Keeping a business running in 2019 has never been easier, and at the same time it has

never been harder. On one hand, the internet has made obtaining skills so easy almost anyone
can acquire the technical expertise required to run a business. On the other hand, this means
that an alarming number of startups are competing with existing businesses as well as entering
new markets, making growth and expansion in addition to consolidation of an existing niche a
great hurdle. Here are five reasons why businesses fail to grow today.

1. Ignoring the customer:

As businesses grow, they sometimes tend to lose touch with their customers over time. If the
growth in your organization’s sales also brings growth in an alienation from your customers, your
business is not going to grow; instead it is on a downward spiral. The connection with the
customer that made the business great in the first place is often lost as the business expands,
becoming more hierarchical. Flat organizations do a good job of expanding while still keeping
touch with ‘grassroots’ issues and customer qualms.

2. Untimely expansion:

Some businesses expand too quickly or at the wrong time. Expanding a business requires
devoting a large section of capital to a ‘gamble’. If the needs of the market were wrongly
analyzed, the expansion turns out to be a failure and results in the loss of a lot of funds. Trying to
recoup those losses makes the business enter a vicious cycle that keeps it stagnant in terms of
growth. Entering new markets also brings challenges to the management and organization of the
business, which may not be equipped to deal with large expansions.

3. A failure to adapt quickly:

A business needs to be flexible. Almost every market is changing, especially in today’s age of
connectivity and technology. Businesses need to be aware of trends in the market and change
however they need to. A failure to adapt quickly could mean that a competitor gains the edge
and becomes the leader of new products or services, leaving little room for expansion in a whole
market segment.
4. A lack of specialized direction:

Every business has its niche, and expanding often means exiting this niche. Having a broad
strategy for expansion may look attractive on paper, but in practice this makes a business
inflexible, and gives competitors an edge. Expanding into new markets can also alienate existing
customers, and ruin a carefully crafted brand image.

Businesses need to expand into a different niche instead of targeting a general segment of the
market, and have proper product division for a successful growth. In addition, if the business
fails to consolidate its existing market segments, it risks being overtaken.

5. Poor leadership:

Finally, every business is only as strong as its leader. Without a clear vision from the top, the
structure of management is broken and plans of expansion get greatly obfuscated. A good leader
knows that in growing a business, it is crucial to nurture the best parts of his organization and
scrape off the obsolete. Growth is a time of flux and if a business has a complacent or an
inefficient leader, it is sure to fail soon.

In an age where startups and competitors are practically ubiquitous, the competition in
leadership is intense. If a leader does not respect market trends or contemporary necessities like
a strong online presence and social-media image while maintaining its growth, another
organization is sure to surpass the business.