For small businesses to survive, grow and stay ahead of the
competition involves knowing the unknown – predicting the future.
Understanding
where you want to be and how to get there is a good, solid strategy, but
knowing what the future holds for your industry, your market place and your
working practices and planning for those developments is a great strategy.
So how to predict the future...
Simple.
Understand where changes could occur, what those changes might
be and how they will impact your business.
Then plan for it.
But anything could change!
Of course we are not magicians, but we can do some simple wizardry.
To understand what might happen, look at:
· What
has happened – spot patterns and trends
· Read
what the experts predict
o
Look
at industry forums and check out business forums
o
Look
up leading business figures and see what they are saying
· Visit
your main industry expos – see what’s on the horizon
Spot the trends.
When looking for future trends, remember that impacts on your business come from different areas, with the key areas being:
1.
Industry
sector movements
2.
Changes
in your market place
3.
Customer
buying patterns and attitudes
4.
Technology
advancements
5.
Employees
and working trends
6.
Supply
chain
The principle for small business is to focus on what is
relevant to you and your business and then identify assess opportunities and
risk. You will then be able to develop the right actions to capitalise on
opportunities and minimise the impact of risks.
Focus on the future
Once you have a clearer picture of what the future has in-store,
make sure you are geared up now with the right strategies. The right marketing
tools will be those that work now, and will adapt effectively with change.
Here are some of the key marketing trends:
· Make
the most of smart devices – is your business smart-friendly? Customers are
moving to mobile-decision-making
· Do
as you say – be open and honest with your customers and deliver on that
· Let
your customers market you – encourage reviews, get that feedback and make your
customers want to spread the positive word
· Content
is the new... content! You can never beat amazing content for capturing
attention, inspiring interaction and raising your profile in searches
· Make
social media work for you – interact online the way your customers do
· Lights,
camera, action! – get video happy and captivate your market place
And remember...
The past cannot be changed, but the future is still in your
power.
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