Grow Your Small Business Revenue

So many small businesses start out focused on one task: to grow your small business revenue. When new businesses start up the need for customers and revenue is paramount, therefor all efforts are focused on those early customer acquisition efforts.

How long does this laser focus on new customers and small business revenue growth last? According to a recent article by Melinda Emerson, not long enough.

She attempts to position the loss of focus on customer acquisition as if one were taking on a mortgage without the means to pay. She wrote;

Most people know they shouldn’t attempt to take on a mortgage without having some way to pay for it. Yet small business owners do something quite similar every day. How do they do this? Some small business owners focus on running the business before focusing on generating the leads that fund the business.

Your Business Mentor Ray finds the analogy to be awkward. However, the main point in the article is valid. I know from my own personal start up efforts that it is quite difficult to keep a laser focus on new customer small business revenue growth once the referrals and the repeat customers start to flow in. Perhaps her point is better stated in the following …

After a few years, the initial rush of the business wears off leaving a gaping hole where lead generation would have been. Small business owners may have quick sales in the beginning but without a long-term lead generation plan, they will go bankrupt. The cash flow a business needs requires a sales funnel.

The ‘sales funnel’ – as many of us old sales guys know is – prospects in, quotes made, sales created, and profits out the end of the funnel. A whole lot of prospects will eventually create modest profits. Small business revenue growth is driven by an increasing flow of prospects or inquiries, while at the same time getting repeat sales and referrals from existing customers.

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In one of our businesses we needed new customers every day as there were very few repeat customers due to the nature of the product we sold. If our ‘sales funnel was not working then the email leads and phone calls just stopped. Our team learned very quickly the importance of a marketing plan with a predictable flow of leads. The classic ‘sales funnel’ was created and managed daily for many years.

This marketing plan we created included specific advertising on-line and a seasonally adjusted allocation of money for ad buys. However, in the article referenced here, Melina Emerson writes further that the answer for small business owners is as follows;

• Create a list: Encourage people to opt in to your newsletter/free report or to a webinar/telesemiar. Developing a list of people who have opted in to your communications is quite possibly one of the best lead generation tactics you can implement.
• Devote a set amount of time each week to lead generation. Customer needs change. Industries change. Consumer expectations change. Client budgets for your products and services may dwindle. So you need an ongoing plan for lead generation. Set aside time each week purely for lead generation activities. This could be list building activities social media marketing, warm calling, in-person networking, and many other activities.
• Build leads offline. Network, network, network. Have I mentioned networking? It’s a great way to build leads. Attend luncheons and business breakfasts to meet new people and expand your circle. … Remember to tie your offline activities to your online activities, meaning connect to them on LinkedIn.
• Accepts “nos.” Getting a “no” is better than being stuck with a “maybe.” With a “no” you can move on to the next lead. Getting stuck with false hope maybes will, “bankrupt your business.”
• Make lead generation a priority. It’s easy to stop spending time each week on sales activities. But remember, quick cash creates a false sense of security. Quick cash burns out fast too (if you don’t first!). Build your business the right way even if it means saying no to work that doesn’t fit your business model. There are no shortcuts to success.

Lead generation is one of the most important things you can do to build and sustain your business. Focusing on working in your business instead of on your business will keep you from achieving the profit and longevity you seek. Focusing create quality content that will attract your target customer. Building quality leads into your sales funnel is what will make your business stand out and help you avoid sleepless nights.

Your Business Mentor Ray advises that you find a base line marketing plan that works consistently at producing quality leads or inquiries to your business. Whether this is old media like print, or all new media like Adsense or social media marketing is not important. What is important is that part of each day is devoted to implementing and measuring the marketing plan.

This base line year round plan will assure a steady growth in new customers and the resulting growth in your small business revenue.