How to Double Your Sales in Three Years

Growing a business from sales of $2 million to $106 million in just six years—that's the stuff of entrepreneurial dreams. It's also exactly what Cameron Herold did from 2001 to 2007 during his tenure as COO of trash removal phenomenon 1-800-GOT-JUNK?. That may sound like a remarkable achievement (and it is), but Herold is convinced his straightforward, step-by-step approach can be replicated in any business, from fledgling startups to established companies.

Herold details his system for success in his book Double Double: How to Double Your Revenue and Profit in 3 Years or Less. Now a business consultant, coach, and speaker, Herold tells AllBusiness.com about the mindset of the fast-growth entrepreneur, the single most important element to success, and how common mistakes can derail even the hardest-working businessperson.

Don't Miss: A practical excerpt from Cameron Herold's book Double Double: How to Double Your Revenue and Profit in 3 Years or Less.

AllBusiness.com: How did your experience as COO of 1-800-GOT-JUNK? help you develop ideas about fast growth?

Cameron Herold: Most of my ideas related to fast growth were actually from three other companies I had helped build prior to 1-800-GOT-JUNK?. I learned a ton of the best systems for growth from College Pro Painters back in the late '80s and early '90s. While COO for 1-800-GOT-JUNK?, however, I was able to test out and refine these systems even further. And watching 1-800-GOT-JUNK? grow as fast as we did while using them gave me confidence that they could be replicated in other companies, and it increased my personal brand as an expert in entrepreneurial growth.

AB: Is that what inspired you to write Double Double?

Herold: I've been doing keynote speaking to entrepreneurial audiences globally since 2005, and while doing them I was always asked by the entrepreneurs for a book that they could give each of their employees to read as well. It wasn’t that I felt an internal urge to write it—I was pulled by them to write it. So long as my work helps entrepreneurs' dreams happen, I'll do it.

AB: The idea of doubling your sales in three years or less sounds very ambitious. What's the single most important ingredient to growing sales this quickly?

Herold: It's actually not that fast. That's only three consecutive years of 26% revenue growth. I grew1-800-GOT-JUNK? by, on average, 100% for six consecutive years.

It's mostly about focus: focused strategy, focused people, focused efforts every day. There are plenty of people, and plenty of companies, who work hard. The ones who really get things done are, as Peter Drucker called them, "monomaniacs with a mission."

AB: You talk about the importance of focus a lot in your book—focus in hiring, meetings, public relations, marketing, and so on. How can entrepreneurs strengthen their focus?

Herold: It's about focusing on the right things, and about setting tight, measurable goals. Goals should have either a #, $, or % symbol in them. When business owners push everyone in the company to align their work with what matters to the company as a whole, and they have everyone setting tight, measurable goals on a daily and weekly basis, that rigor will increase results.

AB: Speaking of focus, you write about the importance of having a top 5 list of things to do today. What are your company's top 5 things for today?

Herold:

1. Get invoices out to 14 clients who purchased sets of DVDs from me today.
2. Send books out to 10 highly influential bloggers.
3. Fire a client who I'm not enjoying coaching.
4. Complete this interview for you.
5. Follow up with a VC firm who wants me to coach the companies they are funding.

AB: Let's say an entrepreneur is ready to accept this challenge. What are the first steps?

Herold: First, it's about establishing very clear goals, and I like to lean no further than three years out. Then it's about describing in vivid detail what the company will look like three years out. Once they have clear goals and a clear picture of the future, they can begin to list out all the projects they need to do to make that picture come true. Then, one by one, it's about completing each project as fast as possible and within the set budget.

AB: If entrepreneurs have had trouble growing, what kinds of barriers could be standing in their way?

Herold: It's usually focus. Slow-growth companies tend to not be working daily on the highest-impact projects or tasks. They also tend to have B or C players on their teams instead of A players.

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AB: You also point out in your book how important it is for business owners to be open to criticism. How can they improve in this area?

Herold: It's about being vulnerable. Many entrepreneurs grew up in the classroom as the dumb or bored kids who couldn't sit still. So we built an internal coping system to deal with it. And many of us are afraid of looking dumb again. If we can be vulnerable and realize it's not about acting smart, but rather it's about getting great ideas and advice from others, then it gets easier to ask for help and accept criticism.

AB: You write in your book that doubling your company's sales doesn't necessarily mean working 60-hour weeks. Is work-life balance really that important?

Herold: Balance is key. Without it, at some point it will begin eating you up that you don't have enough fun, and you'll begin to hate your company. Schedule lots of free time into your days and weeks. When I started building my company three and a half years ago, I went 18 months without working a Friday. And I got tons done.

AB: If you had a single piece of advice to offer entrepreneurs, what would it be?

Herold: If you had only two hours a day to run your company, what would you do during those two hours each day? Now, do that eight hours a day and delegate or outsource everything else.

RELATED: Book Excerpt: ‘Double Double: How to Double Your Revenue and Profit in 3 Years or Less’

About the Author

Charlotte Jensen is an internationally published journalist who specializes in business topics.