Let's be honest, as entrepreneurs, we are always on the hunt for new tips and tricks that can help us grow our businesses at a fast-pace. Here are our top four suggestions, and guess what? You can cross these off of your to-do list in 45-minutes or less!
1. Leverage Social Media!
It goes without saying, that an essential step to growing your business is to increase its visibility with your target audience. A simple and often-free method to market your business is to utilize social media. Social media is a powerful tool that allows entrepreneurs to communicate their business' products or services to the masses. Beyond this, social media affords entrepreneurs with a real-time opportunity to engage with their target audience and to gain valuable insight into the perception of their business. Commit a few minutes to craft a quality social media post that promotes your business and while you're at it take some time to positively engage with a few individuals from your target audience – but remember no "comment wars" please!
2. Automate! Automate! Automate!
As an entrepreneur, I can fully appreciate the "keep costs low" business mentality. However, if there's one lesson I've learned, it's that sometimes the added value of creating more time is worth the business expense. Simple math tells us that the more time you spend doing administrative tasks and grunt work means the less time you will have to do more lucrative money-making tasks. This is especially true if you're a solopreneur. This is where automation comes into play. Automation software utilizes artificial intelligence and other technologies to streamline and improve workflow without having to hire additional staff. Take some time to explore your automation options, watch a tutorial video or two, and figure out how automation can work for you. What's even better is that many automation tools are inexpensive and can be quickly setup or installed.
3. Good Ole Research!
In business, you will never know everything you need to know. There are so many methods, approaches, and techniques to running a successful and profitable business. Because of this, taking the time to research topics relevant to your business is critical. So what do I research? As a starting point, think about all of the tasks you struggle to complete for your business or all of the business practices you've implemented that could use some streamlining. Whatever it is that you've been struggling with, those are the topics that warrant some additional research. Also, it is important to understand that research comes in a variety of forms. Listening to an audiobook or podcast episode during your commute, meeting with a mentor over coffee, or even a simple Google search all constitute legitimate and forms of research that could help you take your business to the next level in less than 45 minutes.
4. Order Business Cards!
This may seem old-school but business cards are another effective marketing tool that is both cost-efficient and quick to create. You're probably asking yourself, aren't business cards outdated? The simple answer is no. In fact, business cards are an irreplaceable marketing tool. In most scenarios, the act of handing out your business card coincides with an in-person conversation. That encounter provides you with a key opportunity to sell your business and to create a meaningful and memorable connection with a potential client. But what good is this opportunity if your business card has the wrong information on it? When ordering business cards, be sure to include your correct business name, contact information, social media handles, and business website. To help you get started, Vistaprint and Zazzle are great options for low-cost business card printing or, if you're starting from scratch, they offer a variety of design templates to make the design process quick and easy.
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