There are many reasons why your business might not be growing. Maybe the products or services you offer are no longer in demand, or perhaps your target market has shifted and you're no longer reaching your ideal consumer. Your marketing strategy might be ineffective, or you could be losing money faster than you're bringing in new business. Whatever the reason, if your business isn't growing, it's time to figure out why and take corrective action. But don’t worry! Answers are available. In this blog post, we’ll outline eight important reasons your business’s growth may be sluggish — and what you can do about it.

1. Wasted Marketing Resources

One reason your business may not be growing is because you're not marketing effectively enough. Take a look at your current advertising campaigns. How much of your budget is going toward paying for things like Facebook ads, Google Ads (previously known as Google AdWords), or direct-mail flyers that no one ever seems to respond to? While some advertising methods can take time before they start seeing results, if you're not seeing any return on your investment after a few months, it might be time to cut your losses and try something new.

2. Lack of Innovation

If your business is constantly behind the curve on new technologies, styles or consumer desires, it might be time for a fresh approach. New competition can pop up at any time ; in fact, your customers could be bringing in an entirely new crop of businesses to replace you right now. By keeping your ear to the ground and talking to current and past consumers about what they want most in their products or services, you can stay one step ahead of your competitors.

3. Outdated Products

Products and services go out of style all the time. If yours are no longer in demand, consider creating a new spin on an old favorite. Alternatively, perhaps it’s time to retire those products and services that just aren't keeping up anymore. If you're still trying to make your business reach its ideal market, and you're not reaching your goal, updating your offerings is recommended.

4. Change in Target Market

If your business isn't growing, it might be because your target market has shifted and you're no longer able to reach those desired customers. The first step is to identify why this change occurred. Is a competitor gaining the attention of a certain subset of people? Has a new law or regulation caused prices to rise or availability to decrease? Once you understand why your ideal customer base or market has shifted, you can decide if it's possible to adjust your product or service offerings to target them better.

5. Overpaying to Acquire New Customers

If your business isn't growing, it might be because you're spending too much money acquiring new customers. Consider why customers aren't purchasing from you after they've been brought into the sales funnel. If the problem is that no one who fills out an inquiry form ever hears back from you, or if your website doesn't have a strong call to action, you can improve your advertising to better incentivize customers to take action.

6. Unclear Goals

If there's no consensus among your management or board on why you exist and what specific goals and objectives you're aiming to achieve, it's going to be difficult for everyone in your business to work toward a common purpose. Make sure everyone is clear about why the business exists. Also set smart, measurable goals with timelines so that all employees can work together to accomplish them.

7. Unrealistic Sales Forecasts

If your business isn't growing because you're not selling enough products or bringing in enough revenue, you might have made overly ambitious sales projections. You can work to improve your forecasting by learning everything you can about why consumers are buying — or not buying — from you. If certain products aren't selling well, why is that the case? By figuring out why your sales are either higher or lower than expected, you can adjust future projections accordingly.

8. Poor Execution

If there's no major reason why your business isn't growing, it could be because you're not executing properly. This might mean that your advertising is subpar, you haven’t thought clearly about how to target the right people with your marketing, or that other efforts and systems need fine-tuning. You can work to improve all of these areas by boosting budgets where needed, honing your marketing strategies or streamlining systems that are getting in the way of growth.

How to Get Your Business to Bounce Back

It's easy to feel hopeless when you're trying to get your business on the right track and nothing seems to be working. The good news is that there are many steps you can take to improve your chances of success. Here are some strategies for boosting business growth.

Identify the Problem

The first step to getting your business to bounce back is to make sure you're targeting the right issues. No one knows your business better than you, so why not take a look at why it's not growing and see if you can spot the issues that might have an impact on future growth? The best way to identify your problem is to start gathering information. Make a list of why you're not growing, who isn't buying from you and what specific steps could be taken to boost future growth. After that, it's time to identify why the issues are happening by looking for patterns within your business, to find areas in which you’re struggling.

Find the Solution

Once you've identified why your business isn't growing, it's time to come up with a solution. If you're not sure how to move forward, try brainstorming ways to do so with employees and/or mentors. The more ideas you generate, the higher the chances of finding something that works. You can also visit online forums or ask questions on social media to find out why other businesses aren't growing — and if they were able to fix their problems.

Take Action

The final step to getting your business to bounce back is to take action. You might be able to solve the issue of why your business isn't growing by simply tweaking the sales process, or you might need to take a leap and make bigger changes — like hiring a new executive if it looks like leadership is at fault. The key is not to wait too long ; research shows that the longer you wait to correct a problem, the harder it will become to find a remedy. Remember: If your products or services appeal to a limited market and you don't adjust accordingly, it's time to sell or close shop.

Analyze the Results

Once you've implemented your solution, it's time to see what worked and what didn't. This involves looking at why your business isn't growing again and seeing where you might be able to improve. Keep an eye out for patterns that point to why certain changes aren't working, why some products are selling better than others or why certain strategies are more effective than others. Taking the time to analyze why your business isn't growing can lead you to solutions that will allow it to bounce back more quickly.

Get Creative

If you can't pinpoint why your business isn't growing, consider trying new approaches to see if they have an impact on growth. This might involve testing out a new marketing strategy, advertising in different publications or even changing up your product lines. The more ideas you try, the higher the chances of finding one that will help boost growth. One proven strategy for increasing your customer base and overall revenue is to implement a lease-to-own* solution like Acima that can help you and your customers.

Use Acima’s Lease-to-Own* Solutions

If you’re looking to find new customers for your business, Acima’s lease-to-own* solutions might be right for you. Working with Acima can help unlock shopping power and open up new choices for customers that don’t want to use credit or who are unable to qualify for traditional financing. Utilizing Acima to grow your business could help increase your revenue, grow incremental sales, attract new customers and save you the cost of retaining existing customers. Find out more about Acima today.

Common Questions About Owning a Business

Can anyone start a business?

Yes, anyone can start a business, but it's important to understand the risks involved before you jump in. Make sure that owning your own business aligns with why you're starting a company, and that you have the time and resources necessary to dedicate yourself to the business.

What are the pros and cons of opening a business?

While there are many benefits to opening a small business — including being your own boss and controlling the direction of the company — it's important to keep in mind that small businesses have less room for error. As a result, you might need to take on additional work if things slow down.

How much time does it take to start a small business?

There's no set time frame for how long it takes to start a small business. However, many businesses need several years before they can turn a profit.

How do entrepreneurs pay themselves?

Many entrepreneurs will forgo paying themselves so they can invest more money into their business. Once the business starts turning a profit, you might be able to start paying yourself by taking out profits or drawing up a salary.