Welcome back to the BCRS blog. So we are all too aware of some of the cons to being an SME but we think we need and should shout about some of the fantastic advantages!

First of all, SMEs make up 99.9% of all businesses in the UK. 96% of which are micro-businesses, employing no more than 10 people, leaving just 0.1% for large organisations. The relative importance of small businesses is increasing with these businesses making up 16.3million; 60% of total private sector jobs. From this, it is clear to see that small businesses are of significant importance for the future of the UK and its economy.

It goes without saying that being an SME can be tough and long days, high demand and numerous responsibilities can be challenging, but that’s why you built your business in the first place right? You like the challenge!  

There are of course some great advantages to being an SME that can far outweigh the negatives. The advantages I’m about to delve into aren’t the most obvious but can give you a real competitive edge against bigger players in your industry.

Flexibility

As an SME you have a smaller team. This enables you to respond to changes in the market at speed. There are less obstacles in your way. You can quickly take advantage of current events, new trends and technologies by tweaking your offerings and marketing around hot topics while they are still hot. You can more efficiently meet the current expectations of the rapidly changing marketplace and improve your bottom line in the process.

There is also more room to offer your staff more flexible work schedules, break times and even possibly work-from-home options. You also have more adaptability in hiring (and firing!) than a larger organisation. Your business will be able to adapt quickly to changing work environments and hire the right people for the job.

You are Unique

You stand out from the crowd. Offering something individual into the current market will give you major competitive advantage. People crave brand-new products or a refresh of an old favourite and that’s what you will have done to get where you are today. Continue to provide that unique service and customers will appreciate it. One of our unique features as a finance company is our brand image. Check it out here.

Make it Personal

People like to interact with people. This is far more favourable than interacting with someone at a call centre or email from time to time. As an SME you have the capacity to connect with your customers in a more meaningful way. By doing this you are closely tuned into your target customers which gives you a brilliant advantage.

Providing a personal service is something we are proud of here at BCRS. We are a relationship-based lender, we don’t use impersonal computerised credit scoring and you will be assigned a dedicated Business Development & Lending Manager who will meet you face-to-face and be on hand to help you through the loan application process.

Teamwork Makes the Dream Work

The main advantage of a small team is the ability to coordinate quickly and efficiently. You can carefully assign roles to your team to match their expertise and skill set without ‘too many cooks spoiling the broth’ as the saying goes.

It’s much easier to connect as a team and smaller groups respond quickly to changes. Employees quickly dive into tasks, knowing what their colleagues are doing and how the end goal is going to be achieved. In this type of team, the exchange of information and knowledge is open, and mutual support is established.

That’s all from me this week. For more tips and tricks and trends head to our blog page

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Published by Lauren McGowan – Digital Marketing Assistant