By Henry Brown

If that headline attracted you, then I’m willing to bet your business is struggling. Things were going great, but now they’ve slowed down considerably. Don’t worry, this happens a lot, particularly if you’ve opened a new business. Things start off really well, and everyone is excited about the new business in town. Then they lose interest, and you start to struggle.

So, you’re left with a business that doesn’t do as much as you’d like it to. Which is why I’ve come up with three ways to help you get more out of your business:

Reduce your expenses

One way to get more out of your business is to stop how much goes out of it! That’s right; focus your efforts on reducing your expenses. If you cut down on the money that’s leaving your company, you can make more of a profit. A lot of businesses forget about this when they’re first starting out. You could have the best sales figures in the country, but you still might not make a profit. If too much money is being spent, then you’ll struggle.

As luck would have it, you can reduce your expenses in multiple ways. One simple tip is to start paying less for everything. If you have to buy supplies, shop around for a better dealer. Instead of paying loads for a big office, you could downgrade. Pay less and rent a smaller one, and get some of your employees to work from home. This can save you an absolute fortune, and your business will benefit from it. As a bonus, some research suggests that working from home is better for your employees. So, you get more productive staff and save money while you’re at it. Reduce your expenses now, and you’ll see a brighter future for your business.

Learn the Six Sigma Methodology

If you’ve been involved in business for a long time, you’ve probably heard of Six Sigma. If you haven’t, allow me to briefly describe it for you. In simple terms, it’s a method of improving productivity in your business. It’s all based around finding what’s wrong with certain processes you perform. For example, when you sell a product, look at all the wrong things you do. With Six Sigma, you learn to eliminate these wrongdoings. As a result, you aren’t doing things wrong, and wasting any time while you’re at it. You end up completing processes a lot faster, and better than before. Your business becomes way more productive than it used to be. There are certain Lean Six Sigma Certification Standards that you must reach. Once you’ve done this, you’ll be certified and know all there is to know about this method. Then, you can apply the teachings to your business. Consequently, you can get a lot more out of it. You’ll boost productivity and start making more money. Everything you do will be better than before. It’s a wonderful tip that can help turn your business around.

Don’t neglect your current customers

A lot of businesses focus so much effort on attracting new customers. They think this is a great way to get more out of their company. By bringing in new clients, you can make more money, right? Well, it’s not technically right or wrong. Yes, you can make more money, but you can also make less money. It all depends on your current customer base. If you neglect them to focus on new ones, then they may stop spending money. So, all of your new customers don’t bring in enough money to counter the amount you’re not getting.

To put it simply, you have to focus on your current customers at all times. Once you’ve got a strong client base, you must keep them coming back for more. This helps you generate a steady flow of sales. You’ll be making a lot of money on a regular basis. Then, you can try and get new customers while still focusing on old ones. People do things like ‘new customer offers’ to entice people in. But, it means your loyal customers get nothing. So, my advice is to implement loyalty offers as well as new customer offers. This way, you keep your current clients happy, and can reel in new ones too.

With this advice, you can push your small business to the next level. You’ll earn more money, and be far more productive. These three ideas are guaranteed to help you get more out of your business.

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Henry Brown is an online marketing executive. When he isn’t talking shop he’s roaming the streets of London; uncovering the extra-ordinary in the ordinary.