“Business success is a tricky thing, with a lot of influential factors involved. In a ‘normal’ year, small business success can be threatened by a wide spectrum of obstacles. But, the combination of a global pandemic with an election year turned 2020 into the American Ninja Warrior of obstacles,” according to Lauren Pearson, a digital marketing expert and writer for a blog titled Sage Advice. Still, Pearson writes, “there are reasons to look out for a brighter future.”

According to Business Insider, the U.S. economy was expected to grow 3.5 percent in the first quarter of 2021 and may even return to pre-pandemic level of output in the second quarter of next year.

At the beginning of 2021, Pearson came up with list of 12 tips to help businesses survive and thrive in 2021. Here are her top 5 business tips. Click here to read the full story from Sage, a market leader for integrated accounting, payroll, and payment systems—catering to today’s business builders with a tool box of solutions that help companies manage everything from money to people.

#1: Rank customers on key attributes
You may know your best customers by name, especially if you are a small business with few customers or sell mainly to businesses rather than the general public. If you can, rank these customers on one attribute (let’s say “spend the most”), then generate a list so you can contact them for reorders.

#2: Nurture your brand advocates
Happy, loyal customers will spread the news to their friends. They will post about you on social media, which is free advertising. People trust their friends’ opinions over a company’s marketing efforts. If you have customers like these, make sure you comment on the reviews and raves they leave for you on Google, Yelp, or other social channels.

#3: Adopt agility as part of your small business culture
If there’s anything 2020 has taught us, it’s to prepare for anything. For small business owners, this means having to roll with the punches. While many larger organizations adopted a work from home standard, some businesses require physical labor or on-site staff. These businesses should communicate their plans to open safely with their staff, perhaps how they will reopen in waves, or with physical changes to work stations. Prepare for worst-case scenarios, revisit your business plan, and have a “what if” forecast, where all scenarios are accounted for in your cash flow.

#4: Use targeted social media advertising
Facebook advertising offers look-alike audience targeting. Using your existing customer database, Facebook looks through its database and finds people who match the profile of your existing customers. You can then create ads that are targeted at this look-alike audience. As another plus, Facebook ads are seamlessly converted to Instagram ads within the Facebook Ads Manager. When done right, Instagram can be a huge platform to grow and sell.

#5: Diversify the markets you serve
If your traditional market is struggling, can you try other markets? For example, you might find success in the next town or by changing your marketing focus. If your market is too broad (for example, people living within a one-hour drive), it may be better to narrow it to “female accountants who own condos in the downtown core.” You may discover a new market.