mind, structuring your daily activities around growing the company and brand, you will lack the bandwidth and attention necessary to expand effectively. You may need to recruit more personnel to take over day-to-day operations.
Related: The 30 Best Small Business Web Apps for 2022
Who Is Responsible for This?
Evaluate your finance and fundraising possibilities and be aware of the amount of cash available to you. Do you need a small-business loan and are you eligible for one?
The amount of cash you have on hand may either accelerate or stall your expansion – fortunately, utilising the internet to expand is, for the most part, inexpensive. While reviewing your finances, you may consider cost-cutting measures – for example, rather than hiring a cadre of new staff to assist with scaling, consider contracting out work to freelancers.
Constructing Your Presence
Are you serious about growing your company online? Awesome. It is past time for us to get our hands dirty.
Join the Internet
Are you presently operating a website for your business? If this is the case, pass “Go” and get $200.
If your firm does not yet have an internet presence, there is no better moment than the present. Even if you operate a typical brick-and-mortar shop that does not sell anything directly online, a website will provide 24/7 access to information about your company. You’ll be able to advertise, offer discounts, and seek out new consumers 24 hours a day, seven days a week, on or off the clock.
Are you nervous about brushing up on your technical skills? It doesn’t get much simpler than DreamHost’s WP Website Builder, a collection of premium tools and plugins intended to streamline the process of creating a website and make it easier to administer and change as it develops.
If you’re wanting to sell products online, we suggest constructing a WordPress website and powering your shop with an e-commerce solution like WooCommerce or Shopify. Additionally, we’ve chosen five WooCommerce layouts to assist you in increasing sales.
Whatever you choose, be certain to get a scalable web hosting solution that can grow with your company as it expands and draws more internet visitors. And, as you may think, DreamHost can assist you there as well.
Simplify Your Web Page
You have five seconds or fewer to persuade website visitors to stay, therefore your offer must be straightforward, clear, and visually appealing. If visitors to your website are unable to readily discern what you are offering and how to purchase it, they will leave and take their credit cards with them.
Ascertain that the website’s navigation is consistent and straightforward from page to page. Avoid strewing videos, photographs, and other information across your website only for the sake of filling it; everything should have a function that complements your website’s message.