Blog: 4 Lessons Learned from the April PowerLink Advisory Board Meetings of 2021 – “The Art of Managing and Growing a Recurring Revenue Service” and a Sneak Preview of the May Sessions….
“ The only way to predict the future is to create it.” -Peter Drucker
We’ve been waiting for Spring 2021 all year—for a view of business that is more like 2019—more normal…an easier business life. Not quite there, but there is a light at the end of the tunnel. This month, we worked with more than 185 small business owners who attended one of our 14 Community Advisory Boards or Private one-on-one mentoring sessions over Zoom. The topic was the reinforcing of our 2021 Revenue Goal—Using a Recurring Revenue Product or Service to Generate Revenue and our Top Three Goals (or “Rocks”) we need to achieve by the end of Q2. April for PowerLink participants was asking ourselves the toughest questions of the year: (1) Am I clear about where I want to take my business? (2) Am I clear about the top three business challenges I have to overcome in the first three months of the year? (3) Am I clear about how I am delegating some of these tasks to others? (employees, contractors, sub-contractors, or vendors).
In 90 minutes of talking, writing, sharing, laughing, and listening this month, here were a few of the Lessons Learned from April 2021 among Powerlink Small Business Owners across the United States about “The Art of Recurring Revenue to Stabilize Your Business.”:
1. "I have one recurring revenue client. How do I get 100?” We figured out that she needs a mechanism to bill recurring charges through her bank. We must pull in our bank partners Treasury Services offerings.
2. "Everything I do is project based. How do I get someone to buy from me every month?” We walked a number of companies through an Annual Customer Assessment. You can’t help a customer long term if you don’t know their future plans. Make it an annual event.
3. Every Wednesday events. By creating an event that happens every Wednesday (or any other day of the week), you need to build a customer engagement and revenue reporting trigger so you can focus your effort on one day. We had two owners figure out that the weekly event could generate $250,000 per year in new revenue!
4. I am not sure how to price my subscription?” We walked several owners through a testing model I like to call the Amazon testing model. By creating a service or product with a price tag for a monthly subscription, you must test price over and over again. By shifting the number up (or down), you will start to see a conversion rate that starts to increase. When conversion starts to hit 60%, stop. You have your price.
Calendar of Events: PowerLink May 2021:
Here is the Calendar for May 2021 (Community Advisory Boards). If you are not already registered and interested in joining any group (you may do up to two meetings per month with your program fee), just email or text me. The first meeting is always complimentary thanks to our foundation and grant sponsors. Thanks to a multi-sponsor scholarship program through PNC Charitable Trust, Standard Bank Foundation, FNB Bank Foundation, Huntington Bank and Citizen’s Bank (2020/2021), we may be able to lower program fees to free or $25 if you qualify.
If you are new to PowerLink or returning but not registered through the program, let us know if you want to register for any of the monthly meetings in May over our Zoom platform by texting your contact info to 412.721.3186:
Monday, May 10, 2021 4:30-6 PM Executive CEO Circle --$1 million and more (open to our larger PowerLink companies, manufacturing companies and alums anywhere in the US with $1 to $10 million growth and income goals). May Topic is How to Hire a Superstar with your Small Budget in 5 Tested Steps. Guest advisors presenting and interactive advising at all sessions. Also share your own hiring and retention tactics. By invitation only. Register by text to 412.721.3186 with your email and location desired if you are new and interested.
Tuesday, May 11, 2021: 8:30-10 am Succession Only CEO Circle—only for companies intending to sell their business, buy a business or pass it to their children or employees in the next 5 years (for our more mature PowerLink companies anywhere in the US. May Topic is How to Hire a Superstar with your Small Budget in 5 Tested Steps. Guest advisors presenting and interactive advising at all sessions. Also share your own hiring and retention tactics. By invitation only. Register by text to Harry Edelman, Regional Director at 412.389.5297 with your email and location desired if you are new and interested. Facilitated by an experienced Mergers and Acquisitions specialist with a passion for helping smaller companies exit successfully.
Tuesday, May 11, 2021: 4-5:30 pm City of Pittsburgh Businesses sponsored by Citizen’s Bank—to promote growth and new business strategy. May Topic is How to Hire a Superstar with your Small Budget in 5 Tested Steps. Guest advisors presenting and interactive advising at all sessions. Also share your own hiring and retention tactics. By invitation only. Register by text to 412.721.3186 with your email and location desired if you are new and interested.
Tuesday, May 11, 2021: 5:45-6:45 pm Youngstown, OH Businesses sponsored by Citizen’s Bank-to promote growth and new business strategy. May Topic is How to Hire a Superstar with your Small Budget in 5 Tested Steps. Guest advisors presenting and interactive advising at all sessions. Also share your own hiring and retention tactics. By invitation only. Register by text to 412.721.3186 with your email and location desired if you are new and interested.
Wednesday, May 12, 2021: 11-12:30 am Pittsburgh East—PowerLink Without Walls II – Community Advisory Board to promote growth and new business strategy. May Topic is How to Hire a Superstar with your Small Budget in 5 Tested Steps. Guest advisors presenting and interactive advising at all sessions. Also share your own hiring and retention tactics. By invitation only. Register by text to 412.721.3186 with your email and location desired if you are new and interested.
(NEW) Wednesday, May 12, 2021: 5-6:30 pm Retail Only Community Advisory Board in Indiana PA (open to retailers and downtown/urban location businesses) to promote growth and new business strategies beyond bricks and mortar street traffic. May Topic is How to Hire a Superstar with your Small Budget in 5 Tested Steps. Guest advisors presenting and interactive advising at all sessions. Also share your own hiring and retention tactics. By invitation only. Register by text to 412.721.3186 with your email and location desired if you are new and interested.
Thursday, May 13, 2021: 8:00-9:30 am Harrisburg/York Regional Community Advisory Board sponsored by FNB Bank to promote growth and new business strategy. May Topic is How to Hire a Superstar with your Small Budget in 5 Tested Steps. Guest advisors presenting and interactive advising at all sessions. Also share your own hiring and retention tactics. Register by text to Sherry Jordan, PowerLink Regional Director at 814.881.8106 with your email and location desired if you are new and interested.
(NEW) Tuesday, May 18, 2021: 11 am-12:30 pm: PowerLink without Walls I for Small Businesses Anywhere in the World —to promote growth and innovative new business strategies regardless of your location. For owners doing $150,000+ in annual revenue wanting to hit $1M in the next 5 years). May Topic is How to Hire a Superstar with your Small Budget in 5 Tested Steps. Guest advisors presenting and interactive advising at all sessions. Also share your own hiring and retention tactics by invitation only. Register by text to 412.721.3186 with your email and location desired if you are new and interested.
(NEW) Tuesday, May 18, 2021: 3-4:30 pm: Penn State PowerLink Community Advisory Board for Contractors Only—if your business is connected in any way to facilities, construction, design, renovation or maintenance and you want to grow through private sector and government contracting, this group will limit its discussion to only construction/maintenance related marketing and new business strategies. May Topic is How to Hire a Superstar with your Small Budget in 5 Tested Steps. Guest advisors presenting and interactive advising at all sessions. Also share your own hiring and retention tactic. By invitation only. Register by text to 412.721.3186 with your email and location desired if you are new and interested.
(NEW) Tuesday, May 18, 2021: 4:45-6 pm. Huntington Bank PowerLink Community Advisory Board for MBE, WBE and Veteran-owned Small Businesses. May Topic is How to Hire a Superstar with your Small Budget in 5 Tested Steps. Guest advisors presenting and interactive advising at all sessions. Also share your own hiring and retention tactic. By invitation only. Register by text to 412.721.3186 with your email and location desired if you are new and interested.
Wednesday, May 19, 2021: 2-3:30 pm: Westmoreland County CC Community Advisory Board sponsored by Standard Bank: to promote growth and new business strategy. May Topic is How to Hire a Superstar with your Small Budget in 5 Tested Steps. Guest advisors presenting and interactive advising at all sessions. Also share your own hiring and retention tactic. By invitation only. Register by text to 412.721.3186 with your email and location desired if you are new and interested.
Or you can text Courtney at the Westmoreland County Chamber at 724.880.1703.
(NEW) Wednesday, May 19, 2021: 5-6:15 pm Downtown Washington, PA Businesses sponsored by Huntington Bank and PCRG—to promote growth and innovative new business strategies in the urban/merchant areas of the City of Washington. May Topic is How to Hire a Superstar with your Small Budget in 5 Tested Steps. Guest advisors presenting and interactive advising at all sessions. Also share your own hiring and retention tactic. By invitation only. Register by text to 412.721.3186 with your email and location desired if you are new and interested. Or you can contact Christy at PCRG crowing@pcrg.org or Sara at Downtown Washington, PA sarah@downtownwashingtonpa.com
(NEW for 2021) Thursday, May 20, 2021: 12:30 – 2 pm City of Youngstown, OH Businesses sponsored by Citizen’s Bank—to promote growth and new business strategy. This event is moved to Tuesday, May 11th at 5:45 pm. Register by text to 412.721.3186 with your email and location desired if you are new and interested.
Thursday, May 20, 2021: 3:30-5 pm Washington County Businesses sponsored by the Peters Township Chamber of Commerce and Huntington Bank—to promote growth and innovative new business strategies. May Topic is How to Hire a Superstar with your Small Budget in 5 Tested Steps. Guest advisors presenting and interactive advising at all sessions. Also share your own hiring and retention tactic. By invitation only. Register by text to 412.721.3186 with your email and location desired if you are new and interested. Or you can contact Brian/Megan at the Peters Township Chamber of Commerce at brian@peterstownshipchamberofcommerce.com
Also note that our May session will also let everyone share their key New Business challenge and let the group help “crush” that challenge with insight based on experience, lessons learned and mentoring. These meetings are private and confidential. You must register in advance to attend as a guest.
Have a productive and prosperous 2021! A.
Anita Brattina, CEO and Board Chair, PowerLink
1501 Ardmore Boulevard, Suite 404, Pittsburgh PA 15221, 412.721.3186 (M), anita.brattina@allfacilities.com, www.powerlink.org
“Helping small and emerging companies achieve their next level of success through access to executive and CEO advisors.” A Pennsylvania 501(c)3 corporation.
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