If you are a sentimental type, then you’ve probably decided that you want to savour your first dollar your startup earned by popping it in a frame above your desk, using it to serve as a little reminder of how hard you’ve worked and where it all started. It’s what people used to do all the time.

However, sentimentality has sort of fallen out of favour and that’s because people are really starting to understand just how important every dollar invested can be. The problem is, well, how on earth does one go about investing your company’s first investments?

It’s an important question. It’s how to get the invest-slash-reinvest ball rolling, and thus how you can start to make your profits work even harder for you. To help you out, we have pulled together a list of ways you should invest your company’s profits. Enjoy.

 

1. Invest In Improvements, Okay

The important thing here is to know exactly what your strategy for growth is so that you know where to focus your investment efforts and improve your business. That could be an investment in the infrastructure, the equipment you use, the processes that keep everything streamlined, improving the customer experience you offer, developing new products or anything else that will help you a) increase your profits in the long-run or b) expand your efforts.

 

2. Make Your Marketing Count

The secret to a successful business is successful marketing. There are no two ways about it. Sure, a great product or service is absolutely critical, but it’s never the best product that takes the market’ it’s the one that knows how to get their product in front of potential customers. That’s why you should invest whatever you can spare on marketing, especially digital marketing. The reason for this is simple: you can’t lose if you invest in measurable metrics. Not only will you be able to track your campaigns, you will be able to tweak them accordingly.

 

3. Diversify Your Investments

In case you were thinking, “oh, this is just a list of how to invest in your own efforts,” it’s not. Another great strategy to adopt is diversification. For example, 401k plans are a great option, as are stocks and bonds, in which we recommend you use someone like CMC Markets to help guide you through the process effectively and efficiently. Of course, these aren’t the only way you can invest your profits externally. There are currencies, forex’, indices and commodities to boot. It is just about being comfortable in where you are investing.

 

4. Create An Epic Team

It doesn’t matter if you are a tech-savvy wonderkid or a bit of a Luddite, there is no denying the importance of your team, which is why you need to invest in the best talent you can. Yes, this will boost your productivity and streamline your business, but it will also breed a culture that people will want to work in, and work hard for. How can you invest in your workforce? Put profits into an improved HR department, bolster your training and education efforts, better the benefits packages you offer and do anything you can to reduce your turnover rate (which is the not-so-secret money-drainer of startups).