By Nicole Bandes

Founder, CEO of Virtual A Team

There are seven tried and true ways to grow your business.

Growing your business this year is as much about identifying what you should be doing as where you should cut back and/or delegate. Eliminate ideas that are flashy or complex. Optimize your time by expanding your virtual team. Focus on what has been proven to get results over and over.

Start a Newsletter

If people can't remember your name when they need your services, you won't be the one they hire. Unfortunately, you cannot be in all places at all times. You may have heard that email is dead. That's just not true. A newsletter is still a great way to expand the reach of your business and stay in touch regularly with your audience.

If, however, your newsletter does't provide value to your readers, they won't take the time to open it. The key to a good newsletter is sharing information that is of value. Whether you realize it or not, you already have the content for an effective newsletter. The stories and scenarios from your interactions with clients can be used to educate and inform your readers. Your newsletter can include testimonials from clients who have benefited from your services.

Don’t overthink it. If you don’t have the time or writing isn’t your primary skill, there are options to hire out virtual assistants who are talented in this area.

Want to learn more about starting a newsletter? Check out these articles.

Start a Podcast

Podcasts are a great way to both network and market your business. You can use a podcast to help people get to know you and your personality even without taking the time to talk to each individual.

And, if you've heard of this thing called though leadership? Well, a podcast is a great way to kick start your own!

Thinking of starting a podcast or already have one? Check out these things you should be delegating.

Create an Evergreen Product

If your business is primarily focused on trading time for money, an evergreen product is a great way to grow your business. Evergreen products are products that are always relevant. They aren't time specific and require very little work on your part to implement.

The simplest form of an evergreen product is a book or an ebook. More advanced ideas might include webinars or classes. There are a lot of tools and programs that can help you set up evergreen products in your business.

Make sure you find options that have as much automation as possible. Do the work once and keep bringing in the money over and over.

Learn how to avoid the overwhelm when launching your online product.

Host a Webinar

That sounds so 2018! The truth is, a webinar provides a great way to engage with your clients from around the world. Webinars can be a great marketing and/or revenue generator with a small investment of time and money. Through this resource, you can meet virtually with multiple members of your audience to share ideas or launch new product lines. There are many ways to structure a webinar that can fit within your vision and growth goals for your coaching business. Once you've created the template for the webinar program, you can repeat it as often as desired.

Become a Speaker

Public speaking can be scary for many. However, if you find it is something you are able to do, it can be a valuable tool to reach new audiences. There are opportunities to speak for free with the agreement that you will promote a product or service. Other opportunities exist for you to be a paid speaker. You will want to create a speaker one sheet and have one or two key presentations ready.

Then you can begin searching for opportunities within your local community or across borders. You can even look for opportunities to be a guest on podcasts or virtual seminars. If you don't love doing this kind of research, a virtual assistant can help put together a list. The VA can even contact organizers on your behalf.

Write a Book

Writing is a fast way to build up your reputation as an expert in your field. It gives you a high level of credibility. If you regularly write for a blog or newsletter, you may already have the content available. If you aren't a writer, consider hiring a ghost writer than can create the content under your name. The tools to write and publish are readily available and the cost can be relatively low.

Get Serious About Social Media

You might be pretty tired of hearing about this social media thing as a way to grow your business. You might understand that there is value in social media but don't really know how to capitalize on it. Perhaps you've dabbled with posting but haven't seen any significant results. Or you've tried social media platforms that launch but don't really spend time on them yourself.

Understanding that there are different nuances to each social media platform can help you craft your content for these sites. Each of these social mediums can help you expand your reach and boost your promotional efforts in simple and inexpensive ways. However, it is important to master each one and what works to see the most significant results. If that isn't really your thing, delegate this task to the experts. You'll see far better returns when you do.

Read up on some of our top social media tips.

Feeling Overwhelmed?

You really want to grow your business this year but none of these are things that you know anything about. Many of these ideas may sound more complex than they are. Don’t allow fear prevent you from trying new things. We all struggle with having the time to commit to researching and implementing new ideas. Recognize your strengths and where you provide the most value to your growing business. Reach out to professionals such as virtual teams that can help you with the rest. The internet has connected the world for business and productivity. You can reach more people around the world both as clients as well as building your Virtual A Team.