By Dr Dave Schalow, PhD, CLU, ChFC, CFA, CFP

Part-Time Business Success | October 8, 2026

Any business owner would like to increase sales. For a part-time business, the challenge is deciding which activities deserve the limited hours you have available.

I like to simplify the discussion with what I call the “More, More, More” method. Look at three ways to grow sales:

1. Find MORE customers.
2. Increase the amount of a typical transaction.
3. Give customers good reasons to buy MORE often.

These are useful categories for organizing your marketing ideas and measuring whether they are working.

SMALL CHANGES CAN ADD UP

Consider a hypothetical business with 1,000 customers. Each spends an average of $100 per purchase and buys ten times a year. Annual revenue would be $1,000,000:

1,000 customers × $100 × 10 purchases = $1,000,000.

Now suppose each factor increases by 10%. The calculation becomes:

1,100 customers × $110 × 11 purchases = $1,331,000.

That is a 33.1% increase in revenue. It is an illustration, not a forecast or a guarantee. It also says nothing by itself about profit. The cost of producing those sales still matters.

The example shows why a focused improvement in several areas may be more useful than one vague instruction to “grow the business.”

FIND MORE CUSTOMERS

Start by explaining why a customer should choose you instead of a competitor—or instead of doing nothing. Describe benefits in language the customer understands.

Consider a referral process, a clearer offer, or a reasonable guarantee you can afford to honor. Collect contact information with permission so you can follow up appropriately. Test the idea and measure the result rather than assuming it must work.

INCREASE VALUE PER TRANSACTION

Look for relevant additions that solve more of the customer's needs. That might mean a complementary service, a useful upgrade, or a sensible package.

The point isn't to pressure someone into a purchase they don't need. The point is to make it easier to buy a more complete solution when it is appropriate. Check your margins before offering a discount for a larger purchase.

ENCOURAGE REPEAT BUSINESS

Stay in touch with customers who have agreed to hear from you. Share useful information, explain new products, and offer a reason to return when the timing makes sense.

A promotion with a real deadline can be useful, but constant discounts can teach customers to wait for the next sale. Consider what will make the relationship valuable between purchases.

RUN A FOCUSED BRAINSTORMING SESSION

List what you currently do under each of the three categories. Identify what you can measure and what you still need to learn. Some activities support longer-term trust, so evaluate them with an appropriate timeframe.

Generate ten or twenty possible improvements in each category before narrowing the list. Then choose one manageable test, set a budget and deadline, and track revenue, costs, and customer response.

You don't have to change everything at once. Make one useful improvement, learn from it, and keep building.