Scale: Stage 6 of 6 on the Small Business Roadmap (FS105)

In the sixth small business roadmap stage we explore the final question: how can we grow this business beyond ourselves and into greater impact in the world and wealth in the company?

We dig into the 11 steps of Scale where the goal is to hone, discover and experiment towards a more scalable and sustainable business.

To put it simply, this stage is about shifting from clawing out growth one handful at a time, to a business with one of those magical hockey stick growth charts.

We also finish out this episode with reflections on key takeaways and what we learned in talking through this whole roadmap. Enjoy!

(PS: If you’re not already, subscribe in itunes so you can get the next episode in your sleep.)

Scale Steps:

The real meat of each of these items is in the conversation. The items below are meant as simply a placeholder while you listen to the episode.

1. Measure product/market fit. Lots of good conversation about this in the episode.
2. Do stuff to get to product/market fit: evolve your product, launch new features (reduce churn / improve retention, etc).
3. Do stuff to adapt the market you’re reaching (the “market” piece of p/m fit).
4. Time for another pivot or persevere checkpoint.
5. Achieve product/market fit (traction). Yay! (Again, lots of important talk about this stuff in the episode.)
6. Transition to CEO mode: vision, hiring and making sure the team has enough resources to do what they need to do. (Get yourself a blazer with gold buttons.)
7. Decide again: bootstrap or raise money (again)?
8. Create and execute your hiring plan. “Product’s doing fine but customer support is out of hand now,” etc.
9. Review/adjust business model. “What’s really our business model and how do we optimize it?”
10. Hone your “customer acquisition channels.” (That’s a fancy way to say “how you get new customers.”)
11. Pop some Cris or Moee Shambin champaim!

The Roadmap Episodes:

1. Clarity (episode 100)
2. Connection (101)
3. Planning (102)
4. Build (103)
5. Money (104)
6. Scale (105)
7. 4 Updates (106)

Which stage are you in?

We are actively adjusting this roadmap based on your feedback. Could you answer these 3 quick questions in the comments below?

Show Notes

Product/market fit – Wikipedia

Why 16% of Customers Wouldn’t Recommend Fizzle (and How We Found Out)

The Startup Pyramid – Sean Ellis

The Multiple Hats of the Solopreneur (FS062)

Amazon.com: Jackson’s Honest Sea Salt Potato Chips Made with Coconut Oil

Miranda Sings Is Really Helping Jerry Seinfeld With His Career

Watch Porn Stars: Moet & Chandon Champagne From Saturday Night Live – NBC.com: