Proven ways to apply the '10% Rule' to dramatically improve sales, revenues and profits with only marginal price and sales volume increases, and little to no additional marketing spend.

1. (3) Easy Ways to Improve Your
2nd Half Results
John Carroll
Founder & CEO
Email: john@trescoach.com
Web: http://www.trescoach.com
Twitter: @TresCoach
Facebook: http://www.facebook/trescoach

2. “In school, you're taught a lesson and then given a test. In life, you're given a test that
teaches you a lesson”- Tom Bodett quote.
So, what lessons have you learned in the first half of this year that will prepare you for success in
the future?
It’s hard to believe that the first half of 2011 is behind us – but we’re there. And if the first half
has not shaped up the way you would have liked it to, or if you’re just looking for some ideas to
improve your 2nd half business results, then it’s time for action.
There are three fundamental ways to grow any business – increase prices, sell more to existing
customers and sell to new customers. Your primary goal as a business owner should be to get
more customers to buy more from you, and more often. So, start with the basic building blocks
and go from there to determine what actions to take to improve your 2 nd half results.
Increase prices. When to raise prices and by how much is largely dependent upon prevailing
market conditions and the competition. There are four frequent methods of raising prices, and the
pros and cons of each should be considered before implementing across the board increases.
1. Do it now. If you haven’t adjusted your prices in 12 months or more, then some form of
an increase is probably warranted to offset escalating costs of doing business. However,
have conversations with your best customers first to get their reactions before moving
ahead with any price changes.
2. Graduated price increases over a specified period of time until the target price has been
reached. The market (your customers) should help you determine the price ceiling before
any major losses occur.
3. Price sensitivity testing – i.e. by market segment, customer profile, offer, etc. This will
enable you to evaluate where and how to implement price changes for maximum ROI
results.
4. Include additional products, services, upgrades and value bundles with current offers in
order to establish a new aggregated offer/price structure.
Increasing prices is an effective way to improve both top-line and bottom-line results. Why?
Because increasing prices requires minimal resources to implement in terms of staffing, budget,
marketing, etc., and the returns to the business are immediate.
How much would a 10% price increase improve your 2nd half profits? Hint: The answer is much
more than 10% for many businesses.
CAUTION: Be sure that price increases don't result in excessive customer losses that would
negatively impact net revenue and profit gains.
Sell more to existing customers. The first thing to explore here is the overall impact to revenues
and profits of increasing the average transaction size or sale value. Increasing average sale values
can be accomplished through up sells, cross sells and back-end product sales, upgrades,
additional services and value bundles.

3. How much would a 10% increase in the average sale values improve your 2nd half revenue and
profit picture?
Next, consider offering special incentives, discounts and promotions to stimulate short-term
demand. Pull through sales and multiple product sales will also help increase the frequency of
purchase, the average sale amounts, and shorten sales cycles.
What would a 10% reduction in the average sale cycle time mean to your business in terms of
add-on revenues and profits this year?
Finally, consider a reactivation program to ‘win-back’ former or dormant customers. A gift or
special offer could go a long way to get them buying from you again. Depending on how long
your business has been in operation, these actions could dramatically improve your short-term
revenue outlook.
Sell to new customers. This one is not so easy, is it? In fact, the hardest part of building a
business is acquiring new customers. For most small businesses, a limited number of customers
often dominate the revenues and profits achieved. Although it is much more expensive to acquire
new customers than retain existing ones, every business requires a steady stream of new
customers to realize its growth goals and keep the lights on.
The key to selling to new customers is in developing a compelling offer that appeals to them and
they want to buy from you above all other choices. Start with an introductory offer that includes
a one-time bonus or limited time special pricing to incent them to buy now. Once they have been
added as a new customer, you can begin to market and promote add-on sales to increase the
long-term value of the relationship.
How would a 10% increase in your customer base impact your 2nd half revenues and profits?
Apply the '10% Rule' to the scenarios outlined above and get deeper into the financials to
determine how each can improve incremental sales and profits. Depending upon your particular
situation, combining new pricing strategies with targeted short-term sales/incentive programs
could enable you to significantly improve results with only marginal price and sales volume
increases.
I hope this article has provided you with some valuable insights to help improve your 2 nd half
results. If so, please feel free to share its content with others.
Enjoy the journey!
COPYRIGHT © 2011 John Carroll

4. About the Author: John Carroll is the founder and CEO of Tres Coaching Services™, a
professional coaching, consulting and training services company located in Keller, TX. He is a
visionary, results-driven business leader known for his proven ability to drive transformation and
change and deliver outstanding results in highly competitive global markets.
During his 30-year professional career, John held Director, Vice President and COO positions
within Fortune 100, mid-size and emerging companies, leading high-performing business
divisions that generated more than $1 billion in revenue. He was also a member of the senior
leadership team that developed the go-to-market plans for the 2nd largest IPO in the history of the
Internet industry.
Mr. Carroll received a MBA with distinction in General Management from the University of
Central Missouri, and a BSBA in Marketing and Economics from Rockhurst University. He has
received numerous sales, leadership and excellence awards during his career, and has been
recognized by both Who’s Who in Executives and Professionals and the Global Registry of
Outstanding Professionals and Entrepreneurs for his outstanding sales and marketing leadership
accomplishments.
John is an author and frequent speaker on business related topics including the How to Improve
Results in Any Economy and the Back to Basics 2.0℠ series, and works extensively with both
entrepreneurs and small business owners to help them systematically improve sales and
marketing performance, increase profits, more efficiently manage their business operations, and
“achieve the results to move beyond their vision”.
For more information please visit http://www.trescoach.com or follow Tres Coaching Services™
on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, YouTube and SlideShare.