The Role of Business Consulting for SME Success: How the Right Guidance Can Drive Your Business Forward
Running a small or medium-sized enterprise (SME) can feel overwhelming. There are so many tasks you have to complete to manage day-to-day operations, alongside keeping up with market trends, staying ahead of competitors and considering options and strategies to drive business growth. There is never enough time and always something that needs your attention. That is where a business consultancy, such as ourselves, can come in and help. We can be your expert partner, to help you navigate the challenges, identify opportunities, unlock your business’ potential while providing solutions to improve efficiency and increase cost savings.
A great opportunity for SMEs is to take on a consultant to act as trusted advisors, bringing fresh and objective ideas, expert insights, and a depth of experience having worked with many SMEs previously. We can help and encourage you to take a step back, evaluate, and develop strategies that not only improve operations but also lead to sustainable growth. The right support for your business can make a real difference. It is not just about the expertise of a business consultant, there is a lot to be said for being able to communicate and talk through your business with someone completely objective and outside of it. Seeing things from an outside perspective is so valuable. We have experience of owning our own businesses and we completely appreciate and acknowledge that when inside your own business, completely encompassed by it, it can be very hard to see the wood through the trees. We can provide this perspective backed up by our knowledge and previous experiences.
How Business Consultants Add Value to Your SME
Whether you are at the stage of just having a business idea and just starting out or trying to take your existing business to the next level, having a consultant by your side can provide the guidance you need to overcome obstacles and achieve your unique goals. No business is the same, and neither are the owners. It is so important in business consultancy to identify what it is that you are trying to achieve to be able to provide the best recommendations possible. We are not prescriptive, no single solution fits all.
Below is a break down of some of the key areas where we can help:
Strategic Planning & Vision: Helping you Move from Survival Mode to Growth Mode
As an SME owner, it is easy to get caught up in the daily operation of your business. From dealing with customer issues, ensuring regulations are being upheld, managing staff, you will always be dealing with different issues and having to wear multiple hats. However, we know that often by doing this and focusing solely on the present you can lose sight of the bigger picture, where you want your business to be in the future, whether that be the next 3, 5 or even 10 years.
As consultants we are able to act as your personal strategy coaches. Encouraging and helping you to take a step back, evaluate your business from a higher level, and build a clear roadmap for growth. It is only you that can do this for your business and something you cannot delegate to others, so we work with you to allow you time for this and to make the most out of what you can bring to your business. We can help you identify new revenue streams, or pivot slightly to best anticipate customer needs and changes in your market. We work with you to develop a targeted growth strategy allowing you to increase revenue and profit.
Operational Efficiency: Small Changes, Big Results
Based on our experience we can tell you that most businesses have inefficiencies, whether it is wasted time, redundant processes, a lack of project management or outdated systems. While these issues can seem minor on the surface, they do add up and have a negative impact on your ability to scale up. As consultants we can help you identify and fix these inefficiencies, ultimately saving you time and money. Something as simple as streamlining your project management processes can reduce turnaround times and in turn improve client satisfaction. As an example we can work with you to implement Agile methodologies and better collaboration tools, that are essentially small changes but have the ability to make a huge difference to your day to day operations. Find out more about The Power of Agile Project Management for SMEs in one of our most recent blogs.
Marketing & Branding: Connecting with Your Customers
Having a strong brand presence is something that is incredibly important for all businesses. However many SMEs struggle to create marketing campaigns that resonate strongly with their target audience. As a business consultant we can help you refine your brand and build your brand’s message by identifying your ideal customers, and developing a strong and achievable marketing strategy that will get you measurable results. If, for example, you have always relied heavily on word of mouth recommendations, we can work with you to leverage this success and translate it into a more digital marketing plan to help you reach new customers. We can work with you on everything from SEO, social media and email marketing strategies and build on your brand awareness.
Project Management: Turning Ideas into Reality
If you have a great idea for a new product or service but are unsure how to bring it to life, then business consultancy is a great opportunity to get help from experts with experience in product and business launches, especially when it comes to the project management side of things. We can work with you to ensure your activities are executed smoothly, from planning to implementation, and most importantly providing you tools and giving you guidance so that you can keep everything on time and within budget. Not to mention mitigate risks that we have experience with that you may not have thought of. Bringing a product or service to market has many difficulties but by working with us you are able to navigate through them. We can also help you identify your minimal viable product, ensuring you get to market as quickly as possible. Delays in launch and giving competitors extra time can be fatal. For those that have the vision it is difficult to step back and identify what is actually needed versus what is nice to have. Generally the people we work with are passionate about what they want to offer and so perfection is often the goal. We can work with you to be more objective and identify what needs to be done for launch and what improvements you can make over time.
Financial Management: Making Every Penny Count
Managing your business’ finances can feel complicated, especially when cash flow is tight or when you are preparing for growth. As business consultants we can offer tailored financial advice—whether it’s improving your budgeting process, managing cash flow, or developing a long-term financial strategy. We are not accountants but we can work with you on strategies that will help you make better decisions for growth and calculate profitability of different products and services to identify the best growth opportunities.
Why SME Owners Should Consider Business Consulting
Something we often get asked is why bring in a consultant when as a business owner you already feel stretched thin? Here are a few reasons why we believe we are worth the investment:
We Can Provide Objective Insights: Providing You a Fresh Perspective
It’s easy to get stuck in your ways, it is very possible to be too close to your business to make objective business decisions, especially if it started off exclusively as a passion project. As consultants we are able to provide an outsider’s perspective, helping you spot inefficiencies, uncover opportunities, and see your business in a new light. We particularly focus on the strategy of looking at your business from a customer perspective. One that does not have particular insight into the internal runnings or processes of the business. Are you communicating effectively? Are you meeting customer needs? Not just in terms of the product but customer services, delivery, after sale care etc. All of these things will link internally to internal operations that we can then look at and address how to improve. We are also able to look at it from an exclusively financial perspective. What products or services are most profitable and what areas are underperforming? This allows you to see where the work needs to be put in and expand on growth opportunities and profitability.
Offering Specialised Expertise: Filling your Business’ Knowledge Gaps
You are running your business the best way you know how, but no one can be an expert at everything. Most of the businesses we have worked with have started based on a passion project or a need that the business owner has identified from personal experience and is trying to solve. We very rarely work with ‘business experts’. We do not mean to say that you are unable to run your own business, but as consultants we are able to bring specialised knowledge. This could be in business strategy, business development, marketing, finance, operations, or product development. Working with us is like having an expert on call, without the cost of hiring a full-time team. With specific experience in SMEs we can help you fast track your business, mitigating risk and anticipating pain points before they occur. This is all about giving you the best possible chance to succeed.
Providing Scalable Solutions: Growing Pains, Simplified
As your business grows, so will your challenges. As consultants we can help you identify systems and processes as well as guide you to implement these in ways that will allow your business to scale. We will work with you to make sure your operations, marketing, and finances are ready to handle growth so you are as prepared as possible for when business picks up. We help you utilise your time so that during quieter periods you can prepare your tea, getting them ready for busier periods.
Suggesting Cost Savings: Streamlining your Business for Success
Working with consultants like us can actually save you money in the long run. Costly mistakes could be avoided with our incite, given our experience with other businesses, as well as assisting you in streamlining your operations. For instance we can work with you on auditing your suppliers and ensuring your supply chain is working for you. Often this gets put to the back of the list of things to do as suppliers are essential in the day to running of your business, but taking the time to ensure you are using the right suppliers and negotiating the best possible contracts with suppliers can make all the difference for any business. It is all about working with you to find the fixes that keep your business running smoothly.
Providing Risk Management: Helping you Avoid Pitfalls Before They Happen
Every business has risks, whether it be market competition, operational hiccups, economic changes, legislative updates or social/environmental impacts. As consultants we can work with you to help you identify these risks and develop strategies to minimise their impact. The more people you have in your corner, especially those bringing a wealth of knowledge and experience, the better your business decisions can be. This allows you to take into account as many of the potential unknown factors as possible.
Choosing the Right Business Consultant for Your SME
Not all consultants are the right match for you and your business. So, how do you find the right one for your business? Here are a few tips:
Industry Experience: Choose someone who has a range of industry experience and understands the unique challenges of SMEs, particularly those of independent business owners. A range of experience allows consultants to draw on a range of experience and understanding without being narrowed or limited by a specific industry. This allows a consultant to provide innovative solutions and a different perspective on your industry and market. In addition it allows them to review your business as a customer, and not a specific industry expert, which gives them the perspective you do not have - as you are the specific industry specialist.
Tailored Approach: Avoid cookie-cutter solutions. Many consultants work through a specific structure that they apply to all businesses. A good consultant takes the time to understand your business and the personal business owner’s goals in order to develop strategies that are tailored to your needs.
Cultural Fit: When working with your consultant you will be working together closely, so it is important that you align not only in goals but in values and particularly communication style. You need to be able to communicate well, which means a level of formality that you are comfortable with. You don't need corporate jargon, you need someone who gets the point across. You want to be able to trust your consultant with information that may be personal or private. Developing a relationship with your consultant is important.
Conclusion
Working with a business consultant can be a huge game-changer for SMEs. As consultants we can offer expertise and a fresh perspective that will help you improve efficiencies and grow your business. We can help you identify growth strategies, streamline your operations, improve your marketing efforts, and implement or improve processes. We can help you take your business to the next level.
Ready to see how business consulting can work for your SME? Totemo Consulting is here to help you thrive. Get in touch with us today, and let’s talk about how we can drive your business forward!