Deciding to grow your business can be both exciting and intimidating. Expanding operations, hiring more staff, or exploring new markets are all big steps, but how do you know if your business is ready? 

To help, we connected with John Baxter, our Regional Business Advisor for Vancouver Island, who also leads our Strategy Planning for Business Growth advisory sessions. He shared advice on how to prepare for growth and how we can help you reach your small business goals.

How Do You Know You’re Ready to Grow Your Business?

Most new businesses go through a natural startup growth phase as they gain clients and recognition, but eventually this growth plateaus. “To pursue that next step in growth, the entrepreneur has to figure out what factors are stopping growth from continuing and then address those limits,” John said. 

Before taking the leap into growing your business, here are two key steps to ensure you’re on the right track:

Step 1 – Find Out What Resources You Need to Grow

The first step you should take is asking yourself “What’s stopping this business from growing further?” John said. Common elements limiting growth include a lack of staff, the location of the store, inadequate financial capacity, or a combination of different factors.

John said, “A lot of the time, entrepreneurs don’t factor in how much time the business owner has within their business, knowing they have to wear all these different hats.” It’s crucial to be able to work within your business without stretching yourself too thin and burning out. 

Step 2 – Determine the Financial Implications of Growth

Once you’ve looked at what your needs are, you need to run the numbers. “An important step before pursuing that growth is to figure out what the financial outcomes would be,” John emphasized. 

Sometimes, businesses can become less efficient when they grow. “When you run the numbers on, say, opening up a second store, it can turn out that this expansion might end up losing you money, or you might make less money because of it,” he explained. This is why it’s essential to ensure that finances align with your decision to expand your business. For this step, doing a cash flow forecast would help you get an idea of if growth is the right move for your business.

Next Steps for Business Growth

If it looks like a positive financial outcome and it’s something you want to pursue, figure out how to get the resources you need. Here are a few Small Business BC resources that could help:

• Business Plan Template and Cash Flow Forecasting Tool 
• Market Research Resources 
• Talk to an Accountant 

“It’s all about setting it up beforehand, doing that planning, and figuring out what the needs of the business are so that you’re not just going in blind and hoping it all works out in the end,” John said. This is where our Strategy Planning for Business Growth advisory sessions can help.

What Stage Does John Come in?

When it comes to growing your business, planning is essential. “If your goal is to continue to grow your business but it’s stalled out, or there’s more involved changes that would have to take place to pursue that growth… then it’s a good time to start planning things out,” John said. This is one of the stages that our Strategy Planning for Business Growth advisory can help.

Another phase that the advisory can help businesses through is when they haven’t necessarily reached a plateau, but they’re still experiencing limiting factors that are negatively impacting the business. The service would help entrepreneurs address hurdles and make a plan forward. John said the service helps with “addressing challenges within the business in its current state, and plan to not only grow but make it work effectively as it is.”

What You Can Do to Set Your Business Up for Growth

“The big thing is making intentional decisions in the businesses, and basing your decisions on reasoning, research, and planning,” John said. It’s important to take time to think deeply about what’s going on and look at the business from the outside in to see if a certain path forward makes sense. Taking this extra time can mean the difference between achieving growth and experiencing major losses.

“When you put that time into working on the business, rather than just working in the business, you have a lot better chance of avoiding any potential issues or pitfalls,” John said, “It’s not going to have huge financial recourse if you sit down and put research into it for a few hours and find out if it’s a good option for you.”

Learn More About Our Strategy Planning for Business Growth Advisory Sessions

Looking for guidance on scaling your business? Book your one-on-one Strategy Planning for Business Growth Advisory Session today. For $199, you’ll receive a one-hour phone or video consultation with our expert advisor, John Baxter. During this session, he will help you pinpoint areas of your business that can be improved, develop a tailored action plan, set goals for the future, and much more. 

Whether you’re looking for a general check-up post-start-up phase, need solutions for operational challenges, or anything in between, don’t miss out on this valuable opportunity to bring your business to the next level. You can sign up online at Strategy Planning for Business Growth Advisory Session Booking.

Small Business BC is Here to Help

SBBC is a non-profit resource centre for BC-based small businesses. Whatever your idea of success is, we’re here to provide holistic support and resources at every step of the journey. Check out our range of business webinars, on-demand E-Learning Education, our Talk to an Expert Advisories, or browse our business articles.