3 Fundamental Areas for Small Business Growth

Have you sat and pondered how technology has changed everything in life? Let’s leave to the side the obvious; for example, our televisions, automobiles, and communications.

For the business man and woman, the ways of decades ago have been revolutionized by advancements in computer technology. Many of us fondly remember waiting patiently on the Sunday paper to find out what was going on sale at the grocery store the following week.

Those days are behind us now. Instant gratification is in full swing. Companies worldwide have taken notice, and appropriate action to meet this need.

Are you an entrepreneur? Perhaps employed by a small business that is not taking full advantage of technology? Curious as to how you can use these advancements to your benefit, be it as the owner or employee?

Framework for Growth

Thomas Smale is the co-founder of FE International, and offers a foundation for advertising growth in small business. The framework is built on 6 key advertising strategies:

• Identification of target market
• Tools to track and measure your advertising
• Picking appropriate times to advertise
• Know your brand, and stick to it
• Assess available resources, and use wisely
• Get to know your customers so you can "show up" where they are

Mobile App Trends

There is no denying the prevalence of mobile technology. The question is whether you are taking full advantage of this advertising gold rush.

Stacy Golmack is a contributor to Smashing Magazine. In her piece titled "Current Trends And Future Prospects Of The Mobile App Market", Stacy offers some eye-opening statistics in reference to the mobile app boom:

• Per App Annie, the mobile app industry generated $41.1 billion in gross annual revenue in 2015
• Statista projects gross annual revenue for mobile apps to exceed $189 billion by 2020
• Numerous sources state that only 46% of the world’s population owned a smartphone at the end of 2016 (this indicates room for growth)

By educating yourself on how mobile technology works, and staying atop the latest trends, you can be a step ahead of your competition that chooses to disregard the ways of 2017 and beyond.

Once You Go Mobile

The easy part is getting started with a strong mobile presence. It gets tricky once you have multiple advertising outlets. Chances are, you will not be trying to manage your business and all the technical aspects of your online advertising.

If, in fact, you have brought on a development team, ensure that they are utilizing what is available to streamline the development process. The frustration of investing countless hours and capital in a project to only have it sidelined due to improper integration foresight can be avoided.

Angela Stringfellow offers insight for developers when it comes to continuous integration tools, which ultimately help eliminate the unnecessary backtracking during the development process.

As the population continues to embrace the instant gratification that comes with the ease and familiarity of their smartphone, why not grow your business by reaching out to where your customers go?

Dan Sears is a writer, editor, blogger by the day and an avid gamer by the night