Every business owner wants to know how to increase their revenue, particularly nowadays. Check out this list of 6 easy ways to increase your revenue. Tip number 6 will blow your mind (I’m doing it now, and so should you):
1. Hand-Written Notes Asking For Referrals
How To Increase Revenue, Fast: Writing snail mail notes by hand to recent customers stimulates (free) word of mouth advertising. Write this on a simple note card made from thick paper, a colored envelope and an interesting 1st class stamp so it stands out in the mailbox. “Thank you for purchasing. Would you do us the favor of recommending us to a friend? We’ll give them a discount if they bring in this card. Sincerely…”
How To Increase Revenue, Fast: Take a look at the 10-15% of your clients who produce the most headaches, create the most stress, or otherwise gum up the works in your business. Commit to replacing each of these problem clients with one that looks more like your top 10-15% favorite clients. As soon as you secured the new client, tell the problem client that your rates just went up. Make handling their problems worth your time!
How To Increase Revenue, Fast: Make a video showing your customers and potential customers how to use your product (or service), show step by step instructions, and explain the basic features, then post it on YouTube, “How-to” sites like ExpertVillage.com, HowCast.com or HandbookLive.com
How To Increase Revenue, Fast: We include an “upgrade card” in every order we ship out encouraging the customer to get a bigger size or add options to their order automatically helping to increase our average transaction amount. We put a toll free number and e-mail address on the card so they can reach out to us so we can help them.
How To Increase Revenue, Fast: When I put a red heart-shaped “We Love Referrals” on all my invoices and correspondence to my clients, my business nearly doubled in a year. Your satisfied clients are your best source of similar clients or customers.
Thanks To: Eva Rosenberg, EA, your TaxMama® TaxMamma.com
6. An Amazing Way To Get Competitors Calls
How To Increase Revenue, Fast: Go through your local yellow pages and call on your competitors ads. You will always find several ads big to small that have disconnected numbers. Now call your local telephone company and have those disconnected numbers assigned to “ring to” your main number and voila! You’re now receiving tons of yellow page advertising for Free!
Great ideas here. I particularly like idea number 6. That is completely genius. As always thanks for the great business ideas.
Fred Griffin Says:
March 26th, 2009
I’m just getting started and these ideas are great
Thanks!!
Dixie Vogel Says:
March 26th, 2009
I especially use #2. Colleague of mine calls it “Asshole Tax.” It really does help the attitude when yo’ve got someone making you nuts. Har!
Jennifer L. Schiff Says:
March 26th, 2009
Excellent ideas! Thanks for sharing, Mike. Another great tip, make sure to get your name out by commenting/talking about your expertise on other people’s blogs and getting journalists to write about you/your business!
Eugenia Francis Says:
March 26th, 2009
Great tips! One strategy that worked for me was to bundle my products and offer a Value Pack. A larger order for me. Customer receives a discount and saves on shipping. A win/win proposition.
Michelle McCullough Says:
March 26th, 2009
Great tips! Thanks for keeping us TPE’ers going. In the middle of your book. Preparing to write a review for startupprincess.com. Also, happy to find you on twitter!
Dawn S. Smith Says:
March 26th, 2009
Thank you for idea number six, Bert and Mike! When searching for new clients, I often encounter disconnected phone numbers a lot. I never thought about routing these numbers to my own phone number.
MJ DeMarco Says:
March 26th, 2009
Awesome list, #6 is indeed a golden nugget. Also, for #2, in my business I didn’t charge those customers more, I just fired them. A simple “It appears our business is not for you, we suggest [competitor], thank you”. Let my competitors deal with their BS!!!
Doug McIsaac Says:
March 26th, 2009
# six is awesome! Wow, what a great, simple idea. I’ve done something similar with websites. Where you buy websites that still have links and traffic coming into them.
Thanks,
Doug
spazz.me Says:
March 26th, 2009
Those were cool!
E Lewis Says:
March 26th, 2009
Great info…#6 is the best tip!!
Thanks
Eric
Laura Wynn Says:
March 26th, 2009
I was glad to see #3 listed because it works! I actually hired handbooklive.com to create a video for my business. The professionalism and traffic they draw is more credible than a “you tube” video. It shows HOW to use my product, not just stating what it is. I have seen a huge increase in user base because once people watch the video and see how to use the online ordering program they are linked right to my site to practice what they’ve learned! I’d definitely recommend it and I’ve seen well more than what I paid for the video production in generated revenue.
Katie Danziger Says:
March 26th, 2009
Love the tips, especially the video one, because I know that when people see how easy it is to slip the nomie baby car seat cover on and off people “get it!”
Thanks!
CherokeeHotelCasino Says:
March 26th, 2009
Great, thanks for the advice.
Ivana Taylor Says:
March 26th, 2009
I do #6 ALL THE TIME – whenever a client says they want to place a Yellow Pages ad – I tell THEM to do #6 too. It blows their mind too. Then I tell them to give ME the money they were going to give the yellow pages
tina wick Says:
March 26th, 2009
Such great stuff!!!!!!! Thanks!
Chase Barfield Says:
March 26th, 2009
Mike and Scott,
Thank you for the tips. You are right…#6 is a must do. It is so simple yet so effective. And thank you Bert Martinez for sending in the suggestion.
Jorge Barba Says:
March 27th, 2009
Good stuff! The last two are the ones I’m going to try right away. Thanks for sharing.
@JoshHurlock Says:
March 27th, 2009
Thanks for the tips. Number 6 is without a doubt the highlight of the list. This is just capitalizing on opportunity and using great intellgence. This is great advice for entrepreneurs at http://tv.factor77.com/, where people take their business to the next level.
Links: March out Little Lamb Edition | Meryl.net Says:
March 27th, 2009
[...] How to Increase Revenue Fast! See #6 for an amazing and creative tip. Another goodie from same blog (TPE guy is awesome!): 163 Ways How To Become An Entrepreneur. [...]
Tyler Powell Says:
March 27th, 2009
Great tips…as always. Thanks for sharing, Mike. #1 is my fav. Personal touches in my biz go a long way to show the love and appreciation.
I guess I’m the odd man out on #6 though. I’d file that under “deceptive practices”. #6 is a great way to deceive your clients right out of the chute…and lose their trust before you get started. As a consumer, I’d be unhappy with the auto-redirect. As a business owner, I respect my clients too much to deliberately deceive them (trick them) into coming my way.
A Bisht Says:
March 27th, 2009
#6 is indeed mind blowing.
Dollars In Disconnected Numbers » client k Says:
March 29th, 2009
[...] The Toilet Paper Entrepreneur has a list of 6 ways to increase revenue quickly. [...]
Dan Says:
April 3rd, 2009
Mr. Tyler Powell missed the point completely. No one ever said decieve the client, tell them the truth. You just bought the number.
All the tips were great. However #6 is out of box great. Great job Mike and Bert.
Mike Michalowicz Says:
April 4th, 2009
@Dan – agreed. It is in the execution. When I find a disconnected number in the YP and the company exists, I actually call them (if they have another phone – otherwise email) and tell them what the problem is. BUT – if they don’t exist anymore, it is actually a disservice to clients not to pick up the number. People are calling to get service and get nothing. The final thing is, we need to make sure when the customer calls that they know who I am and what business they are calling. They need to be immediately told that this is NOT the closed business they were intending to call.
1. Hand-Written Notes Asking For Referrals
March 26th, 2009
Thanks for the tips!
March 26th, 2009
Great ideas here. I particularly like idea number 6. That is completely genius. As always thanks for the great business ideas.
March 26th, 2009
I’m just getting started and these ideas are great
Thanks!!
March 26th, 2009
I especially use #2. Colleague of mine calls it “Asshole Tax.” It really does help the attitude when yo’ve got someone making you nuts. Har!
March 26th, 2009
Excellent ideas! Thanks for sharing, Mike. Another great tip, make sure to get your name out by commenting/talking about your expertise on other people’s blogs and getting journalists to write about you/your business!
March 26th, 2009
Great tips! One strategy that worked for me was to bundle my products and offer a Value Pack. A larger order for me. Customer receives a discount and saves on shipping. A win/win proposition.
March 26th, 2009
Great tips! Thanks for keeping us TPE’ers going. In the middle of your book. Preparing to write a review for startupprincess.com. Also, happy to find you on twitter!
March 26th, 2009
Thank you for idea number six, Bert and Mike! When searching for new clients, I often encounter disconnected phone numbers a lot. I never thought about routing these numbers to my own phone number.
March 26th, 2009
Awesome list, #6 is indeed a golden nugget. Also, for #2, in my business I didn’t charge those customers more, I just fired them. A simple “It appears our business is not for you, we suggest [competitor], thank you”. Let my competitors deal with their BS!!!
March 26th, 2009
# six is awesome! Wow, what a great, simple idea. I’ve done something similar with websites. Where you buy websites that still have links and traffic coming into them.
Thanks,
Doug
March 26th, 2009
Those were cool!
March 26th, 2009
Great info…#6 is the best tip!!
Thanks
Eric
March 26th, 2009
I was glad to see #3 listed because it works! I actually hired handbooklive.com to create a video for my business. The professionalism and traffic they draw is more credible than a “you tube” video. It shows HOW to use my product, not just stating what it is. I have seen a huge increase in user base because once people watch the video and see how to use the online ordering program they are linked right to my site to practice what they’ve learned! I’d definitely recommend it and I’ve seen well more than what I paid for the video production in generated revenue.
March 26th, 2009
Love the tips, especially the video one, because I know that when people see how easy it is to slip the nomie baby car seat cover on and off people “get it!”
Thanks!
March 26th, 2009
Great, thanks for the advice.
March 26th, 2009
I do #6 ALL THE TIME – whenever a client says they want to place a Yellow Pages ad – I tell THEM to do #6 too. It blows their mind too. Then I tell them to give ME the money they were going to give the yellow pages
March 26th, 2009
Such great stuff!!!!!!! Thanks!
March 26th, 2009
Mike and Scott,
Thank you for the tips. You are right…#6 is a must do. It is so simple yet so effective. And thank you Bert Martinez for sending in the suggestion.
March 27th, 2009
Good stuff! The last two are the ones I’m going to try right away. Thanks for sharing.
March 27th, 2009
Thanks for the tips. Number 6 is without a doubt the highlight of the list. This is just capitalizing on opportunity and using great intellgence. This is great advice for entrepreneurs at http://tv.factor77.com/, where people take their business to the next level.
March 27th, 2009
[...] How to Increase Revenue Fast! See #6 for an amazing and creative tip. Another goodie from same blog (TPE guy is awesome!): 163 Ways How To Become An Entrepreneur. [...]
March 27th, 2009
Great tips…as always. Thanks for sharing, Mike. #1 is my fav. Personal touches in my biz go a long way to show the love and appreciation.
I guess I’m the odd man out on #6 though. I’d file that under “deceptive practices”. #6 is a great way to deceive your clients right out of the chute…and lose their trust before you get started. As a consumer, I’d be unhappy with the auto-redirect. As a business owner, I respect my clients too much to deliberately deceive them (trick them) into coming my way.
March 27th, 2009
#6 is indeed mind blowing.
March 29th, 2009
[...] The Toilet Paper Entrepreneur has a list of 6 ways to increase revenue quickly. [...]
April 3rd, 2009
Mr. Tyler Powell missed the point completely. No one ever said decieve the client, tell them the truth. You just bought the number.
All the tips were great. However #6 is out of box great. Great job Mike and Bert.
April 4th, 2009
@Dan – agreed. It is in the execution. When I find a disconnected number in the YP and the company exists, I actually call them (if they have another phone – otherwise email) and tell them what the problem is. BUT – if they don’t exist anymore, it is actually a disservice to clients not to pick up the number. People are calling to get service and get nothing. The final thing is, we need to make sure when the customer calls that they know who I am and what business they are calling. They need to be immediately told that this is NOT the closed business they were intending to call.
- Mike