Growth is on everyone's mind. Entrepreneurs are more optimistic about growth opportunities than they have been since 2008. (We hope you're one of them!) And, the number of business start-ups are on the rise!
Although the predictions for continued growth are strong, we still need to pay attention to the conditions that help or hinder our growth efforts.
To uncover where opportunities exist -- and where they don't -- we scoured the web to find out what the prognosticators had to say about the road ahead... and its impact on growth for your business in the year ahead.
Tag Along with the Fastest Growing Industries
Oh, The Places Your Small Business Can Grow outlines the top industries projected to outpace the economy though 2017. If you want to tag along and ride the growth wave of an industry, consider these additional options provided by My Corporation:
- Technology - projected 42 percent growth in 2015
- Health care - 28 percent projected growth for 2015
- Retail - 14 percent growth projected, especially if they're willing to expand their online footprint
- Finance - projected to grow by 14 percent this year.
On the flip side, the industries that you should run from are:
- Women's and Men's apparel
- DVD/game/video rentals
- Computer manufacturing
- Appliance repair
Finally, we live in a global economy. Although the U.S. economy is recovering nicely, Europe lags behind. Pay attention to macroeconomics.
Help a Small Business Grow
The expected growth, particularly for small business, provides some unique opportunities to grow your business - particularly if your business targets smaller entities.
Entrepreneurship
With renewed optimism for economic growth, more people are launching businesses. Millennials, in particular, are keen on the idea of leaving behind the stuffy corporate world to own their own business. If your business specializes in entrepreneurial start-ups, this is a good place to focus.
HR Services
As small business grows and expands, the business owner is no longer interested in just "filling the seat". Finding the right talent & expertise for the job is taking a "front row seat". In addition to hiring for fit, don't be surprised to find the use of freelancers and contract labor on the rise.
If you're in the business of providing talent development and/or human resources for the small entity, you're up to bat!
Marketing for Small Business
Things are getting serious! Small business owners have aggressive plans for marketing but a gap exists in achieving their plans. If your specialty is marketing to small business, you can help bridge the talent, time, and strategy gap.
Videographers, get your cameras ready! Studies show that consumers are more apt to buy after viewing a product or service video. You can help publish professional videos that produce results.
Web designers/developers, we haven't forgotten about you! Over 50 percent of small businesses still lack an online presence. Pleeeeeze, help these entrepreneurs launch a user-friendly, mobile optimized site, okay?
Technology
The ability to scale a business quickly is on the minds of many entrepreneurs this year. With the rise in cloud computing, entrepreneurs are looking for assistance to help them select and use technology for maximum efficiency. If your business specialty is technology, can you help a small business owner grow?
And, while you're at it, please help us find that perfect all-in-one platform so we don't have to jump from platform to platform to platform to platform to.... you get the picture.
Internet Security
Small business owners have largely ignored the warnings of potential data breeches. This year looks like they are finally getting serious about putting the right protection in place to ensure business and customer data is protected.
Security people, help save us from our own lack of security -- and all the hackers of the world.
That's our wrap on where to go to grow your business in 2015. Is there anything we missed? If so, make sure you contribute to #HASBG
This post first appeared on Synnovatia.
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