8 Tips to Help Your Small Business Survive and Thrive in 2023
COVID-19 has affected businesses in nearly every industry. Although we hope for a turnaround in 2023, businesses should be ready to adapt and to seize opportunities as they come. Below are a few tips you can implement to allow your business to not only survive but to thrive.
1. Digitise your business
Digitising your business, in one form or another, gives your business access to a wealth of modern opportunities. Specifically, digitising your business allows you to improve data quality, arrange and structure data with ease, and set up automation. Aside from an improved internal workflow for your business, clients can get in touch with you and buy your products or services more easily.
2. Deploy loyalty program to boost sales
How can you increase your interaction with customers and improve their shopping experience? Through customer loyalty. Customer loyalty is the willingness of your customers to continuously choose your business over your competitors. It’s easier and more cost-efficient to keep an existing customer than to attract a new one, since you’ve already built trust. So, you need to understand your customers’ needs and develop loyalty programs that encourage them to keep coming back to your business. Some of the most straightforward loyalty programs that you can implement include:
- Points loyalty program
- Punch cards program
- Tiered-rewards program
- Referral program
3. Connect using social media
When it comes to business, you must have a product to sell, a platform that allows customers to buy from you, and most importantly, a way for customers to interact with you! This is where social media comes in. Social media acts as a tool that helps you reach potential customers and promote your products; also, it allows you to express your brand voice and receive feedback to help improve your business. If your business doesn’t have a presence on any social media platform yet, now’s the best time to create a page on a site like Facebook, Instagram, or TikTok.
4. Leverage government incentives
Sustaining and growing a small business is challenging — especially during these unusual times; the government is aware of this. Aiming to spur post-pandemic growth in 2022, Malaysia’s government announced a total of 333.2 billion Ringgit under the 2022 budget — its largest state budget in history — that covers several incentives, grants, and financing schemes for businesses. These business incentives and subsidies can help you create jobs, train your human assets, and improve your business model. Here are some of the government business aids that you can explore:
- PENJANA Small-to-Medium Sized Enterprise (“SME”) Financing
- PENJANA Microfinancing
- Bumiputera Relief Financing
- SME Go-Scheme for Liquidity Support
- Micros and SMEs E-commerce Campaign
- SME Digitalisation Matching Grant
- SME Technology Transformation Fund
- Smart Automation Grant
- Special Tax Reduction for Renovation and Refurbishment
Do not hesitate to apply any of these financial supports that provide a relief to your business.
5. Optimise business spending by optimising your workforce
A successful business uses its workforce to keep itself running at a reasonable cost. One way to improve the efficiency of your employees without breaking the bank is by upskilling and reskilling. You can do this by giving your staff training from time to time, making sure that their skills are adequate for their jobs. When you put the right person in the right position, their productivity and quality of work will improve.
6. Offer buy now pay, later payment options
Consumer behavior has changed due to increased financial pressure and movement restrictions. Offering a buy now, pay later payment option allows customers to finance their purchases more easily. This flexible payment solution provides convenience to shoppers, giving your business a higher purchase rate in return. With the buy now, pay later option, your sales will increase, and customers will be more likely to keep coming back.
7. Add value with customer service
Customer service is a key deciding factor when customers choose from whom to buy. Your product may be expensive, like a valet parking service charging higher than the average parking rate. Yet, people still avail of the service because of the value it brings them. Note that to provide excellent customer service, you must understand what your customers need, handle complaints or inquiries gracefully, and provide sufficient support before and after sales. Excellent service distinguishes you from your competitors.
8. Focus on quality
If customer service is the heart of a business, the quality of your service or product is the blood. Quality is another factor that builds trust with your customers. When product quality exceeds customers’ expectations, it improves your reputation and fuels recommendations that allow your business to grow. Hence, while you are optimizing the cost of goods to improve profit margins, it’s important to maintain product quality. Maintain a balance between production costs and creating an easy-to-use problem-solving product tailored to your customers’ needs. Again, the key to cutting costs is to not compromise the quality of the finished product.
Thriving in 2023
Though there may be many unforeseen challenges in 2023, small businesses can continue to survive and thrive by thinking outside the box and implementing innovative processes when it comes to financing, staffing, and customer strategy.
