It’s that time of the year where business owners evaluate their business, identify the things that didn’t work in the past year, and resolve to do better in the coming year. 

If you own a thriving business, chances are that increased revenue and business growth will be the top two things on your list of goals for next year. If that’s the case, then maybe the tips you’ll read here will help you get started. 

Double Down on Proven Revenue Sources

If your business is doing okay, chances are you can probably optimize your revenue sources for increased revenue. So, instead of doing what everyone does, which is go out and find new customers, you might want to identify what you can do with your current customer base. This way cheaper than the cost of acquiring new customers.

Find out the best ways to increase your revenues without necessarily doing more promotion and marketing. You want to get your revenue channels so optimized that if you decide not to do any marketing, your business will enjoy considerable growth over the next 12 months. 

Start by setting up a customer loyalty program that rewards customers for referrals and emphasize this a lot. Give them coupon codes and tell them to give them to friends and family. When those people come in to make a purchase with the coupons, tag the new purchases to the client that referred them, and reward them accordingly. It may be a small thing, but it works like gangbusters. 

Consider a Price Increase

On the subject of increased revenues, consider increasing your prices. Done well, a price increase can add significant capital to your bottom line. There are a few ways to do this:

• Add more value to the product or service

• Unbundle the product or service and sell them as a unit

• Offer future upgrades for an additional fee

• Switch from a monthly fee to a credit-based system

While these pricing strategies may appeal to mostly tech offerings, you can adapt them in some way to traditional business offerings. It’s important to establish this because most small businesses’ idea of a competitive edge is a slightly lower price point. 

The problem with this model is if someone else comes in and offers the same quality of product or service for a lower price, you’ll lose your market share. What you need to do, therefore, is separate yourself from the herd and turn your business offerings into one of value.

Ensure You Hire the Right Individuals

Business growth often implies the need or demand for high-value employees with the right skillset. This is because you need the right talents on your team to take your business to the next level. For example, think carefully about who in your existing team you could promote and place in a director role, because this could be a huge cost-saving investment, as the average cost of taking on a new general employee for USA- based businesses was $,4,700, according to a 2019 Glassdoor study.

So, take a minute to think of your business plans. What part of your business are you looking to grow? It’s often better to hire a professional who specializes in that area of your business than a generalist who only knows a bit about it. 

For example, if you want to build a seamless supply chain in your warehouse, you’ll be better off hiring an experienced supply chain manager than an inventory manager. Always think in terms of “round pegs in round holes”. This will help your business operations run much smoother and faster. 

Prioritize Customer Service

Ever heard the saying that the customer is king? Well, that has become much more important these days. We live in an era of relative instants. Prospects want near-instant replies to their inquiries, customers want their problems resolved very fast, and even employers want a speedy response to their late-night emails to employees. 

The point is that customers are used to being doted on and treated specially. The good news is that many businesses are dropping the ball when it comes to customer service. So, it has never been easier for any business to outdo their competition by offering superior customer service. 

So, set up a customer service and relationship management system that will help you keep your customers happy. 

• Set up chatbots on the website to handle frequently asked questions 

• Provide easy-to-read guides or documentation when necessary 

• Train support staff to be extra attentive and courteous to customers

• Ensure a hassle-free returns policy

• Have active social media handlers who are great at managing negative reviews or complaints 

• Set up a playbook for your support staff to follow

These are just some of the things you can do to develop great customer service. 

Treat Your Employees Well

Ever heard the saying that people leave bad bosses and not their jobs? That’s almost always the case in many instances. Your business’ turnover rate is largely tied to how well you or your managers are treating the employees. So, ask yourself the following questions:

• Are you taking care of your employees? 

• Is it clear that you prioritize their well-being? 

• Do they feel like they are a vital part of your establishment? 

These are just some of the things you need to consider. Compare your current pay to the industry standard. In fact, now that there’s great resignation and people are willingly walking away from their jobs because they’re not satisfied with the compensation, it’s time to increase the financial incentives. 

If your workers frequently work overtime, there are points to consider when calculating overtime so that they can be well compensated. Most small businesses can’t find good help right now. So, if you have workers who still put in overtime for you, better make sure they are treated well or you stand a risk of losing them to competitors who value them better. 

Advertise and Promote Your Business

While it’s likely that you do this already, chances are you may have fallen into a rut. Many business owners are often guilty of blindly trusting the old advertising and marketing channels without necessarily vetting their effectiveness. This is why people still advertise on YellowPages.com and classified ads sites. 

It’s why they still spend a fortune on traditional ad media like TV and radio ads while ignoring the digital media platforms. If you haven’t been advertising on social media networks like Facebook, Instagram, Google, and Youtube, you’re literally leaving a pile of money on the table. This type of advertising is highly manageable and trackable as costing is CPM based. What is CPM? Cost Per Mile is costing formula where you pay per thousand impressions, which means it is highly effective when calculating RIO and managing costs. 

These channels are powerful and capable of insane returns. And if you’ve been advertising on those platforms without much success, there are three major reasons why:

• Poor demography targeting 

• Wrong ad media –texts and images, instead of videos

• Poor calls-to-action –trying to sell directly instead of just driving traffic to your landing page or collecting leads

You just need to figure out what works on these platforms. 

Look to Form Business Partnerships

Another easy way to grow your business is by getting into partnerships with established firms that sell complementary products or services. This exposes your business to new audiences without costing you a dime. 

For instance, if you own a web design agency, you can partner with SEO agencies, PPC marketers, and Facebook Ads specialists. You’ll have a multilateral agreement with them to send them leads, and vice versa. This way, if you finish designing a website and the client needs search marketing, you can send the client to one of your partners. 

And if they have web design inquiries, they’ll send the leads to you. This is a super-easy way to grow your business and revenues without even spending a dime o advertising. Just a smooth quid pro quo and everyone is happy and richer because of those deals.

Buy Complementary Businesses

This works like crazy of you the right fit and the business owner decides to sell to you. You can simply purchase businesses with an active customer or buyer’s list that will be interested in your offerings. 

So, if you find a good business that has what you need, make them a compelling offer. Some business owners won’t think about selling until they have a solid offer. Another place to check is sites like Businessesforsale.com, BizQuest, Flippa, among others. 

Just make sure to do your due diligence before any purchase. Have your lawyer and accountant look over their books, assets, and structure before making any purchase. 

Outsource Mundane Business Tasks

While this is somewhat linked to employing great workers, this is different in the sense that many small businesses cannot employ an accountant or lawyer full-time. 

They can either hire their services on an as-needed basis or place them on a more affordable retainer. This way, if you have need of their services, they will show up for you. Talk to a few lawyers and accountants about these options. Many of them are open to working with you in an outsourced capacity for a monthly or annual fee. 

Doing this is absolutely important if you run a small operation as it will free up your time and energy so that you can focus on the most important tasks that will help grow your business. 

Conclusion

These are some of the tips that will help you take your business to the next level in 2022 and beyond. While they may not be groundbreaking, they’re powerful enough to get you pretty solid results. Good luck and have a great year..