If you work as a sole proprietor of a business that you own and operate by yourself, then you might not want to hire for quite some time, but you still want to expand your ability to earn profits. One of the best ways to do that is to look at your business’s existing service area and think about how you can expand it. But is it possible to do that easily without bringing fresh blood in?
Change your targets
Your service area doesn’t literally have to mean the services that you provide. It can also mean the people that you are trying to target with those services. This can mean looking to different locations if you’re able to take on more clients. There is also a range of small and diverse markets in practically every major area, especially those metropolitan areas. Having the insight and ability to share perspectives and appeal to culture with these groups can help you find a new niche to expand with.
Upsell on new services
Perhaps your existing products or services might fit well within a premium model that offers more of your attention, more value, and additional reliance on your specialist skills for a further fee. Many businesses will set up a range of pricing models that highlight exactly what the client will be getting at every level. This can make your baseline services more affordable to some, while also enabling you to better target those who are willing to pay a premium for additional services and improved outcomes.
Outsource with partners
Just because you’re not hiring new employees doesn’t mean that you have to take care of all new service needs, yourself. You can just as easily add new services to the business while outsourcing those services to someone else. Usually, this tends to be done in conjunction with services that you directly provide so that you can enjoy the lion’s share of the profit. However, these relationships, such as accountants partnering with https://www.tri-merit.com/services/research-and-development-tax-credits allow business owners to offer more without having to put in as much work. You just have to be willing to pay someone else to do it.
Learn new skills
One of the key ways to advance your career is to incorporate new skills within it. This should only be done if, of course, you have the time to focus on doing it and you will rely on those skills enough to really expand the business. If that is the case and you wouldn’t rather outsource those services, then sites like https://www.edx.org/course/subject/business-management can help you look at a range of additional skills you can learn. Many of them can come with certificates as well that you can use as a marketing tool on the website, showcasing yours as a more prestigious business.
At some point, continuing to expand the business’s offerings will demand you rely on some help. However, as the tips above show, you don’t have to do it in-house. Take the tips above and think about how you can grow your own business.
