It took me several months to successfully generated RM 1 million as my business capital. Now it is time to maintaining my profits and brainstorms ideas and ways on how I can increase my business revenues from RM 1 million to RM5 million. Before that I would like to tell you the meaning of these two terms which is majorly mistaken as the same meaning. The words “revenue” and “income” have different meanings, and become confusing if used as synonyms. “Sales” refers to the number of units of your product you sell, and “revenues” refers to the total amount money your sales generates. Below are ways on how I will increase my business revenues from RM1 million to RM5 million :
1. Make my customers buy more from my musical instrument stores and make them come to my stores and buy again.
Firstly, I need to get my database of previous customers up to date and organized. Then I need to design three or four tempting offers I could approach them with. (It may be a new product or service, a discount on your usual products, or an expensive version of what I have traditionally offered). Then I will either call them direct, email them or send a direct mail piece about the offer, stating why it is so good and how they can buy it. Generally speaking, if I present more buying opportunities to my customers, they will buy more. As long as I don’t endlessly bother them, the more I ask them to spend money with me ,the more they will do so. Besides that, I need to work on getting more of my existing customers to come back to the cash register again. There are multiple ways to create multiple purchases. First, I need to begin looking immediately at how I can multiply my offerings. Most businesses cannot survive on just one product or service forever. The money I spend acquiring each customer can be a losing proposition if I only get one shot at one sale. So I will start by adding more products and services. Next, I need to do a better job nurturing my customers. This is because marketing is not just about leading prospects to the buying stage but it is also about keeping buyers engaged with us for years to come so you that sales can be generated.
2. Accept credit/debit cards.
Accepting credit cards for payment is a benefit to potential customers and is a proven method to quickly spur sales. Firstly, I need to go to the bank or local financial institution and create a merchant account. The best place to begin when trying to get merchant status is by approaching the bank that already holds my business accounts. There are several reasons why I chose to accept credit/debit cards in my business. Firstly, it is so accessible and so easy to add point of sales equipment to my business. Secondly, there are various studies show that when people are given more payment options (beyond cash); they are more likely to make impulse purchases, join loyalty programs, and spend more per purchase – and that can only help my business to grow. Thirdly,many people prefer not to carry cash, especially when traveling. Others prefer to pay with credit cards because they know that it will be easier to return or exchange the merchandise. Fourth, it gives me the chance to increase sales by enabling customers to make impulse buys even when they do not have cash in their wallets or sufficient funds in their checking accounts. Moreover, accepting credit cards can improve cash flow because in most cases when receive the money within a few days instead of waiting for a check to clear or an invoice to come due. Finally, credit cards provide a guarantee that we will be paid, without the risks involved in accepting personal checks.
3. Add complementary services to existing products.
Adding complementary services or products may help you gain new clients, as well as maintain existing ones. In addition to selling musical instruments, I can increase revenues my business revenues and profits by providing instrument repairs, classes, music instrument rentals, and sales of related products such as sheet music. Firstly, I need to look for individuals who can handle instrument service and repair, music education as well as sales. In the meantime, I also need to ensure that I choose people who are dedicated in their work and willing to help my the growth of my business. I will provide top quality repairs that last using the best tools, supplies, and parts. I will do first class repairs on guitars and ukuleles and about any other type of acoustic instrument. My customers can be assured that their repair will be made using the finest materials, quality workmanship and extreme attention to detail.
4. Crowdfunding
The use of small amounts of capital from a large number of people to finance a new business venture. Crowdfunding makes use of the easy accessibility of huge networks of friends, family and colleagues through social media websites like Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn to get the word out about a new business and attract investors. Crowdfunding has the possible ability to increase entrepreneurship by expanding the pool of investors from whom money can be raised beyond the usual circle of owners, relatives and venture capitalists. In other words, crowdfunding is a new way of raising money whether for business or for charity purpose. In the early days, the only sources of money was bankloans, angel, loans from family and friends or donations. There are three popular sites for crowdfunding in Malaysia namely: Pitchin.my , SocialSharity.com and Mystartr.com.
5. Increase social media marketing strategies
Quantity does not necessarily mean quality, so careful planning, test-marketing and monitoring results maximizes sales. So, I should conduct marketplace research to learn which messages speak to my target audience. Besides that, I need to run ads and promotions in limited locations and check the results before spending my entire budget. Furthermore, I need to incorporate some way to monitor marketing communications, such as using coupons, electronic codes or website traffic statistics. Apart from that, I need to create my own business website, blog, twitter and Facebook page to reach out to my customers.
