Do you know what drives your companies profits. AND do you have a strategy to maintain these drivers over the course of time? Our business organization guru Eric Cole has five key components to making sure your bottom line stays healthy.

- Leads. It all starts with marketing. If you can't find your potential customers AND then get them interested in what you offer– it's over before it begins. Advertising, email campaigns, or handing out cards at an event must result in people replying to you – and those are leads. So always know what marketing is getting the most – and best – leads.

Conversion. You have the lead, now, how do you get them to purchase – or convert.

FIRST, THE MORE "QUALIFIED" THE LEAD THE BETTER. For example, which lead is better? An entry in a contest to win $100, or a request for you to make a personal visit and quote on a project - where they will get $100 off if they buy. The second one! Because it is a more "qualified" lead – the way you generated the lead meant that they were ready to buy from the start.

SECOND, THE TYPE OF LEAD DETERMINES HOW YOU CLOSE THE SALE. A phone call from an advertisement demands you develop the relationship with the person - to get to the point of making the sale. Someone outside your store saying "that sample was yummy" suggests you say "Bob here will take you in the store and help you choose the muffins you want to take home"! Sticking a coupon in their face may NOT be the best way to convert them.

- Transactions. Have you ever been asked "would you like fries with that!", or "while "we're here painting the deck, we'll do the fence for 20% off"? This is sales brilliance at work. So while customers are already buying, be ready to mention complementary products you KNOW you'll want. Timing can be everything if you want more transactions with each sale.

- Frequency. The service light coming on in your car. The accountant's reminder to get your tax info. Ready. The insurance renewal notice. These are examples of companies ensuring that you keep on buying from them – you need to do the same. How?

First, stay in touch and be sure customers are satisfied with what they bought from you. Ask them - and be sure to really listen and act on suggestions.

Second, leverage that satisfaction and comfort with you into "recurring revenue" with repeating sales. These are your most profitable sales by the way – you spend very little in comparison to the cost of finding and closing a NEW customer

- Profit margins. Raise your prices, introduce an expensive iced Frapacino or offer a "Gold Standard" report that has more detail... these are all ways to increase revenues. And as long as your costs don't rise by the same amount, you'll be more profitable. Higher value items generate more profit in any business. You can, and must build higher margins.