To earn more, serve more

Recently, I talked with an entrepreneur whose sales, 

production and profits have all been flat or falling in the 

past 18 months, and he’s feeling desperate. He feels the 

pressure of "having" to make more money!

He told me he’s tried giving his staff more training. He’s 

tried giving more incentives (bonuses) and he’s fired some 

of his poor performers. Now he’s talking about "having" to 

raise prices because he just "can't live on what we're 

making."

You can imagine our conversation. I pointed out that the 

market place never lies. We may not like the message it 

sends us, but customers never lie to us. If sales are flat, 

it's because our customers no longer feel we are giving them 

the bargain they want.

He may also need to let more of the right people know that 

he and his services are available. (Reaching too few or the 

wrong people is always a problem.) But for the most part, 

the real problem is that his potential customers no longer 

see him as a resource. 

Our customers want stuff. They want more and better service. 

They want to enrich their lives. They want to achieve their 

goals, personally and in business. People will always buy 

goods and services if they believe the purchase will serve 

them, at a price they are willing to pay.

To earn more money, do a better job of serving people. When 

your customers understand you are eager to help them get 

what they want, and will do it at a price they are willing 

to pay, your success is assured. 

To earn more money, find a way to provide more and better 

service.