As the Coronavirus (COVID-19) continues to spread around the globe, in addition to the public health of various countries, it is also laying waste to economies and businesses. The United States is not immune to this either, as many small businesses have had to stop trading, some temporarily and others, unfortunately, permanently. Although the U.S. Government continues to search for ways to minimize the economic cost to the country brought about by the pandemic, there is still a long way to go until we are completely stable, and businesses must remain vigilant in protecting themselves until they are out of the woods completely.
That said, regardless of the pandemic and it’s destruction to the public and economic health, there will never be a bad time to expand your business. One could even be tempted to say that, despite all that is going on in the world, there is unique opportunity to be had these days. As so many companies have had to close their doors for now, and yours may be included in that, perhaps now is the best time to regroup, re-strategize and re-emerge stronger. There are easy ways to expand your business, and will apply to any time you choose to do so.
Clearing Out The Clutter
With fewer customers, or stay at home clientele, it stands to reason that you will be using more space than you really need right now. So consider wiping the slate clean, and clearing out the clutter so that you can renovate your business. Public-facing companies, such as retailers and restaurants, can use the requisite time to give their headquarters a spring clean and a lick of paint. To do that, however, you’re going to need to make sure all of the valuable commodities are put away for a while too.
If you aren’t yet a franchise business, then you are best to stay local for your renovation and decoration needs. Storage facilities to hold all of your stock, furniture and belongings are available all over the country. High quality self storage San Diego facilities are just as excellent as the self storage units in Arizona or Maine. A lot of these facilities will have secure storage units of various sizes and purposes (including RV and personal belongings storage spaces), in convenient locations that have easy access and 24-hour monitoring for security. They’re easy to find too, just head on over to EZStorit’s website, put in your zip code or location and choose your unit size. From then on, you have a blank canvas on which to get your place looking professional, clean and ready for the big leagues!
Getting Funded
Money makes the world go round, and there’s honestly no way that you can get started on your business expansion without a little bit of cash first. At the end of the day, expansion is expensive, and you have to spend a little bit of money to make a bit more. Equipment financing, marketing, new units, amenities, they all have costs that need to be made before you can start trading properly. However, getting funds may seem like it’s nigh-on impossible in this day and age, but the good news is that it is actually a little simpler than you think. Just like with new homes and big purchases, you can opt to borrow the money instead through a business loan from Franchise Lenders.
Franchise Lenders do exactly what their name suggests. They will offer you a line of credit for a variety of business needs, including
working capital, conversions, acquisitions, franchise finance, remodeling and business expansion. With package loans from $10k to $10 million or more, they can help businesses of almost any size and repayment options that are easy to navigate for you. Their website will get you started on the process of pre-qualification, so it is worth going to franchiselenders.com and having a look at the different offers that are available and seeing which would suit you the most. Obviously, they are going to need your credit score to base a decision upon so it’s worth having that information on hand and make the process of getting a line of credit that much smoother.
Getting Yourself Out There
People are going to need to know about your business, and those that already do, are going to need to know what is new about it. No matter what field or sector you are in, branding, and then subsequently marketing that brand, is absolutely paramount to an expanding business. Therefore, you are going to need a good advertising campaign.
Ask yourself, what are the best ads in recent memory? Why do they stick in your memory? Was it a slogan like “Just Do It” or a visual image like a stallion emerging from waves? Advertising comes in only four main forms, print, radio, televisual and internet-based and will be devoted to either one form or a combination. When it comes to the best recent ad campaigns, it is the latter two that are the most commonly used, as the internet is accessible to almost every single person on the planet and often uses advertisements that appear on the television screens as well.
So if you are wanting to advertise your business, then it’s probably recommended that you incorporate video into your plans. For product video production there’s no two ways about it, you will need a team that not only knows what they are doing, but can offer you something a little more unique to their projects so that your branding will stick in people’s minds. Better outcomes come from expertise and, unless you have a background in media production, the whole project should be handled by a company like Coldea Productions who will take of everything from storyboard to editing. They have some great deals available too, so have a look at their offers, let them do their thing and have peace of mind that your marketing strategy is in good hands.
The Little Things
With the financing and the advertising taken care of, you should have time to look into the other element of any good business–the human input. You are going to need more staff to ensure that you are meeting demand, and to keep things moving. If your expansion is successful then you might be adding more units to trade from, or into other forms. For a larger teams, you will need to delegate if you want to manage more effectively. Keep your team engaged and enfranchised by introducing objectives and key results, and learning more management skills to make passive decisions and healthy conflict resolution. OKR podcasts from Workboard are an effective way of learning more about how OKR success will lead to better business decisions and relationships with your staff.