How to grow any business 33%

3 Business Growth Strategies

The information below is not new. It’s not my opinion. I learned it from Jay Abraham, known for his guru-status as a master marketer, author, and mentor to hundreds of successful people and business owners. I’m not certain Jay Abraham was the first to distill this “3-Ways” philosophy. It was probably determined decades (or perhaps generations) before him. It may have been Jay Abraham…I most certainly did learn it from reading his books.

The Only 3 Ways To Grow a Business

The 3 Ways are simple and straightforward and even if you’ve heard them or read them before, they’re worth pondering frequently. Doing so will help remind you to keep these facts in mind every time you invest in marketing, manage your people, and interact with customers. You may come up with some other ways but their most likely a subset of one of these 3 main ways.

#1

How to Grow a Small Business

Want some help brainstorming ways to acquire new customers? CLICK HERE.  There’s no cost. This is a service we provide for FREE.

Get More Customers

A continuing flow of new customers is one way to increase sales. It’s also necessary in order to maintain sales. We will always lose customers through attrition: they move, they change providers, change lifestyles, they die…So, it’s important to keep a customer acquisition strategy in your marketing plans.  Here are a few New Customer Acquisition Strategies:

  • A Referral System. Always remind your existing customers how you would appreciate their referrals. Consider setting up a referral rewards program.
  • A System for Acquiring 5-Star Reviews. An excellent bank of reviews are an important part of marketing today. Ask your customers (and make it easy for them) to leave public reviews on websites that matter in your industry. Some people will still write an old fashioned letter thanking you for taking good care of them. Take a photo of it and post it on your website. Don’t let a kind word about you or your business go unpublished.
  • Search Engine Optimization. Improving your website so it shows up in more Google searches is vital to acquiring new customers today. It’s a great and long-lasting marketing investment.

#2

Increase the Average Size Transaction (and Profit)

Offer more selection, offer higher-priced options. Create incentives such as combining products or services to reach higher purchase plateaus. Do you know the size of your average sale? Set aside some time with a pen and a notebook and brainstorm some ideas on how you can create some value-added products or services (or combinations of products or services) to stimulate larger sales.

I was consulting a restaurant recently. They always had a selection of homemade cheesecakes. At the end of the meal, their wait staff would say, “Would anyone care for dessert?” That’s not how you sell dessert! I created a dessert menu featuring 4-6 selections which I trained the staff to deliver while the dinner plates were being cleared. Dessert sales soared. EASY! (We would have used a dessert cart if the dining room was situated differently.)

Did you know that adding this: (*) next to certain menu selections will increase the sales of those selections? It’s true! You don’t even need to explain what those symbols mean. You can train your staff to say, “They’re the chef’s specialties.” These should always be the dishes (or products or services) you love to deliver because you do them well and they’re profitable. Can you think of some  dishes, products, or services you can emphasize so you can sell more of them and charge more for them too?

#3

Get Your Customers to Come Back More Often (Increase Purchase Frequency) 

How often do you serve the average customer? Get that pen and notebook back out and write down some ideas you have to increase customer frequency. Here are 3 ways I have used successfully over the 3 decades I’ve been in business:

  • Direct Mail: I have been sending out letters of thanks to my existing customer bags (and sometimes adding potential customers), flyers promoting groups of products or services, and postcards focusing on specific products are services. Direct mail is a bit expensive but it’s very effective. Today, out mailboxes aren’t as crowded as they used to be. So many businesses are relying on email these days, there’s less competition in the mailbox! And, since you’re not a stranger to your customers, your mail piece will be highly seen and considered. A direct mail invitation is a great way to encourage a new visit from an existing or former customer.

 

  • Email: Email is great for a lot of reasons. One reason is because it’s cheap. Another is because it can be automated. Lots of business owners feel like they don’t want to “bother” their customers with emails but when people give you their email address, it’s because they’re telling you, “Yes!…please send me your offers! Advertise to me!” Where else does this exist in the universe? Don’t worry about bothering your customers. They asked for your email and they can opt-out from your emails any time they want to. But for the ones who don’t, they are your loyal customers and they’re happy to hear from you and see your offers. Even if they don’t open your email, they can see who sent it and the subject line. This effectively keeps YOUR business in their mind. Big companies spend gazillions of dollars keeping their brand and their business in our minds. You can do it too for just a few bucks/month.

Collect customer contact information and keep in touch. It’s not your customers’ job to think of you all the time..it’s YOUR job to remind them. Use email to inform them of your new menu, your specials, your promotions. Send them special Birthday Vouchers. When people give you their email address, they are TELLING you, “Send me your offers!” This is a gift, so don’t be shy to deliver. Use email.

  • Phone Calls and Personal Visits: In 2017, I got my biggest customer ever in my wholesale business (and this is my 32nd year!). This customer placed an order on my website. He just placed an order for $2200.00 and paid for it. He never called., never asked a question. Next month…same thing. Month #3, same thing again but this time, I decided it was time to call. I asked him, “what else do you buy?” and he asked me if I sell “_____” (sorry, but this part is my secret). The customer was on pace to spend about $20,000 with my company in 2017 but thanks to that phone call, he went on to spend $175,000.00.

This is an extreme example but a true one. I have also been known to show up at customers’ places of business. There is a bonding which takes place in these types of scenarios. I’ve found that most business owners become closer and more loyal with more face time and more handshakes.

One more thing: 

Never forget about giving your customers a 5-star experience. There’s no substitute for it.

How a 10% Improvement Can Create Exponential Growth

Consider this example of how a 10% improvement in each of these 3 areas create dramatic results:

Let’s say your average customer spends $30 per transaction. Let’s say you see him/her once/month. That’s $360 in sales per year. Let’s say you have 500 customers like this one. That’s $180,000 in sales.

Let’s say you increase your customer base, your average-size sale and your customer purchase frequency EACH by 10%.

Now you have 550 customers, each spending $33.00, 13.2 times per year. Here’s the math: 550 x $33.00 x 13.2=$239,580.00

That’s almost $60,000 in increased sales…a 33% increase. How much profit will you gain from a 33% increase in sales?

It’s good to have your eye on a goal and plans to help reach the goal. I hope this stirs your imagination and motivates you to take action.

 

 






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About the Author Andrew Mazer

Andrew Mazer, Founder of Mazer Wholesale, Inc. established since 1986. In 1996, I began marketing my wholesale business online. In 2009, I began helping other business owners market THEIR business online. I am the author of The Business Owner's Guide to Marketing Online, The Groupon Solution, and The One Good Idea Newsletter. Contact me at Andrew@smallbusinessu.org

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