Expansion can be a very intimidating prospect. When you’re a small business, every other operation seems much bigger than you, and they all seem to have much larger budgets as well. Because of that, you often end up believing you have no direction and certainly no wiggle room – you’re stuck trying to make the best of the situation you have!
But that’s not strictly true. Whilst small business owners can often be on the backfoot, there’s a lot you can focus on to expand and grow outwards. Don’t let yourself believe that you’ve got nowhere to go, or that your customer base is limited. Even with a limited budget, you can use methods like these to great success!
Develop Your Budget
No matter what, expansion is going to cost some money. Your limited marketing budget is likely to be something that holds you back in one way or another, but the more you actively develop the funding you have, the greater the end result could be.
As such, look into funding sources and how you can prove your service or product to them. Scoring a meeting with a potential investor is incredible, but you need to be sure you’ve got the kind of presentation that’ll secure their support by the end of it.
International SEO
Most businesses focus on local SEO. This is the kind of SEO that allows people to discover relevant products and services ‘near me’, for example. Some businesses will then take that further and focus on SEO for their country as a whole. Online businesses will benefit from this, if they don’t rely on the local area to make up the bulk of their customer base.
But when it comes to international SEO, there’s a lot you’re going to have to factor in. That’s hard for one owner to manage, however, which is why we recommend working closely with an agency, such as Eskimoz’s international SEO services. Really, make sure you hire a team that knows the international game well – you’re going to need their expertise!
After all, you’ll need to understand the different ways that different nationalities and cultures use the search engine. Similarly, you’ll also need to focus on creating content that’s outside of your usual cultural cornerstones, i.e., using different spelling and translating into different languages.
Network
There’s a reason networking is always suggested as a great way to build your business’ presence and visibility – it works! When you get out there to meet with other business owners, potential clients, and to show your face and skills, you leave an impression that’s simply impossible to achieve anywhere else.
Even if you’re someone who finds it hard to network, it’s worth working on your elevator pitch and simply getting an invite to an upcoming conference. Practice it all in the mirror beforehand if you need to!
If you’re a small business owner with dreams of expansion, put these methods to good use as part of your ongoing growth plans.
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