Profit Boosting Ideas For Your Business

There are two primary ways to increase profits:

• Raise revenue

• Lower expenses

That's not particularly enlightening or instructional, is it? Let's look at four ways you can increase revenues and four ways you can reduce expenses to get clearer on what actions you can take for your business. 

Ways to Increase Revenue

Raise prices
The easiest way to raise revenue is to simply raise prices. However, this is not foolproof and assumes you'll be able to maintain the volume of sales you've achieved in the past. This method is also limited by market demand, what your customers are willing to pay.

Add new customers
Adding new customers is what most entrepreneurs think about when raising revenue. Increasing your marketing or adding new marketing methods is typically the way to add new customers. Another related option is to work hard to keep the customers you already have. You can also potentially contact the customers you lost and ask them to come back.

Introduce new products or services
For some companies, your products and services are changing every year. For others, not so much. To increase revenue, consider adding new products or services that will bring in an additional revenue stream that you didn't have before. Even if your products are changing every year, you can consider adding something completely different that your customer base would love.  For example, a hair salon could add a nail desk, a clothing store could add handbags or shoes, a grocery store could add a coffee bar, a restaurant could add catering, a landscaper could add hardscaping, and so on.

Acquisition
The final way a business can increase revenue is to acquire another business in a merger or acquisition.

Four Ways to Reduce Expenses

Negotiate for a better deal with vendors
If you've been working with a vendor for a while, you may be able to re-negotiate your contract with them. This is especially common with telecom companies. Call you phone provider and ask them for the latest deal. They always favor new customers over long term customers, but they don't want to lose customers either. Just calling them usually yields a better price than what you are paying now.

Change vendors
If a vendor has gotten too expensive, it might be time to look for a new vendor. Health care insurance seems to be in this category. Often, changing providers will lower your costs. 

Reduce headcount
If there is not enough work to support your employees or not enough cash flow to pay them, then it might be time for a layoff or restructuring. You might also consider outsourcing a function that you previously did in-house.
 
Reduce / rationalize expenses or services
It might be your business no longer needs to spend money on an expense. Perhaps this expense has been automated. In this case, it's an easy decision to cut the expense out entirely. 

Those are some of the ways to increase profits. Which one makes the most sense in your business? Create a plan around these eight ideas to boost your profit this year, and let us know if we can help. For results you can count on, contact us at 1 844 577 7654 or at solutions@bizmetrics.ca  We hope you find all of this useful and, as always, please keep your feedback and suggestions coming.

BizMetrics, Marketing Minute and Results You Can Count On are trademarks of BizMetrics Incorporated. Copyright © 2019 BizMetrics Incorporated. All rights reserved.

Once a year I get the privilege to speak about my company Bloomtools Durham and all of our web offerings at our bi - weekly Durham Networking Association meetings.At our last meeting I took the time to discuss my customer Graphics Production Group and the results they have been getting with their Bloomtools website.

When I first start working with a client we walk them through our philosophy on the 5ps of a website. We use this to start the customer's online plan.

Purpose: What is the purpose of your website? Every website needs to have one. If not it is just there doing nothing! For Graphics Production Group the purpose of the site is to highlight all the work they do with print, show that they are experts in their industry and ultimately to get leads!

Persuasion: You have 3-5 seconds to grab your potential customer's attention when they land on your website. You must have an updated modern design site to keep that prospect from leaving right away. Along with that Graphics Production Group's website features recent print projects in pictures, Blogs and testimonials to persuade prospects into showing them they are experts in print production.

Promotion: How do you promote your website? There are many ways to get customers and potential clients to your website. If you don't promote it then your site is just a billboard in a dessert. Graphics Production Group promotes their website through Print Material, Google Ads campaigns, Social Media, Database Marketing and in person meetings.

Productivity:  Once your potential customer is on your website and looking through the site, you need them to take action. You want them to contact you so you will have their information and can start selling to them. You can do this by offering something, a discount, a white paper etc.. For Graphics Production Group they want you to get an estimate, this takes their potential client to a form where they can fill out all the information for their next print job. Allowing Graphics Production Group to quote on the potential clients business. 

Persistence: After doing all this work you want to make sure you stay relevant and front of mind with your clients and past prospects that came to your site. You never know when they will need your services again. Creating a strategy where you are staying in touch with these customers is paramount to your continued success of your business. Bloomtools websites have an integrated Database Marketing tool that will help you do this.  We created a custom email template for Graphics Production Group, allowing them to send out monthly newsletters, targeted industry emails and automated campaigns to potential new customers.

The Graphics Production Group website has been live for two years now and during that time they have been following their Online Marketing plan and the 5 Ps strategy.

Results

45 New Customers in 2 Years

51 Leads From the website in 2018

Increase Revenues of 35% from 2017 to 2018

If you're looking to get results from your website and don't know where to start, give me a call to get your Bloomtools Website and Online Marketing Plan.

Chris Downey

Marketing Consultant

Bloomtools Durham

905 447 0257

chris.downey@bloomtools.ca

www.bloomtoolsdurham.ca 

Tax debt can be a crushing burden to carry and many believe it is a life-long burden.    So, it may be surprising to hear that there are ways to settle or eliminate tax debt with the help of a Licensed Insolvency Trustee ("Trustee").

In formal proposals filed through a Trustee, the Canada Revenue Agency ("CRA") is open to accepting settlements for far less than the full amount, including the principal portion itself.  This is something that CRA cannot do outside of a formal proposal.    These formal proposals also stop CRA's powerful collection tools.  For example, after a formal proposal is filed, CRA is prohibited from garnishing wages, seizing bank accounts or registering tax liens.

Don't be confused by American bankruptcy rules, which are more strict when it comes to tax debt.  In Canada, income tax and HST debts have no special priority and are treated as general unsecured debts, much the same way that credit card debt is treated.   This also includes tax liabilities of directors who have been assessed for the corporation's HST debts or unremitted source deductions

Proposals and bankruptcies have released countless business owners and other professionals from the crushing burden of tax debt.   Therefore, those burdened with tax debt are encouraged to consult with a  Licensed Insolvency Trustee to explore  options to solve their tax debt problems.

Dennis Kish, BA, JD, CIRP, LIT
Licensed Insolvency Trustee | Regional Practice Leader
T: +1 (905) 433-2166
afarber.com

However, it is very important for all drivers to understand these coverages and how they affect you.

This applies to you whether you are a driver, a passenger, a pedestrian or a cyclist and whether you were at fault or not.

The coverages we'll be discussing in the coming weeks will include;

• Injuries
• Dependent Care, Caregiver & Housekeeping
• Income Replacement
• Death and Funeral

Tune in over the next 4 weeks for a simple break down of each coverage, what's included in your policy automatically and your options for increasing coverage if necessary.

Learn more at our video blog https://www.roughleyinsurance.com/accidentbenefits

When you are ready to discuss your accident benefit coverage on your automobile insurance policy, contact us at 905-424-5939, email us at jskelton@roughleyinsurance.com  or visit us at 1000 Simcoe St. N., Oshawa.

Jeff Skelton