5 Ways to Lift Your Home Business Out of a Slump
Everyone gets into a slump once in a while. From baseball players to the economy, there are natural cycles or rhythms to life, and everyone experiences a down time now and then. I wrote recently about motivating yourself, but how about your business? What can you do to get your business out of a slump?
1. Check your expenses. We all get into a certain level of spending that is comfortable, but I’m guessing you may be spending money on some things that you don’t really need to. There may also be expenditures that you aren’t even aware of, that you are paying for every month. Look carefully at your credit card bills and bank statements and check to see if there are any ‘lurkers’ there. For example, I recently found that I was paying monthly for a service that I no longer used. But I forgot to cancel it. Canceling it took just a few minutes and now I have that money available for other things.
2. Refresh your marketing. Look at how you are marketing your products or services. Are you getting the best value for your dollars? Every marketing effort goes stale in time, even the best ones. Look at McDonald’s; they have a new ad campaign every few years, for a good reason - people get tired of seeing the same old ads. If you are using an advertising agency, get a new one, or get a new person to do your ads. If you are doing them yourself, find someone creative to help you develop something new. How about a contest? Or a promotional event?
3. Repackage or clear out your inventory or services. If you haven’t sold something in a while, have a clearance sale and get rid of it. Or give it as a donation to a charity and take the tax deduction. Repackage products; put a couple of them together and sell as something new. If you are providing a service, develop a new higher level of service. For example, create a premium service with extra features. Or go the other way and do a “low cost” alternative service, being careful not to give away your time too cheaply.
4. Develop new markets. Who might need your products or services that you haven’t marketed to yet? If you are selling to Baby Boomers, for example, maybe younger groups might want what you are selling if you package it differently. A quilter who has been selling to gift shops might want to start making quilts for sale at flea markets.
5. Refresh your website. Web sites too need updated regularly. Put in a whole new look, with new photos and new copy. You can build up the suspense and create excitement by letting your readers know about the upcoming change.
Just thinking about these ideas has given me some of my own. Spring is coming and I’m going to get ready to get out of my winter business slump. How about you?
Image source: Newscom
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