The opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.
Business-oriented entrepreneurs are focused on one path to success: starting a business and achieving sustainable growth. While the direction is clear and the mission simple, the path is full of challenges and missteps, but most importantly, there are opportunities.
In most cases, the path to sustainable growth requires creativity. For example, a fitness studio that sells memberships and memberships will sooner or later reach a revenue plateau. This happens when growth stabilizes and income from core services reaches a predictable cadence. While there are still opportunities to sell more classes and memberships, the reality is that other revenue streams, particularly value-added products and services, are what will truly help grow the business.
What are value-added products and services?
Value-added products and services enhance the customer experience, address pain points, and demonstrate the company’s commitment to providing exceptional value. These “benefits” provide benefits to the customer that go beyond the company’s core products or services.
Offering value-added products and services to your existing customer base can create more loyal customers, which in turn can lead to increased revenue, improved customer loyalty, and strengthened brand reputation.
Related: 3 Easy Ways to Get Added Value While Entrepreneurship
Here are three value-added products and services that can help your business grow:
1. Digital cards
Digital cards are virtual business cards stored in a digital wallet. They can be shared electronically via QR code scans, email, social media or messaging apps.
Digital cards provide a convenient, digitized way to share your company’s contact information, keep customers updated in real time, and offer exclusive deals, offers, or other benefits. Essentially, they help increase a brand’s visibility by always being just a few taps away. Cars can also improve customer engagement and enhance the customer experience by providing special discounts or exclusive notifications to digital card holders.
Some platforms can help you create and manage a digital card, and most are convenient and turnkey. The expected ROI of the investment is linked to awareness and engagement which, if activated with an accompanying strategy, will increase sales and revenues.
To launch a digital card initiative, research digital assistance platforms and identify vendors that offer solutions that align with your business goals, needs and budget.
2. Extended warranties and service plans
While not always considered value-added, extended warranties and service plans provide coverage that goes beyond the standard manufacturer’s warranty. These warranties and plans give customers peace of mind and can increase their trust in your products or services.
The added benefits and sense of security can increase customer satisfaction. If your company has the capabilities and can help solve customer problems quickly and effectively, these benefits can reduce customer churn, increase customer lifetime value, and improve the company’s reputation and engagement towards quality and satisfaction.
The investment associated with extended warranties and service plans will vary depending on the product or service and the length of coverage. To determine the feasibility of this option, create a cost-benefit analysis, which will help determine whether this value-added option will be beneficial and worth the investment.
If you plan to add extended warranties or service plans to your business, evaluate the demand to ensure your customers will appreciate them. So, find a reliable partner who can help you ensure that new offers are legally valid, competitive and meet the needs of your customers.
Related: If you want your clients to truly appreciate you, you need to be their trusted advisor. That’s how.
3. Loyalty programs
Loyalty programs are often focused on rewarding customers for their continued patronage. Programs encourage repeat business and promote brand loyalty by recognizing and rewarding customers based on their behaviors (and rewarded behaviors can go beyond simple purchase history).
Whether the loyalty program is perks-based or offers reward points associated with discounts and coupons, loyalty programs ultimately incentivize customers to keep coming back. They enhance and trigger engagement and provide opportunities for feedback. Additionally, loyalty programs launched with the right intentions and effective structure can provide valuable first-party customer data that will help you understand your customers’ preferences and lead to a higher level of personalization and targeted offers.
To implement a loyalty program, identify the “loyal” audience (demographics, behaviors, etc.) and program objectives, and map the program structure. So, do some research and contact loyalty program providers that offer a platform and technology stack that complements your existing infrastructure.
Leverage value-added products and services to grow
To grow a business, you don’t need to reinvent the wheel. You can add value and create additional revenue streams by staying true to your business and developing complementary products or services that align with what you offer and what your customers want. Adding these digital offerings can simplify scalability while increasing profitability and accelerating business growth.