 AI Generated "Profit isn't the purpose of a business, but without it, there is no business." – Peter Drucker
In Canada, approximately 60% of small businesses fail within five years, with poor financial planning and cash flow management being one of the leading causes (Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada, 2023). While passion might fuel the fire of entrepreneurship, it's profit that keeps the lights on. In an age of digital storefronts and virtual workspaces, mastering “profit hacks” — smart, focused strategies that drive income without increasing burnout — is not just a nice-to-have. It’s a business necessity. Today, we’re examining four key strategies to increase your profits, whether you’re running a solo operation from your kitchen table or scaling a growing brand from your laptop. These hacks aren’t fluff — they’re field-tested and crafted to help you retain more of what you earn and build a successful business. 1. Know Your Numbers (and Watch Them Like a Hawk) Before you can hack your profits, you need to know where they’re leaking. Many entrepreneurs operate on hope instead of hard data. Profit isn't just about making more sales; it's about retaining more of what you earn. Why it matters: You can’t improve what you don’t measure. Understanding your profit margins, customer acquisition costs, and recurring expenses can reveal hidden gaps draining your business. The process: Use straightforward tools like QuickBooks, Wave, or even Google Sheets to monitor your income and expenses weekly. Build a habit of reviewing monthly reports. Comprehend your break-even point and focus on high-margin products or services. How to launch: Begin today by examining last month’s numbers. Highlight three key areas: the largest revenue drivers, the biggest expenses, and unexpected cost leaks. You’ll swiftly identify where to focus your efforts and where to make cuts. 2. Increase Prices Strategically Raising prices is the quickest method to boost profits, yet it's the strategy that entrepreneurs dread the most. The truth? People are willing to pay more for perceived value, confidence, and results. Why it matters: If your pricing doesn't reflect the value you provide, you’re not only earning less; you are also serving less effectively. The process: Review your customer results and testimonials. Highlight your unique selling points. Consider implementing a small price increase (5–15%) and track the response. Use value-oriented language to reframe the offer. How to launch: Start with your top-selling offer. Add a bonus, boost the perceived value, and try charging a higher price for a few new customers. Track conversions and gather feedback. 3. Automate Low-Value Tasks to Free Up Profit-Driving Time Time is the most limited resource, yet many entrepreneurs waste it answering emails or designing Canva graphics instead of securing clients or creating offers. Why it matters: Every hour you spend on $10 tasks is an hour not invested in $1,000 activities. The process: List your weekly tasks. Identify any repetitive, administrative, or non-essential items. After that, automate these tasks with tools like Microsoft Outlook, Google Calendar, and AI-based assistants. Delegate what you can. How to launch: Choose one task to automate this week: set up an autoresponder, use AI to draft emails, or outsource design on Fiverr. You’ll instantly regain your time and enhance your earning potential. 4. Upsell and Cross-Sell with Purpose Selling once is good, but selling more to the same customer is better—and much more profitable. According to Marketing Metrics, the probability of selling to an existing customer is 60–70%, compared to 5–20% for newcomers. Why it matters: Repeat customers are less expensive and spend more. Upselling and cross-selling build loyal, high-value buyers. The process: Outline your customer journey. What logical next step or upgrade can you suggest? Use email automation to trigger personalized offers based on past purchases or behaviors. How to launch: Add a simple upsell at checkout or offer a cross-sell in a follow-up email. For example: “Loved our course? Add 1:1 coaching at a discounted rate.” Make it timely, relevant, and easy to accept. APPLICATION FOR AT-HOME ENTREPRENEURS Profit hacks are game-changers for home-based businesses and solopreneurs. With limited time and resources, your ability to increase profits without extending hours is crucial. Whether you're selling handmade products, offering coaching, providing digital downloads, or delivering online services, these strategies can provide you with a competitive edge.
These aren’t just tips — they’re tactics that shift your income ceiling upward, from your living room or laptop. Conclusion and Call to Action Profit hacks aren’t about working harder; they’re about working smarter. When you understand your numbers, increase your value, leverage your time, and serve your customers deeply, profit naturally follows. You deserve a business that not only fulfills you but also funds the life you want. Now’s the time to take action:
Want more resources on scaling your impact and income? Subscribe to our weekly round-up newsletter (write Newsletter in comments below) or Consider our Bizwoli Solution (See Below!). By the way we have turned the statistic around so that 80% of small business succeed after 5 years. Write Bizwoli in the comments for a free consultation. Thriving shouldn’t be optional. Thank you for reading, folks. Continue striving to be the best you can be as you search for your true self. Richard By seamlessly integrating business, work, and life, we create a virtual tapestry of well-being, skill development, business growth, workplace culture, and leadership, enabling you to become your best self. Note, some links in this video are affiliate links; if you make a purchase, we will earn a commission. We provide FREE weekly learning opportunities for you: Mondays: Free Articles are posted on our FontanieMagazine website https://bit.ly/3WKM9QD Podcasts available at 8 AM Central Time on:
Further Resources Available to you: Executive Video Coaching: https://bit.ly/4cnqGDV Bizwoli – Planning and Organizing Your Business: https://bit.ly/3YripHD Affiliate Marketing With Richard: https://bit.ly/3ZqE18D FM Storefront: https://bit.ly/4bNfiBs Facebook: https://bit.ly/3uPyvSa Pinterest: https://bit.ly/3RSWCrk Life’s Dimensions, Instagram: https://bit.ly/3W7zYOM Coaching Opportunity to Gain $10,000 per month: https://bit.ly/3t4cbmO Michael Cheney: Partner and Profit: https://bit.ly/3ZkY3mI Note: Script and Image A.I. Assisted
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 In today's digital age, the allure of Internet marketing and e-business opportunities has attracted countless individuals seeking financial freedom and success. However, amid the promise of quick riches and success stories, a prevalent problem must be addressed. This article aims to shed light on the truth behind the Internet marketing world and confront some of its misconceptions. Here are four areas where you must be careful: The Salesperson Trap: Most internet marketers, often self-proclaimed "gurus," have a vested interest in selling their products and services. While this is understandable from a business perspective, it can lead to a problematic scenario for aspiring entrepreneurs. As they promote these products, the focus shifts away from building a legitimate business and turns individuals into mere salespeople. Selling becomes the sole priority, while actual entrepreneurial skills take a backseat. Not all “gurus” fall into this category, but many do. So be warned. The Lack of Proper Guidance: Mentors and coaches who guide newcomers often don’t address the intricacies of an e-business process. Many "gurus" claim to offer insights, but only a few genuinely show aspiring entrepreneurs how to grow their ventures into fully-fledged e-businesses. The Mystery of Product Development: One crucial aspect of running a successful e-business is developing products or services that cater to a target audience's needs. Unfortunately, few marketing experts delve into this aspect, leaving entrepreneurs at a loss when creating something of value. Trevor Carr is an exception here, as you cannot go wrong if you take his Breakthrough Program. You can count on him to guide you in developing your products or services. The Elusive Money-Making Tools: While wealth and financial independence are enticing, finding genuine tools and strategies to achieve these goals is often elusive. Only a few internet marketers provide legitimate resources to help budding entrepreneurs progress to profitability. The Business Approach to E-business In contrast to the prevailing hype, this article emphasizes that venturing into e-business should be approached as a serious business endeavor. It is not a realm for dabblers or those seeking quick fixes. Building a successful e-business requires dedication, discipline, and hard work. So let’s sort out what is needed for you to succeed as a businessperson in online entrepreneurship. Solutions: Three Essential Elements of Developing Your E-business There are three things you need to know about developing a business. 1) you must work on your business, 2) you must organize your business, and 3) you must work in your business. 1. Work On Your Business: To establish a solid foundation for your e-business, working on the business itself, not just in it, is crucial. This means stepping back from day-to-day operations and focusing on the broader vision and strategy. Here are some key aspects to consider when working on your business: a) Define Clear Goals: Set specific, measurable goals aligning with your long-term vision. Outline the milestones you aim to achieve and the strategies to attain them. b) Market Research: Conduct thorough market research to understand your target audience, identify their pain points, and discover opportunities for your products or services. c) Competitive Analysis: Analyze your competitors to gain insights into their strengths and weaknesses. Differentiate your business by offering unique value propositions. d) Build a Strong Brand: Develop a compelling brand identity that resonates with your target customers. A strong brand presence can help build trust and credibility in the digital marketplace. e) Create Scalable Systems: Establish efficient processes and systems that can scale as your business grows. Automation and delegation can play a vital role in streamlining operations. 2. Organize Your Business: A well-organized e-business is better equipped to handle challenges and opportunities. Organizing your business involves structuring it to foster efficiency, productivity, and adaptability. Consider the following steps to manage your e-business effectively: a) Develop a Business Plan: Craft a comprehensive e-business plan outlining your vision, mission, goals, target market, and revenue generation strategies. This document will serve as a roadmap for your business's growth. b) Team Building: As your business expands, you may need to build a team of skilled individuals who can contribute to different aspects of your venture. Surround yourself with talented people who share your vision. c) Streamline Processes: Identify areas of inefficiency and streamline processes to optimize productivity. This may involve adopting new tools or technology to enhance workflow. d) Financial Management: Keep a close eye on your finances and maintain proper accounting practices. This will help you make informed decisions and ensure the financial health of your business. e) Legal Considerations: Understand the legal and regulatory requirements relevant to your e-business. Protect your intellectual property and ensure compliance with local laws. 3. Work In Your Business: While working on your business focuses on strategy and growth, working in your business involves executing day-to-day operations. As an entrepreneur, you need to strike a balance between both aspects. Here's how you can effectively work in your e-business: a) Product Development: Actively develop products or services that align with your market research and customer needs. Ensure consistent quality and innovation. b) Customer Engagement: Build strong customer relationships by providing excellent customer service and addressing their feedback. Engage with your audience through social media, emails, and other communication channels. c) Marketing and Sales: Implement marketing strategies to promote your products or services. Embrace digital marketing techniques like SEO, content marketing, and social media advertising to reach your target audience. d) Monitor Performance: Regularly track and analyze key performance indicators (KPIs) to gauge the success of your business initiatives. Use data-driven insights to make informed decisions. e) Continuous Improvement: Embrace a culture of continuous improvement, seeking ways to enhance your offerings and processes. Stay updated with industry trends and adapt to changes in the market. By understanding and implementing these three essential elements – working on your business, organizing your business, and working in your company – you can lay a strong foundation for sustainable growth and success in the dynamic e-business world. Note: Many people who get into this business are affiliates, sometimes known as associates. If this is you, that is ok, just know that you are not running an e-business. You are a commissioned salesperson. You don’t develop products but sell other people's products, and you receive a commission in return. You need to understand those products, review them, offer bonuses, and often sell them using the creator’s marketing strategies, e.g., emails, sales pages, images, etc. Some internet marketers are good at selling but not creating products or running an e-business. And that is ok too. E-businesses need strong and effective salespeople. One more point for you to consider is that there is a difference between marketing and selling. Marketing is all about educating your potential customers about your products. Selling is about closing the deal and adding value for your customers. When you run an e-business, you need to consider both functions. Conclusion That’s all for now. Running an e-business isn’t as easy as people will tell you when you first get into it. Many moving parts require agility, persistence, and focus. As you develop your e-business, you will gradually move to fill the boxes with people, whether they are on contract or directly reporting to you. If you want help planning and organizing your e-business successfully, consider our Bizwoli System. The Bizwoli System will take you to the next level of your e-business. You may wish to talk to me first before closing off the Bizwoli System, I offer a free consultation about the program. You can find it in the link provided. You can also follow our Scaling Up Your e-business podcasts. Thank you for reading, folks. Keep well, stay safe, and continue becoming the best version of yourself. Richard, Richard Fontanie Have you ever been inspired by someone who is successful in business? Maybe you want to be like that businessperson. In fact you are so inspired that you want to take action. You say, “This person has moved me,” or “has inspired me.” So what do you do? You make a concerted effort for a short period of time to be like that person. But alas the motivation and inspiration doesn’t last. Why? Because it is really something that comes from outside of you rather than inside of you. Your inspiration is ‘out there’ so to speak and not ‘grounded’ in you. Only when you inspire yourself because of what you do will motivation stick, and if you continue to act out the behavior you will gain traction or momentum to continue the behavior. A Business Example. You have just read an article about the importance of business planning (the importance of working “on” your business and not “in” your business) and the long term benefits you would receive if you developed a business plan. Your inspired! You begin to do it and then after some time of working “on” your business your enthusiasm starts to wane. You start saying to yourself, “Maybe I don’t have to develop that plan – I’m too busy doing stuff.” You begin to procrastinate. Soon you are back to being busy ‘doing’ and not working ‘on’ your business. You find you lack the self-discipline to stay with it. Sound familiar? Now if you approached it with a different perspective like, “It’s important for me to develop a business plan, not because someone said so, but because I’m convinced it will give my business direction. I am responsible for my own business and a business plan will help me strengthen my focus, set priorities, clarify my personal values and the values for the business and give me a set of actionable goals. In the end I will feel better, sleep more soundly, and improve my lifestyle.” This is not something someone else is telling you. You are affirming it to yourself. You have taken the first step to realizing your goal of working “on” your business and not just working “in” your business. Once you personally commit to working on your business plan and you actually prepare it, you are reinforcing your ‘non-procrastinating’ behaviour. You start it and bring it to fruition. It is this stick-to-it process that is difficult for most people. The start is the beginning and bringing it to completion is the end. It is what you do in the middle of the start and end where momentum takes place. And it is in the momentum where inspiration and motivation occurs. Your ideas begin to percolate and creativity begins to take hold. But here is the kicker, if you want your business plan to succeed and not just sit on your shelve or on your computer you must actualize it and make it happen. You must keep the momentum going. And this is often the hardest part. It is in the actualization of the business plan where you enter the realm of ‘real’ momentum. As you actualize your plan you are moving toward achieving something for yourself. You are inspired and motivated from within - it is you motivating and inspiring yourself not someone or something outside of you. You now want to keep going because you are doing something to reinforce your plan. Not only that as you actualize your plan you begin to see the results of your efforts. So It is not the effort of others that inspires it is your own efforts and results that inspire. What Happens When You Don't Keep Your Promise Now let’s look at it from a different perspective. Every time you break a promise to yourself it usually bothers you. It niggles at you and after a while you start doubting yourself and wondering if you can achieve your goals. And if you do this often you let yourself down and your confidence about achieving goals is lessened. However, when you keep your promise to yourself you strengthen your self-respect and build your confidence and every day that you take action you are gaining momentum and more confidence and self-respect. As you strengthen your momentum, you are strengthening your stamina, your self-discipline for what you are doing and from that point on it is matter of reinforcing your activity and improving it. After a period of time, let’s say three or four months you will find you have progressed and your results will then inspire you to achieve even more. Your motivation is now forcefully coming from within. And this is the motivation that counts. You no longer need someone to motivate you. You are using your own progress and achievements and you are inspiring yourself in the process. You have now set a new pattern of behavior, and once that pattern has set you have taken on a new habit – that of self-discipline because you have learned the ‘stick-to-it-ness’ of getting things done. The Busy Business Person Now let’s take this scenario and put it into the context of the busy businessperson – the solopreneur. These busy people can easily be juggling many roles in life, not only are they running a business they may also be a parent, a community representative, a member of a business association and a faith community and so on. Added to their roles they have the pressures of making sure they have enough cashflow to meet expenses and make a profit, they find themselves marketing, selling, keeping administrative records and maintaining their own healthy lifestyle and dealing with the anxieties of everyday living. That’s different than the person who has time on his hands, who has developed a business so that it runs on its own and experiences less pressures in life. This businessperson enjoys life and is satisfied within himself. Isn’t that the paradox of life? He who has is often given more. So the busy businessperson who is not in this situation is going to have to fight for what he believes is necessary and make the commitment to move forward. The word here is ‘commitment’ coupled with daily discipline and reinforcement to achieve the desired outcome. This is true with whatever we do in life – we need to commit and move forward. It is less about making comparisons with others and more about doing what is necessary on a daily basis for ourselves until we achieve the necessary momentum to make the difference. Then it is a matter of improving the behavior so that we are gradually becoming better versions of ourselves. With each improvement we move towards a more satisfied self in mind, body and spirit. In conclusion, be responsible and accountable for driving your own inspiration and motivation and build the self-discipline to make it happen. That’s all there is to it. Now is the time to start gaining momentum in all that you do. By the way if you need help in developing a business plan fill out the contact form below and I will set up an interview with you As always folks take care, keep safe and continue becoming the best version of yourself. Thank you for reading, Richard. |
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