Sustainable business growth comes from combining strategies that attract new customers, strengthen existing relationships, and create consistent opportunities for revenue. Whether through referrals, content marketing, networking, partnerships, paid advertising, or customer retention, the right approach depends on your goals, audience, and stage of business.
21 Entrepreneurs share how they currently grow their business
From leveraging word-of-mouth referrals and strategic partnerships to investing in SEO, social media, email marketing, and community building, successful entrepreneurs use a variety of tactics to drive growth. We asked business owners how they currently grow their businesses, the strategies delivering the best results, and the lessons they've learned along the way, here's what they shared:
1. Trust
We've been in this game for over two decades, and honestly, word of mouth has always been our best tool. We focus on delivering the same level of service to the family in Plano as we do to the big names, and that consistency keeps clients coming back. Right now we're pushing harder into digital marketing. We also partner with event planners. Social media helps too. But nothing beats a satisfied customer recommending Jumper Bee. We've built enough trust that new business finds us regularly.
Thanks to Joe Horan, Jumper Bee!
2. Partnership
Right now we're focused on two sides of the marketplace. We work directly with food truck owners and event organizers and property managers. The real growth engine has been our direct sales team. We'll identify a venue or corporate campus, then reach out with a specific pitch. Word of mouth from satisfied customers has become huge for us too. Content and social media help us build trust. We're talking to customers, fixing problems, and earning our growth one partnership at a time.
Thanks to Cody Lee, Food Truck Club!
3. Word of mouth
My best marketing is word of mouth. It always has been. Yes, of course you need to get yourself out there with a broader range of marketing but I have found that even after almost 10 years in business, most of my clients are word of mouth. I am super proud of that because it shows that I am meeting my mission and purpose in business. It stretches me and my team to continue to improve, become better and care deeply for our people. With all the noise out there and the big changes with AI, word of mouth is more important than ever.
Thanks to Suzana Mihajlovic, Your2Minds!
4. 3 Key Points
I have been a Buyers Agent for 5 years and 3 years ago I opened my own business. In a time when many in real estate are struggling under government changes my business is thriving and my team is expanding. The key to being able to continue to grow your business, even through difficult times in the industry comes down to 3 key points. 1. Know your industry and never stop learning and growing. 2. Build your business on high ethical values, when your clients and referral partners trust you they dont' just keep coming back to you but you are always front of mind. 3. Adapt to industry changes and don't be fixated on there only being one way to do everything.
Thanks to Bernadette Cilia, BMC Buyers Agency!
5. Media outreach
So honestly, I used to think growth meant more ads, more posts, more everything. What changed for me was when I stopped chasing reach and started chasing depth. The thing that actually moved the needle was picking three channels: Qwoted, Featured, Connectively, and direct outreach to journalists. The real breakthrough came when I landed my first TechRound feature. Stop trying to be everywhere and focus on becoming unavoidable in one specific corner of the internet. That's where my actual buyers are.
Thanks to Syed Asif Ali, Point Media!
6. Authority-building
One of the biggest drivers of growth for my businesses today is authority-building rather than traditional marketing. We've focused heavily on helping brands and founders become discoverable wherever people seek information. We invest in high-authority media coverage, strategic partnerships, thought leadership and publishing original insights because these assets continue working long after a campaign ends. As AI reshapes how people discover businesses, growth has come from building trust at scale rather than chasing short-term visibility.
Thanks to Sophie Muir, Muir Ventures!
7. A relationship-led model
I currently grow Ultimate Marks through a relationship-led model rather than chasing reach for its own sake. I use targeted outreach, speaking, research, earned media and referrals to start those conversations, then provide a clear first step through a paid Leadership Load Diagnostic. This allows an organisation to experience the value of the work before committing to a larger advisory engagement. Combining credibility, specificity and a low-friction entry point has been more effective than broad marketing because it builds trust and commercial opportunity.
Thanks to Ric Marks, Ultimate Marks!
8. Long-term relationships and customer retention
We grow our business by focusing on long-term relationships rather than short-term wins. A significant part of our growth comes from retaining clients, delivering strong results and generating referrals through the work we do. We've found that businesses grow faster when customer acquisition, customer experience and retention work together. People are doing more research, comparing more options and making decisions earlier in the buying journey. Sustainable growth comes from consistently creating value and earning trust over time.
Thanks to Phillip Wendell, Click Click Media!
9. Several ways
Most businesses think growth starts with finding more customers. I've found it starts with keeping the ones you already have. We've grown by focusing relentlessly on service, relationships and reputation. Every contract we win opens the door to another opportunity because property managers, facility managers and business owners talk. Our best growth strategy has been delivering on our promises, investing in our people and making clients' lives easier. Reputation is what makes them stay, refer you and advocate for your business.
Thanks to Jordan Panos, Clean Focus Services!
10. Customer intent over search traffic
Growth for us comes from treating organic search as a customer education channel, not a traffic channel. We moved away from content volume and toward customer intent mapping. Customer acquisition cost dropped 31%. Prospects arriving pre-educated about our product architecture convert at 3.2x the rate of cold traffic. Growth isn't about reaching more people, it's about reaching the right people at the right moment in their decision cycle. We built systems to do that at scale without adding headcount or paid media spend.
Thanks to Nicky Zhu, Dymesty!
11. Genuine conversations and referrals
I focus on sharing practical insights through my podcast, workshops, speaking engagements, email marketing and social media. Much of my growth comes from genuine conversations and referrals. I believe people work with coaches they know, like and trust, so I prioritise building connections and providing value before asking for a sale. Rather than chasing every new marketing trend, I focus on clear messaging, consistent visibility and helping the right people solve the right problems.
Thanks to Cathy Smith, Cathy Smith Coaching!
12. Fixing the leaks before pouring in more traffic
Buying more ads to prop up a weak product page just burns money faster, so our first lever is always conversion: clearer listings, real customer proof, and honest answers to the questions a new parent is actually asking. We lean into organic search and email, because they keep paying out long after the work is done. The real unlock was building one internal dashboard so we can see which action moves the most revenue.
Thanks to Zoe Sage
13. Relationships and reputation
Most of our growth still comes from relationships and reputation. A lot of the companies we work with today were introduced by former clients, business contacts, or people who have followed our work for years. We also spend a lot of time talking with founders and technology leaders. I've found that helping people solve problems before you're trying to sell them something tends to create stronger business relationships over time.
Thanks to Cache Merrill, Zibtek!
14. Organic search and AI visibility
At this stage, a lot of our growth is being driven by organic visibility rather than relying heavily on paid ads. That means traditional SEO, but also GEO, AIO, AEO and LLMO. We create useful content that answers real customer questions. We can control the website structure, product pages, internal linking, educational content, schema, speed, UX and the clarity of our messaging. Organic search and AI visibility compound over time. The focus is becoming a trusted answer wherever customers are searching.
Thanks to Brendon Haxby, ScrubMe!
15. Google Ads, referrals, and fast follow-up
As a corporate magician and mentalist, I use Google Ads, referrals from past clients, relationships with event planners, and the ability to follow up quickly with anyone who has shown interest in my services. Prospective clients can view videos of my performances, read reviews of my services, and see the types of events I can host. The most important thing I have learned about growing the business is making the purchase decision easier for prospective clients. Show them what you do, prove it works, and follow up without being pushy.
Thanks to Randy Charach
16. In-person events
I grow my business in the room, not the feed. My biggest engine is gathering people in person, through workshops, retreats, and conferences. In person, my message lands at full volume. The right women self-select in, feel the work in real time, and choose to go deeper. The proof is in the numbers. My flagship yearly event converts more than a third of the room into long-term clients. One well-designed event does what a year of content can't. It turns an audience into a community, and a community into clients.
Thanks to Suzanne Castle, Suzanne Castle Consulting!
17. Customer feedback and word-of-mouth
One of the biggest lessons in growing a business is staying close to your customers. One of our biggest recent decisions came directly from listening to them. That thinking ultimately led to the model that Aalto is today. Beyond that, word of mouth is still our biggest growth engine. In healthcare, trust matters more than anything else, and if people have a great experience they'll tell their friends and family. Social media has also played a huge role in helping us build awareness and credibility at scale.
Thanks to Alexis Withers, Aalto!
18. Community connections and local referrals
I grow Brightside almost entirely through word of mouth and genuine community connection. As a mum of two running the business solo, I'm not chasing leads with ads, I'm showing up in local Facebook groups and conversations as a helpful neighbour first and a buyer's agent second. Most of my clients come from someone who trusted me telling someone else they should too. Being useful, honest and genuinely local has built a referral engine no marketing budget could buy.
Thanks to Bek Antognelli, Brightside Buyers!
19. Trust that inspires repeat recommendations
Our growth today is built around becoming the kind of brand people feel confident recommending. Trust in kitchen and bath products is built in very practical ways. The product has to be easy to understand, straightforward to install, and reliable. Every customer relationship matters, and when a professional trusts a brand, that trust can influence future projects too. When people who care deeply about the final result choose to work with you again, growth becomes about building the kind of trust that leads to long-term relationships.
Thanks to Lenny Valdberg, VIGO Industries!
20. Three ways
I’ve grown the business by focusing on long-term relationships, delivering consistent value, and building systems that allow both our clients and internal team to scale sustainably. Our approach has been about understanding the real challenges business owners face and creating support solutions that genuinely make an impact. Referrals, client retention, and maintaining a high standard of service have played a significant role in our growth. Staying closely involved with our clients has helped us build trust and create steady, sustainable business growth.
Thanks to Tricia Ong, Mintrix Virtual Assistants!
21. High-intent search and buyer demand
We grow by capturing demand that already exists, not by trying to create it. My whole model is built around high-intent buyers, the people who go to Google or now ChatGPT and search “best [product]”. We build fast, search-ready sites that answer that question better than anyone, then back them with email to bring buyers back. Owning the high-intent search moment and ruthlessly killing what doesn't sell is what's taken us to 60-plus brands in 32 countries.
Thanks to David Caruso, Buy Factory Direct!