The Best Ways to Make More Money From Your Business
Congratulations, you’re a small business owner! You’re now a part of the 1.14 million small business owners in Canada. That’s nearly 98 percent of all businesses in the country.
Owning a business is great, but it’s not always enough financially. This leads to business owners looking for alternative ways to make more money. The internet has opened the door to various income opportunities. And you can take advantage of them no matter what industry you’re in.
If you’re a small business owner and want to increase your income, then here are some ideas you can try online and offline.
Find Other Business Ventures to Invest In
There are folks out there with great ideas, but a lack of funding to pursue them. You can be someone’s angel investor, helping them bring their visions to life. It’s a great feeling and if you choose the right ventures, it could be quite profitable.
Search around for entrepreneurs with innovative ideas you find exciting. If you have the funding, consider investing in multiple ventures. Act as a silent partner, so you don’t have to engage in the daily workings of their business.
You have enough on your plate as is.
Start A Personal Blog
You’re a seasoned professional – why not share your knowledge with others seeking it? One way to do this is to start up your own blog. People within your industry, or looking to break into your industry, can use your guidance.
Once your blog becomes a go-to resource, you will become an authority. Gaining that status can present multiple opportunities for ways to make more money. For example, you can monetize your blog with ads.
If you’re getting a lot of traffic, your ad revenue can soar through the roof. The popularity of your blog may also attract others in your industry. These individuals may be willing to pay you big money to promote their products and services.
Then, when your own customers find you or your brand online, they will see you are a trusted authority. This will make it easier for them to convert from a prospect into a customer.
Train People Part-Time
This is another way you can capitalize on your expertise in business. Others are willing to pay money to learn what you took years to master. So why not train these people part-time? You can help others become more efficient at their jobs and increase their productivity.
There are sites like ECI Coaching, where you can certify yourself as a qualified trainer. If you want to offer certificates to your trainees, you can create and sell video courses on Udemy.
Sell Goods Online
There are over 3.2 billion internet users around the world. That’s more than 40% of the global population. If you’re in the market of selling clothes, you can gain a portion of the 42% of Canadians that buy apparel online.
Brick and mortar stores are shutting down across North America because of e-commerce. But you can easily leverage your lack of foot traffic by creating an online store. What’s great about this is there are no restrictions – your goods can be sold worldwide.
And you don’t have to just stick to the products you sell in-store. You can venture into other trendy items you know people are interested in.
Others are already reaping the benefits of owning an e-commerce site. In Canada, the e-commerce industry is booming.
Rent Out A Portion of Your Business Building
Are there areas of your business you don’t really need? Or maybe when things get slow, you shut down portions of the building until things pick up. Whatever the case, you can rent out the space that’s not in use.
Downsizing is the new thing, especially when the majority of tasks can be done online. This is a great alternative to selling the property to buy a smaller one.
Subleasing a room or space in your business can also present other ways to make more money. For instance, you can cross-promote your services and products. This would work if the business you’re subleasing to is within the same industry or have similar customers.
Turn Services Into Packaged Products
Who doesn’t like a good deal? Offer your customers the option of bundling services at a great price. Most companies that offer services charge by the hour. Try formulating packages that will attract your audience.
Who knows, you may find that switching your business model could send your profits through the roof!
Focus On Retaining Customers
The goal of every business is to attract new customers. But there are only but so many new leads you can get. So why not focus your efforts on getting repeat business from the customers you already have?
This is one of the ingenious ways to make more money from your business. The cost of advertising to new customers is high. You can take away these expenses by reaching out to your current customers. This can be through email, mail or even on social media.
You already have a database of your customers, which makes it simple to retarget them in your marketing. And they’re already familiar with your services. Analyze the data to see which product or service they’d likely be interested in next.
Maybe you can upsell your new packaged services to them. Make sure to provide excellent customer service so your customers are more willing to stick around.
Tack On Value-Added Services or Products
What ways can you improve your business? How about including value-added products and services? For instance, if you’re in the carpet cleaning business, you can offer customers bottles of spot remover.
Or if you’re selling kitchenware, why not offer cooking lessons or knife sharpening tools? Think of ways you can improve the customer experience.
Make sure to do research to ensure it’s profitable. After all, you’re searching for ways to make more money, not lose it!
Reduce Your Expenses
When’s the last time you looked at your expenses? Do you really need the phonebook ads you’ve been paying for these past 20 years? Probably not. The internet offers cheaper and more effective means of marketing your company.
Check through all the expenses you have to ensure they’re helping increase profits (rather than detract from it). Don’t be afraid to downsize your workforce if it’s plausible. Many small business owners are crossing over to contractors versus employees.
This way, you only pay for what you need when you need it. Make sure to go over the pros and cons of hiring a contractor over an employee. And remember, Some positions may require someone in the office full-time.
Find Cheaper Products And Service Providers
The lower you pay for the products and services you offer, the more your business can pocket. Of course, this should be done with care. You don’t want to end up with poor quality. This will only scare away customers.
Some businesses even get away with marking up their prices. If your customers are willing to pay more for what you have to offer, then this is no problem.
Outsource Work To Contractors
This is by far one of the best ways to make more money. By freeing up time to focus on growth related activities, you’re able to drive the business forward which often means more money coming in.
Finding reliable help is key. Depending on the job in question, you may be able to outsource to virtual assistants and professionals.
What’s also great about outsourcing is you can take money off the top. For example, if you offer web design services, you can hire a contractor to do the job for 75% of the project cost. You get to keep 15% of each project you outsource.
Invest In Paid Ads
There are two ways you can benefit from paid ads. By purchasing space on third-party websites. Or creating campaigns in Google and social media platforms.
Paid ads have proven to work quickly in getting traffic and leads and can be a great way to increase business if your not already using this advertising method.
As they say, it takes money to make money!
Offer Consulting Services
You can go beyond coaching customers on an individual basis. Go a step further with paid seminars, webinars and speeches. If you’re great at public speaking, show your charisma and expertise at these events.
Businesses and even consumers are always looking to improve themselves and their skills. If you can teach them how to do something better, then you’re in the money.
Write A Book (or e-book)
Another way to showcase your knowledge is through a book. You can create a print or electronic version (or both). This is becoming an increasingly popular way to make more money.
E-books are very popular because they’re inexpensive to publish. There are no costs to split with a publisher. You can offer them as a download on your website and on platforms like Amazon.
