After breathing life into your startup, you’ll need to keep it running. This may mean doing stuff that hurts your profit.
If you aren’t actively increasing revenue, you sure will run out of cash.
And there are many reasons why you can’t grow by offering discounts.
Your product loses value the moment you start doing that. So you take 30% off, prospects see that and say, “Well let’s wait she may make it 50% before the end of the week.” You need customers to see what you’re bringing to the table, except you’re Walmart, don’t try competing on price.
It hurts your profits and makes it harder for you to even make one. Selling 10 pieces of software for $100 each is easier than selling each piece for $10. Either way, you’re making a thousand dollars but you’re getting those precious high-spending customers with the former.
It’s difficult to stop. Once people get used to getting discounts, it’s harder making a sale when they discover a discount is not on the cards.
If you’re ready, let’s check out the ways to grow revenue without discounting no one’s talking about.
1. Add Complementary Services To Your Existing Products
People will reach for their wallets if they know they get one killer service for free when they buy from you. If you’re stuck on choosing the complementary service you could offer, keep reading to find out what’s perfect for you.
Finding The Right Complementary Service
– Go For One Closely Knitted To Your Product
If your company mows lawns, offering to keep your customers’ gardens pest-free is definitely a good deal. Also, nothing screams “I don’t know why I’m here” than selling refrigerator repair when you’re in the cleaning industry.
– Check For Costs
Try answering this, does this complementary service require buying new equipment or hiring new staff? You’re looking for ways to increase revenue, so there’s no need taking on a complementary service that dissipates it.
2. Get In Touch With Old Customers
The quickest way to make a sale is to get those who are already comfortable buying with you. Research has proven that it costs more to acquire a new customer than to keep an old one.
The problem these customers have with this strategy, anyway, is the way salesmen spam and stalk them. You should not come off as a pest if you know how this is done right.
Techniques For Getting In Touch With Old Customers
– Offer Help
If you’re just getting on your computer and firing away “buy from me” emails to old customers, you may be left abandoned at their spam folders. Instead offer them something, maybe a gift or just anything they’ll be interested in.
– Expand Their Options
Once you guys get talking again, you should consider following them on social media and giving them a call. Now you can remind them you’re still open for business and would appreciate it if they could recommend you to their friends.
3. Accept More Payment Processors
You may have a good product and a great customer service, but if your payment processor is a bank in Antarctica that no one has access to, you’ll be losing business.
Check out the market you’re about to serve and note the payment options that are considered safe and reliable.
There’s no point writing a “200 reasons my payment processor should be used” post. No one really cares. Expand your options to cater for your market’s needs and you’ll be back in business.
4. Offer Samples
… But don’t make one for each buyer. It’s not a bad thing for a customer to want a taste of what’s to come but it’s also not profitable to keep making fresh samples.
Let’s face it – Everyone can’t buy from you.
So make just one sample for your ideal customers.
And when you start getting those buyers in numbers, ask for testimonials, it gets you established as an authority.
5. Have A Club Membership
You can call it a ranking system. You’d see this on lots of airlines.
You should be giving promotions to only those loyal customers. It makes them say, “Wow, these guys really take care of me.”
Those at the top of the ladder would naturally get lots of “discounts,” but they’ve spent more getting there so it’s win-win for everybody.
6. Offer Faster Delivery
We all want it now. It’s difficult competing with a guy shipping in 3 days when you’re doing same in 14 days. Except the price difference is quite large. And that’s very unlikely. It’s 2017, businesses have gotten wiser.
7. Upsell
You’re leaving a lot on the table if customers aren’t buying more than what they had intended.
So you run a cell phone accessory store. There are big chances someone who’s buying a car charger would love a power bank.
Steve Jobs said customers don’t know what they want until you show it to them.
The thing is, if it’s not on your checkout page, it doesn’t exist.
8. Help Them Choose
There’s a reason why product review sites are still in business. Wired just sold for $30 million to the New York Times. No one wants to get caught in a bad deal. So be a business that guides customers through the decision-making process. If you’re a big budget company, you can hire personal shoppers to do the trick.
If you’re not, choose for them, but subtly.
Let a particular product stand out from the others
9. Offer “Freebies” With Purchases
You shouldn’t feed the freebie mongers. It’s useless ’cause they’re not buying anyway.
If a customer is buying in bulk, it makes sense if there are rewards for that purchase.
10. Improve User Experience
Your website should leave a lasting impression on all customers.
Ditch the long forms, just ask for a name and an email address.
Track everything so you know what to improve on.
If you’re experiencing frequent downtimes, maybe it’s time to move to a better host.
And if they can get it done in one click, why make it five?
If your business isn’t growing, then it’s dying. Go for it, add these little tweaks and make that business profitable.
Photo Credit: Andrew_Writer
