5 Strategies to Grow Your Startup

The exhilaration of starting your own business is all-encompassing. During the initial period when you are launching your startup, it becomes your whole universe—all trains of thought stop there. And then you reach an unsettling moment. You’ve launched successfully. You’ve grown to the point where you have people working under you. You have returning clients. The big question arrives: What next?

Understanding how to grow your startup steadily and sustainably is almost as difficult as starting a business from scratch. At this point, it’s time to take stock of how far you’ve come, what your vision is for the future and if you are fulfilling the task you originally set yourself. Perhaps most importantly, this is the time to assess your own role in your business and ask yourself whether you are able to sustain your current level of involvement.

Here are 5 strategies that will help you at this key juncture of your startup’s development.

1. Develop a growth marketing strategy

Too many entrepreneurs see marketing as an expense rather than an investment. This is a big mistake. Developing a successful growth marketing plan is key to your sustainable growth. Use a combination of inbound and outbound marketing strategies to capitalize on markets that include both potential customers and that small group that is already at the decision making point.

2. Do one thing at a time

This might sound like the simplest thing in the world—until you try to do it. As an entrepreneur, you will be consistently distracted by opportunities, potential partnerships and new ideas. The simple truth is the more you take on, the more difficult it becomes to see projects through to the end.

As your startup grows, ask yourself this question on a daily basis: “What am I currently busy with?” If there is more than one answer to that question, it’s time to start culling.

3. Define your focal point

The best way to decide what to eliminate from your roster is to know where you’re heading. What is your vision for your startup? What are the foundational principles of the company? A useful way to frame this question is through the North Star Metric, a concept that is becoming increasingly popular in Silicon Valley. Put simply, your north star metric is the guiding light for your company—a singular measurement that allows you to assess the success of your company. Make it quantifiable, like the number of riders a passenger takes in an Uber, or the amount of daily active users on a social media site. Then get everyone on board. Your whole team should be led by this light.

4. Develop relationships with the right customers

As you grow, favour the long term customers over the fly-by-night. This is a good time to apply Pareto’s Law, or the 80/20 principle, which states that approximately 80 percent of outcomes come from about 20 percent of inputs. Using this framework, assess your customer base. Where is the majority of revenue being generated? This will illustrate quite clearly where you should be focussing your efforts.

5. Look after yourself

While you’re applying the 80/20 principle to your business, apply it to your life as well. How can you streamline your efforts to make sure that you don’t max out on your own inner resources? Too many entrepreneurs neglect to take care of their own wellbeing. They get burnt out, overwhelmed, sick and anxiety-ridden. They forget to eat healthily, exercise, spend time with loved ones and get enough sleep. Remember that you cannot be of use to anyone in this next phase of your growth if you are not in good physical and mental health. You are your own best asset. Treat yourself with care.