Steps small businesses can take to develop a business strategy

A business strategy is a comprehensive plan or set of actions that an organisation formulates and implements to achieve its long-term goals and objectives. 

It involves making choices and decisions about how the company will compete in its market or industry, allocate resources and position itself to create a sustainable competitive advantage. 

A well-defined business strategy guides the organisation in making important decisions, setting priorities and aligning its activities and resources to achieve specific outcomes.  

Business strategy is the creation, alignment and integration of a company's strategic activities in order to gain a market advantage. 

Creating a business strategy may guarantee  the business owner to have a clear plan for achieving organisational goals to survive. A well-executed business strategy gives the company direction, clarity and purpose, allowing it to navigate uncertainty and achieve its goals. 

It acts as a road map for the company's development and profitability, allowing it to adapt effectively to competitive challenges and changes in the business environment.  

The steps below might help small business owners build their business strategy amid a challenging economic period.

Create a Value Proposition

Business owners must create a compelling value proposition that explains the distinct advantages that your business provides to clients with a focus on how your products or services address their problems or meet their demands better than competitors. 

Understanding their target market and identifying your ideal customer profile in order to acquire insights into their wants, preferences, pain areas and expectations. SME owners must define the unique advantages and solutions that their products or services provide to their target clients. 

I will advise them to concentrate on how services address their problems and provide distinct value. I will also encourage businesses to highlight the essential qualities and attributes that distinguish your products or services. 

These aspects should correspond to your target market's wants and preferences. Small and medium-sized businesses (SMEs) must think about how they can create an amazing customer experience through customer care, simplicity of purchase, after-sales support and client involvement.

SMEs must also ensure that they perform consumer surveys or obtain feedback to evaluate their value proposition and guarantee consistency across all marketing communication platforms.

Select a Competitive Strategy

Choose a competitive strategy based on your strengths and market data.

A competitive strategy entails intentional decisions regarding how the SME will compete in its industry and how it will position itself to differentiate itself from rivals. 

By doing a detailed study of their market and finding gaps and opportunities, SMEs may better understand the market and their rivals. 

The business owner must discover and capitalise on their company's distinct qualities, talents, and resources, as well as determine what distinguishes your company from rivals and how to give greater value to your target consumers.

Based on their analysis and unique plan, SMEs might consider any of the following competitive tactics.  

Cost Leadership: Work to become the lowest-cost supplier in your business, allowing you to give clients competitive pricing.

Differentiation: To distinguish yourself from competition, emphasize unique product features, high quality, great customer service, or brand image. 

Focus or Niche Strategy: Concentrate on serving a certain target market or niche in which you thrive and can meet specialized demands.  

SMEs must embrace technology in order to improve productivity, increase customer engagement, and remain competitive, while also investing in innovation to continually develop and improve their goods, services, and processes.

Conduct a SWOT Analysis

A SWOT analysis is an essential element in building a solid company plan. 

The SWOT analysis assists in identifying your company's internal strengths and weaknesses, as well as external market opportunities and threats.

Business owners must decide which part of their company or which sector they wish to evaluate. 

It might be a particular product, service, department, or the entire company.

Financial statements, consumer feedback, market research, and competitive analysis may all be included. In terms of my company, I've discovered the internal characteristics that provide us with a competitive edge.  

Unique skills, a strong brand recognition, a talented staff, exclusive technology, or cost benefits are examples of these. I've also identified the internal factors that put my company at a disadvantage or impede its progress.

Examples include a scarcity of resources, obsolete technology, inefficient procedures, and a lack of market presence.

Establish Specific Goals and Objectives

For Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) to design a successful business plan, it is critical to establish clear and attainable goals and objectives. Business owners must begin by identifying your SME's long-term vision and objective. 

The vision should depict the desired future state, whereas the mission should establish the purpose and rationale for your company's existence.

These statements will serve as a guide for your aims and objectives. 

Entrepreneurs must avoid making imprecise remarks and instead outline concrete goals. Define your goals with measurements, figures, and dates to make them easier to manage and achieve. 

Differentiate between short-term and long-term objectives. Short-term objectives can be accomplished in a relatively short amount of time (e.g., 3 to 6 months), but long-term goals can take several years.

To assure success while keeping an eye on the broader picture, they must build a balanced blend of.

Business leaders must concentrate their efforts on a few essential objectives at a time. Too many goals might result in disorganized efforts and decreased effectiveness.

Prioritize the most important goals that match with your company's vision and purpose, and keep in mind that, while goals and objectives give guidance, the business climate can change quickly.

Entrepreneurs must be willing to change their aims as new possibilities or problems arise.

Resource Evaluation

Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) must evaluate available resources to guarantee they can effectively implement their business plan.

I will urge company owners to start by identifying all of the resources needed to carry out their business plan. 

Financial resources, human capital, technology, physical assets, intellectual property, and any other vital inputs are all included. They can also assess your company's financial health. 

Determine the available capital, cash flow, and prospective sources of finance.  This evaluation will help you determine whether you have enough cash to support your plan or whether you need to acquire extra funding. 

Entrepreneurs must also evaluate the technology and infrastructure available in their SME. Ensure that your IT systems, software, and hardware can successfully support the business plan. 

Consider any changes or expenditure that may be required to increase efficiency and effectiveness. Business owners must also identify any valuable intellectual property or one-of-a-kind knowledge assets that your SME holds. 

These assets have the potential to create a competitive advantage and should be used as part of your company plan.

Business owners should evaluate their SME's present capacity to meet growing demand or expansion as a consequence of the business plan.

Consider whether your processes can be scaled up efficiently without sacrificing quality.

Understand Your Mission and Vision

Entrepreneurs must define the purpose and long-term vision of their small business. Understand what your company's goals are and where you want them to go in the future.

An SME's mission and vision give a clear direction for decision-making. 

When confronted with a plethora of alternatives and possibilities, having a well-defined mission and vision assists SME owners and managers in making decisions that are in line with their long-term goals.

Purpose and vision statements serve as a guidepost for establishing objectives and goals.  

They assist SMEs in determining their future goals and give a framework for setting defined quantifiable, and realistic goals. 

Employees have a feeling of purpose when they have a compelling goal and vision.

This shared sense of purpose helps to foster a healthy and aligned organizational culture in which everyone is driven to work toward a common objective. Purpose and vision statements may help a SME stand out from the crowd.

When a SME's mission connects with its target market, it aids in the development of a distinct value proposition and improves brand identification.

Andrews Ayiku, Lecturer/Business Coach, University of Professional Studies Accra
ayiku.andrews@upsamail.edu.gh