Creating a business is hard work, but managing a steady and reliable stream of income is even harder. Even those with the best business plan with competitive solutions and resources to support growth find their sales constrained at some point.
With your bottom line begging for expansion and your investors looking for the highest returns, it’s vital that you understand why your sales are being restrained. These can be vast, containing both internal and external factors. The following five, however, are the critical factors every business owner should be aware of.
1. Your People
In order to grow, you need to recruit. Your ability to reel in quality sales reps, develop their skills even further, and keep them onboard is absolutely vital to your success. If you’re not focusing on building multiple dream sales teams, you’re only creating your own constraint.
At the same time, your sales reps need to have the right tools to thrive. There are countless high performance tools for sales professionals on the market, and a combination of them can ensure you’re making the most out of your teams. Otherwise, you’re just sending them upstream without a paddle.
2. Customer Relationships
Customer service is an incredible driving force behind your sales. How each customer feels after their transaction or interaction with your business determines whether or not they’ll be back. In today’s online world, people are also more likely to leave a positive review after a good experience.
With each positive review, potential customers are drawn to the experiences that others have had. However, it only takes one to three negative reviews to begin damaging your relationships with consumers. With better relations comes better customers. There’s far more to managing customer value than just reviews, but it’s a good place to start.
3. Market Focus
One major constraint that many businesses face is not knowing their true market. When this happens, companies throw out too wide of a net in an attempt to gain more sales. This rarely works, however, which is why you should put extra funding into market research to better define your focus.
4. Differentiation and Brand Image
Everyone has a brand, but what tells consumers that yours is any different from the next one inside your target market? Putting more effort into quality branding is a quick solution to constrained sales, re-solidifying your place in the market.
At the same time, you need to ensure your business is free from allegation and negative public light. A non-inclusive culture, sexual harassment at work, and even one rogue tweet can tarnish a brand for good.
5. Process and Strategy
In many cases, your marketing strategy simply needs tweaking. Pay attention to its ability to deliver consistent and intended results. If your strategy is off, then it’s time to brainstorm about how you can make it more effective.
While you’re at it, take a look at your sales process. Is it repeatable, scalable, and successful? If not, then it’s going to need some tweaking as well. Handling these two aspects at the same time can help your sales grow, if not explode.