Small-business owners, there is hope! Forbes predicts that a recession will start as soon as late 2023. Even with a rising recession upon us, there are measures you can take to ensure your business not only stays afloat but thrives.

With trying times ahead of us, it’s time to buckle down and put a plan in place for your business. With careful planning and innovative solutions, you can come out on top. Let’s start with small aspects that can be changed today, such as maintaining your current customers, cutting back on unnecessary costs, diversifying products and services and applying for small business grants.

Maintain current customers

With an average of 65% of business coming from previous customers, it should be a high priority for small companies to keep their current customers satisfied and engaged. Make a lasting impression on your customers by using the following strategies:

• Following through on brand promises.
• Having customer feedback surveys.
• Implementing retention programs.
• Keeping services and products conveniently accessible.
• Rewarding customers with gifts and discounts.
• Conducting regular check-ins with customers through email or text.

Investing in your customers can improve your business tremendously! Take time to build customer relationships and discover what they are looking to gain from your products or services to maintain their loyalty.

Cut back on unnecessary costs

Are you starting to feel the pressure of the recession coming? Are you ready to take your business expenses into your own hands? Reducing unnecessary costs can make all the difference during a setback. Let’s talk about the unnecessary expenses that may be getting hidden under the rug:

• Review office supply costs by shopping around for lower prices or buying in bulk.
• Examine recurring costs — Are there any unwanted subscriptions?
• Look over staffing costs — Research virtual tool options to cut down on supplies or office space.
• Get an expert’s opinion — Revise budgets with a CPA.
• Invest in social media marketing — Other marketing tactics can get expensive, but social media marketing typically has very low costs, if any.

Start making smart decisions about your business finances today by reducing extra unwanted costs.

Diversify products and services

Are you offering your customers a wide range of the best products and services possible? If not, it’s time to start thinking outside of the box! Being innovative with bringing in new possibilities for your business results in consumers wanting and spending more on your products. So, where do you start?

“​​Before diversifying, managers must think not about what their company does but about what it does better than its competitors,” according to Harvard Business Review. Take the first step to better your business by writing down what makes your company unique. Once you have a clear idea of what strengths your business possesses, you can unlock whatever additional products or services your customers would be interested in.

Apply for small business grants

“A grant is money that is given to a person, business, or corporation by a federal, state, county, or local government. Private businesses or corporations may also distribute financial grants,” says American Express.

Exploring all of your options never hurt anybody, and this is true when it comes to researching what small business grants you are eligible for. Here are just a few grants that you can begin applying to:

• USDA rural business development grant.
• Economic development administration.
• Venmo small business grant.

Being informed is powerful when you are making a decision for your business. Treat your current customers well, analyze the little parts of your business to cut back on spending, get creative with diversifying your products and services, and don’t forget about all the small business grants you can apply for.

Lindsey Certonio is a project manager at Stage Marketing, a full-service content marketing agency based in Provo.

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