Increase Sales: Practical Ways to Grow Your Business

Published Friday 30 January 2026

Table of contents

• Strategies to increase sales
• Why increasing sales matters
• Set realistic sales goals
• Increasing sales to existing customers
• Finding new customers
• Do the numbers on sales-boosting strategies
• Take control of your sales growth
• FAQs on increasing sales

Key takeaways

• Prioritise selling more to existing customers first, as this delivers the highest return on investment and makes each new customer automatically more valuable when you do expand your reach.
• Remove barriers to buying by streamlining your ordering process, responding to enquiries within 24 hours, offering multiple payment options, and making it as easy as possible for customers to spend money with you.
• Use bundling promotions instead of simple discounts to increase average order value while protecting your profit margins, such as offering "Buy product A, get product B for 50% off."
• Calculate the true costs of any sales growth strategy by accounting for both one-time capital expenses and ongoing operating costs to ensure increased sales actually lead to higher profits.

Strategies to increase sales

Sales growth has two fundamental approaches: selling more to existing customers or attracting new customers.

Existing customer focus delivers the highest return on investment. It's often more affordable than finding new ones.

Strategic advantage: When you maximise sales to current customers first, each new customer becomes automatically more valuable. This amplifies your customer acquisition investment returns.

Why increasing sales matters

Boosting your sales isn't just about bigger numbers. It's about creating more opportunities for your business.

More revenue can pave the way for expansion, product innovation, and providing even better service to your customers. It gives you the fuel to build a more resilient and successful business.

Set realistic sales goals

Before you jump into new strategies, it helps to know what you're aiming for. Setting clear and realistic sales goals gives you a target to hit and a way to measure your success.

Think about what you want to achieve this quarter or this year. A specific goal, like increasing sales by 10%, is much easier to work towards than a vague hope for 'more sales'.

Increasing sales to existing customers

Anything you can do to make it easy for customers to spend money with you will help. For certain types of businesses, it also makes sense to build a deeper relationship with customers.

Reduce barriers to buying

Barrier removal means eliminating friction points that prevent customers from completing purchases.

Audit your buying process by identifying these common obstacles:

• Complex ordering: Difficult phone systems or unclear processes
• Slow responses: Delayed quotes or unreturned messages
• Limited payment options: Restricted checkout methods
• Unclear pricing: Hidden fees or confusing structures

Make ordering easier

Streamlined ordering reduces customer effort and increases conversion rates.

Essential improvements include:

• Phone accessibility: Always answer calls or provide clear callback systems
• Response timing: Return messages within 24 hours maximum
• Quote delivery: Send quotes within 48 hours of requests
• Online options: Offer web-based ordering for 24/7 access
• Recurring orders: Set up automatic reorders for regular customers
• Payment flexibility: Accept multiple payment methods at checkout, as research shows that high-growth businesses often use new payment options such as buy now, pay later.

Make billing friendlier

Customer-friendly fees and billing can encourage repeat business. For example, flat fees, where you charge the same each month even though service levels may vary, can be really attractive to clients who prefer certainty of cost.

Similarly, you can help customer cash flow by allowing them to pay for big-ticket items in installments.

You may need software to help you pay bills or third-party services to provide this level of flexibility, but this kind of billing could help increase sales.

Sales promotions

Planned promotions can boost sales without cutting too deeply into your profit margins. Simple discounting reduces profitability and can devalue your brand; one business analysis found that discounts amounted to 9.4 per cent of total income.

Bundling promotions offer partial discounts on additional items. For example, "Buy product A, get product B for 50% off." This approach:

• Increases average order value by encouraging multiple purchases
• Protects margins because discounts apply only to bundle additions
• Maintains perceived value of your primary products

Loyalty discounts reward repeat customers with special pricing. The lifetime value increase justifies the margin reduction.

Cross-selling

Cross-selling promotes related products alongside a customer's intended purchase to increase transaction value.

Implementation strategies include:

• Physical placement: Position complementary items near each other
• Digital recommendations: Use "customers also bought" suggestions
• Sales scripts: Train staff to suggest relevant additions
• Bundle offers: Provide discounts on additional items when beneficial

Cross-selling vs upselling: Cross-selling adds related products, while upselling promotes premium versions of the same product.

Learn about upselling in the guide Upselling techniques to increase revenue.

Expanding your range of products or services

Product expansion increases revenue by meeting more customer needs within your existing relationships. For high-growth businesses, introducing new products is a key strategy, with 53% citing innovation as one of the most positive influences on their business.

Research methods for identifying opportunities:

• Customer surveys: Ask existing clients what additional services they need
• Competitor analysis: Study what similar businesses offer that you don't
• Supplier consultation: Request recommendations for complementary products
• Market gaps: Identify unmet needs in your industry

Open your mind to goods or services:

• A goods business can sell related services, such as installation, training or maintenance for its products.
• A service business can sell related products, such as haircare products in a salon or analytics tools from a web services provider.

Look at different ways of packaging your offer

Market repositioning targets your existing products to new customer segments without developing new offerings.

Reframing strategies:

• Business-to-business (B2B) pivot: A chocolate maker becomes a restaurant supplier
• Industry shift: A web designer targets healthcare instead of retail
• Use case expansion: A cleaning service adds post-construction cleanup
• Demographic targeting: A fitness trainer specialises in seniors

For more tips, read the guide Launching new products.

Relationship marketing

Relationship marketing builds ongoing customer connections that generate repeat sales and referrals. This strategy works best for service providers, consultants, and businesses with repeat purchase potential.

Transactional vs relationship approach:

• Transactional: Focus on individual sales transactions
• Relationship: Invest in long-term customer engagement and loyalty

This is most often done by:

• creating mailing lists (or social media groups) for more regular communication
• circulating newsletters (weekly, monthly or quarterly) with interesting news, tips, and occasional business announcements
• loyalty clubs that give customers special privileges such as advance access to new products, special discounts, or prizes and giveaways
• hosting engaging events such as information evenings, product launches, exhibitions and so on

Finding new customers

Once you've exhausted avenues for building on existing customers, exploring ways to find new customers will boost sales.

Expand your presence (physical or online)

Physical expansion increases market reach by establishing presence in new locations.

Low-cost expansion options:

• Shared spaces: Rent workshop or office space with other businesses
• Pop-up locations: Test markets with temporary setups
• Partnership spaces: Share locations with complementary businesses
• Mobile services: Bring your business directly to customers

Traditional expansion requires significant capital investment but offers full control and permanent presence.

It may be less costly to expand your presence through online means. A retailer might open an online store. A professional services provider might set themselves up to serve clients remotely. Suddenly you're not so bound by geography. Take the time to learn how your types of products or services are typically sold online.

Broaden your marketing

You may be able to increase sales by changing when, where and how you speak to potential customers.

Experiment with digital marketing

Experiment with social media and search marketing. Start with low-cost campaigns and see which approaches work best.

Tap into word-of-mouth marketing

Word of mouth is one of the most effective forms of marketing out there. As a bonus, it's also one of the free-est.

Everybody loves a good referral; we'd all much rather buy something we've been recommended. So don't be shy about asking your customers to spread the word.

If you are a business-to-business (B2B) service provider, tell your client you are looking to work with more people like them. It's a compliment and a request for work all wrapped up together. Hard bake those requests into your script to make sure you always say it. It goes a long way.

You could go a step further and offer incentives for referrals, but try the free route first. People genuinely like to help other people that they like.

Test new audiences

If you've been marketing to the same group, pivot slightly to include a different demographic. For example, a web services supplier to small businesses could decide to specifically target sports clubs and charities. A commercial kitchen supplies business could decide to open their offering to households as well.

Expand the range of products and services you sell

A wider range of products or services can increase sales with your existing customers and make you relevant to a wider group of customers.

Think about what you're already good at and where else you could add value for prospective customers. Do some numbers to check the true cost of expanding in this way. And consider piloting new offerings before making permanent changes to your range.

Do the numbers on sales-boosting strategies

Financing sales growth needs careful cost planning to stay profitable. Every sales strategy involves upfront investment and ongoing expenses. Make sure you also work out how to pay for that extra activity.

Capital expenses (one-time investments):

• Equipment: New tools, machinery, or technology
• Infrastructure: Physical locations, websites, or systems
• Setup costs: Initial inventory, licensing, or permits

Operating expenses (ongoing costs):

• Inventory: Additional stock to meet demand
• Marketing: Advertising, promotions, and sales materials
• Staff: Sales commissions, additional employees, or training
• Logistics: Increased shipping, storage, or delivery costs

Pay particular attention to your margins so increased sales also increase your profits. Hidden costs can quickly erode profits; for example, one case study found that destroyed stock amounted to 11.6 per cent of the total cost of goods sold.

Changes to costs or pricing will affect your margin, so if your margin is likely to shrink, for example through discounting, check that the lift in sales is enough to deliver higher overall profits.

Take control of your sales growth

Increasing sales is a journey of testing and learning what works for your business. By focusing on both your existing customers and finding new ones, you create a powerful engine for growth. Keeping a close eye on your numbers helps you see what's working so you can do more of it.

With the right strategies and clear financial insights, you can run your business with confidence. See how you can manage your financials and make informed decisions when you try Xero for free.

FAQs on increasing sales

Here are answers to some common questions about increasing sales.

How quickly can I expect to see results from sales strategies?

It varies. Simple changes like a sales promotion can bring quick results, while strategies like relationship marketing build value over several months. The key is to track your efforts to see what's most effective.

What's the difference between increasing sales and increasing profits?

Increasing sales means boosting your total revenue, but it doesn't always lead to higher profits. For example, heavy discounting might increase sales but reduce your profit margin on each item. A healthy business focuses on growing both.

Should I focus on existing customers or new customers first?

It's often more cost-effective to start with existing customers. They already know and trust you. Once you've maximised sales with them, every new customer you attract becomes even more valuable.

How much should I budget for sales growth activities?

There's no single answer, as it depends on your industry and goals. Start small with low-cost experiments, measure the return on investment, and then reinvest what you earn into the most successful strategies.

What tools can help me track sales performance?

Accounting software like Xero is essential. It helps you track revenue, see which products or services are selling best, and monitor your profitability in real-time, all in one place.