Two years ago, I was struggling to make a living and my business was failing. The bills were piling up, and I started to think that it was time to find a job. I will never forget the moment when the light bulb went on in my head and I understood what was wrong.

My business doubled that year, and has more than doubled over the past year. How did I do it?

If you are serious about doubling your business in 2006, read on. I want to share with you the basic concepts that have helped my business explode since those dark days two years ago.

I still remember the conversation that changed my thinking and my business. I was talking to a sales person who was trying to sell me something for my business and he said to me the sales person who is the most successful is not the one who closes the sale now, but the one who closes the sale in 3 months, or 6 months, or 1 year.

He was talking about the concept of database management. Whether you like it or not, if you are in business, you are a sales person. So this leads to the first essential thing you must do right now in order to double your business in 2006: Build a Database

If you dont have a database, you are missing out on thousands of dollars of sales each year. Why?

First of all, once you get in the habit of using your database to keep track of everything about your clients, prospects, business partners, and associates, you will save hours of time in productivity because you wont misplace phone numbers and contact info.

Second, using a database properly can help you add a personal touch to your business. Most databases have a notes section under each contact. After you have a conversation with a prospect or client, take notes on what you talked about. Jot down a tidbit or two about something you talked about not related to business. Next time you talk to the person, you can then refer to the previous conversation. Ask them how their skiing vacation went or how their dog is doing or how the new job is working out.

If youre like me, and talk to hundreds of people every month, its impossible to remember everything about everyone, and adding this little personal touch to the next conversation will do wonders for your rapport and bottom line.

The third reason why you are losing thousands of dollars if you are not using a database goes into my next tip to double your business in 2006:

Market to your database

This seems obvious, but it is surprising how many business owners have no marketing strategy whatsoever to stay in touch with their prospects, clients, and business partners.

This strategy goes back to what that wise sales person said to me two years ago about closing the sale in 3 months, 6 months, or one year. You should never give up on a prospect and should have a consistent and steady follow up system to market to them and stay in touch indefinitely. I have a client who I just made a sale to this month who I first came in contact with 3 years ago!

However, in order to incorporate this strategy, you must have prospects, right? So how do you get them? That is a topic for Part II of this article. I will go into 5 more strategies that are essential for doubling your business in 2006. In the meantime, invest in a database program, and start using it! It wont be easy at first, but trust me, over time you will be glad that you initiated this basic strategy.

Stay Tuned for Part II!