Want next year to be your best year ever? If so, here are 5 strategies that can double or even triple your revenue in the next twelve months.
1. Sell more to existing customers. Hands down, the easiest place to get more business is with your existing customers. If you’ve “done good” by them, they’ll likely be open to expanding their relationship with you. But don’t sit back and wait for them to get in touch. You need to take the initiative.
Put on your thinking cap first. Ask yourself these questions: How can my products/services help them eliminate bottlenecks, reduce costs, increase efficiency or drive more revenue? What business challenges can I help them address? The key to getting more business with them is to focus on their needs, issues and concerns. You’ll always sell more when you do that.
2. Focus, focus, focus. With no steady paycheck coming in, it’s easy to get scared about making money or meeting payroll. Because of this, you likely want to keep all your options open. When people ask you what you do, you run through a laundry list of your products and services. You’re probably also willing to work for virtually any company who’s willing to hire you.
But, that’s the worst thing you can do. Today’s crazy-busy buyers want to deal with experts who already understand their business, marketplace, issues and challenges. By narrowing your focus, you significantly increase your credibility and ultimately, your sales.
3. Target bigger companies. Seriously. As a small business, just the thought of calling on larger firms may intimidate you. But the truth is, they have more money and they’re far less price sensitive than the small companies you’re working with today. Landing just one decent-sized client can transform your business and financial situation overnight.
If you currently sell to microbusinesses, start targeting companies with $1-15 million in revenue. Once you’ve achieved some success there, move to firms with up to $100 million in revenue. Then go after smaller business units of even bigger organizations.
Just keep moving up. You’ll soon discover that it’s a whole lot easier to make a few bigger sales than hundreds of smaller ones.
4. Become a recognized expert. Having personally gone from a nobody to a somebody, I can assure you that it’s a whole lot easier to get sales when you’re a known commodity. Every single entrepreneur should have a social media presence where they can share their expertise.
You need to be writing short articles (like this one) on a regular basis. If it’s easier for you to do 1-2 minute audios or videos, do that instead. Participate in groups on LinkedIn – especially ones that your targeted buyers are likely to belong to. You might also find industry forums you can contribute to as well.
5. Create a strategic network. Referrals are the best door openers. But, as you’ve probably discovered from attending local networking events, they don’t happen often enough. Rather than complain about it, take charge and form your own strategic network.
One woman I know pulled together eight other entrepreneurs who sold into the construction markets. They met regularly to talk about different companies, brainstorm ideas, and share leads.
You could also form a strategic network with others who sell to the same decision makers (e.g. office managers, HR directors). The key to success is to make sure that the group members have complementary businesses, not competitive ones.
In Summary: With a dedicated focus on these five strategies, you can easily take your business to the next level.
Jill Konrath is the author of two bestselling books, SNAP Selling and Selling to Big Companies. For more ideas on increasing sales, download her free Prospecting Tool Kit.
This article is from the SmallBizLady special blog series: 31 Ways to Boost Your Small Business in 2013. #Boost2013
Week One Posts of 31 Ways to BOOST Your Small Business in 2013 Week Two Posts of 31 Ways to BOOST Your Small Business in 2013
