company help: How large a sales increase can a company achieve without having to raise funds externally? - Help.com

Depends. There are a number of ways . . . such as (1) raising prices, (2) increasing sales goals for the sales force, and (3) increasing advertising out of operating capital or as a percentage of sales. It’s also a small matter for companies to increase the size of their commission-only sales force. Look at companies like Primerica, which would have a salesperson on every block if it could, since it doesn’t have to pay them a salary, only a commission on what they sell.

The company should, of course, be ready for increased demand if its efforts to increase sales are successful. Remember how AOL went on a huge campaign to get people to switch to their online service . . . but hadn’t made ANY arrangements to handle the increased demand on its servers? HUGE black eye for AOL as customers tried for hours to log on, and then got kicked off right after logging in. Of course, the company should be prepared for its sales campaign to NOT produce the desired increase in sales, as well.