How to Establish a Stable Sales Pipeline Through the Highs and Lows of Business
Originally published on Inc.com.
David Finkel, bestselling author and CEO of Maui Mastermind, has been a regular contributor to Inc. Magazine for over a decade.
This article is one of his latest pieces featured by Inc.
Many small- to medium-size-business owners struggle with an all-too-familiar pattern: the feast-or-famine cycle. One month, they’re overflowing with orders or client requests, and the next, they’re scrambling for new leads. This roller-coaster not only harms cash flow but also disrupts team morale. I’ve seen it derail great businesses simply because the owner never established a stable sales pipeline. Here are the key strategies I use with my coaching clients to smooth out these highs and lows.
Diagnose the causes.
Start by identifying why the dips occur. Often, busy periods push owners into production mode, leaving no bandwidth for ongoing marketing. When the surge finally dies down, sales drop off because marketing efforts were neglected. Another culprit is that many entrepreneurs jump from one marketing idea to the next without giving any approach enough time to prove itself. They assume something isn’t working, and then move on. Thus, repeating the cycle.
What You’ve Been Told About Scaling… Is Wrong.
Freedom is not found in hustle, hacks, or grinding harder. It’s found in building a business that runs without you.
Download The Untold Business Scaling Blueprint and Discover:
Map your lead sources.
One of my clients ran a boutique logistics firm that swung wildly between being overbooked and sitting idle. We first listed every channel she used to attract clients: referrals, social media ads, networking events, and so on. Then, we tracked where her actual revenue was coming from.
To her surprise, a large percentage of new leads originated from just two channels: a local business association and well-targeted LinkedIn campaigns. The other five or six she dabbled in weren’t contributing much. Armed with that data, we refocused on refining the high-impact channels instead of spreading ourselves thin.
Create a consistent pipeline schedule.
If you’re not devoting dedicated time each week to generating leads, then your pipeline will inevitably dry up. Block off specific hours for marketing and sales tasks—whether it’s writing follow-up emails, scheduling demos, or doing targeted outreach. By treating these blocks as you would a crucial client appointment, you ensure lead generation doesn’t fall to the wayside when you’re busy.
My client set aside two hours every Tuesday morning for prospect calls and one hour on Thursdays for posting relevant articles on LinkedIn and nurturing associations.
Automate and delegate.
To break the feast-or-famine cycle, you need a reliable process that runs even when you’re knee-deep in project work. Automate what you can: Schedule social media content, set up email marketing sequences, and use CRM tools to track leads. If automation isn’t feasible for certain tasks, delegate them. My client hired a part-time marketing coordinator to manage social media and event outreach, ensuring that lead-generation activities continued year-round.
Fine-tune your offers.
A major cause of feast-or-famine cycles can be relying on a single type of service or a single price point. Explore whether you can diversify offerings so more prospects can engage with you at different levels. That might mean a starter package for smaller clients or a higher-tier package for larger accounts. Diversification cushions the blow if one revenue stream takes a dip and keeps leads moving through your pipeline.
Measure, adjust, and repeat.
Finally, build a habit of reviewing pipeline performance. At least monthly, look at how many leads are coming in, how many deals are closing, and which channels are converting best. With those metrics, you can quickly spot signs of a downturn and take corrective action—rather than finding out too late that a slow spell has arrived.
The true antidote to feast-or-famine is consistency. By committing to steady lead-generation activities, setting up automation or delegating tasks, and regularly measuring results, you’ll achieve a smoother, more predictable sales pipeline. This not only stabilizes your cash flow but also relieves the anxiety of scrambling when business suddenly goes quiet. This enables you to focus on the real work of growing your company.