Build Better Businesses: 4 Tips for Revamping Your Small Business

The pandemic has hit every business around the world, but small businesses are suffering more than most. Because of their relatively low cash flow and smaller customer base, these enterprises were devastated by the necessary restrictions brought on by the pandemic. Hundreds of thousands of businesses in America alone have had to shutter for months just to stave away permanent closure, and even this may not be enough.

Approximately 35 percent of small enterprises are still closed after an entire year. According to expert analysis, only about 3 percent of these businesses will open their doors again. These statistics are particularly disturbing if you have dreams of being a serial entrepreneur or even if you just want to provide your employees a living wage.

Below are four strategies to keep your small business fresh.

Update Equipment

After a year in lockdown, the equipment and hardware you're using may no longer be cutting edge. Even if they aren't you should take this time to assess whether your business's equipment is due for an overhaul. For example, if you're running a convenience store, maybe it's time to ditch the freezer units and invest in a condensing unit for a cold room. If your business is more digitally inclined, assess the condition of your computer units and similar electronic devices.

Updating your equipment is in the best interest of both your customers and your employees. Not taking the chance to update your equipment can frustrate your workers. Outdated equipment can slow down turnover rates and reduce your company's productivity. Although equipment updates can be expensive, they are well worth the price. They can last a long time and you can even take out specific equipment loans to ensure you get the machinery you need to continue providing top-notch services.

Change Visuals

When homeowners want to put their properties on the market, some tear down walls and put up expensive additions. Others take the smarter route and simply change the way their home looks with a new coat of paint and some slight redecoration. The same principle can be applied to your business.

Instead of buying expensive new equipment or radically changing the way you operate, you could always simply rebrand yourself. Change your logo into something more modern and exciting. Edit the language on your media platforms like your website to reflect a new approach to your business. The beauty of this strategy is it costs a lot less than many other revitalization strategies but can yield the same results.

Rethink Your Market

Completely overhauling your business to provide a different product or new services can be an extremely daunting challenge and extremely costly to boot. You can take a different approach to revitalizing your business by rebranding and pushing your products and services to a different market. Perhaps the demand for your goods has changed in the intervening months. You'd be surprised who can put your products to good use and how they can use it.

The key to rebranding your goods and services is by determining just who exactly is the best new target demographic. Conduct thorough information collection methods such as in-depth surveys, focused group discussions and market analysis. The data collected from these efforts will be crucial is finding your new customer base. Collate all information so you can polish your new

Leverage Social Media

Perhaps the issue with your business and the key to revitalizing it isn't in finding a new target market but in widening its reach and presence. Traditional advertising and marketing channels are too expensive for the majority of small business to even consider, but luckily enough you live in a world full of inexpensive digital alternatives.

Social media platforms like Facebook and Instagram are perfect for small business to expand their reach. With the right hashtags, your business posts can tap into new markets. With the perfect captions, you can get customers to share your product pictures. Thanks to social media, you can get your customers to advertise your goods and services for you. Even digital marketing costs on social media are more affordable, meaning you won't have to break the bank to get new customers.

Businesses are entering a new era and you need to adapt to it quickly. Revitalizing your business will take imagination, determination and savvy. Use these tips wisely to ensure that your business not only manages to survive but also thrive in the years to come.