How To Scale Up Your Midwifery Business Without Losing Control

Business defines scalability as “the ability to increase revenues while your marginal costs decrease with each unit sale.” As a midwife, we may not be able to understand this word immediately since business topics are not part of our scope of practice. But what does this imply for us if we start our own business? Scalability is a unique challenge for any startup, especially when expanding social responsibility and a core value system is involved.

Growth or scale is not a “one-size-fits-all” strategy because different industries require different approaches to reach more customers while keeping costs under control. However, scaling up is about more than just lowering the gross price of a product or service; it is also about creating a social impact that grows, thrives, and, most importantly, sustains.

When we talk about scaling your midwifery business, we’re referring to strategies for growth that align with your original business vision while managing the impact of growth on your company. Implementing the following tips for how to scale a business form a sustainable scaling strategy you can rely on.

Sample Scaling Strategy

Understand your Goals

Scaling a business is reliant on creating customer loyalty. Customer loyalty is essential for business growth. What is the most effective way to build customer loyalty? Prioritize employee retention so that they can spread the word and pass on their enthusiasm for your company to those they serve. Employees are loyal to companies whose mission and values align with their own, as this gives them a sense that their careers have a higher purpose. Learning how to scale a business will ultimately fail unless you first address your “why” for starting a business in the first place. Knowing your purpose and successfully communicating it to your team is the best way to turn them into raving fans of your company and drive organic growth.

Create a Business Road Map to Success

As a midwife business owner, you should already have a business plan, but have you considered creating a business map? Business maps are an efficient and comprehensive method of growing a company and meeting its objectives. Making a business map forces you to consider fundamental questions such as: What business are you really in? What motivated you to start this business in the first place?

Business maps encourage and challenge you to consider where you came from, define your reason for starting this business, and look ahead: what’s next for your company and where do you want it to end up? Having this type of documentation of your goals is an important part of learning how to scale a business and will be a useful reference when times get tough.

Master Your Services

Many business owners are so focused on rapid growth that they overlook the importance of ensuring the quality of their service. They frequently believe that they will simply fix it once they have more clients. However, if you don’t work out the kinks and eliminate the bugs now, they will only get worse as your business grows. This is why learning how to scale a business before attempting to expand will save you time and money in the long run. Listen to feedback, identify problems, and improve your offerings until they meet your customer’s expectations in the early stages of your business.

Create Thoughtful Processes and Operations to Follow

Scaling a business entails more than just expanding upward and outward; it also entails ensuring that your internal processes and operations run smoothly. The last thing you want is to start losing customers you’ve worked so hard to gain because a component of your infrastructure is failing. While perfecting processes, keep in mind that some of the systems and processes that work in the early stages of your company will not work on a large scale. This is where adaptability and flexibility come into play, as processes may need to be tweaked as your company grows. In the early years, establishing a framework of what works and keeps your business running smoothly is critical to scaling a business because it forms a solid core.

Establish Your Amazing Team

Scaling your midwifery business entails more than just expanding upward and outward; it also entails ensuring that your internal processes and operations run smoothly. The last thing you want is to start losing clients you’ve worked so hard to gain because a component of your infrastructure is failing.

While mastering processes, keep in mind that some of the systems and processes that work in the early stages of your company will not work on a large scale. This is where adaptability and flexibility come into play, as processes may need to be tweaked as your company grows. In the early years, establishing a framework of what works and keeps your business running smoothly is critical to scaling a business because it forms a solid core.

One of the most rewarding aspects of running a midwifery business is the ability to develop close relationships with your clients. You get to give them the experience you want from start to finish. And the goal should always be to create a raving fan – someone who will be a fervent supporter of your brand and will help you scale your business by spreading the word.

Remember that the community you build around your midwifery business can strengthen your foundation, giving you even more strength and leverage as you grow. A solid network is so important that it is included in the definition of scaling a business. So, take the time to truly build the “team” that will propel you forward.

Learn When to Delegate

If you’ve built a strong team, you should be able to delegate many important tasks to them so you can work “on” the business rather than “in” it. However, as a midwife, you want to feel involved in every aspect of your business and will find it difficult to let go in some areas. To truly understand how to scale a business, you must delegate tasks to your team members. What are you doing that another person could do?

Don’t exchange your time for money. Your company must be able to run and thrive even when you are not present. Address limiting beliefs such as “If I want something done right, I have to do It Myself.”

Build Your Brand Strategically

Scaling a business necessitates discovering who you are as a company and what you have to offer your customers. How do you stack up against the competition? What distinguishes you from the competition? What are your biggest flaws? What gives you such clout? What is your point? How do you shake up your industry?

Answering these questions could take years, but you can at least start with a basic framework and build from there. Smaller companies have the advantage of being able to shift gears more quickly than larger corporations. So, if a new approach is required, seize the opportunity to innovate and adapt.

Remember that as your midwifery business grows, your brand will set the tone for its culture. It will set the standard for how you make hires and will assist you in establishing the type of client experience you desire. It will have an impact on your marketing, sales, and design efforts, as well as the type of company you eventually become.

Connect With Your Clients on a Regular Basis

What good is your midwifery business expansion if it does not result in loyal clients? Not a lot. Creating raving fans for your product is critical to your practice’s survival in the face of ever-changing consumer preferences. When you’re scaling a business, you’re in an incubation period where you can experiment with different approaches to building and maintaining client relationships. This is the time to incorporate client-centered practices into all aspects of your business. Internally, you want every member of your team to demonstrate empathy, respect, and open-mindedness so that a collaborative culture of innovation can emerge. Everyone on staff can then establish rapport with your client, forming connections that will help your product sell itself.

Work On Your Networking Skills

“No man is an island,” and this is especially true for midwives who are growing their businesses. You must build and nurture a large network of colleagues, business coaches, resources, and mentors who can connect you to the right people and help you grow. Attend regular business networking events in your city or join an industry-related group that provides continuing education and networking opportunities. Participate in personal or business coaching, and reach out to those who have been in business longer than you to see if they would like to connect and possibly become your mentor. Scaling a business is a team effort. The more supporters you have, the more successful you will be.

Make Sustainability a Top Priority

As important as creativity is for any business, running a business is not the place for rash decisions. Think of creativity as a tool for scaling a business rather than a free-for-all tool for problem-solving. When you prioritize mindful, sustainable growth, you learn to approach challenges thoughtfully so that the solutions you find support the long-term well-being of your company

Continue Adapting and Innovating New Ways of Doing Things

If your midwifery business has reached a plateau, scaling it may appear impossible. The truth is that learning how to scale a business is never impossible, but you may need to change your approach if you want to succeed. When was the last time your practice prioritized innovation? When was the last time you assessed your practice’s roadblocks and addressed them head-on? 

If you’re not growing in business – or in life – you’re dying. Change your practice for the sake of change; when your choices are strategically aligned with your ultimate goal, scaling your midwifery business will be simple. Take your time and do it correctly. Adopt a winning mindset, but do so with caution. Keep in mind that massive growth is one thing that makes a lasting business.

Posted by: Team Tony. (2021, February 4). 11 proven steps to scale a business successfully: Tony Robbins. tonyrobbins.com. Retrieved February 18, 2023, from https://www.tonyrobbins.com/career-business/mindful-scaling/

Interested in taking our HIGHLY recommended midwife business course?  Midwifery Business Course – MIDWIFERY BUSINESS CONSULTATION