To successfully grow a small business, you need to determine how to protect your time and money and ensure that you only spend it on the activities and resources which bring you closer to your goals. 

Have you ever found yourself asking these questions: 

• Should I do this marketing campaign?

• Should I buy this advertising spot?

• Should I go to that networking event?

  
  

Often it feels like a stab in the dark when selecting which opportunities are worth it and which are going to be a waste of time and resources. To make informed decisions, you need to consider three clear and focused choices and utilise them whenever you consider spending a minute of your time or a rand of your money.  

1. What do you do? 

Several business owners believe that when things get tough, they have to change their products and services. It's an all-too-common knee-jerk reaction to dwindling sales, which actually results in slowing growth more. When you alter your products and services, what your business offers becomes less clear to your clients, which makes the decision to purchase more complicated for them. Ultimately, this means more lost opportunities and fewer sales. 

By adopting a laser-focused approach, you'll become great at what you do and also develop a name for yourself based on the credibility and momentum that several years in business fosters. 

By continually changing what you do because you believe you will meet the needs of your clients and market, you're actually diminishing your chances of growth. Brands and businesses that have a crystal clear idea of the "what" and stick to it for the long-run grow quicker those who make changes to the core element of their businesses.

2. Who are you doing it for? 

Many small business owners believe that in order to grow, they need to market their products to everyone. However, businesses who opt to pursue a specific kind of customer are usually the ones who grow the fastest. Most small businesses do not have enough money or time to be in front of everybody, however, when you use your time and money to understand your existing audience more, you will grow. 

Every business has to have an "Ideal Customer", i.e. the kind of client who is worth investing your time to find and nurture. Consider the customers you serve who value your offerings, whom you enjoy doing business with, who pay you willingly and who are advocates of your work. These are your ideal customers, and you need to use all your time and money trying to locate them and not waste a second or a rand on anyone else. 

3. On what scale? 

The scale refers to how far and wide your customers come from. Determining a precise scale with how you want to grow will aid in several decisions about how to garner and serve your client base. 

For a moment, picture that you've designed and developed a stunning set of furniture. For instance, if you decide to establish your business on a local scale, you would create a vastly different business model as opposed to growing your business on an international scale. For a local business, you might set up an elegant showroom where you can host events instore. Perhaps you desire to develop it on a global scale, you might opt for working on distribution deals with other large retailers, construct a factory and take your designs and mass produce them. 

Conclusion. 

If you're unclear about your audience and the size of your market while growing your business, you might end up making many wasteful decisions. However, you should know what your desired end result is; you'll be able to make strategic decisions about your business model and your marketing efforts from the get-go. By this way, you'll be able to better utilise your two most invaluable assets, your time and money. 

When you know what you do, whom you do it for and what size audience you desire to do it with, you'll be able to make swift decisions about strategically spending your money and time.