Has your Small Business Hit the Plateau?

Have you hit the Plateau?  Have you been in business for several years only to find your sales stagnant?  There are many reasons why a business plateaus, here are a few to beware of in your company.

Mundane Maintenance Mode - Many business owners, after starting off with a vision, a plan, excitement and energy, find themselves falling into the mundane maintenance mode.  This usually comes after several years of hard work and building a company that pays the bills, but once the owner is busy juggling all his responsibilities he has little time left to plan for future growth.  He falls into complacency and often stays in this mode for several years until the business begins its decline and ultimately closes.  

The key to avoiding the mundane maintenance mode is to take time each month planning for the future.  Monthly planning should take in account quarterly goals for your company, these quarterly goals should be aiming toward accomplishing the annual goals, which should be set before the end of the previous year.  Strategic planning brings energy and direction to your business and provides an opportunity to celebrate as goals that are met. 

Too Much Micromanagement - Often small business owners find themselves starting off as a sole proprietor who makes all the decisions, does all the work, answers sales calls and does the administration, however as the business grows some of those responsibilities must be handed over to employees.  Many owners have a hard time delegating these responsibilities to others, as the company grows their tendency is to micromanage, feeling as though they still need to keep control over every aspect of the company. This shuts down creativity, initiative and productivity from employees and stifles growth.

To avoid micromanaging, as a business owner you have to hire people that are competent and not just find a warm body that will work for the lowest possible salary.  The business owner must have confidence in the employees ability to take the owners vision, direction and management style and work well within the company. After you have the right person, let them do what you hired them to do, encourage creativity and new ideas that can grow the company, then take time each week to inspect the work you have delegated to them.

Maximize Your Marketing - For most small business owners advertising and marketing are done only to get the work flowing, once they get a few customers they tend to rely on word of mouth and referrals to keep the business coming.  Unfortunately this plan for marketing usually brings drastic financial ups and downs.  This kind of uncertainty leaves businesses unable to plan, budget or hire permanent help. 

In order to break free from stagnant sales and apathy you must reach out to new customers.  If you are still using the same type of advertising you used five or ten years ago you are missing out on new streams of income.  In the age of the Internet and social media a website is just the beginning, social media such as facebook, twitter, Pinterest and google are all ways to make personal connections with people who are seeking your products or services.  The key to making your products and services known is regular contact with people who want what you are offering.

Being aware of these pitfalls is the first step to avoiding the plateau effect on your business, too often small business owners find themselves spinning their wheels after many years of hard work, only to be overwhelmed from competitiors that are taking more and more of their market share. 

 If you need help in some of these areas go to www.smallbusinessgrow.com