Why do businesses fail? What do you need to make your business successful?
Business owners are always looking for ways to make their business stand out from their competitors. Many companies have started offering business growth checklists for women in business, but these checklists are sometimes vague, confusing, and difficult to implement.
We have developed a growth checklist specifically designed for women of color in business. This checklist has been designed to help you grow your business while being clear and easy to understand. If you would like more information about our growth checklist for women in business, don’t forget to check out additional business resources as a HerSuiteSpot member!
Business Growth Checklist for 2022
We know how hard it is to grow your business. And we know that women often face challenges that their male counterparts don’t when they’re trying to grow their businesses. That’s why we’ve put together this list of ten ways you can make your business more successful this year, regardless of the industry you’re in.
- Learn to embrace your personal brand. Start a blog so you can stay top of mind with potential clients, and establish yourself as an expert in your field. It’s also important to create processes to handle social media, customer feedback, inquiries, and other ways that people may interact with your business online. This will help you keep track of how well your site is doing and what needs to be changed or improved.
- Expand your network, and be a connector. Your network is your biggest resource when it comes to growing your business, so don’t neglect it! We suggest joining industry groups on social media and attending networking events in person (if possible) so you can meet new people who can offer resources and advice.
- Advocate for yourself and others (and don’t be afraid to ask for help). Decide which skills or attributes are most important for achieving each of your goals. You will likely have a number of options here: do you need to hire someone who is good at marketing? Who has experience leading teams? Or who knows how to use social media? Be sure that whatever role you choose, it is one that fits in with your overall vision and values.
- Embrace your leadership style. Check in with yourself about your business goals for the year. What’s your vision for the company? What do you want to accomplish? How do you want to grow? Who do you want to become? Do a SWOT (strengths, weakness, opportunities, threats) analysis of your company. Where are you strong, and where can you improve? Who are the major players in your industry, and what are they doing well? How does that affect what you have to offer? What should you be aware of on the horizon?
- Lead with purpose. People want brands with values. This one isn’t new; people have always wanted brands that are committed to social change. But the number of people who want this has been growing steadily in recent years, and shows no sign of slowing down. Make sure your brand is known for something good!
- Delegate small tasks whenever possible. These could be tasks like making copies at the office or taking out the trash at home. If you can afford it, consider hiring an assistant or even a part-time employee just to take care of.
- Live by a balanced calendar. Create a schedule for yourself that includes time for both work and personal life so that you have time to take care of yourself as well as your business.
- Believe in yourself. Have confidence in yourself and what you’ve accomplished! You ARE capable of amazing things!
- Take risks! Be bold! You never know what might happen unless you try something new.
- Visualize your future. It may sound silly, but visualizing what your business will look like in a few years can help make it feel more real and tangible. We suggest using a vision board or making a list of what you want to be true about your business in a year, and then reading it every morning (or whenever you need a pick-me-up).
Don’t let the world pass you by.
If you’re a woman of color in business, you’re probably well acquainted with the feeling of being left behind.
It can be hard to focus on your own growth when it feels like the world is racing ahead without you, and you don’t even have time to breathe before another crisis has popped up and needs your attention RIGHT NOW.
But getting stuck in crisis management mode won’t help anyone in the long run. Here’s what will: taking a few moments and planning out exactly how you want to grow your business in 2022.
It doesn’t matter if you’re just starting out with an idea or if you’re already running a successful business—and it doesn’t matter if no one else believes in you. The only person who can truly determine how far your company goes is YOU!