One of the easiest ways to increase your business income is to increase the value of your transactions. In many respects this should be common sense, but let’s take a moment to delve deeper into this subject.
When you consider your customers are already warm prospects, you should try to add value (and therefore increased revenue) to every transaction. Chances are that you have already experienced this type of behaviour during your personal interactions with other businesses and if you are not incorporating this strategy into your own business, it is about time that you took a look at it.
One of the best examples that I can give you would be exactly what I learned about sales at my first job. At the time, I was sixteen and new to the working world, and I was about as green as they come. When I started my first job, I was selling coffee and donuts at a Robin’s Donuts in Saskatoon.
During the first day of training I learned about upselling. In the case of a donut shop, the obvious upsell was asking the customer if they would like a donut with their cup of coffee. While the dollar value of the transaction wasn’t large, in most cases we were able to convert the customer. They not only were able to enjoy their coffee, but a delicious donut too.
When we take a look at the implications of adding value to the customer experience in this example, we can see a significant impact on the earnings of the business. Consider that this donut shop had about four hundred customers per day, converting 25% of these transactions into upsells yields another $75 per day. Now I know that many of you would think that it would be worth it, but by having your staff ask a simple question, you can increase your income by $27,000 per year.
Pretty easy, right?
There are many other examples of businesses that can benefit from this business model. For example, you could offer your web design client a hosting package. This would turn a one time event (the web design) into a recurring transaction(the hosting for their website). An auto dealership could offer free detailing for a year with the customer purchasing the upgraded warranty package. A realtor could offer a gift basket to the new home owners that bought through them on a successful close.
There is opportunity for you to add value to your transactions no matter what industry you work in, product you sell, or service you offer.
While many of us would be tempted to just look at the bottom line, it is important to realize that many of these value-added transactions have other benefits as well, with the most important being customer loyalty. By providing superior service, you are not only going to convince your customers to become repeat customers, but they will also be more likely to bring in more business for you by recommending your company to their circle of friends.
So take the time put your customers first and go that extra distance for them. Ensure that your staff is trained properly to ensure that they are providing extra value in every customer interaction. Taking care of your customers will ensure a loyal customer base that will help you to grow your business for years to come.
