5 Things That Bring Your Business Into the Present

For most people, change can seem difficult, but actually, it's not as difficult as it seems. Oftentimes, change is for the better. The same holds true for business. In fact, for a business to stay competitive, it must be constantly looking at ways it can evolve to keep up with trends in technology and popular culture.

However, many businesses are still operating like they're still in the middle decades of the 20th century. Here are some current trends where your business may be falling behind.

1. Clean Energy

Clean energy is energy that doesn't leave a carbon footprint and doesn't cause harm to the planet. Coal and gas remain options for energy use, but their continued use is damaging the atmosphere.

Many businesses are putting their first foot into solar energy and they are discovering that not only is solar energy safe, it's actually extremely affordable. By most estimates, your solar panels and installation should pay for themselves within the first decade of their use. After that, any power you pull off the grid is minimal, which equals minimal energy bills.

For now, the government is still offering tax breaks for solar installation, which increases the affordability. Discover all the great ways a commercial solar installation can improve your business.

2. Know Your Brand Equity

No matter how small your business is, your brand has an image. Many business owners fail to recognize this fact, and it's not a small fact, it's a big fact. Knowing how your brand is perceived gives you the leverage to tweak it. If you never know what people think of your brand, you'll continue operating as usual and potentially miss opportunities and even worse, have to shut the business down.

Customer surveys are a great way to discover how people think of your brand. Any time you connect with a customer or client, it's an opportunity to get feedback. Opportunities include when you have them on the phone, when they visit your website, when they place an order on your website, and when you have their email address.

Offer a discount in exchange for their opinion if you're not getting feedback. Once you have the feedback, analyze it and plan a strategy for how you can improve or strengthen your brand. There are opportunities to be had in knowing how your customers feel about your brand.

3. Appeal to Their Emotions

People love to support a brand that shares their passions. They like to feel like they've connected with a brand that is on their side. While sometimes this includes political sides, it's best to steer clear of politics, as you don't want to alienate half of your potential client base.

If you're in the business of manufacturing health or beauty products, advertising your product is cruelty-free, meaning you don't test it on animals. Does your business use recycled products for its packaging? People want to know that. Even let them know when your facility is solar-powered. These types of practices appeal to consumer emotions, and they will stand behind your brand when they know you stand behind them.

4. Utilize SEO Strategies

If your business isn't utilizing search engine optimization to help your potential clients find you, then you could be falling behind in the game. Last year, over 30% of businesses utilized an SEO strategy to attract and retain clients. Even more are planning to use it this year.

SEO can increase your website's rankings in search engines like Google. When someone enters a search string, and that string includes keywords from your site, you will show up in Google's results. How far up you show up is key. That's where an SEO strategy can help your business get a leg up on the completion.

SEO can also be used for social media. For help with your SEO strategy, work with a marketing firm that uses content marketing.

5. Hire a Diverse Team

Diversity in the workplace sets your business up for success. That's because businesses are increasingly going global. Your workforce should be reflective of your goals, otherwise, you risk appearing shut off from the world.

What does diversity mean? Diversity doesn't mean just hire people of different races and sex. It means hiring people with cultural differences. People of different cultural backgrounds offer your views from perspectives you never imagined. Cultural diversity increases creativity and it drives innovation.

The next time you have a few openings, keep this in mind as you're interviewing. You should always hire the best person for the job. You should never let your prejudices stop you from doing so.

Businesses in 2020 are increasingly aware of who their consumers are and what they want. If you don't know who they are, what they think of your brand and what their values are, then you're steering your ship in the dark. As you plan your strategy for next year, keep these tips in mind.