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It can happen to the best of us. That chilling realisation that if we lost one particular client in a couple of months we would struggle to hit payroll.
Time to acknowledge, move on and put it right.
- Why you must crunch your numbers every month
- Why asking uncomfortable questions of ourselves and our business is key to growth
- Specialism and marketing can get you out of your current challenge
Email Campaigns and Funnels: Superfast Services
This is a direct transcription for your reference. Recently I was talking to a recruitment business owner that I’ve known for quite some time, and I’m familiar with their business. And they had a fantastic year, and then they’d gone back and done some analysis to work out where their business was coming from
They’re shocked, to say the least, because what they realised was 70% of this fantastic year’s turnover had come from one client.
Now don’t get me wrong. They knew it was a significant contributor, but they were stunned to what degree, and I think quite nervous then, realising that I’ve got many eggs just in one basket here.
And so, the goal for the next financial year was to look at ‘how do we spread that risk’, and how do they grow in different areas to reduce the reliance on this one major client.
Too Few Clients Is A Risky Situation
Now, we all love to have outstanding clients, don’t we? However, how about having ten excellent clients that perhaps generate half that level of business or 75% of it, rather than just one who is delivering quite so much?
So, how do you move away from that situation when you realise you’re there, and how do you prevent yourself from getting into that eggs in one basket scenario in the first place?
We know the key questions we need to be thinking about as business owners are: where our growth will come from? Is that growth going to be about bringing in new headcount to leverage some great niches and sectors that we’re currently operating in? Is it a case of looking at some completely new sectors that you can expand into?
Spread Your Wings
What about looking at some aligned sectors to the ones that you’re currently operating in? Maybe now, you’re working in a specific geographical location, and you want to expand that. It could be into other regions. You could take your service nationally, and if you are already operating nationwide, what are the opportunities to go into Europe and beyond?
Now, the other element to look at is, what are your service offerings? Maybe now, you are contingency and perm only. What about having a temp desk? If you don’t, is that an option for you in your sector?
Alternatively, contracting is another area. And increasingly, business owners are looking to shift their reliance from contingency by introducing a retained service to their business, moving forward.
Marketing Is Your Friend
The most logical step is to implement a marketing strategy with a focus on client acquisition. The client I am referring to is doing exactly that, and through three specific targeted campaigns.
So, there are lots of opportunities to look at around how do we continue to expand and grow and make sure that we avoid being in a risky situation where we might kick ourselves and think one day, “why did I rely on having so many eggs in one basket?”
If you would like our help expanding your client base. Get in touch by calling 01524 784 331.