10 Tips to Increase Your Declining Revenue in Tough Times – The FastForwardAmy Show Episode 179

What if your revenue is declining in times of crisis? How do you handle that?

And most importantly how do you not give in to the panic that might rise to the surface?

Because I don’t know about you; but my costs have increased exponentially while my revenue is lagging behind. And that would cause stress for any and all entrepreneurs.

The trick is to teach yourself how to outsmart economical challenges.

Maintaining a healthy revenue during an economical crisis isn’t the easiest thing, but it also isn’t impossible. So how can you do it?

As a business coach, I have a certain skill set that allows me to know what to do but let me just preface this by saying: knowing what to do does not mean you never get stressed about this.

Let’s find positivity in the eye of the storm

I noticed sometimes I wished that being an entrepreneur was easier but then I was watching Formula 1’s Netflix series Drive To Survive and it made me reframe my narrative. Because these drivers don’t go out on the track and think to themselves ‘Damn, I wish this was easier’.

No, they’re too ambitious and too focused to crawl into that victim mode. All they’re wondering is ‘How do I get better?’. But I know that might not be what you want to hear, because it might feel as if we’re too far removed from these drivers.

So let’s take me and my business as an example. This year, I decided to pivot in my business, to focus on building new things.

And even though economically it might not have been the best time to make these decisions, I stand by them – and yes, that scares me sometimes too. However, my mindset is strong and my goal is to stay focused and to grow.

What I have noticed is that a lot of my clients have been freaking out over the bad news we receive almost daily. The news doesn’t offer us any type of uplifting pieces and that creates negative mindsets. And negativity spreads like wildfire as opposed to positivity, which takes some time before it catches on.

Right now, a lot of entrepreneurs are convinced making money is hard. Let me be frank — this mindset is bullshit.

Here’s a little fact for you: half of fortune 500 companies were built in times of crisis. So, what’s your excuse to land in that downward spiral?

I have 10 pointers that will help you maintain a healthy revenue. Are you ready to go through them together?

1. Are you doing the things you know you need to be doing?

There are certain aspects as a business owner that you can never let go of. For me, it’s my numbers. I need to check them every single day so I know what’s going on in my business.

It could be the same for you, but it could also be something entirely different. Determine what aspect of your business you need to have within your grasp at all times.

Now I know it’s easier to drop the ball on these things than it is to hold on. A while back, I got stuck in the mindset that entrepreneurship was too hard. But then I changed my narrative and asked myself: ‘Would I ever not be an entrepreneur?’.

And the answer is: No, I would never give entrepreneurship up.

So there’s no reason for me to obsess incessantly about if I would do things differently? And no, I would not. And that leads us to my second pointer.

2. If you would start over today; would you start the same kind of business?

And really allow yourself to think about that. If you would change anything; what would it be and why?

Would you make the same decisions? Would you even start your business? Or would you go back to work on a payroll with someone else as your boss?

I’d make my business even more agile with a different cost structure but other than that, I wouldn’t change a thing.

How do you determine which costs to cut? Read along for an answer to that question.

3. Dial down your overhead costs

Your overhead/maintenance costs are the ones you should take a look at, because why would you decrease your investments, such as courses and coaching.

It’s crucial to invest in things that will bring you a return on investment and a level-up. A nice office space won’t do that.

So if you feel as if you’re stuck; take a look at your costs. Are you spending a big majority of it on maintenance? And if so; is there a part of it you could relocate to innovation and growth?

4. What worked yesterday, won’t work today

In the online world, changes come often and they come on fast. Take infographics for example; a few years back, everyone was using them and now you barely see them.

Today, it’s all about TikTok and Instagram Reels. Diversify your approach to your online presence and capitalize on the things that are working.

5. Don’t focus on your problems; focus on your goals instead

At one point, I was really caught up in my problems. Building a company and pivoting the way we have been doing, is scary as hell — I’m not going to lie to you.

And recently, I realized I was becoming increasingly frustrated with certain things not going the way I wanted them to. And then I came to the conclusion that of course, I was frustrated because if you only focus on the negative, there’s no room for the positive.

Instead of continuing down this path, I decided to take a moment to focus on my goals instead.

Let’s be real: there will always be problems — and if you focus solely on them, they will only multiply. So instead of draining your energy by focusing on the negative, look toward your goals and the positive things in your business.

6. Are you pampering your existing customers?

Besides focusing on your goals, it’s also crucial to aim some energy at your existing customer base.

Reward them for their loyalty and focus on keeping them happy because they’re the people that have been paying your bills in this time of crisis.

Stop focusing on the next shiny thing and make your client base feel appreciated.

7. Diversify your offer or target audience

Let me start by saying: do not do this at the beginning of starting your business. At the very start, it’s important to build your core offer a.k.a. 1 product or service that actually brings in cash flow.

If you start off with diversification of your offer or target audience, you’ll have a split focus because that will result in none of your offers that perform perfectly.

8. Do you still love what you do?

A simple question, but difficult to answer for some entrepreneurs. The answer is crucial to your success.

Why? Because making money and selling something that you love is a lot easier than having to do it with something you loathe.

9. Are you top of mind in your market?

You always want to be attracting new people.

The trap we fall into when you’ve been online for a while, is thinking ‘I’ll just make content for the people who are already following me’. But you have to make sure to be aiming for those new clients as well. It’s something I call outer circle content and it is crucial if you want your business to grow in the long run.

10. Do you need more help?

Because if you do, that is completely fine.

When you’re stuck to the point you’re almost paralyzed, it’s natural to seek help from others. Help comes in a lot of different forms:

• An interesting webinar
• A (business) coach
• A course

But what I see a lot of entrepreneurs doing is NOT investing in the thing or person that will help them along.

So my question to you is: are you looking for help and are you permitting yourself to accept it? You do not have to do this alone. Asking for and accepting help is the fast track to success — take it from someone who waited too long to ask for it.

Ready to maintain a healthy revenue no matter the circumstances?

As you can see there are a lot of factors to take into account when you want to maintain a healthy revenue throughout any and all circumstances. I hope I put your mind to work today and there are some things you can improve as you look forward to the future. I’ll quickly sum up our 10 pointers of today:

1. Are you doing the things you need to be doing?
2. If you would build a new business today; would it be the same? If not, what would you change?
3. Dial down your overhead costs in terms of maintenance but not in terms of innovation and growth.
4. What works today won’t work tomorrow; make sure you capitalize on things that work right now.
5. If you focus on your problems there will only be more problems, so focus on your goals instead.
6. Make sure you pamper your existing clients.
7. Diversify your products, offer and/or your target audience.
8. Do you still love what you do? If not, then change what you’re doing.
9. Are you staying top of mind? Are you reaching outer circle people?.
10. Ask and accept help when you need it. You don’t need to do it alone.

Lastly, would you like to keep learning about your income and how to double what you’re currently bringing in? Luckily for you, I have just the thing for you, specifically: my 10 Income Hacks Webinar. (This webinar is in Dutch)

Register here for free: https://fastforwardamy.com/10incomestreams

Listen to this episode via Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts, and search for episode 179 of The FastForwardAmy Show.