There are three conditions that are critical for the growth of a small business. These three conditions are fairly straight forward in theory, but an entrepreneur’s ability to execute on all three might not be so easy.
Those conditions are:
- Visibility
- Credibility
- Relatability
Each one on its own is not enough. You must have all three if you want growth.
Visibility:
As a business owner, you must be constantly looking for opportunities to be seen. This should be done both online and in person. Visibility is an important part of growth because if people don’t know who you are, they can’t and won’t choose you. You essentially are a best-kept secret.
However, visibility on its own is not enough. You might be highly visible and behave like a moron…This is not going to help you with growth, which is why you need to be credible and relatable, too.
Credibility:
Your credibility comes from what you put out in the world. This includes the content that you create, the IP within your business, the work you do with your clients, and the results you help people achieve.
People are looking for products and services that work. If you don’t think credibility matters, I encourage you to follow what is going on with Boeing in the news right now. Or follow the entire scandal around celebrities and other wealthy individuals paying to get their kids into colleges in the United States. For Boeing, the credibility of technology in their aircraft, and the manner in which they train the pilots who fly their aircraft is in serious jeopardy right now. Consumers can lose faith in both people and products when they are not credible.
For these reasons, you should always seek to demonstrate credibility and integrity in everything you do.
Relatability:
You can be highly visible, and extremely credible, BUT if people can’t relate to you, you will struggle with growth. Your interpersonal and communication skills are either an asset or a liability to your business. It’s important that you consider how easy it is for you to build relationships with your buyers and whether or not people are often offended by you. You can be contrarian, and likeable. You can also be passive aggressive and unlikable, too.
Relating to others is a key aspect of running a business. You must be able to relate to your customers, your team, and your suppliers, or you can put your business at risk and your growth on hold.
Three conditions that are critical for the #growth of a #SmallBusiness. Click To TweetAs indicated earlier, each of these conditions are fairly straightforward. Yet any one of them on its own is not enough. You must be mindful of all three in your marketing efforts, your interactions with others, and through the delivery of your products and services. When you excel at all three, your customers become an extension of your marketing, powering your growth through word of mouth referrals.
Leave me a comment and let me know which of the above three you excel at the most, and which you may need to spend a little more time working on.
