Congratulations! You learned the skills, took the plunge, and started a side-hustle that is now starting to make some money! Although this is an exciting time as a fledgling business (and you should take some time out to celebrate your success), you now need to figure out how to reinvest profits.
Experts say you should reinvest up to half of your side-hustle money into scaling your biz.
But how does one actually do that? There seem to be 1001 things you can invest your money in, so what takes priority at this stage?
Here are 6 ways to reinvest profits to keep growing your side-business, especially if you plan to take it full-time.
Get a Bookkeeper
Unless your side-hustle is bookkeeping or you are otherwise a skilled accountant, hire someone to balance your books.
Because the more money you make, the harder it is to keep track of where it’s all going!
This is especially important at tax time.
Sure, you can DIY your books, but if you don’t fully know what you’re doing, it can have costly consequences. You could also be missing out on tons of tax breaks that your small business is entitled to. There are a whole host of other issues to worry about too if you have a poor bookkeeping system in place.
And after a certain point, it can be difficult to keep tabs on which clients owe you for what. Your bookkeeper will stay on top of outstanding payments and help you keep track of cash flow.
Outsource Time-Consuming Tasks
Believe it or not, it may already be time for you to outsource parts of your business to a virtual assistant.
The time to hire a VA is not when you’re already overloaded. (Alas, this is when many business owners do hire one, and they always wish they had done it sooner!) You already have enough challenges to deal with your business!
If there are certain admin tasks that are taking up large chunks of your day, such as blog management or email management, these are perfect tasks for a virtual assistant to take on.
Because the reality is, if you continue to do these tasks yourself, you could actually be losing money. Think about it; if you spent five hours this week answering the same kind of emails over and over, how much money could you have made if you had spent those same five hours selling your services or product?
Free yourself up to focus on the things that you do best (and that make you the most money!) Take it from me, it works if you find the right person! Take the time to vet your candidates to make sure they will be a good fit for your business needs.
Launch a New Service or Product
Reinvesting profits to expand your service offerings might be just what you need to break new ground in your business.
It’s important to choose something logical and on-brand in order for the service or product to do well with your existing audience. Pay attention to the things your customers are asking about and see how you can turn that into a product or service. (Here are 5 other things to consider when launching a new product or service!)
You may need to learn new skills or reinvest profits upfront to get a new product launched, but the ROI might be what takes your business to the next level.
Invest in new skills
It’s true what they say: You need skills to pay the bills! The more advanced your skills, the more you can charge for your services or products.
There is a lot of online training available, so be sure to focus on the things you can benefit from right away. For example, you could learn a new skill that would be directly related to a new service offering.
For example, if you’re a graphic designer who makes infographics for websites, you might consider investing in a course that teaches you to create websites. Then you can expand your service offerings as a full-stack website designer.
Or if you sell products, you could take an email marketing course in order to market your products better and make more sales.
There’s always more to learn! If you’re done learning, your business is done growing.
Hire a Business Coach
You might be at the stage where in order to grow your business, you need to reinvest profits into a professional mentor who can guide you to the next step. A business coach will help keep you on track and looking at your long-term strategy.
They will use their experience to help you avoid costly pitfalls. They will also be honest with you when something you’re trying isn’t working. Lastly, they will help you set the right goals and combat your fears about entrepreneurship.
If you are constantly overwhelmed or aren’t getting the results you want, a business coach will help you overcome these obstacles.
Upgrade your Tech
No, I’m not saying you should run out and buy the latest, fastest, most expensive MacBook on the market. But if you’ve been bootstrapping your business up to this point, some systems are likely due for an upgrade.
For example, a proper EMS system (the free version of MailChimp can only do so much!) or a social media management system like Hootsuite or Buffer that will save you hours in creating and scheduling content.
Techy things like cybersecurity, site speed, and other business tools are always a worthwhile investment of your money.
Conclusion: Reinvest Profits to Scale Your Business!
Chances are, most of these investments are things that will greatly benefit your business. Remember that you’re never wasting your profits by putting them back into your business! You are merely using this money to open new doors and take your business to new heights.
With the right mindset, you can confidently invest your profits back into your business and feel excited about the ensuing growth!
What do you think is the best way to reinvest profits to grow into a full-time business? Let us know your thoughts in the comments!
