{"id":68537,"date":"2019-10-16T09:25:27","date_gmt":"2019-10-16T07:25:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-za\/blog\/?p=68537"},"modified":"2026-01-29T15:56:37","modified_gmt":"2026-01-29T13:56:37","slug":"business-growth","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-za\/blog\/business-growth\/","title":{"rendered":"How to spot business growth opportunities"},"content":{"rendered":"<header class=\"entry-header has-dark-background-color entry-header--has-illustration entry-header--has-illustration--generic\">\n\t<div class=\"container\">\n\t\t<div class=\"entry-header__row row align-center\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"col col-lg-7 col-xlg-6 entry-header__content\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"component component-single-header\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"entry-header__misc text--subtitle text--uppercase text--small\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-za\/blog\/category\/growth-customers\/\" class=\"entry-header__link\">Growth &amp; Customers<\/a>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"entry-title-wrapper\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h1 class=\"entry-title\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\tHow to spot business growth opportunities\t\t\t\t\t<\/h1>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"entry-header__description\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"single-post-details container\">\n\t\t<div class=\"col\">\n\t\t\t<span class=\"posted-on \">Published <time class=\"entry-date published\" datetime=\"2019-10-16T09:25:27+02:00\">October 16, 2019<\/time><\/span><span class=\"reading-time\"> min read<\/span>\n\t\t<button\n\t\t\ttype=\"button\"\n\t\t\tclass=\"social-share-button button button--icon button--secondary js-social-share-button\"\n\t\t\tdata-share-title=\"How to spot business growth opportunities\"\n\t\t\tdata-share-url=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-za\/blog\/business-growth\/\"\n\t\t\tdata-share-text=\"Please read this interesting article\"\n\t\t>\n\t\t\t<span class=\"social-share-button__share-label\">Share<\/span>\n\t\t\t<span class=\"social-share-button__copy-label\" hidden>Copy Link<\/span>\n\t\t\t<span class=\"social-share-button__copy-tooltip\" aria-hidden=\"true\" hidden>Copied<\/span>\n\t\t<\/button>\n\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n\t<\/header>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-post-author has-dark-background-color alignfull\">\n\t<div class=\"container\">\n\t\t<div class=\"col\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"co-authors\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t<div class=\"entry-author-wrapper\">\n\t\t\t<a class=\"entry-author\" href=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-za\/blog\/author\/gerhardhartman\/\">\n\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"40\" height=\"40\" src=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-za\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2020\/04\/Gerhard-Hartman-Sage-10-350x350.jpg\" class=\"entry-author__image\" alt=\"\" \/>\t\t\t\t<span class=\"entry-author__name\">Gerhard Hartman<\/span>\n\t\t\t<\/a>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Growth is important to the long-term success of your business.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><mark class=\"highlight-and-share\">To keep growing, you need to set yourself apart from your competitors. The best way to do this is by spotting opportunities they have missed<\/mark> and using those opportunities to generate new ideas that will help you meet and exceed customer expectations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Researching your customers\u2019 problems could spark ideas that could put you ahead of the competition. Some of these ideas may be as extreme as altering your business model or as small as changing the way you market your product.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">It\u2019s important to remember that, when thinking of new concepts, there\u2019s no such thing as a bad idea. Something small and seemingly insignificant could snowball into a huge growth opportunity with a little tweak.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">So, what should you do to turn your ideas into growth opportunities? Here are some ideas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-do-market-research-to-uncover-opportunities-for-growth\"><strong>Do market research to uncover opportunities for growth<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Getting out into the field and conducting market research is the quickest way to get inside the minds of your competitors and customers. What is your competition doing that\u2019s working? What are consumers looking for from businesses like yours? What is your business doing right and what can you do better?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">You can answer these questions through simple market research.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Here are some ideas on where to start:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Read the news and stay up to date with the latest industry trends<\/strong>. This will give you insight into shifting consumer expectations.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Analyse your competition<\/strong>. Look at their websites, social media pages, and newsletters. What products do you have that they don\u2019t, and vice versa? What are people saying about them? How do they engage with their customers?<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Conduct your own research or use consultants<\/strong>. You can run simple surveys on platforms like SurveyMonkey and Microsoft Forms to get feedback on your products and service. Analyse this feedback to uncover your strengths and weaknesses. What needs to change? If you have the budget, use the services of market research companies like Nielsen. They will conduct the research and unpack the insights for you.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Once you\u2019ve done your research and have taken the time to dig into your findings and understand the results, you can start applying the insights. Here are four ways to do that:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><br><h2><strong>Market penetration<\/strong><\/h2><br><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Increasing your market penetration carries the least amount of risk because you\u2019re familiar with the space, but it\u2019s a delicate balancing act. The risk is lower because you already know who your target market is and what products they use. Market penetration means you now need to reach more people in the same market. But don\u2019t focus too much on this area, especially if you\u2019re reaching saturation point. Technology is constantly changing and you run the risk of falling behind and losing out on new customers if competitors arrive on the scene with attractive alternatives.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ol start=\"2\" class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><br><h2><strong>Market development<\/strong><\/h2><br><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Here you\u2019ll look to sell your existing products to new markets. This approach carries more risk than market penetration because you\u2019ll have to invest time and possibly money in understanding the new market without the guarantee of seeing a profit. While you won\u2019t need to develop new products, which will save on product development costs, you might have to look at new marketing techniques that resonate with your new target audience.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ol start=\"3\" class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><br><h2><strong>Product or service innovation<\/strong><\/h2><br><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Coming up with a new product or service will require more than just a monetary investment; you\u2019ll also have to invest a lot of time in product development and staff training. Product and service innovation might work well with your existing customers because you can research additional needs and pain points and develop a new product that might prove to be a better offering.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ol start=\"4\" class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><br><h2><strong>Diversification<\/strong><\/h2><br><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Diversification carries the highest amount of risk because it requires you to develop a new product or service to sell to a new market. The risk comes in the lack of experience you\u2019ll likely have in dealing with a new customer base and the uncertainty of whether they will purchase your products. However, you might also find yourself ahead of your competitors who have been slow to identify the gap.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-integrating-your-approach-team-and-finances\"><strong>Integrating your approach, team, and finances<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Once you\u2019ve decided on the right growth approach for your business, base all decisions on this strategy. Make sure to train your staff on the new direction, markets, and products. Don\u2019t be afraid to hire new staff or to enlist the help of consultants to keep things on track.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A change in strategy might also require more capital investment. Manage your cashflow effectively and ensure that your finances are solid.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Growing your business isn\u2019t easy and carries a number of risks, but doing your research and having a strong understanding of what your competitors are doing and what your customers need will make it easier to come up with fresh ideas that facilitate growth and put you ahead of the competition.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Regardless of whether you want to grow your business quickly or prefer to adopt a slower approach, the same strategies mentioned here still apply.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"single-cta\">\n\t<div class=\"single-cta__positioner on-scroll-highlight__target\">\n\t\t<div class=\"single-cta__wrapper has-dark-background-color\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"single-cta__content\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"single-cta__title h3\">Subscribe to the Sage Advice enewsletter<\/h2>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div 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button--secondary\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tcustomer acquisition\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/li>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<li class=\"post-tags__item\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-za\/blog\/tag\/staying-competitive\/\" class=\"post-tags__link button button--secondary\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tstaying competitive\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/li>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/ul>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n<\/section>\n\n<div class=\"alignfull wp-block-sage-related-posts\">\n\t<section class=\"related-posts card-grid has-dark-background-color\">\n\t<div class=\"container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"row\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"col\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"related-posts__heading related-posts__heading--featured h1\">Explore more wisdom<\/h2>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t<div class=\"row related-posts__featured\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"col card-grid__item\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<article\n\t\tclass=\"card-post related-post related-post-0 post-74360 post 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h3\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a\n\t\t\t\t\tclass=\"card-post__title-link\"\n\t\t\t\t\thref=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-za\/blog\/what-is-markup-percentage\/\"\n\t\t\t\t>\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\tMarkup calculator: how to calculate markup\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"card-post__description\">\n\t\t\t\tUse this markup calculator to work out a selling price, cost price, or markup percentage. You will also learn how markup works, how it differs from margin, and how to use it to set prices for your business.\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t<\/article>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"row related-posts__non-featured\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"col col-12\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"related-posts__heading related-posts__heading--more h4\">More on this Topic<\/h2>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"col col-6 col-lg-3 card-grid__item\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<article\n\t\tclass=\"card-post related-post related-post-1 post-76381 post type-post status-publish format-standard has-post-thumbnail hentry category-people-leadership category-technology-innovation tag-artificial-intelligence tag-business-management tag-hr-payroll tag-trending-topics business_type-small-business business_type-medium-business\"\n>\n\t\t\t<a\n\t\t\tclass=\"card-post__link\"\n\t\t\thref=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-za\/blog\/what-is-ai-in-hr\/\"\n\t\t\t\t\t>\n\t\t\t<figure class=\"card-post__media\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" width=\"684\" height=\"384\" src=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-za\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2026\/06\/Ai-in-HR-infographic-image-684x384.jpg\" class=\"card-post__image\" alt=\"A woman stands in front of the Sage glowline with a black background.\" loading=\"lazy\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-za\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2026\/06\/Ai-in-HR-infographic-image-684x384.jpg 684w, https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-za\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2026\/06\/Ai-in-HR-infographic-image-768x432.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-za\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2026\/06\/Ai-in-HR-infographic-image-1440x810.jpg 1440w\" sizes=\"auto, (min-width: 48em) 250px, (min-width: 30em) 100vw, 100vw\" \/>\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"card-post__meta\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"card-post__meta-text\"><span class=\"posted-on \"><time class=\"entry-date published\" datetime=\"2026-06-23T13:19:28+02:00\">June 23, 2026<\/time><\/span><\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"card-post__meta-text\"><span class=\"reading-time\">11 min read<\/span><\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\n\t\t<p class=\"card-post__title h5\">\n\t\t\tWhat is AI in HR and how can you use it responsibly?\t\t<\/p>\n\n\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t<\/article>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"col col-6 col-lg-3 card-grid__item\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<article\n\t\tclass=\"card-post related-post related-post-2 post-76331 post type-post status-publish format-standard has-post-thumbnail hentry category-money-matters category-trends-insights tag-accountants tag-audit tag-bookkeeping tag-business-intelligence tag-business-management tag-profit-loss tag-staying-competitive tag-tax business_type-small-business business_type-medium-business business_type-accountants\"\n>\n\t\t\t<a\n\t\t\tclass=\"card-post__link\"\n\t\t\thref=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-za\/blog\/accounts-payable-process\/\"\n\t\t\t\t\t>\n\t\t\t<figure class=\"card-post__media\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" width=\"684\" height=\"384\" src=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-za\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2019\/04\/GettyImages-175138802_super-684x384.jpg\" class=\"card-post__image\" alt=\"\" loading=\"lazy\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-za\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2019\/04\/GettyImages-175138802_super-684x384.jpg 684w, https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-za\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2019\/04\/GettyImages-175138802_super-768x585.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-za\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2019\/04\/GettyImages-175138802_super-1064x810.jpg 1064w\" sizes=\"auto, (min-width: 48em) 250px, (min-width: 30em) 100vw, 100vw\" \/>\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"card-post__meta\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"card-post__meta-text\"><span class=\"posted-on \"><time class=\"entry-date published\" datetime=\"2026-06-04T11:51:14+02:00\">June 4, 2026<\/time><\/span><\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"card-post__meta-text\"><span class=\"reading-time\">8 min read<\/span><\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\n\t\t<p class=\"card-post__title h5\">\n\t\t\tWhat is the accounts payable process? Steps, workflow and how to improve it\t\t<\/p>\n\n\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t<\/article>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"col col-6 col-lg-3 card-grid__item\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<article\n\t\tclass=\"card-post related-post related-post-3 post-73627 post type-post status-publish format-standard has-post-thumbnail hentry category-people-leadership tag-business-management tag-employing-people-for-the-first-time tag-hr-payroll tag-trending-topics business_type-small-business business_type-medium-business\"\n>\n\t\t\t<a\n\t\t\tclass=\"card-post__link\"\n\t\t\thref=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-za\/blog\/employee-onboarding-process\/\"\n\t\t\t\t\t>\n\t\t\t<figure class=\"card-post__media\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" width=\"684\" height=\"384\" src=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-za\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2023\/09\/GettyImages-944060494-684x384.jpg\" class=\"card-post__image\" alt=\"\" loading=\"lazy\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-za\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2023\/09\/GettyImages-944060494-684x384.jpg 684w, https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-za\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2023\/09\/GettyImages-944060494-768x478.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-za\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2023\/09\/GettyImages-944060494-1300x810.jpg 1300w\" sizes=\"auto, (min-width: 48em) 250px, (min-width: 30em) 100vw, 100vw\" \/>\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"card-post__meta\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"card-post__meta-text\"><span class=\"posted-on \"><time class=\"entry-date published\" datetime=\"2026-05-14T12:28:58+02:00\">May 14, 2026<\/time><\/span><\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"card-post__meta-text\"><span class=\"reading-time\">15 min read<\/span><\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\n\t\t<p class=\"card-post__title h5\">\n\t\t\tThe ultimate employee onboarding guide\t\t<\/p>\n\n\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t<\/article>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"col col-6 col-lg-3 card-grid__item\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<article\n\t\tclass=\"card-post related-post related-post-4 post-76152 post type-post status-publish format-standard has-post-thumbnail hentry category-money-matters category-strategy-legal-operations tag-accountants tag-bookkeeping tag-business-management tag-financial-insights tag-making-financial-decisions tag-profit-loss business_type-small-business business_type-medium-business business_type-accountants\"\n>\n\t\t\t<a\n\t\t\tclass=\"card-post__link\"\n\t\t\thref=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-za\/blog\/accounts-receivable-turnover-ratio-how-to-calculate-it\/\"\n\t\t\t\t\t>\n\t\t\t<figure class=\"card-post__media\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" width=\"684\" height=\"384\" src=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-za\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2023\/09\/GettyImages-1459190037-684x384.jpg\" class=\"card-post__image\" alt=\"\" loading=\"lazy\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-za\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2023\/09\/GettyImages-1459190037-684x384.jpg 684w, https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-za\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2023\/09\/GettyImages-1459190037-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-za\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2023\/09\/GettyImages-1459190037-1215x810.jpg 1215w\" sizes=\"auto, (min-width: 48em) 250px, (min-width: 30em) 100vw, 100vw\" \/>\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"card-post__meta\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"card-post__meta-text\"><span class=\"posted-on \"><time class=\"entry-date published\" datetime=\"2026-05-01T16:45:51+02:00\">May 1, 2026<\/time><\/span><\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"card-post__meta-text\"><span class=\"reading-time\">12 min read<\/span><\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\n\t\t<p class=\"card-post__title h5\">\n\t\t\tAccounts receivable turnover ratio formula: definition, importance, and examples\t\t<\/p>\n\n\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t<\/article>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Growth is important to the long-term success of your business. To keep growing, you need to set yourself apart from your competitors. The best way to do this is by spotting opportunities they have missed and using those opportunities to generate new ideas that will help you meet and exceed customer expectations. Researching your customers\u2019 [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":803,"featured_media":68329,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_yoast_wpseo_is_cornerstone":"","_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-noindex":"","_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-nofollow":"","_yoast_wpseo_opengraph-title":"","_yoast_wpseo_opengraph-description":"","_yoast_wpseo_opengraph-image":"","_yoast_wpseo_opengraph-image-id":"","_yoast_wpseo_twitter-title":"","_yoast_wpseo_twitter-description":"","_yoast_wpseo_twitter-image":"","_yoast_wpseo_twitter-image-id":"","_yoast_wpseo_schema_page_type":"","_yoast_wpseo_schema_article_type":"","_sage_video":false,"_yoast_wpseo_focuskeywords":"","_yoast_wpseo_keywordsynonyms":"","_yoast_wpseo_primary_category":"24","post_featured_image_hide":false,"sage_hide_published_date":false,"sage_hide_read_time":false,"sage_hide_share_buttons":false,"_pwl_sage_podcast_buzzsprout_src":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[38,24],"tags":[166,316,325,209],"business_type":[3],"lilypad":[],"context":[],"industry":[],"persona":[12],"imagine_tag":[53,83,84],"coauthors":[428],"class_list":["post-68537","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-getting-customers","category-growth-customers","tag-business-management","tag-business-strategy","tag-customer-acquisition","tag-staying-competitive","business_type-medium-business"],"sage_meta":{"region":"en-za","author_name":"Gerhard Hartman","featured_image":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-za\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2019\/07\/resize-1675x1275-45.jpg","imagine_tags":{"53":"Business management","83":"Growing business","84":"Midsized business"}},"distributor_meta":false,"distributor_terms":false,"distributor_media":false,"distributor_original_site_name":"Sage Advice South Africa","distributor_original_site_url":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-za\/blog","push-errors":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-za\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/posts\/68537","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-za\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-za\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-za\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/users\/803"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-za\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=68537"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-za\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/posts\/68537\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-za\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/media\/68329"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-za\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=68537"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-za\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=68537"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-za\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=68537"},{"taxonomy":"business_type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-za\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/business_type?post=68537"},{"taxonomy":"lilypad","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-za\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/lilypad?post=68537"},{"taxonomy":"context","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-za\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/context?post=68537"},{"taxonomy":"industry","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-za\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/industry?post=68537"},{"taxonomy":"persona","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-za\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/persona?post=68537"},{"taxonomy":"imagine_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-za\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/imagine_tag?post=68537"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-za\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=68537"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}