Building your strong small business foundations

A step-by-step guide to the key foundations your business needs

Does running your small business make you feel like you’re always juggling a million balls in the air (and you’re terrified they will all drop at once)?

And like you’re never sure?which?parts of your business need your attention and?when? Like your business is?moving too fast?for you to keep up with?

(Stop reading my mind, Steph!)

If any of this sounds familiar, it might be time to assess your small business foundations.

Your foundations are the key elements that make your business what it is. They are the ‘glue’ that holds all the pieces together to ensure everything is working in harmony toward the common goal of building your business.

When you have solid and well-structured business foundations, it’s much easier to know where your business is at. And what areas you need to focus on when you sit down to work?ON?your business.

In this post, I’m going to walk you through the top 7 small business foundations you need to get your business working like clockwork.

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1. Branding

“Branding is just a perception, and perception will match reality over time.”

Elon Musk

While your brand is ultimately your customer’s perceptions of your business, you help them create those perceptions by the way you present your brand to the world.

And one way you present your brand is through branding – your logo, your colours, your style, your tone of voice – all of this is part of your brand.

Your branding should speak directly to who you want your ideal client to be, so it attracts the type of customers you actually want.

It should also reflect your personality. When you’re a solo business operator or founder-led business, your customers will make an assumption about you based on your branding, so make sure?your?personality and your?brand’s?personality are aligned. There’s no point building a confetti-throwing vibrant brand if, deep down, you’re an introvert who prefers to connect with people more quietly. And if you’re a bright and bubbly extrovert, your brand should show it in spades.

But your branding doesn’t only have to reflect exactly where you are today. It can be aspirational and position your business where you want it to go in the future.

You know you have the right branding when you’re proud to splash it around everywhere you go, knowing it represents what you offer and sets you apart as a true professional.

Take a look at your branding and ask yourself:

• Does it feel like me?
• Does it reflect what I want people to think about my business?
• Do I love promoting my business online and in person with this branding?

If you answered no to any of these questions, your?branding foundation?might need some work.

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2. Services

“Know what your customers want most and what your company does best. Focus on where those two meet.”

Kevin Stirtz

One of the many joys of running a business is picking and choosing what you do (and more importantly what you don’t). You can choose your services based on what you’re good at and what you love to do! (And you?should?love what you do because clients can spot a half-hearted effort from miles away.)

Of course, whatever services you offer must also serve a real purpose and solve customer problems. A suite of services you enjoy delivering and that help your clients achieve their goals is the?*chef’s kiss*?sweet spot you need to find.

Because if you love what you offer and believe in the value it brings, you’ll be happy (and so will your clients).

Take a look at your services and ask yourself:

• Do my services solve a real problem my clients have?
• Do my services allow me to use my best and most valuable skills?
• Do I enjoy delivering my current services?

If you answered no to any of these questions, your?services foundation?might need some work.

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3. Website

“Websites promote you 24/7. No employee will do that.”

Paul Cookson

Your website is your shop front and where most clients will look first (before they even speak to you). So when it comes to first impressions, your website does a lot of the heavy lifting.

While a good-looking website is important, it must also be functional and deliver the information your clients need. Keeping your website up-to-date is also vital to ensure it accurately represents your business, especially as your offerings change and evolve. And a well-nurtured blog can keep your clients coming back for fresh and innovative insights.

If building or maintaining your website isn’t something you want to do yourself, you can outsource it and let a professional website builder make sure it’s in tip-top shape.

A stylish, professional and user-friendly website is one of the best investments you can make in your business. (And a?Google Business Profile?is a vital supporting tool for your website and SEO success.)

Take a look at your website and ask yourself:

• Does it clearly tell people what I do, who I do it for and what problems I solve?
• Is my website easy to navigate? Is it easy to find out more about me, my business, my services and my contact details?
• Does my website look and feel like my brand?

If you answered no to any of these questions, your?website foundation?might need some work.

4. Marketing

“At its very core, marketing is storytelling. The best advertising campaigns take us on an emotional journey — appealing to our wants, needs, and desires — while at the same time telling us about a product or service.”

Melinda Partin

Your marketing strategy is the engine room of your business, and it needs to keep working, even when you’re neck-deep in client work. The best way to create a marketing strategy that keeps going while you’re busy with other things is to create unique content and use storytelling to communicate with your customers.

There are many ways you can tell your stories.

Create original content

Creating your own content is still the most powerful way to demonstrate your expertise and educate your customers. And you get to do it in the format that suits you best.

Love having a chat? Start a?podcast?(or be a guest on other podcasts your audience listens to)!

Enjoy the compelling combo of light and sound? Create?videos?that show your audience who you really are!

Got a knack for the written word? Build a?blog?as a go-to knowledge base for your audience (and boost your SEO credibility at the same time)!

Whatever platform you choose, your content is your way to answer those burning customer questions and build your authority. And once you have a solid library of content, you can keep sharing and repurposing. So it works hard to attract new customers (and keeps your current audience coming back for the next instalment).

Build your email list

An email list is a perfect way to connect and build a personal relationship with your customers. You can share your content, promote your offers and help guide your customers along their journey to becoming raving fans.

To build your email list, you’ll need a lead magnet – a free resource or offer you give out to people who sign up to your database. Now we’re all pretty sick of clogged-up inboxes, so if you want someone to let you into their emails, you’d better offer something that gives them genuine value.

Popular lead magnets include downloadable checklists, cheat sheets, eBooks, webinars, discount codes or mini-courses.

And once you get the chance to send emails to your customers, commit to a regular schedule and make sure your emails are irresistibly openable!

Share on social media

With all this great content and stories to share, social media is the place to do it. But make sure you choose the social platform your customers are hanging on, whether it’s LinkedIn, Instagram, Twitter or somewhere else.

And if you’re going to be social –?be?SOCIAL.

Don’t just post – interact! Reply to comments on your posts, comment on other people’s posts and share them if they’ll help your audience – it’s a social?network,?after all.

And don’t forget to pay attention to the topics your customers most respond to or ask questions about – these are a goldmine of future content ideas!

Keep on marketing

A solid content marketing strategy doesn’t mean you can completely ignore your marketing during busy times. But it will give you a library of stories, advice and expertise you can quickly and easily share across your social media and other places your customers are.

And if you’re finding it too hard to keep up with creating content, sending regular emails and being active on the socials, remember you can?outsource some or all of your marketing tasks?to keep that engine running.

Take a look at your marketing and ask yourself:

• Does my marketing showcase my services in a way that speaks to my customers?
• Am I distributing my marketing in places where my clients actually are?
• Does my marketing help me connect with my clients in a personal way?

If you answered no to any of these questions, your?marketing foundation?might need some work.

5. Networking

“Networking is an investment in your business. It takes time and when done correctly can yield great results for years to come.”

Diane Helbig

A network of people who know what you do and who you do it for can be an invaluable asset for your business. But like all promotional activities, you need to choose a network that makes sense to your business and audience.

Traditional networking events can be a great place to meet people in your local area or from your target industry. You can present at a conference or go to a business presentation – but pick events your ideal customers are likely to attend (or people who can connect you to your ideal customer).

You can also network online by joining relevant groups and becoming known as the go-to person for questions about your area of expertise. (But make sure you follow the group rules and be aware of any restrictions around direct promotions.)

And don’t forget to keep in touch with your existing clients – they’re already in your network!

If networking makes you nervous, start slow with a format that makes you comfortable. Then as you get more confident about telling people your story, you can step out of your comfort zone and up your networking game.

Take a look at your networking and ask yourself:

• Am I networking in spaces where my clients are?
• Do I have a systemised process to nurture past clients and keep those networks current?
• Do I feel like I can be myself at the networking opportunities I attend?

If you answered no to any of these questions, your?networking foundation?might need some work.

6. Business profile

“Promote your strengths. Remind the world why you are special and why it is special to do business with you.”

Mary Schnack

Now you’ve got your branding, services, website, marketing and networking foundations sorted, it’s time to get out there and build your business profile.

So think about where you can raise your profile and get visible.

• As a guest on relevant podcasts.
• Through media attention (tip: check out?SourceBottle?where you can connect with journalists looking for experts to quote).
• Speaking at conferences, summits or business networks.
• Offering educational workshops or attending industry exhibitions.

Building a business profile is about getting yourself and your business out there. And because of your foundation-building work so far, you’re finally ready to get your business out there the way you’ve always wanted to!

Take a look at your business profile and ask yourself:

• Am I getting myself out there the best way I can?
• Do I know where I can find opportunities to build my personal brand and business profile?
• Do I feel ready to get my business out there – what to say, who to say it to, where to say it?

If you answered no to any of these questions, your?business profile?foundation?might need some work.

7. Business systems

“Spend time upfront to invest in systems and processes to make long-term growth sustainable.”

Jeff Platt

When your business foundations are strong and bringing in the customers you need, the last thing you want is to let it all fall down. But that’s what can happen if you don’t have the robust systems and processes to support your business’s day-to-day operations.

Every business is different and will need different things to make business systems that work. But using a project management software solution, like?Asana?or?ClickUp?is a must. Even the free versions can be enough to help you streamline your processes and keep on top of your busy work.

It’s ok to do things your way – with whatever software solution suits your needs – but keeping your business systems up to date and usable is the best way to keep your business going.

If getting your systems where they need to be seems like a daunting task, an OBM (like me!) can help with a business systems review and customised advice.

Take a look at your business systems and ask yourself:

• Do I have solid business systems and processes I actually follow?
• Do my business systems help me achieve my day-to-day tasks?
• Do I know what I need to do every day?

Solid foundations for a successful small business

I know, right?! There’s a lot to take in here.

But take a breath (or two or three).

While your business foundations are big and important, you don’t have to sort it all out in one go. Use my list as a roadmap. Go step-by-step (in the priority order I’ve set) to work through the things you need to improve, so you can get your business where you want it to be.

Because to GROW your business, you need to BUILD your business. And the only way you can do that is to invest time, resources, and energy into working ON your business.

Getting your small business foundations where you want them to be won’t happen overnight – it’s a long game, not a short sprint. But whatever you do, don’t ignore your business foundations for another day. They’re the strong base and vital structure your business needs to flourish into the future.

If you think you could use an extra pair of hands to help solidify your small business foundations,?get in touch for a chat. Outsourcing support for your foundation building can help you get things moving much, much faster.

“A small business is an amazing way to serve and leave an impact on the world you live in.”

Nicole Snow