The Expense Saving Trick! Psst. it's called a Revenue Problem

What if I told you...? wait that sounds like all those Matrix memes I see today that everyone uses, I can't use that although it is a very fitting starting point for a post!

For now, I will borrow it just one time, what if I told you that you have a revenue problem and not an expense problem?

In business, we always discuss looking at the bottom line and every expense with a fine-tooth comb, in fact this was my life the past ten years. I was trained so well to look and identify any glaring red flag that may be causing a loss. This is not a bad practice, and I am not here to bash it, but I want to throw caution to it.

I hear far too often business owners reciting every expense and knowing where the loss is, which is good, on the flip side I rarely hear about the sales promotion or training they are launching to correct that problem.

In 2022, it is all about how we serve the customer.... that phrase has been used and plastered everywhere we look but it is an accurate phrase! How we understand our clients/customers' needs and being able to provide a strong, foundational answer is key. This is the premise of doing business, happy customers, happy business.

However, what if your customer service is not up to par? What if your complaint line is causing the bleeding? What does your budget look like for hiring?

Let's start with the first part, what if your customer service is not up to par., I like to use the example of going in the bank when I meet with or talk to potential clients.

Imagine, you walk into the bank and go the que line but there are tellers at every counter, no one calls you up. You stand there and stand there and keep starring at the tellers, but no words are spoken. How upset are you right now? There are plenty of options to choose from in terms of tellers, but no one is speaking to you. I imagine you will get angry enough and finally speak up and ask, "can anyone help me?" - boom.... shot one! Or you will leave and then go to another location and try again.... shot two!

The first bank just lost revenue.... they had all the chances in the world to capture a deposit but failed to even greet and offer the perfect service solution! This is a revenue killer, now the expense you will have if this occurs over and over is trying to find customers to visit your branch.

In leadership, sometimes our strengths lay far past just giving direction and seeing what needs done. It also is our responsibility to identify, and course correct the misses our team. You, as the leader will have the vantage point that your team will not. If you are not bringing that view to a baseline level for your team to see, then keep that expense report handy. Being able to show your team the cost of a poor action will and can make a huge difference in your profitability.

Teach the team to greet the customer the minute they see anyone but go further into the point. Explain that by not greeting the customer it will cost us >>> (whatever) amount your customer acquisition cost is. I used this tool all the time with my personal teams, in fact I would train my team to know exactly how much an average customer shopped with us and if we didn't do our part to greet and take care of them, then we lost that amount. I took it further and I would ask, how many of you would like to lose $123 off your next check? Always, no one ever said sure. This taught them to have a personal connection that every time they chose to not engage with a customer, that number would pop into their thoughts. It worked most times, but not every time!

Final thought; Hiring. There is a difference between hiring for expansion and hiring to fill roles because you are short help. If you are growing sales and the pipeline is booming and you need more help than awesome, hire away.

Though, most hire signs we see are due to shortage of labor in keeping up with the minimum to provide a decent experience to the customer and bring in revenue. The best problem solve I have seen and personally used to fix my own hiring problem, was talking to the team more than I was worried about the expenses.

When someone was putting in their two-week notice, I made it a practice to feel them out and determine if they were leaving for a better opportunity truly, or they were just unhappy. If they were unhappy, then I wanted to know why! The time it takes to invest in training someone new vs. figuring out to retain your talent is a game changer. I would much rather invest in a team member who was worth saving than shaking their hand and wishing them luck.

I truly believe that if more leaders installed this practice and took the time to figure out the problem of the culture than the expensive hiring advertisement budget could be used elsewhere. The problem most times, not always is employees feel their value to the company may not be worth much.... wonder why? Check with leadership first, if we as leaders are making those connections with our teams, sharing the wins and course correcting the losses, being 100% transparent and having individualized time to goal set and promote, then I promise hiring will be your top priority because your success will be through the roof! You will need to bring on more staff to keep up with your business. However, if you refuse to do those suggestions above then hiring will be your worst nightmare....

So, next time you feel you have an expense problem I want you to flip the questions and ask, where is my revenue lacking!