The Need For Growth
Just as there’s a physics to reality, the escalation and success of any business is subject to similar rules of motion; though these are much more abstract. What isn’t difficult to understand is that energy and momentum aren’t endless, but must be maintained. Ergo, finding ways to do this that curtail the least momentum becomes necessary. Financial depletion reduces momentum. Curtailing expenses maintains it.
Marketing Locally
If you can market to local and surrounding communities, and experience positive growth which far outweighs your expenses, this maintains momentum even as it is built. One of the best ways to do this is through positive public relations and community outreach. Showing the community you care allows you to build your reputation in a straightforward way that increases your business’s success even while it actually does something good for the community that supports it.An example of this recently came in the form of homeless veterans’ housing in Los Angeles. A non-profit company converted shipping containers into a housing community. They’ve obtained ubiquitous, national press as a result.
What they paid for this exposure was the cost of their project. Looking at your community, what are some other projects that could stand to increase your notoriety in such a way as to facilitate increased profits, while not being too expensive to follow through?
Realistic Possibilities
As a thought experiment, let’s look at an alternative and even more cost-effective way of doing what the non-profit in Los Angeles did. Except, rather than use shipping containers, why not consider prefab steel buildings.
In most local communities, you don’t need to build a complex. You could just put together one or two small structures inexpensively, outfit them with solar technology, then commission other agencies to enter the pool of community outreach in utilities.
This makes your company look like it gets things done in the local community—because it does. Additionally, for such a project, there are many groups who would receive bad PR for refusing to assist in such a humanitarian endeavor. Plus, these are exceptionally easy to build.
According to American Steel Span, “The Do-It-Yourself building process means that you are in control of when and how quick your building goes up. Say goodbye to scheduling a contractor, whether it’s a steel garage kit or workshop buildings – three good buddies and a weekend is all you need!”
Multiple Benefits
Beyond community outreach, having the ability to create cost-effective storage or operational space is generally a positive in business requiring such measures. Using technology like energy-efficient LEDs, solar panels, and green building solutions can also be a point of positive Public Relations.
Since solar power increases value on property in a way that scales up the more panels are installed, should the effort not work as you like, you can still sell the property you’ve built for more than you spent building it. In the end, the only loss is time; a factor in maintaining a business’s momentum, but one not quite so integral as financial security.
Increasing your company’s public perception through projects that actually bring value to the community is a great way to be visibly humanitarian, obtain ubiquitous free publicity, profit from increased exposure, and, if you go the sustainable route, even retain value.