The ultimate goal of every business owner is to make money. In most cases, this means having a high sales volume. Sales are what run the world's economy, and it is important that business owners take advantage of every trick in the trade in order to achieve a high amount of sales. If you are a small business owner and want to increase your sales volume, here are five effective ways to do so:

Entice customers by offering them a free gift. You don't have to give away the best of your inventory, but giving customers something for free is still one of the most effective ways to increase your sales volume because it will build rapport, credibility and trust with your customer and they will then come back to buy more from you at a later date.

Repeat customers are important for any business. You want to ensure that your customers will return to you time and time again. To get this to happen, you must provide your customers with incentives. There are all kinds of things that you can do. You may want to create a customer loyalty program, where you offer special discounts to customers who have a loyalty card that you provide to them free of charge. Offer special promotions or free gifts, or anything else you can think of that will keep your customers returning.

Don't forget to cross-sell. When you make a sale, don't just stop at that sale. Try to find ways to up-sell. For example, if you are selling sewing machines, offer customers a deal on machine accessories, fabric or notions. If you are selling computers, before the deal is closed, try to get the customers to purchase computer accessories. This is really going to increase your sales margin, and your profits.

Never stop trying to generate new leads. In order to increase sales volume, you need to make sure that you have a large customer base. Of course, customers do come and go at times, and it is important that you are always finding ways to make new contacts and generate new leads for sales. Get out there and meet new people, and let them know what your business is all about. Chances are that many of the people you meet will be at least somewhat interested, and will take a look at what you have to offer.

Make sure your customers know their business is appreciated. Find ways to thank your customers for their patronage. It doesn't cost a lot to offer things like free gifts and incentive programs, and actually, these things will go a long way in increasing your sales margin. Create a referral program with rewards. Everyone loves to receive something for free, and if all they have to do is refer friends to your business, they probably will, especially if they are already loyal customers. This is yet another powerful tool to help increase your sales volume and your profits.

Author's Bio: 

Andrew McCombe is the owner of Activate Your Business where they teach new and existing business owners to Start, Grow and / or Automate their business(es) with EASE, so they can live a life of EASE. For more information visit http://www.activateyourbusiness.com.au