Have you ever thought about what makes a business really tick? Resilience – that’s the magic ingredient! There are so many forces against small business owners, but being resilient can make all the difference in keeping your business not just afloat, but sailing it towards success!
Let me spill the beans on a personal tale I haven’t shared publicly until now.
A while back, my best friend and I embarked on a globe-trotting adventure that eventually birthed my brainchild – Travel Blag.
We explored incredible places- the USA, The Caribbean, the British Virgin Islands, the US Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico, Mexico, Guatemala, Tahiti, and even Fiji.
However, as I neared New Zealand, reality hit – it was time to head home. And this thought terrified me!
Almost at the same time, I noticed gaps in the existing travel guidebooks. Cue the birth of Travel Blag, my backpacking guidebook brimming with word-of-mouth tips on the backpacker circuit.
I rallied some funds, hired a fantastic team of 8, and boy, we had a blast! We soared high for a few glorious months.
But, you know how it goes – I got a bit carried away. Mistakes piled up, leadership faltered, and excitement got the better of me.
When things took a nosedive, I lost it all – the money, the website, and my mental health.
Lessons – Building Resilience in Small Businesses
Fast forward to today, when I tell the story of going south, I say it with a smile. Because these years were so pivotal in building me up to who I am today.
The truth is, at the time, I didn’t have the discipline to build a business from the ground up. But now, years later, with a heap of experience under my belt, I can point out exactly where and how I went wrong.
I learnt, more than anything, the value of resilience in business. And today, as a proud business owner of Outside ideas, my favourite mantra is this – When things get tough, learn to rest. Not to quit.
Because I now know the value of resilience in business.
Here are 5 ways to create a more resilient small business:
- Adapt Fast
- Anticipate Market Trends In Good Time
- Strong Financial Management
- Back-Up Everything
- Network and Collaborate
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Adapt Fast
Business is not as it used to be. Things are quickly changing, every day. We have new developments in the market, and if we don’t quickly adapt to them, we can easily be outcompeted. And this means you lose clients, money, and possibly even employees.
As part of building small business resilience, you have to learn to adapt fast to all these changes.
4 years ago, for example, when we had a lockdown because of the pandemic, Networking-in made an instant switch online. We put all systems in place to make our virtual networking as efficient as the Face-to-Face one.
Had we not adapted fast, we would not be in business today.
Here are two ways to make sure that you can adapt fast:
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Build a Skilled Team
A skilled team is crucial in making quick adjustments as needed.
You can build a skilled team by having training and workshops every now and then. Encourage (and even pay for) your employees to take up relevant courses in their field.
Lastly, create a reading culture within your company so that at any given point, everyone is learning and growing as an individual for the good of the company.
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Agile Decision-Making
As part of being adaptable, you need to make decisions FAST! Otherwise, you may find that it is too late and you struggle to adjust later.
Making good decisions involves having a proper look at the situation at hand and staying open-minded. You also need to be willing to take risks, because if you’re stuck walking on eggshells, you’ll take too long to adapt.
2. Anticipate Market Trends
Small business resilience also relies on predictions. The sooner you can foresee issues happening, the easier it is to sort them out.
Where do you find such information? It’s everywhere – in books, the news, newspapers, the internet, and social media.
Read up on surveys and statistics that apply to your business and industry as a whole. And put the right measures in place to deal with them once they become a reality.
Here are two fantastic ways to anticipate market trends:
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Market Research
It’s easy to find reports and studies that are related to your market or sector.
Above this, keep an eye on economic indicators such as GDP growth, employment rates, and inflation. This information should not scare you but rather guide your decision-making.
You can even conduct your own market research through feedback and surveys. Regularly go through your customer reviews and pick out the common points. This will help you to identify trends that may be on their way.
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Technology Scanning
You have to stay on top of things when it comes to technology. This will streamline all of your business operations. You will offer better services to clients if you integrate the best technology for your business.
Social media monitoring can also give you real-time information on emerging trends. This way, you can easily track sentiment and identify trendy topics.
3. Strong Financial Management
To build a resilient small business, you must also manage your money well. Business money should never be mixed with personal money, and you have to constantly keep an eye on your financial status.
Many small business owners don’t have prior training in money management, but in today’s day and age, there are so many articles, courses, and videos that can bring you up to par.
Here are two ways that strong financial management helps small business owners to build resilience:
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Maintain an Emergency Fund
Just as the name suggests, an emergency fund is money put aside in case of urgent financial issues that need to be dealt with.
In business, this could be cashflow issues, debt, or other unexpected emergencies.
An emergency fund can provide a financial cushion for your business in situations such as these.
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Review your Budget Regularly
One common mistake we all make is to set a budget and then put it aside for months. This can land us into big issues because in business, things are constantly changing.
Review your budget as regularly as you can, whether that be every week or every month.
In case you are low on cash flow, try and identify ways that you can increase your revenue and decrease your expenses.
Read more about business money management in our blog.
4. Back-Up Everything – Adaptability to Technological Changes, Preventing Data Loss (Which reduces employee productivity when they have to redo the tasks.
Operating without a backup is like treading on thin ice. It can land you in a host of problems that may be impossible to deal with without wasting your time, money, and effort.
As part of being resilient, small business owners need to back everything up! Because 52% of all UK crime now happens online. And it’s not about to get better. Experts expect cybercrime damages to reach $10.5 trillion per year by 2025.
Consider having an independent backup. Most people these days think just because their data is in the cloud that it is safe. This is not true and Google, Microsoft and Apple do not do backups of your data, so it is important to back all this data up.
Here are two reasons why you can’t afford to run a business without a proper backup:
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Adaptability to Technological Changes
It’s easier to adapt to technological changes when you have a proper backup. The transition between one software and the next is much smoother.
If data needs to be migrated or transferred to new systems, having reliable backups simplifies the process.
Plus, in case of anything, you can always migrate back.
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Preventing Data Loss
Data loss can cost you your entire business! This might mean that you need to start building again from scratch, and the results of this process may not always be fruitful.
Regular backups will mean that even if your data gets lost, it can be easily restored, preventing disruptions to business operations.
5. Network and Collaborate
Part of small business resilience is in building meaningful and lasting business connections with relevant stakeholders.
You can connect with industry peers or local organisations where you are likely to fin your target audience.
Focus also on building strong relationships with your existing customers who will stick by your business through tough times and can become advocates for your brand.
Here are two reasons why networking and collaborating is important in building small business resilience:
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Collaboration Leads to Expansion
You know what they say – Two heads are better than one.
When it comes to resilience, collaborating with other businesses can lead to exciting opportunities for growth. It can open you up to new markets and even customer bases, helping you to stay afloat.
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Resource and Ideas Exchange
Networking and collaborating is like a modern-day barter trade system. You can bounce ideas off of each other, which will spark innovation and help you gain new ideas for your business to thrive in these ever-changing landscapes.
Whether it’s expertise, tools, or just some friendly advice, the network has your back.
Speaking of networking and collaboration, we are launching 10 new mastermind groups this year, and are on the hunt of small business owners looking to grow. Get in touch with us to see if we can work together.
Our Summary – Resilience in Small Businesses
It’s in every small business owner’s best interest to build resilience. With the ever-changing business landscapes today, we have no choice but to implement these simple tips in our businesses so that even when things get rocky, we can still remain steady.
So, here’s the scoop: resilience isn’t just a buzzword; it’s a dynamic strategy fueled by connections, shared wisdom, and a go-getter attitude toward change.
In conclusion, here are the 5 ways to stay resilient when running a small business:
- Adapt Fast
- Anticipate Market Trends In Good Time
- Strong Financial Management
- Back-Up Everything
- Network and Collaborate
Keep rocking, small businesses!
