Slippery Rock Gazette

Justin Shaw

Stone Fabricator Elite

Are you the owner of a stone industry business, such as a countertop shop, fabrication enterprise, or distribution company? Have there been instances where you’ve found yourself in need of a substantial financial boost, and quickly? This article explores the concept called a “Revenue Rush” — a hyper-focused, dedicated effort designed to substantially increase your sales and cash flow in a short amount of time.

In our work, we partner closely with stone industry professionals to help them build a sustainable business. Our focus is on creating a predictable pipeline of business and helping our clients gain control of their sales processes. However, we’re well aware that there are often times when cash flow can become tight. This could be due to a variety of factors such as seasonality, market conditions, or the retirement of a general contractor who previously made up a significant portion of your monthly sales.

In these challenging circumstances, we’ve provided assistance to our clients and the members of our programs by helping them to plan and execute a Revenue Rush. This strategy is designed specifically to inject a much-needed influx of cash into the business.

Where’s the Cash Coming From?

At this point, you might be thinking, “This all sounds great, but where do I begin?” Let’s break it down. The first crucial step is to take a comprehensive, in-depth look at your business and identify potential opportunities to capture unrealized revenue. This could involve focusing on collections or conducting a thorough audit of your sales pipeline to identify deals that have been forgotten or overlooked. Another potential avenue to explore is examining past business-to-business (B2B) customers and figuring out tactful strategies to re-engage them in the short term.

You’ll want to set clear goals that you and your team are aiming to hit. To give a few examples, perhaps you aim to collect $10,000 from outstanding invoices and receivables, or you set a target to secure $50,000 from older deals that have gone stale in your sales pipeline. Another goal might be to upsell a total of $15,000 for the month on your upcoming opportunities.

Motivating Your Team: The Revenue Rush Challenge

A Revenue Rush is effective partly due to its focus on a short-term goal that motivates the team to unite. Consequently, team members become more diligent in upselling, as opposed to only seizing obvious opportunities, which might be their usual approach.

Once these targets are set, it’s time to roll up your sleeves and get to work. To capture that revenue and pull in those sales, you’ll need to employ effective, proven strategies. However, it’s important to note that we can’t quite do this justice in this article, because no two businesses are the same. The approach required for a successful Revenue Rush is typically an activity-based sales and collections push. This isn’t a half-hearted effort, but rather a committed, intensified undertaking.

We often refer to this as the “Revenue Rush Challenge” when presenting to teams. The objective is to significantly increase both the quantity and quality of your sales and collection activities. This means more calls, more follow-ups, more negotiations, and more closings. But it’s crucial to remember that it’s not solely about the quantity. Each interaction must also be of high quality. This dual focus on volume and quality ensures that you not only reach more potential leads but also convert them effectively, thereby substantially boosting your revenue.

Another key aspect to consider is how to expedite your cash inflow. One simple strategy is to offer customers incentives for early payments, which can reduce the time between making a sale and receiving the cash, helping to benefit your bottom line. Another tool might be to employ electronic payment methods that can streamline the collection of payments and deposits, helping to avoid unnecessary delays and supporting your cash flow.

For a Revenue Rush Challenge to be successful, it’s crucial for everyone on the team to be fully committed. Consider assigning specific tasks or goals to individual team members or even whole departments in your business. This approach helps everyone feel like they’ve got a stake in the game, and it creates a clear connection between everyone’s work. When people are striving to achieve their own goals, knowing that it’s all part of a larger mission, you’ll start to see a real improvement in performance. This is how you build a team that’s not just working together to make this Revenue Rush a success, but also transforming into a more cohesive, driven, high-performing unit.

To add an element of fun and keep the momentum going, consider gamifying your challenge. You could set up a leaderboard to track progress, or offer attractive prizes (with a decent budget) for hitting certain goals. These tactics can serve to motivate and excite the team, encouraging them to fully commit and really go for it.

Finally, it’s important to continually monitor your progress during your Revenue Rush. Regularly compare your current performance with the goals you set at the outset. This will help you determine if you’re on track or if you need to adjust your approach. Being adaptable and willing to change your strategy as needed is often a vital part of this process.

Important Note

While the Revenue Rush Challenge presents an attractive strategy for a quick cash flow boost, it’s crucial to understand that this is a short-term solution. There are no silver bullets in business. The long-term focus should always be on building a sustainable business. This involves implementing the right systems and strategies to provide stable sales and cash flow. It’s the consistent, daily actions that lead to lasting success. So while the Revenue Rush can provide a necessary surge, keep on pushing for the end goal – a thriving, sustainable business.

Justin Shaw is the Founder & CEO of Stone Fabricator Elite. He has also launched a signature coaching program under his personal brand, offering trade professionals the opportunity to access his training and coaching to build a business by design, rather than by default. His aim is to help them achieve sustainable growth, unlock more profit and lifestyle freedom through both coaching for business and personal growth.

You can find more information about his programs at stonefabricatorelite.com or justinxshaw.com .