Can You Identify Small Business Growth Opportunities?

The marketing world is a labyrinth of confusing terms and idioms. It can take months of reading for a small business owner figure out the dynamics of marketing. One thing is certain, marketing, advertising, and business growth go hand in hand.

Four Steps to Finding and Identifying Growth Opportunities

Step #1: Analyze the Competition

Here is a list of cheats a small business owner can use to develop a marketing campaign for their ecommerce business.

• Competitor analysis
• Focus on customers
• Surveys and polls
• Join the enemy
• Follow the money

Almost every statistic on the Internet is public, with the right software. A Search Engine Optimization company or an Internet Marketing company should have the software needed to retrieve marketing statistics from search engines.

Most top keywords have several websites in the top 3 pages of ‘Search Engine Results’ which had major marketing campaigns behind them.  It is not necessary for a small business owner to know ‘why’ the company chose certain keywords, or marketing strategies. All you need to know is that successful companies become successful by marketing to consumers who are ready to buy.

If you want to succeed - Follow the money.  Did they buy a professional logo design? Did they hire a creative web designer? Do they use an SEO/SEM company? Do they pay for consultation. All of these can be the diffrence between a sluggish business and dynamic business growth.

Step #2 Focus The Marketing

Many small business owners face the same problems – not enough time – not enough money. Many ecommerce business owners spend several months trying to market their Internet business, without seeing results. It is normal for a website to stagnate for several months, but after 6, there should be some good keywords.

Pick 10 places to market. Do not try to market everywhere. Do not try to be a part of every forum, social networking sites, newsletters, and groups.

This applies to keywords. Pick 10 keywords you want to appear at the top and focus everything on those 10 keywords. Do not try to be ‘everything to everyone.’ It is extremely difficult for a non SEO company or marketing company to get a website to the top of the Search Results for more than 10 keywords. A good rule of thumb is to build 50 pages that focus on a single keyword phrases before expanding the campaign to include more keywords phrases.

Opportunities are missed because business owners are impatient. They do not do enough promotion, or they do not wait long enough to see results.  It can take 5 – 7 months in cyberspace to thoroughly explore a niche and find an opportunity.

Step #3 Communicate With Consumers

The business world is ripe with stories of people who found the ‘next best thing’ while listening to their consumers’ wants and needs. The smallest change in service, or a product, can make a dramatic difference in sales.

The Internet offers a seemingly endless list of ways to communicate with potential consumers. The ‘new’ commerce community is no longer singular and linear. The old business model was built around big stores taking care of their loyal customers. Today’s business community is diverse. Consumers and business owners work together in a more symbiotic relationship.

Step #4 Take Action

I’ve known business owners who spent so much time preparing to be ‘in business’ they never actually start their business. Do not wait until the business ‘makes money’ to see if it is worth being ‘in business.’ A business is successful when the business owner takes action. A business must engage in a marketing plan, advertising, and branding to make it grow. Growth Opportunities are only valuable if the business owner engages them, and assertively implements a strategy to maximize their company’s growth potential.