Close Menu
  • News
  • Home
  • In Profile
  • Finance
  • Legal
  • Technology
  • Events
  • Features
  • Wellbeing & Mental Health
  • Marketing
  • HR & Recruitment
  • About
  • Advertise
  • Events Calendar
  • Business Wall
  • Subscribe
  • Contact
  • 0843 289 4634
X (Twitter) LinkedIn YouTube
Trending
  • Daemon launches new AI-First Squad
  • Behind the Brand Collapses: Where it all went wrong
  • Are You Part Of The ‘Flex’ Crowd?
  • How Group Protection Can Help Employers Mitigate Rising NICs Costs
  • How to build a workplace community that supports mental health
  • Care worker recruitment from abroad to end – what does this mean for the care sector?
  • Cybersecurity simplified: Practical security solutions for your SME
  • Let’s Talk – Business In Profile, Paul Day, Filestream.
X (Twitter) LinkedIn YouTube
SME Today
  • About
  • Advertise
  • Events Calendar
  • Business Wall
  • Subscribe
  • Contact
  • 0843 289 4634
  • News
  • Home
  • In Profile
  • Finance
  • Legal
  • Technology
  • Events
  • Features
  • Wellbeing
  • Marketing
  • HR & Recruitment
SME Today
  • About
  • Advertise
  • Events Calendar
  • Business Wall
  • Subscribe
  • Contact
  • 0843 289 4634
  • Twitter
  • LinkedIn
  • YouTube
  • RSS
You are at:Home»Features»Growth in a flat market? Here’s how…
Business growth

Growth in a flat market? Here’s how…

0
Posted By sme-admin on August 15, 2023 Features

By Roy Lauder, Director and Co-Founder, Harrison James Partnership

Roy Lauder, Director and Co-Founder, Harrison James Partnership
Roy Lauder, Director and Co-Founder, Harrison James Partnership

Growth has been a bit elusive recently and with inflation rising, the Bank of England is trying to squeeze demand out of the market with interest rate rises. Hopefully we are near the peak of these.

At times like this businesses come under pressure. A temptation is to batten down the hatches blame the government and try to wait it out. However this is an opportunity to get ahead of your competition especially if they are hiding.

Here are four areas with key considerations for you to take on board that can help you get ahead of the competition:

Positioning

Positioning is about fully understanding what your customers want and need from your products and services.

Not targeting the right market with the right product will limit your sales growth.

Sometimes small and medium-sized businesses will try to target everyone all at once: the premium, the mid and the mass markets.

This can result in over-servicing a few customers and undercharging on price.

Consider whether a more focused positioning would bring in more revenue and profits.

Have you asked your customers what you are known for or why they buy from you?

Customer acquisition

It goes without saying that to grow sales, you need to acquire and retain the right type of customers.

Many companies struggle with this, lacking the strategies and processes to manage their customer base to deliver profitable sales growth.

SMEs often rely on too few channels to market to attract new customers.

Think about whether third parties or distributors could reach customers for you. Distributors can help you understand what customers most value in your offer.

How many good quality referrals do you get?

Customer Retention

Customers will only stay if they perceive value from your products or services.

But companies often confuse longevity with loyalty. It could just be your customers buying on price. Did you know that the loyalty ranking of a customer base rises from 50% to 75% if you can sell two distinct products or services rather than just one. Loyalty ranking is an important equity valuation measure.

How many services do you sell to the same customer base? What is your next service going to be?

Asking more and better questions in customer satisfaction surveys is also an easy win that’s often missed.

What really irritates and delights your customers about your business? Outside experts can help you get more accurate results in this.

A 65% customer satisfaction score may sound good. But it needs to be in the 85% + to get customers recommending you to others.

When was the last time you asked your customers ‘why’ they buy from you? 

Pricing

Setting and achieving prices for your products and services is critical for profitable sales growth.

Rather than pricing things on a cost-plus basis, try developing a clear pricing policy based on the value you offer.

This can help avoid the pitfalls of setting prices too high – and severely limiting growth as a result, or, alternatively, setting them too low and not achieving the profits needed to make your business sustainable.

Businesses that put in place the correct growth strategies now will be the winners ahead of their competition. Timing is everything.

 Roy Lauder is the Director and Co-Founder of management consultancy Harrison James Partnership

 

Share. Facebook Twitter Pinterest LinkedIn Tumblr Email

Related Posts

Behind the Brand Collapses: Where it all went wrong

Why Fraud Prevention is No Longer Just a Finance Function

The CEO of Nothing. Why You Should Avoid ‘Gurus’

Comments are closed.

Follow SME Today on Linkedin and share all the topics you find interesting
Invest in your pension

The Newsletter

Join our mailing list for the best SME stories, handpicked and delivered direct to your inbox every two weeks!

Sign Up
Events Calendar
    • Marketing
    May 19, 2025

    How SMEs can create effective marketing and advertising creative on a budget

    May 6, 2025

    Why WordPress Remains One of the Best Website Platforms for Entrepreneurs

    • Finance
    May 22, 2025

    How Group Protection Can Help Employers Mitigate Rising NICs Costs

    May 19, 2025

    Why Fraud Prevention is No Longer Just a Finance Function

    • Health & Safety
    January 29, 2025

    UK takeaways guilty of shocking hygiene failures:

    December 18, 2024

    Comment on Covid Corruption Commissioner Investigation

    • Events
    November 19, 2024

    Seventeenth Global Entrepreneurship Week (GEW)

    October 22, 2024

    Winners Announced for Sheffield Business Awards 2024

    • Community
    May 14, 2025

    Social care experts launch an online marketplace to disrupt a sector in crisis.

    May 1, 2025

    A Marathon Effort: Managing Director Raises Over £4,000 for Charity

    • Food & Drink
    April 16, 2025

    Cutting Down on Business Costs in Your Cafe

    April 15, 2025

    Allergy Awareness Advocate Julianne Ponan MBE To Address Gousto   

    • Books
    April 24, 2025

    Values-Driven Professionalism: A Path to Client Loyalty

    December 2, 2024

    Banish the banshee boss: how to lead without fear – addressing the issue of fear-based management and how NOT to be this manager

    About

    SME Today is published by the same team who deliver The Great British Expos’. We have been organising various corporate events for the last 10 years, with a strong track record of producing well managed and attended business events across the UK.

    Join Our Mailing List

    Receive the latest news and updates from SMEToday.
    Read our Latest Newsletter:


    Sign Up
    X (Twitter) YouTube LinkedIn
    Most Recent Posts
    May 23, 2025

    Daemon launches new AI-First Squad

    May 23, 2025

    Behind the Brand Collapses: Where it all went wrong

    May 23, 2025

    Are You Part Of The ‘Flex’ Crowd?

    May 22, 2025

    How Group Protection Can Help Employers Mitigate Rising NICs Costs

    May 22, 2025

    How to build a workplace community that supports mental health

    Categories
    • Books
    • Community & Charity
    • Education and Training
    • Environment
    • Events
    • Features
    • Finance
    • Food and Drink
    • Health & Safety
    • HR & Recruitment
    • In Profile
    • Legal
    • Marketing
    • News
    • Property & Development
    • Sponsored Content
    • Technology
    • Transport & Tourism
    • Wellbeing & Mental Health

    Copyright © 2020 SME Today.

    • ABOUT SME TODAY: THE GO TO RESOURCE FOR UK BUSINESSES
    • Privacy
    • Contact
    Copyright © 2025 SME Today.
    • ABOUT SME TODAY: THE GO TO RESOURCE FOR UK BUSINESSES
    • Privacy
    • Contact

    Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.