Profit vs revenue: how small businesses can grow without the pain

Author: Leanne Knowles 

3 - 4 minute read 

Revenue isn’t profit: why chasing more money can keep you broke (and what to do instead)

Revenue is the vanity metric that gets all the spotlight.
Everyone loves to brag about being “fully booked” or hitting 6 or 7 figures.
But here’s the truth bomb — revenue means jack unless you keep some of it.

You can be making $300K a year and still be stressed, stuck, and secretly broke.
And you wouldn’t be alone.

This is Money Lever #5: Total Revenue — the lever that needs to be pulled with purpose.
It’s not about chasing bigger numbers. It’s about building smarter, leaner, more leveraged income that works for you.

Avoid the “just sell more” trap

Most small businesses fall into one of two traps:

1. The revenue rollercoaster
   You have big months, then nothing. Feast and famine. You have no idea what’s working, so you try everything… and exhaust yourself in the process.
2. The volume illusion
   You keep stacking clients, raising your revenue — but so do your costs, hours, and stress. You’re “successful,” but it doesn’t feel like it.

Both problems stem from the same myth: more revenue = success.

Nope.

Revenue is just the top line.

What matters is what’s left after the dust settles — and whether the business you’re building actually lets you live your damn life.

What total revenue is really for

Revenue is a signal.
It shows how your offers are landing.
It shows how strong your demand is.
It shows where the money is coming from — and where it’s leaking out.

Used strategically, total revenue helps you:

• Benchmark product or service performance
• Identify your highest-ROI channels
• Set realistic growth goals
• Make hiring and outsourcing decisions
• Build cash reserves and weather-proof your business

But only if you treat it as a lever, not a trophy.

The fix: stop chasing, start designing

If you want revenue to mean something — and actually move the needle — here’s how to use this lever properly:

1. Build revenue that scales, not just spikes

Look at your current revenue streams. Are they:

• Manual and time-consuming?
• Prone to feast and famine?
• Dependent on you personally delivering every sale?

If yes, you’ve built a ceiling.

Fix it by building offers that scale:

• Digital products
• Productised services
• Group programs or memberships
• Retainers or subscriptions
• Licensing or revenue-sharing models

This is how you earn more without working more.

2. Raise your floor, not just your ceiling

Stop chasing higher months. Start building predictable base income.

That might look like:

• A low-ticket subscription that covers your essentials
• Monthly retainers that stabilise your income
• An evergreen funnel that brings in daily sales

When you have a floor, you stop panicking.
You start making better decisions.
And ironically? You grow faster.

3. Focus on high-leverage revenue sources

Every business has a sweet spot — the product, client type, or campaign that punches above its weight.

Find yours. Then pour fuel on it.

Track revenue per:

• Product or package
• Traffic or lead source
• Customer segment
• Delivery method

Double down on what’s working. Cut or automate the rest.

Money maths: how to calculate and influence total revenue

Let’s get practical.

Formula:

Revenue = # of customers × # of transactions × average sale value

To increase revenue, you can pull:

• Customer count
• Frequency of purchases
• Average sale value
• Price
• Leads and conversion

It’s all connected.
You don’t need to pull every lever at once — just the right one at the right time.

Track your total revenue:

• Monthly, quarterly, and yearly
• Per product or offer
• Per lead source or campaign
• By profit margin (gross and net)

Revenue with context = power. Revenue without it = chaos.

Tactics to grow your total revenue without burning out

Here’s what works without killing your calendar:

• Repackage your most popular offer with bonuses or bundles
• Raise your prices in line with the value you deliver
• Add a scalable product or service (even a $97 digital toolkit)
• Create a premium tier for your most committed clients
• Build evergreen sales systems (lead magnet → funnel → offer)
• Launch flash campaigns for your list or warm audience
• Offer subscriptions or memberships to stabilise income

Pro tip: Growth without margin = busy and broke.
Always run pricing and margin checks before scaling anything.

 What happens if you ignore this lever

Let’s not sugar-coat it. If you chase revenue blindly:

• You’ll build a business that’s unsustainable
• You’ll feel “busy” but not profitable
• You’ll create offers that keep you stuck in hustle
• You’ll have no margin for team, tools, or time off
• You’ll wake up wondering if this is all worth it

More money only works if it leads to more freedom.

What to do next (your rebel move)

Grab your last 3 months of revenue data. Ask:

• Where’s most of your revenue coming from?
• Which offers or clients are most profitable?
• Which ones are draining time without a good return?
• How predictable is your revenue right now?

Then make one bold move:

• Raise your base price
• Productise your most in-demand offer
• Introduce a recurring income tier
• Cut a low-margin product that’s dragging you down
• Build a simple funnel to stabilise leads + sales

 Final word: revenue is not the goal — freedom is

You didn’t start your business to hustle 24/7 for top-line numbers.

You started it for:

• Freedom
• Profit
• Impact
• Choice

More articles about growing your business by increasing revenue and maintaining strong profit:

• 5 ways to grow small business profit like a pro 
• The 12 money levers: how to grow your profit without working more hours 
• How to get more customers with a brand that actually stands out 
• The perils of tactics without strategy that you need to consider
• How to upgrade your digital technology for business growth and scale

 About your author

Leanne Knowles knows her stuff when it comes to ditching the hustle and building a business that runs without you. Formerly stuck and stretched in her small business - now the freedom strategist for founders who are over the grind and ready to scale like a boss—with systems, not burnout.

🔗 Connect with Leanne on LinkedIn