In today’s business environment, Business development is essential for any new start-up business, for without it, your business venture will struggle to survive not to mention thrive.
When it involves developing your business, and let’s be clear regarding what we tend to mean by this, we tend to mean increasing your revenue.
And to be candid with you, there are majorly three ways you can do that, and these are: sell more, sell to more, and sell for more.
Too often than not, we tend to always overcomplicate things, however in terms of revenue growth, these are the sole choices we do have and therefore the clearer we are able to see them the better it will be to deal with them, and the sum total of your efforts ought to be directed to those 3 tasks.
Now, your business ideally ought to have strategies that tackle all 3 of these opportunities for maximum impact.
If you don’t, then you’re missing a lot of opportunities and realistically leaving business on the table for your competitors to take advantage and cash in on them.
Table of Contents
Sell More to Drive Business Growth
The easiest path to grow your business and increase revenue is to sell a lot of your products or services to your existing customers.
This is because your existing customers have already got a relationship with you, they most likely already know you, like you as well as trust you, and therefore it ought to be fairly straightforward and comfortable to upsell additional products or services to them.
Some studies have shown that it will require seven times as much to acquire a new customers than it will to sell to existing customers.
That means that there are larger profits to be made in selling extra products and services to existing clients as you’ve got already borne the customer acquisition value previously.
So what extra or additional products and services are you able to render to your existing customers.
These products may not even be your personal product; it might just be complimentary products or services whereby you gain a commission on each sale.
A good example is the airline services, who always provide additional services in the form of car hire services, hotel reservations, etc. because they always want to maximize the revenue from their customers.
You also have to be compelled to have client satisfaction high on your agenda, since each client you lose will always cost you a fortune to considerably replace them.
You need to strategic in your approach towards increasing your revenue per client.
Sell to More to Drive Business Growth
This is most likely the realm that the majority of businesses pay careful attention to, attracting new customers and increasing market share and penetration.
You would need a lot of customers if you would like to dominate your market and similarly to drive efficiencies and economies of scale which might lead to increase profits.
However your smartness is of utmost importance regarding how you approach this, and to ensure to keep your client acquisition prices as low as possible.
One of the most affordable ways in which to draw in new customers’ is through referrals from existing customers.
If your existing customers are pleased with your products and services, you will be able to encourage them to become your advocates and to recommend you were necessary?
How are you able to establish a win-win arrangements in order that both parties will benefit?
Remember, if it costs seven times more to secure a new client than it does to sell to an already existing client when clients are recommended to you much of this cost is saved and could be used to reward those who recommended you.
Affiliate programs take the same approach, where you let somebody else bear the price of getting you new customers for a percentage of the sale.
There are several choices for attracting new customers, and your goal is to have a concrete strategy that best suit your business model, and additionally optimize your gain.
Sell for More to Drive Business Growth
While working with clients, I am always stunned at the number that undervalues the services that they render.
There are usually numerous reasons for this: they lack confidence and so underprice their services; they do not understand or perceive the market value, or they do not see the real value in the services they are rendering.
This last point is always as a result of familiarity, which then might result in a form of contempt for products or services that then leads us reducing the actual worth of our services.
The easier way to increase revenue is through an increase in the price of the products or services and this comes with its own risk as well.
This is because if you raise the worth or price of the product or services too high, you stand the risk of losing your business and customers.
However, the same is true once we set our prices too low, if you as the product or service owner do not see the value in what you are offering, then why should anyone else sees.
I once worked with a client that needed to increase her services worth, at the end of the day, while we doubled her price,
we lost some customers as she rightly predicted. But in the same vein, we attracted her ideal customers who can and were ready to purchase her services.
Which later increased her overall revenue and demand in the services she was rendering.
So, if you have a quality product then you must sell it for premium prices, if you limit it at budget prices, it will be deemed a budget product.
So basically, there are majorly only three ways to increase your revenue based on your product and services,
which are; sell more to your existing customers, sell your products and services to more people, and to sell them for more money.
When you deploy adequate strategies for these three indices, you will surely maximize your business potential to the fullest.
Ignoring one or more of these strategies simply leaves more money on the table for your competitors to take advantage of.
Now before I leave you, let me quickly share with you ways you can actually combine the three strategies shared above to ensure you maximize your profitability while selling more
No matter your level of competence even if you’re a top-performing salesperson, there are numerous ways you can up your game.
Carefully study the points below to see what you need to do
11 Ways to Sell More, Sell to More, and Sell for More
1. Know your product.
The very first thing that is expected of you as a salesperson no matter your industry is to know the in and out of your product or services.
In fact, what distinguishes people who close deals and those who don’t bust down to one thing: who can intelligently answer a question on the spot about their product or services.
It’s not the person who says “Let me get back to you.” “Stars are the people who can return the ball back over the net faster than it was hit to them,” he says.
2. Understand where you are in the sales cycle.
At every point in your business, you will want to pause and understand where you stand in the sales cycle because you never want to go backward.
Just Like in the game of chess, you will always want to keep your client motivated to take the next step toward making a purchase.
The rule is simple “You need to always be self-aware of why that person is buying from you.” This will ensure you know where you are on the map of getting to the finish line.”
3. Be willing to educate the prospect on your own Expense.
As a salesperson, you should be aware that most clients’ needs patience because they are not always completely clear on the very details that are required to create and manage their business.
Be ready to audit your programs for every worthwhile prospect, then walk them through the areas that are doing well,
and the areas that are not, to discuss possible ways the program might be improved to achieve more success.
Remember this extra services takes time and might not bring in additional revenue. But it simply a way of telling your prospect that you are reliable and may serve as a great way to generate and nurture leads.
4. Display Irrational Confidence.
In the game of sales or business generally, you will be rejected on several occasion but been determined regardless of how much rejection you face will be your greatest determiner.
Moreover, if you’re not being rejected you’re probably not doing your job. Well in my years of experience, I have not seen anybody who is always getting 100-percent hit ratio.
“Many a times selling is falling down the stairs and hoping that you land on your feet. And one thing that is absolutely involved is luck.
5. Know your numbers.
In terms of the product or services that your business render, what is the real worth of it? At what point will you say the business is making a profit?
I have seen a lot of business owners actually losing money when in their mind the thought they were doing a great job.
6. Define and Plan your Next Steps.
Have an Outline of whatever happens when you finish a meeting with a client. From there, you get your set of deliverable and key responsible persons who will be held accountable.
If after a certain agreed date passed with the action been taken then you can know where to channel your follow up.
Always remember to do a follow-up email as a reminder to ensure your clients is acting on his own part of the deal.
7. Neutralize your Competition’s Strengths.
Now think about why would any customer engage your business if your product or service is on the same level as your competitors.
The ideal thing is to differentiate your offering by neutralizing your competitors’ strengths.
This can be done through educating your client on the industry best practice and the common tactics used by competitors to mislead prospects about performance or whatever their business goal is.
You can carefully outline what differentiate you by specifically debunking many of the selling points that you know your competitors emphasize.
This can mean turning their perceived strengths into weaknesses.
However, no matter the industry, an educated buyer always makes a better long-standing partner.
8. Listen to a prospect carefully.
Entrepreneurs are always advice to listen to their client, and indeed that is true in servicing them, but it is also an excellent way to learn about competitors.
A great way to build relationship with your clients is to just listen to what they say. “A lot of times your clients will actually tell you what they want and all you have to do is deliver.”
You have to listen very closely to your prospect when they discuss their frustrations, and dissect your competitor’s key selling points from the client’s point of view.
9. Work on your Personality to build Solid Relationship.
Absence of sales in your business may just be a case of bad personality fit. However, another salesperson may just be fortunate to win the sales.
This is because sometimes clients are more drawn to a certain personality trait. So, to be on the safe side always ensure to listen carefully while shutting up your mouth.
Your ultimate goal is to build a rapport that will stand the test of time.
10. Research Competitors and their Businesses.
To ensure your selling process is complete, it is important that you understand the rudiment of your competition.
It is seriously advisable never to base your assumptions on what is presented on the website and social media handles.
It’s imperative to study to know every step of your competitor’s work process, from marketing and sales to delivery, reporting and service, and even employee and client retention.
The ultimate goal is to show clients that your product or service are really differentiated and that you’re willing – and able – to fully understand industry dynamics.
11. Get good at reading people.
Are your business clients losing interest in you?
Do you talk too much?
Do clients’ give you excuses?
Or, is your prospect lighting up because of what you’re saying?
Your ability to understand and relate appropriately is what will make your product sales pitch stand out. If you ruminate pitch people selling products on call-in shows.
Served with metrics about the number of people that are calling in to buy a product, they can stick with sales pitches that resonate, and do away with ones that don’t.
“They’re truly understanding that this is something people are responding to or not.”
Conclusion
The Keys to Drive Business Growth requires that you do just three things which include; Sell more, sell to more, sell for more
All the 11 ways listed above are just strategies that will ensure you increase your business revenue
Your business ideally ought to have strategies that tackle all 3 of these opportunities for maximum impact.
If you don’t, then you’re missing plenty of opportunities and realistically leaving business on the table for your competitors to take advantage and cash in on them.
Standard Business Plan Writing Service
Writing a bank and investor ready professional business plan can be challenging especially if you are just venturing into business. If you need a standard and affordable business plan service, Our Professional Business Plan Writing Services is perfect for your business.
All you have to do is send us a request stating your business model, and you’d have a professional/standard business plan ready for your use in 5 to 10 days. Click here to use Our Professional Business Plan Writing Services
If you need a guide on how to structure your business then our strategic business planning questionnaire is the right fit document for you. It will give you all the necessary directions regarding what you need. Your job is to answer all the questions sincerely. Click here to download the Strategic Business Questionnaire
I am sure this article was a valuable read. What are your thoughts on the essentials elements that drive business growth in Africa, or any part of the world? Let me know by leaving a comment below.
Also, you can share this articles with friends, associates and loved ones using the share buttons.
