Often, we think of funding as a way to fuel our businesses. Reserves for lean times or regular business expenses are common uses for funding. But funding is also a tool that you can leverage to escalate growth.

You need money to make money. Sometimes that can be aggravating. Here are some creative ways you can use funding to grow your small business, make money, and increase your ability to fund your operation yourself.

Crowdfunding

Crowdfunding is an increasingly popular way to get funded. Not only is it wildly effective, but it helps you bring in new customers. You can offer incentives such as clever merchandise to people who donate. Word of mouth in the online community gives you a competitive edge.

Often, your customers are your greatest investors. They have a vested interest in your company’s success and are more likely to help you succeed as an indirect way of helping themselves.

Use the money you have to make more money by building effective campaigns around your ideal customer. Draw them in with free stuff, and then retain them by offering favorable terms on future investments and discounts on your product or service.

Taxes

Use that money for your taxes! Nobody likes tax time. It involves dishing out a sizeable chunk of change all in one go. Yuck. If you can stay afloat on your revenue alone, save that money to pay your taxes so you don’t have to dip into business expenses at all.

You can keep your working capital where it belongs, put more money into other important things like advertising and marketing, and eliminate a big yearly headache.

Stay Relevant

Use your capital to give your business a fresh look. Business changes rapidly. If you don’t keep up, you’ll get left behind. It’s important to stay competitive and attract customers with your look, not just your dedication to great service.

Redesign your logo, develop a new marketing strategy, remodel your store, and add new products. Push these to market alongside modern marketing campaigns targeting trendy consumers, and you won’t regret the time and effort.

Manage the Seasons

Much like taxes once a year, the seasons fluctuate, and you may find yourself trudging through some slow months. Instead of giving up, use the funding you have to float you until business picks up. Revenue ebbs and flows for most businesses, even established ones.

When business is down, focus on your growth tactics knowing that you’re covered. Develop a plan to amplify the business you do get by providing the dedicated service you may not have time for when you’re busy.

Hire More People

Sometimes you need help. You should never be afraid to ask for it. Hiring employees is a great use of your funding because it puts on track to grow your business even more. With more employees, you can get more done.

Delegate tasks, take the pressure off of you as a business owner, and look forward to continued success with a dedicated team of resources. Not only will you have more help, but you have a greater pool of minds to brainstorm new tactics for creative marketing and other outreach.

Upgrade Equipment

How long have you been wanting to replace that outdated piece of equipment your employees use every day? You could improve efficiency now with a new point of sale, modern appliances, or trendy vending machines to attract more customers.

Whether your equipment looks outdated and tacky or it poses a potential health or safety concern to your employees, consider using that extra cash to help your business run more smoothly.

Stock Up

Beef up your inventory right before your peak time. If you use funding to stock up now, you can avoid the scramble later as you run out of your most popular items. You’ll look like the most prepared business in town when everyone else is out of stock for that in-demand toy or tool.

You can also use that money to supply your part-time payroll account so when business increases, you have the staff you need to handle it.

While choosing what to do with your funding isn’t rocket science, it can pose a dilemma. There are so many options to help escalate your growth and set you on the right path for success. Sometimes getting small business funding isn’t easy, but Quick Loans Direct offers fast business loans, unsecured business funding, and same day funding to get you started.