December 7, 2018
Cash flow problems are the number one cause of small business failure. If you need to increase cash flow, consider implementing the following 5 strategies...
Increase prices - Don't be afraid to raise prices. It is impossible for small businesses to absorb economic swings that adversely impact their bottom line. As long as your pricing is right for the product and also inline with competition, and your service and overall experience are superb, your customers will continue to buy.
Encourage employees to upsell & cross-sell - This is the easiest to do, but often the biggest miss for many small businesses. It not only increases your bottom line, but also is a service to your customers. If they are buying a suit, your employees should never fail to also show them shirts, ties, socks, cufflinks & shoes to match! If they are buying a toy, don't forget the batteries, for example. This applies to both product and service industries.
Re-examine inventory - Are you carrying items that aren’t producing? More than likely the 80/20 rule applies & 80% of your sales are coming from 20% of your inventory. This is the time to liquidate excess inventory...when traffic is high and consumers are looking for deals
Review credit card statements - See if you are paying for services you aren’t using or don’t need...esp. ones that auto-renew. We are all often guilty of this. With the convenience of auto-pay and the hustle & bustle of work and everyday life, we sometimes fail to keep up with items on auto-pay.
Crowd-funding - Consider a crowd-funding campaign if you are working on a new project...esp. something that will benefit the community in which your business resides.
As the holiday season is in full gear, don't miss out on the opportunity to increase cash flow now and ensure your business remains on track heading into the new year!
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