The 9 Challenges Every Successful Business Overcomes – Challenge #7

In this series of posts I am focusing on 9 challenges that every business faces.

I will post one of these challenges every week.  These are challenges that I’ve seen as I’ve begun consulting various businesses over this last year.

The more I’ve thought about it the more I’ve come to believe that these are the same challenges that any/every business faces – no matter what product or service they sell.

I also believe that successful businesses in any arena are successful BECAUSE they have overcome each of these 9 challenges.

Each post in this series will give a brief description of one of the 9 challenges that you face as a business owner.

Let’s look at the seventh challenge every successful business overcomes.

7. You need to get customers to buy a second time.

If you only sell to each customer one time, you’re going to have a really hard time staying in business!

Why?  Because you’re going to have to constantly find new prospects to convince to become your customers just to keep your business open.

They say there are only 3 ways to make money in business:

1. Get more people to buy.
2. Get people to buy more.
3. Or get them to buy more often.

*Most business owners focus most – if not all – of their time on number 1: Getting more people to buy.

But the fact is that it’s easier to sell to someone who’s already bought from you (and is happy with the service or product), then it is to sell to someone who’s never bought from you.

In Volume one, page 22, of my e-manual, Alex Mandossian says it like this…

“We direct marketers must never forget that our biggest moneymaking opportunities lie in our customer lists, not our prospect or suspect lists.  Selling more stuff to existing customers is easier and more profitable!!”

Did you hear that!?!
Selling more stuff to existing customers is easier and more profitable!

That means that out of the 3 ways your business can make more money, number 2 and number 3 are easier ways to increase your income, than number 1 is!

But you know what?
Most business owners are focused on doing number 1 – the harder work!

And just so I’m clear…

This isn’t about tricking your customers to buy more from you.

This is about focusing on people who you’ve already helped and already have relationship with, and finding ways to help them again and again and again!

Some amazing results will happen when you focus on helping your customers get better or more of the results they’re looking for when they purchase from you.

1. You’ll feel better about your business and yourself.

2. Your customers will feel better about your business.  That means they’ll come back again and recommend you to friends.

3. Your business will do better financially.  You will naturally be able to get people to buy more – or more often – because they know you’re taking car of them!

Successful businesses that overcome this 7th challenge are very good at doing things that encourage customers to come back and buy from them again – and again.

If you want your business to have a chance of succeeding whether the recession is over or not, then you have to do the same thing.

Next, I’ll post the 8th Challenge that every successful business overcomes.  Stay tuned.  I’m trying to post them every week, but sometimes.. it’s more like every other!  :)

In the meantime, if you have thoughts about this seventh challenge you want to share, then post them in the comments.

  • What do you think?
  • Do you agree?
  • What has your experience been with this challenge?

Post your comments, thoughts and even questions – if you have any!

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(*Here’s the shorter version of the link -if you need it – http://wp.me/pfeEX-an)

Oh yeah!  And speaking of twitter…

You are following my NEW account on Twitter right?  :)
If not, you can now follow me @rampbusinesses.

If you enjoyed this post, spread the word! Link to it. Tweet about it. Blog about it. Send smoke signals… Thanks. 🙂

Scott Aughtmon
I’m author of the book 51 Content Marketing Hacks. I am also a regular contributor to ContentMarketingInstitute.com and I am the person behind the popular infographic 21 Types of Content We Crave.

I’m a business strategist, consultant, content creation specialist, and speaker. I’ve been studying effective marketing and business methods (both online and offline) since 1999.

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