4 Corporate strategies your small business desperately needs

Do you ever find yourself suffering from a touch of “big business envy”?

When you look at the achievements of huge corporations, it often feels like they’re worlds apart from small business and start-up owners. They’re innovating, they’re doing mind-blowing things, and it feels like you’ll never be able to compete.

Especially when you consider the funds and the resources they likely have at their disposal.

But here’s the thing we often forget:

Corporate giants didn’t start out that way; they were all small businesses once.

And many of them have continued to use the strategies they used when they were just starting out. In fact, often, it’s these very strategies that helped propel them to corporate superstardom in the first place.

The good news? These strategies may pack a punch, but they can be implemented without corporate levels of investment or resources.  

How do I know?

Because I’ve spent a great deal of time in both camps.

I worked in corporate for the majority of my career (you’ll find both E*Trade and Bloomberg Industry Group on my CV); I’ve led teams and I’ve headed major product launches. And I have a ton of experience working with small business and start-up owners too, helping them grow and find success.

I know that small businesses can learn valuable lessons by taking a cue from big players.

So, as a small business owner, which of the “big player” strategies are the most likely to push your organization to the next level?

1. Investing in the right technology.

Big corporations know that having access to the right tools and systems is crucial if you want to up your efficiency and productivity. But they don’t have to come at a huge expense. 

Depending on the size of your organization and its needs, many of the software programs you need to simplify everything from your finances to your project management are available for free, or for a low monthly/annual cost.

2. Prioritizing the customer.

It might not be as easy as if you had an entire customer service team backing you up, but you should still focus on a customer-first approach. Prioritizing their needs, whether they’re at the very start of your sales funnel or whether they have a complaint is always a winning strategy, whatever the size or nature of your business.

3. Creating a powerful brand.

Sure, back in the day this would have ONLY been possible for corporates, or for those with huge marketing budgets to play with.

These days, it’s a level(ish!) playing field, baby!

First up, you have word of mouth working in your favor (what with you going all out to prioritize the customer, and all). But you also have a ton of modern marketing methods to take advantage of, most of which don’t require corporate level advertising budgets.

So make the most of social media. Find opportunities to create exciting brand-building content that’ll set you apart from others in your industry, whether that’s a blog, a podcast, or a YouTube channel. Find ways to be seen and heard by the right people. 

As long as you have a solid strategy in place before you begin, you’re just as capable of creating a powerful, enduring brand as any one of the “big players”.

4. Finding the right people.

Any corporation is only as good as the people it employs — and those with the greatest success are generally very good at finding the right talent for each area of the business, whether for their R&D, marketing, or sales departments. And they know exactly when and how they should delegate.

Of course, as a small business, that might feel like something completely out of your reach, particularly if you or your partners are currently wearing multiple hats. 

But if building entire departments — or even hiring a couple of members of full-time staff — is a stretch right now, you can still free up your time and amp up your productivity by delegating to the right people.

Outsourcing is the answer here. By engaging the services of a qualified professional you boost your business in two vital ways. Firstly, you free up much of your own time to do whatever it is you do best, whether that’s product development or a more client-focused role. And, you get the benefit of their years of experience and expertise, whether you need them to help you implement new systems, create a strategic marketing plan, or improve your sales figures.

Small businesses so often waste time, money, and energy focusing on driving growth quickly but fail at trying to scale in key areas like marketing. Leveraging the skills of someone like me, who understands both how big corporations work AND how to apply big business strategies to small businesses and startups, is the key to scaling in a way that is manageable, immediately profitable, and that sets you up for future growth and success.

If you’re experiencing some “big business envy” of your own, I’d love to help you identify and implement the corporate strategies that will have the biggest impact on your own path to big business success. Contact me now for a free marketing proposal.