(This is a long post. If you find it helpful, please let me know in the comments!)
Tax season is here again! So did you get a tax refund? I have some ideas on how you can double that refund. This advice also applies to anyone getting a small windfall—maybe you made an extra profit or you got a lump sum from somewhere. Here’s advice on how can you double that money, not just spend it.
There’s a great Zig Zigler quote that “Rich people have small TVs and big libraries, and poor people have small libraries and big TVs.” What you do with your money is determined by your mindset. Let’s say you’re getting a tax refund from the IRS. A lot of people think about treating themselves to a vacation or putting a down payment on a nicer car or buying some furniture or upgrading their laptop.
If you want to double your tax refund, it starts with whether to spend it or invest it. If you don’t want to have to work hard all year long for the rest of your life, stop thinking about treating yourself, stop giving yourself a raise every time you get a bigger profit or buying something when you get a boost in income. People who invest that money have quality of life and freedom that others do not. Shift your thinking from spending money to investing it. Take your $1,000 refund and increase it 10x—it can turn into more money than the $1,000 treat you were going to buy yourself. Remember that the minute you buy a computer, it starts to devalue. It might feel like an investment in your business but it’s a cost, not an investment.
Invest your tax refund in marketing
There are two ways to take that refund and make it work for you by increasing your revenue and quality of life. First, you can spend it on marketing. Let’s say that your marketing cost averages to ~$250 for you to obtain a recurring customer. If you spend $500, on average you’ll acquire two customers, and if you spend $1,000 you can expect around four recurring customers. And let’s say that recurring customers will annually spend about $3,000 with your business. By spending $1,000 on marketing to acquire four recurring customers, that will bring in $12,000 in additional annual revenue. If they stay with you for two years, that’s $24,000 in business from $1,000 you spent in advertising.
Marketing, if done correctly, is an investment. It’s not a waste or a cost. If operationally you’re not prepared to convert those clients or don’t charge enough or don’t have a good system in place to convert them into recurring clients, then it is a cost. But it’s never a waste if you spend your dollars in the right place and handle the leads correctly. Don’t look at marketing as an expense but as a way to make more money. (How to effectively use marketing is covered in great detail in my Cleaning Business Fundamentals course.)
Invest in yourself
Besides spending your tax refund on marketing, the second thing you can do with the money is to invest in yourself and in your personal development. I’m constantly taking leadership training, or sales training, or courses on how to be a better consultant. I’m never going to be finished learning. I spend money on consultants to come in and work with my staff, and spend money to train my staff.
Investing in yourself is one of the best ways to get a return on your tax refund. If you could spend between $2,000 and $10,000 to invest in the rest of your life, to get out of the field and stop cleaning, to double or triple your income, wouldn’t you do that? What if you could have been making $50,000 a year but you didn’t invest in yourself, you bought a fancy car instead. As your car deteriorates in value, you realize that you could have invested in yourself and begun to build that empire that you thought you’d have by now.
My Cleaning Business Fundamentals (CBF) course can absolutely help you increase your business, get you out of the field, and help grow your revenue. However, you have to ask yourself if it’s a cost or an investment. It’s a cost if you purchase the course and don’t follow through, but it’s an investment if you actually follow my advice.
I recently asked people who had taken my course to let me know what they thought. Here are some of the comments that I got:
“Investing in CBF is one of the best decisions I ever made.” – Jeannie H.
“CBF is a God-send!” – Rhonda B.
“Best thing I have done for my business.” -Stephanie R
“It got me out of the field and now I’m a compassionate business owner.” – Michelle A.
“Best decision I made and best money I spent.” – Bonnie C.
“One of the smartest business decisions I’ve made in 9 years. “ – Molly M.
“Really comprehensive, well organized, thorough and complete information, plus the amazing support and terrific community of caring and generous business owners. One of the best business experiences I have ever had. So glad I made the commitment to myself and my business. Really the best.” – Christy L.
“CBF has shown me the roadmap to a successful business and slowly but surely we are on our way!” – Eduardo C.
The model that I teach in CBF is guaranteed to work, but I can’t guarantee that everyone who takes it will follow through with the model. It’s not complicated but it does require effort. I used my formula to build a multi-million dollar business where I’m an absentee owner not involved in the day-to-day decisions. I have a formula that works 100% if you follow it, and I’ve been teaching this formula to cleaning business owners for ten years and put it into practice in my own business for close to 25 years. I can help you get out of the field and build the size of business that you want.
So what is CBF or Cleaning Business Fundamentals? It’s a course where I give you EVERYTHING—all the tools, information, and forms you need, as well as six months of coaching. You participate via phone and internet. Are you ready to double your tax rebate? Invest it in yourself. Ask yourself if you’re worth the investment. Don’t wait another month or year.
