Do you want to increase sales in your business? You need to be operating in your sweet spot! Business Growth Sweet Spot is explained by Mike Michalowicz in The Pumpkin Plan.
The Sweet Spot is a combination of three areas intersecting and operating in a way that everything feels like a well-oiled machine! You need to get these three areas of your business figured out to make it to your sweet spot!
Unique Offering
Your unique offering is something special you offer that is a little bit different from what everyone else offers in your industry. It’s something that you are really good at, that you understand uniquely.
If you’re doing the exact same thing as every other quilt store out there, you’re all just blending in and fighting over the same customers. Having a unique offering sets you apart from the rest.
All quilt shops offer generally similar services and products, like fabrics and classes. But your unique offering is the unique spin you put on those products and services. Figuring out what your unique offering could be can sometimes be a challenge. But what I’ve found most helpful is diving in and figuring out who my top customers are and what they’re actually looking for and needing.
Top Customers
Top customer evaluations are a really cool thing to do. Use your POS system to look at who your top customers are over the past twelve months. Ranking your top customers by revenue is the easiest metric we can use, because if somebody values and appreciates what you do and what you sell, they’re going to pay you. Simple as that.
Look at the top twenty or thirty customers and distill them into one top customer avatar. That way, you can replicate the model to find more similar top customers.
Do some analysis on your top twenty and figure out who they are. Where are they located? What projects are they buying? Do they buy kits or yards of fabric or patterns? Try to find similarities.
Then, pick your top ten customers and talk to them, maybe over Zoom or over the phone. You’re going to ask them very specific questions about the quilting industry. You don’t need to ask them anything about your shop specifically.
Ask them what they think would be great for quilt shops to offer? What do they hate about quilt shops? If there was one thing they could change about quilt shops or the quilting industry, what would it be? I have what I call the wish list of questions for interviews with your top customers. I’ll put those out there for you, so when you get those answers you can analyze them. Those answers are going to help you identify what your unique offering is.
Systems for Growth
Your systems aren’t just limited to your software. They could be your standard operating procedures that allow your employees to run your business when you aren’t there.
The systems you have in place help you make the most of your time. You’re limited to how much you can do and get right because there are only so many hours in the day. You can make the most of your time by hiring employees and adding software systems that do more than any individual can do.
Work in Your Sweet Spot
Once you understand your unique offering, your top customers, and you have your systems in place, you’ll be operating in the sweet spot. That’s really where you want to be, because that’s how you’re going to bring in that predictable cash flow and increase your sales overall.
If you need more help go to Money Made Simple. That’s my program that we’ll use to get your business growing. Get the step-by-step guides, tools, and live coaching that work exclusively for Quilt Shops.