While all businesses will experience periods of downtime, you should still try to ensure that yours is able to grow and prosper most of the time. This is, in general, what most business owners are looking to do – but if you grow too rapidly, you could end up losing the foundation you’ve been building on for years.

That’s why you need to make sure that your business is going through the kind of safe and steady growth that allows you to tap into new markets and find new customers without compromising your brand.

Here is a handful of ways on how you can do exactly this and feel a lot more comfortable about running your business.

First: Think about your first customers

Most businesses experience the nostalgic loss of their first customers – but this doesn’t mean that you have to lose all of them.

When you are able to maintain the core of your business and make sure that you’re not changing its brand, those early customers might stay with you throughout the growth as they’re still able to recognise it as the business they first fell in love with.

The only way to do this is, usually, to chat with them. Figure out what they associate your business with, invest some time and money into analysing and researching it, and ensure that your most loyal fans know that you still care.

So many customers end up switching to another company because they miss that close interaction they used to have when your business was still small. Keep this in mind while growing, however, and they might stay with you.

Next: Be smart about your finances

While maintaining your brand and not changing your business until it is completely unrecognisable are important enough, you should also think about how you’re spending your profits.

Way too many businesses are unprepared for the financial growth they’re experiencing and end up overspending rather than investing it wisely.

Keep in mind that, even though you’re making a bit more money at one point, you could still go through a rough patch where you need those extra funds. Start by having a look at Alpha Blue Ocean and think about ways to spend your profits wisely.

Continue to invest in your company, for example, provide your employees with valuable training, and ensure that your budget is fit to handle a period of downtime every now and then.

It is, after all, the only way to ensure that you’re not sinking in the new market you’ve tapped into and that you’re able to stay afloat with the money you made when times were not as tough.