PROFITABLE REVENUE GROWTH

Whether you are an SME or Corporate Business Owner, a Managing Director, a Sales / Commercial / Operations or Finance Director, an Investor or an employee who really cares about your company and its future - can you really afford to not ensure your business actually has a future ? So, here is a very quick (but very important) 5 minute task for you that only involves asking yourself 2 quick questions ! The 1st of these is :

1) Is your revenue growing profitably ?? Now, this does seem somewhat a simple question doesn't it ? But it is of critical importance and not just during this lockdown ....... but at all times !! You may either know the answer to this straight away or you can find the numbers and history from your reports and company accounts. But, if you want another slightly different way - then have a look at the words below (which come from the Online Collins dictionary when asked to describe the word 'Profitable') :

commercial, cost-effective, fruitful, gainful, lucrative, money-making, paying, remunerative, rewarding, worthwhile, advantageous, beneficial, economic, expedient, productive, serviceable, useful, valuable So, my 2nd easy question to ask yourself : 2) Can the work being done by your Sales/Marketing/Operational and key business areas be described as any or all of these ? If you can't put your hand on your heart and say an emphatic 'yes' to all of those words then you really need to step back, take stock and think about why you are doing things the way you are. And let's be honest, it is not a criticism in anyway to say 'No' to this. In fact, I would expect 95% of all SMEs and a similarly large number of a medium to large Corporate organisations would also be saying 'No'. Sometimes it is because it's the way you and your teams have always done it, sometimes its because it's the way someone who has now left the business once told you to do it, or maybe you don't know why its is done that way ......... it just is ! But whatever the reason, if you are either NOT 'growing your revenue' or you are NOT 'growing your revenue profitably' then maybe it's time to start looking at this and if we can be frank here - it probably needs to be done sooner rather than later. Now, if you think after this that it maybe time to have a look, then you do have a couple of options, you can either : a) Do it DIY style and have a go yourself - maybe with your teams and employees, but it is worth remembering that they are the ones who are doing it this way, maybe they actually invented this way and they probably quite like doing things the way they are, or you can.... b) Employ a full time Strategist or Sales / Commercial Director etc - through this you will no doubt get some good advice in focused areas which will probably cost anywhere from £70k - £150k pa per quality senior level recruit (on an ongoing annual basis), or you can... c) Get a Business Advisor (who has with fresh eyes and 20+ years experience and expertise) in for a short period to partner with you and your teams to see what the pain, pressure points and headaches really are. Who can then come up with some recommendations and opportunities to help you reverse these trends and look to move the curve upwards once again. And remember that this will be at a fraction of the cost of option b) and due to all the benefits of having an independent expert working with you and your senior teams we would expect to get significantly better results than from option a). Anyway that's it - I told you they were simple questions didn't I ! And I really hope that this been useful and has made you think not just about what the future for your business holds, but if your business really does have a future. And hey, if you ARE having revenue growth AND it is profitable AND the Collins descriptive words DO describe everything you and your teams do, then that is brilliant and you are set up extremely well to grow and take market share from your competition - and I sincerely do believe your business will go from strength to strength ! But, if the answers aren't all yes.. then Option c) maybe isn't starting to sound like such a crazy idea after all ? And if that is the case, then I would be delighted to have a quick chat and see if I can help you in anyway to try and see what is happening in your business and offer some expert advice and support. You can contact me through LinkedIn, or on julianpatel@clivedenhouseconsulting.co.uk for a confidential chat at anytime.. Thanks for reading and I beg you all to stay safe and I really do wish you all the luck during these strange and worrying times ! Julian Julian Patel Cliveden House Consulting Ltd

julianpatel@clivedenhouseconsulting.co.uk

Accredited Business Advisor with IBD Business Advice Group