Expert advises SMEs to consider their strengths, product or service offerings, and market opportunity
For the average Canadian small business, growth may not be in the cards right now. But for those that can support expansion, the time could not be better to seize market share.
There are three ways to address small business growth, reported Mark Healy, a partner at Torque Customer Strategy, a consultancy specializing in go-to-market strategy.
In a column published Tuesday for the Globe and Mail, Healy advised small business owners to plot "adjacencies" when thinking of expanding.
First there is core competency adjacency - expanding in line with what the entrepreneur has identified as a strength.
There is also product or service adjacency, which involves expanding into a new offering that is closely aligned with what the company already offers - often seen as "what comes next" in the product or service offering.
Finally, Canadian small business owners can pursue market adjacency, or expanding into a new customer segment or geography, Healy noted.
Though small businesses may have been particularly battered in the recession, they may actually be in a better position to expand than their big business counterparts thanks to their flexibility, the Financial Post recently reported.
