All businesses need to begin with a good idea and a target market that can sustain it. You may very well have those, but you’re still not getting the kind of revenue in return that you hoped for. Was the enterprise just doomed to fail? Most likely not. Instead, you might have to look at the different steps of acquiring revenue a little more closely and make sure you’re maximizing the potential of every one of them.
The source
Your revenue source is going to be the most important part of the question. You might find yourself hitting the cap on the streams you already have and finding you need more. In that event, you must start looking at the opportunities for new business. New product variations, new locations, new additional services. You don’t have to radically change the business to find a source for new business. You can even look into using the brand in new ways, like selling your expertise to other business owners.
The customer
Being competitive with your prices sounds like a realistic tactic for taking on some of your more established competitors. But the truth is that customers are often willing to pay more than we expect them to. They’re willing to pay it when a business truly invests in better customer service and more interactive communication. A study showed that 39% of customers feel that most companies feel to live up to their expectation of customer service and that 73% are willing to pay more for better service.
The payment
As important as the customer service is how the customer actually pays. In many ecommerce platforms, poor user interfaces can confuse the purchasing process, leading to what’s known as shopping cart abandonment. But the actual payment methods can be just as big a sticking point in both ecommerce and brick and mortar business. If you’re not looking at service providers like PayPal and sites like creditcardprocessing.xyz, you might very well be looking at the prospect of losing customers who don’t like having their payment options limited. Make your payment process simpler and more flexible. That’s an easy way to unlock more revenue if you have a happy customer base.
The return
That happy customer base needs a lot more attention, too, not just the new consumers you’re trying to welcome to the business. It takes considerably less investment to retain customers than it does to convert them. Nowadays, services like loyaltylion.com are boasting stats like contributing to 5.3% or 6% of a business’s annual income, which can be a huge boost. A focus on incentivizing customer returns also has the knock-on effect of creating brand fans that then go on to lead to more new customer referrals, too. It can very well hit two birds with one stone.
The more value you provide, the easier it becomes to capitalize on that value, and the more you go on to keep delivering it, the more money the business will make. Keep the tips above in mind the next time you’re thinking of how to start making more money.
Tags: budgeting, business, capital, Earnings, economy, income, investments, profits, revenue
Budgeting, Business, Financial Planning, Investment, Money, Savings
1. Your Success Is Determined By Your Effort
The sales industry is heavily based on rewarding the salesperson’s effort with success. A salesperson that does not put in a hundred percent of their effort will sometimes make nothing at all if they are on a commission basis. On the other hand, sales staff that put in all of their time and effort can often make far beyond what their peers are making. Sales positions are not traditional positions even when they are salaried because bonuses and promotions are all merit-based. In many industries a person can become successful simply by showing up and doing their job adequately. Sales is not one of these industries.
2. Relationships Are Everything
In sales positions a good sales team member will need to have a good relationship with their boss, co-workers and clients. While this is true in most positions it is more vital in a sales position because everyone is working together as a team. Those who cannot have good relationships with their clients will not be able to sell as much but they also can’t neglect their relationship with their co-workers. Co-workers can make or break a salesperson’s career by sharing leads and generally making their life easier. Because of the high churn of the sales industry it’s also not uncommon to suddenly find a co-worker becoming a boss and this is where previous relationships will often pay off.
3. It’s Demanding
A sales job is usually not an ordinary 40 hour a week position. Most sales jobs require that the sales person work far beyond a regular work day and many skilled sales professionals will be doing their work and their research out of hours and often at home. Because sales positions are so high pressure and because a sales professional makes as much money as they work for it can be necessary for a sales professional to put in an extensive effort to become successful.
4. Determination Is Required
Sales positions offer a lot of room to grow but only for those who are determined and willing to be constantly pushing to move upwards. Sales is extremely competitive and that means that sales people need to be constantly improving their sales techniques and their numbers. Those who allow themselves to slip may find themselves losing a lot of traction in their professional life.
5. Confidence and Leadership Is Key
Sales is all about people skills and those who do not have the confidence to lead will not find themselves going very far. There are many seminars and programs available to help those who need to develop their personal and professional skills and many sales people will find these opportunities very rewarding. While client sales may be based on confidence, leadership is required to grow and advance in a sales career. A successful sales professional needs to be able to inspire those who work under them to be the best salespeople that they can be.
To check out some options, Randstad offer sales jobs for many companies that cover all interests.
Nicole is a recruitment agent and has been for the past 5 years. She aims to help her clients find jobs and guide them in the right direction. She started writing blogs to share her knowledge to others who are looking for general help and ideas to get them started on their career.