Breaking the seven figure benchmark and hitting $1 million in annual sales should be a moment of pride for business owners, and an indication of your ability to excel. But why stop the business growth momentum there? Keeping your eyes on the horizon with an insatiable, ever-hungry mindset is your business’s ticket to successful, sustainable scaling.
According to Business Know How, 19% of small businesses make between $200-$500k in sales each year. But, less than 10% exceed $1 million. With an educated strategy, a reliable team, and accessible financing options, your business can become a part of this elusive (but profit-driving) group.
Fastest Ways to Grow from $1 Million to $5 Million in Sales
1. Expand Your Service or Product Offerings
Finding ways to improve on your current products or services is one aspect of growing your business to the next level. But, finding new ways to serve your existing customer base (or reach new ones) can also prove useful.
However, in order to grow your business strategically, you’ll need to introduce new products and services at the appropriate pace. This means taking the time to coordinate, prepare, and deliver new products effectively, rather than risking it early and hitting the brakes later.
2. Grow Your Business By Expanding into New Markets With Digital Marketing
Your business’s web presence in the digital marketing landscape can be pivotal in growing your small business to the $5 million benchmark. Improving your digital marketing strategy maximizes your chances to reach an endless audience, whether you serve a global, local or national audience. There are a few different avenues through which you can generate higher levels of traffic online, as well as increase brand awareness.
How to Grow Your Business With SEO
SEO, or search engine optimization, is a crucial part of accelerating your business growth. 81% of people research products through a search engine before ultimately making a purchase, so ranking for related keywords is crucial. Beyond ranking for specific keyword queries, though, there are other aspects to refining your search engine presence.
If the internet accounts for a large chunk of your lead generation, then knowing how competing websites perform is crucial. Subscriptions to keyword tracking and website research tools can be costly, but provide information about dominating the ever-growing digital landscape that Google recon cannot.
- SEMRush
- SpyFu
- Screaming Frog
- Ahrefs
- Sitebulb
- Moz
This information can be confusing for business owners without a digital marketing background. Digital marketing agencies or freelancers can translate this information into actionable insights you can use to grow your web presence. National Business Capital offers digital marketing services that empower you to stay ahead of competitors while attending to your own business.
How to Grow Your Business With Social Media Marketing
Social media marketing is important for continuing the conversation with existing leads, especially for industries serving younger audiences. As of 2019, there are 3.48 billion social media users worldwide– a 9% increase from 2018. Customers are eager to see what your brand has to say, and social media platforms are the best way to bolster your visibility.
There are several online tools your business can utilize to develop, maintain and improve your social media presence:
- Sprout
- Sendible
- Hootsuite
- Buffer
How to Grow Your Business With Seasonal Marketing Campaigns
In addition to leveraging digital marketing channels, you should also coordinate seasonal marketing campaigns through traditional channels. Seasonal marketing campaigns can both drive new business during sales lulls, and maximize sales traffic during peak periods.
For example, marketing your restaurant’s holiday specials is the perfect way to capture the attention of stressed party hosts. They’re eager to find a way to feed hungry family members without doing the cooking themselves; make them aware that you can help! Offer catering packages that incentivize more expensive purchases, with added bonuses like soda bottles or appetizers. Or, go the extra mile by advertising free delivery on orders exceeding a certain amount.
No matter which approach you take, tactfully launching seasonal marketing campaigns is a surefire way to grow your business to the next level.
1. Hire Additional Staff for Continued Business Growth
Your journey to the first $1 million annually might have been a slow climb, but research shows that the incremental increases to the next levels will be faster. But, this only works when your employees are on your side, helping you grow your business on the front lines with innovative thinking and stellar service. Building this team is an investment in your future, and hiring dedicated, effective employees is inevitably costly.
However, there’s more to consider than salaries and other employee-related expenses. Cultivating a positive, welcoming and rewarding culture that reflects your company’s core values is crucial, too. According to CultureIQ, 90% of employees in culture-driven companies believe in their leadership team. Build an environment in which your employees can thrive professionally and personally, and your business will grow.
2. Take Operational Tasks Off Your Plate By Outsourcing Services
If you’re already driving $1 million (or close to it) in sales, you have a lot on your plate on a daily basis. This is doubly true if you’ve made scaling and expanding a priority.
Third-party services can take some of the back-office work off your plate, freeing your schedule for higher-priority tasks that continue to drive higher profits and business growth. Consider streamlining your day-to-day operations and cutting costs with one of our business growth services to help your business grow.
- Payroll Services: Automate your payroll system through a simple, web-based platform designed with convenience in mind.
- Bookkeeping: Keep a close accounting of all sales and purchases with cloud-based software, saving 85% of the money used to run an entire bookkeeping staff in the process.
- Human Resources: Enjoy the benefits of an HR team with 24/7 support, employee training programs, benefits packages information, and more, without the costs.
- Business Insurance: Access company-tailored business protection policies like General Liability, Property Damage, Lost Revenue and more with National’s Business Insurance service.
3. Hire a Consultant to Analyze Your Competitors
Word-of-mouth referrals might have taken you this far, but to reach the next threshold, you’ll need a more strategic approach. There are several ways to educate yourself about emerging trends, competitors’ secrets, and shape your growth strategy accordingly.
One way to learn more about your landscape is hiring a consultant to do some market research. This research will help your business to analyze and outperform the competition, continue growing, and reach the next milestone. Keeping these strategies in mind when creating an actionable business growth plan to grow from $1 million to $5 million.
4. Generate New Business (Without Compromising Service Quality) by Upgrading Equipment
Growing your business to $5 million inevitably requires access to operational resources. You’ll need plenty of cash on hand to fund these resources, such as upgraded equipment or raw materials, regardless of your industry.
During this transitional period, it’s also important to maintain the high quality of your product or service. You’ve made it this far– you don’t want to experience a decline due to having too many tasks on your plate. Purchasing the right equipment that meets your high expectations will take you farther than settling for the cheaper option.
National’s Equipment Financing options offer business owners in any industry the capital to upgrade equipment regardless of annual sales, time in business, or FICO score.
Retailers can experience a huge increase on their profit margins by buying products in bulk quantities. To strategically prepare for seasonal sales spikes, you should expand your inventory of seasonally popular items. Purchasing in higher volumes also opens the door to other benefits, like bulk discounts, faster shipping, and priority over competitors during inventory shortages. Positioning your store to be the go-to destination for these highly desirable items is a surefire way to grow your retail business to $5 million in sales.
5. Expand or Adapt Your Bustling Business to a Franchise Model
Stores and restaurants that develop a strong local presence can grow quickly, but with limited space (and customers), there comes a time for a choice.
Your first option: continue driving high profits in your existing locations. This safer option will help you maintain a steady revenue stream, but it unfortunately won’t enable you to accelerate to the next level.
Your second option: expand to one or several additional locations. As you expand, you’ll increase your profitability, but also encounter new obstacles. Building permits, construction, renovations, and other expenses are costly, especially as you strive to maintain your current level of service.
Your third option: adapt your business to a franchise model. Establishing a franchise can be complex, both in terms of the logistics- and legal-heavy processes and financial hurdles involved. However, enabling others to adopt your profitable business model can empower you to ultimately earn the highest return, and ultimately grow to the $5 million benchmark.
If you’re up for the challenge of either expanding or franchising, the team at National Business Capital is eager to help. At National Business Capital, we offer small business loans that allow you to expand, without hitting the roadblocks of traditional bank financing options.
Access the Capital You Need to Grow From $1 Million to $5 Million With National
The path to $5 million in annual sales is rarely the same, but access to a revolving line of credit enables you to access the staff, equipment and other resources you need. Contact the team at National to learn how our team of expert business advisors can find a loan solution that best fits your organization’s needs in less than 24 hours. To get started right away, fill out a 60-second application online or call: (877) 482-3008.
