When you are thinking about scaling, you will be looking for all of the areas in your business that are ready for that step. Almost all business owners will look to scale - but not all businesses are ready for it.

*Photo by* *Austin Distel* on *Unsplash*

How can you tell it is time to scale your business?

One of the key indicators is that your supply is now insufficient for the demand. You can’t meet the demand for your product; you need to issue waiting lists or, worse - cancel orders and give refunds.

Another sign is that your long-term business goals are still a challenge for you. For example, you are meeting profit goals, and you are fulfilling demand, but things are tight. When you either have a lack of people or resources - it is time to scale.

You are exceeding business targets, no matter what they are. And you keep having to set higher goals.

So what can you do to scale?

Business Plan

You made a business plan before you launched your business, and now you’re going to need to make another one. Except you are specifically looking at setting milestones using the data you currently have. You have access now to your expenses and more - so create a plan that is scaling and growth-focused.

Team

Do you have the right team for what you want to achieve? Often business owners are hesitant to hire more people as it is an expense. Sometimes though, in order to increase your output, you need more hands on deck.

Or for occasions where you are going to implement new software, IT, sales, or other - then you are looking for more specialist team members.

Optimisation

The chances are any tools and software you use are going to be replaced or improved. Compare the services that you use now with other options. Look specifically for better integrations, scalable packages, and costs.

Keep in mind that as you scale, you will begin to build up more data, and data platforms and cloud usage may come into play - depending on what your business is.

Funding

Schelling your business is going to cost money. Although it won’t always require as much as the start-up amount, and typically offers better returns - making it more interesting to a wide range of investors.

If you can free up the cash from the business, you might choose to bootstrap your scaling - but that isn’t always possible.

The rejuvenation of your business plan will give you something to show investors and increase your chances of securing funding.

Marketing

Your marketing can be a huge driver for scaling your business. You’ll need to double down on what you are already doing - but take the stress out of it by targeting your biggest and most engaged platforms.

Look at your organic marketing channels, see if you can optimize your content further, and create a content strategy to move forward.

As your business grows and scales, you might feel like you are moving away from where you started; however, it is possible to still be you.

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