4 Must Know Tips to Running Your Micro-Business
Microbusinesses often get lost in the world of small businesses. While a micro business is a small business, it’s super small, typically having less than 10 employees.
As the owner of a micro-business, there’s no doubt one of your primary goals is to grow it into a bigger business. Perhaps you want to open multiple locations or/and expand your product line.
However, of all small businesses, it’s a micro-business that’s most likely to fail. What are you going to do to ensure the business succeeds?
To give you a helping hand, we’re sharing a couple of effective tips you can use to guide your ultra-small business to success.
1. Know Your Target Market
As a micro-business, your target market is certainly small. Maybe you run a coffee shop in your neighborhood, which means you’re targeting people in the area. Or you run a local landscaping business.
Regardless of the nature of the business you run, it’s essential to have a good idea of who your target market is. Don’t assume that just because you run a neighborhood coffee shop, everyone in the neighborhood will be your customer.
You’ve to narrow down. If your coffee shop is trendy, for instance, there’s a good chance it’s the younger folks who will make up the vast majority of your customers.
When you know your target market, it’s easier to customize your service delivery to meet their specific needs.
2. Stay Small –For Now
Did you know rapid expansion is one of the major causes of small business failure?
That’s right. A good number of businesses hit a dead end when they’re trying to grow and expand.
Of course, you need your business to grow. It’s natural. However, this growth needs to happen when the business is ready to support it.
If you rush into opening a second store and yet your revenues can’t sustain the expansion, you could start burning through cash at a dangerous rate. As such, don’t shy away from staying small for as long as necessary.
3. Build the Right Team
When you have fewer than 10 employees, you cannot afford to have joyriders on the team. Everyone needs to be capable of putting in a proper shift, always.
This means, when hiring, you have to be careful about who to bring on board. Don’t just look at the core competencies. Look at whether they can be a good fit for your workplace culture.
While at it, keep an eye on your labor costs. There are steps you can take to save money here and there, such as using online software to make paystubs, instead of hiring an in-house payroll specialist.
4. Outsource Some Functions
Outsourcing doesn’t just save you money. It opens your business to a diverse range of skilled expertise.
Assess your internal operations and find functions you can outsource. As a micro-business, you shouldn’t be doing bookkeeping and marketing in-house.
Run a Micro-Business the Right Way
Micro-businesses are highly vulnerable to the forces of market competition. It takes a competent entrepreneur to lead such a business to success. With these tips, you’re now in a better position to run your micro-business the right way.
All the best and keep reading our blog for more helpful business tips.
