How to Grow Your Business on a Tight Budget in a Tough Economy
Growing a business on a tight budget in a tough economy can be difficult. The more widespread your organization, the more juggling is required to grow your business when funds are limited. One method of growing your business under these conditions is to actually limit it a bit. By cutting your business down to its core, you can concentrate on its most profitable aspects, working with its strengths to grow it despite the economy's (or your own budget's) limitations.
Developing Your Core
Every business has a few core strengths, those areas in which the business is most capable of performing. When operating on a slim budget, it's best to concentrate on these core strengths.
Determine the core strengths of your business by examining each product line or service individually to find out that area's profitability. You also want to determine how much demand there is for each product and service. The idea is to find those products or services that not only provide high profit, but also hold up in tough economic times. A highly profitable product that's sold to a single customer may not be the optimal choice to concentrate on when compared to a slightly less profitable one that's sold to multiple customers.
Once you've determined which products or services are best for your company, concentrate on those particular profit centers. Cut back marginal areas and apply more funds and time into developing your strongest products or services. You could even go so far as to create a new business plan when faced with a tight budget tough economy, emphasizing the core areas on which you've chosen to concentrate.
Training Your Employees
A tight budget does not mean you should refrain from employee training. In fact, employee training should take on an even greater importance in your organization, because the more productive each employee is, the more profitable each will become.
The best way to save on training is to keep it internal whenever possible. Use experts within your own organization to train subordinates. You should also cross-train employees whenever possible to create an agile workforce capable of embracing new responsibilities smoothly and quickly. Software can aid in training your employees, letting you continuously evaluate their progress as you grow your business.