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Anyone can start a business (just look at all of the kids who run a lemonade stand).  The tough part is making sure that you make more money than you spend.  When first starting out it can be hard to find valuable resources to help you increase your revenue, aside from the normal advice of slashing your expenses and increasing your revenue streams.

While that can be helpful, I think that there are more things that can help you run a profitable business.

Here are some tips for growing your business:

1) Having a business mind is a must. Running a business takes a certain kind of person but don’t worry if you aren’t a born entrepreneur.  Try teaming up with someone who is and thrives on customer interaction, sales pitches, and closing deals.

2) Spend when you have the money. This is a no brainer but you’d be surprised at how many businesses spend money before they actually have it.  Keep in mind that deals can change so make sure that you don’t spend what you don’t have.

3) Sell, Sell, Sell! Nothing sells itself no matter how great it is.  A good rule of thumb is that you should be spending at least 50% of your time selling.  Just be sure that you split your time well between development and selling.

4) Know your finances. Keeping efficient record keeping is the key between being profitable and running in the black.  There are great pieces of software out there that you can use for help — check out www.mint.com for a free alternative to the costly solutions.

5) Keep on rolling. Everyone will eventually come up with a bad idea; rather it be a bad feature or a bad sales pitch.  The key is making sure that it doesn’t break you.  In fact look at it as a blessing in disguise since the earlier that you are able to expose it, then the quicker you can overcome it.

6) Be frugal. Anyone can make money but keeping it is another story.  This means trying to avoid the much loved swag that is plastered with your company logo.  Try buying used furniture and equipment to start.  You can always upgrade down the road.  Don’t choose your office space by location, instead focus on the price.

7) Worship your customers. Without your customers you can’t make money.  So why not take every step possible to make sure that your customers are happy customers?  Customers are just one bad experience away from leaving you and going with one of your competitors.

8) Hire smart and retain responsibly. You can have the best product or service in the world but if you don’t have good people working for you then you will be greatly limiting your revenue.  Not only do you want to hire the best but you also want to make sure that they fit into your organization.  Once they are there you need to make sure you keep them.  The key to retention is respecting your employees.  Do you want to spend the majority of your time working somewhere that doesn’t nurture your growth and value you as a person?

9) Innovate, Innovate, Innovate. The world changes with every passing day.  Don’t get left behind your competition.  Always be thinking of “what you can do to be better”.  If you can’t decide how to improve your business then no one else is going to for you.  I’ve been known to use a coffee napkin from time to time but you can’t always decide when something will come to you.  Just make sure you transfer the copy to something better once you get a chance.

10) Set goals and stick to them. If you know your goals then you are one step closer to obtaining them.  Write them down, stick to them, and in no time you will be moving on to better goals.  The key is knowing your business and where you want it to go.

I hope that these tips can be helpful.  Feel free to add any suggestions or ask any questions by contacting me directly.  Please read my author bio for my contact information.

Robert BumgarnerSoftware developer, entrepreneur, and consultant, Robert Bumgarner has developed many successful online and offline businesses. A life-long entrepreneur, Mr. Bumgarner currently operates http://www.rbgarner.com as his personal site that offers visitors with useful articles concerning entrepreneurship, internet marketing, and other informative categories. Visit http://www.rbgarner.com or contact Robert Bumgarner at robonline@rbgarner.com for more information.

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