One of the keys to any successful business, regardless of its size, is innovation. Developing new ideas is the fuel which will keep your business up to date. Innovation will keep operations, products, and services fresh. Adding this fuel will make your business more competitive.
According to a study from PwC, an overwhelming 93 percent of business executives believe that “organic growth through innovation will drive the greater proportion of their revenue growth.”
But, what exactly is innovation? The answer to this question can and will vary depending on your industry or market.
Want to encourage innovation in your small business? Here are a variety of ways to do so:
1. You don’t have to reinvent the wheel.
Keep innovation simple by improving your existing products or services, trying out a new marketing strategy, or finding a supplier that is offering you a better rate.
2. Make innovation a routine.
Schedule an hour or so each week to brainstorm and exercise you and your team’s creativity and establish goals that encourage you to improve your business through techniques like mind mapping.
3. Solicit suggestions.
Ask or survey your employees, customers, and even vendors or suppliers if they have any suggestions on how you can improve your business.
4. Get your team on-board.
Have them involved in the entire innovation process, such as solving problems during a meeting, providing a suggestion box, rewarding them for their ideas that become implemented, and providing creativity or innovation workshops.
5. Invest in innovation.
Purchase technology and equipment that can improve your business operations. Also invest in developing new products and services.
6. Educate yourself.
Continue to learn new skills or information by attending workshops, webinars, conferences, local industry events, and reading everything from blog posts to books.
7. Harness underappreciated trends.
Don’t invest your resources in what might happen. Focus on the trends that are currently happening and ones that your competitors have overlooked.
Being innovative takes a lot of hard work and little bit of risk. But, if you want to thrive and stay ahead of your competitors, it’s an essential part of being a small business owner.
Instead of sticking with the status quo, always be on the lookout for new ideas that will improve your business. The worst thing that happens? It doesn’t work and you go back to the drawing board.
Here at AB&P, we pursue innovation by staying up to date with the latest business trends. We continually pursue knowledge to stay up with the times, whether that means attending workshops, keeping up on the latest technology and software to maximize ease and efficiency for our clients, and staying informed about the latest updates (labor laws and minimum wage) to keep our clients informed through our newsletter and social media channels. We live in an ever-changing world, and it is critically important to pursue innovation to keep your business thriving.
This article was written by Chalmers Brown on www.entrepreneur.com and modified.
