What to Do When Business Growth Just… Stops
If you’ve been in business for a while, you know what it feels like when everything clicks.
Over the last 13 years, there have been several periods where everything in business felt really easy. Clients were saying yes quickly, programs were filling up, visibility opportunities seemed to land in my inbox daily, and cash flow was a dream. I didn’t have to overthink the next step, and momentum carried me through to the next stage of growth.
For many of the women I work with, that kind of ease feels like a distant memory, especially this year. Lead generation is slower. Sales conversations require more time, energy, and nurturing. Even long-term clients who love your work are taking longer to commit.
For a while now, I’ve wondered if all these stories were just confirmation bias, but the data backs it up. Small business owners everywhere are navigating longer sales cycles, more decision-makers, and greater buyer caution. In fact, according to a report by the Martal Group, new sales on average take approximately 25% longer to close than just five years ago.
When growth stalls in your own business, it’s easy to assume that you’re doing something wrong, but this is where we have a real opportunity to engage with what we’re seeing and use that feedback as a powerful, strategic tool.
When The Market Shifts, We Have To Shift, Too.
I’ve seen this play out in my own business over the last year.
For much of 2021–2024, my work helping women clarify their big idea, craft their messaging, and increase visibility practically sold itself. Everyone wanted clarity, confidence, and momentum.
By mid-2024, I noticed a shift.
The same marketing messages that once resonated started landing flat. Phrases like “get more clarity” and “ increase your confidence” stopped converting, and the aspirational approach to messaging wasn’t working the same way.
Clients weren’t looking for inspiration. They were looking for tangible results they could measure and real traction and growth in their businesses.
I could see that consumer behavior was changing, and that feedback forced me to take a really hard look at my own business and how I was marketing it. In doing that, I realized “clarity” on its own isn’t the result clients are looking for. It’s the bridge to the thing they really want.
So, I went back to the drawing board and asked the question I now ask every client:
What does the clarity you provide actually help someone do or achieve in their business?
The clarity I help clients gain becomes the foundation for rebuilding their message, refining their offers, and strengthening their visibility strategy, so they can attract the right clients, generate consistent revenue, and grow their business in a way that actually feels aligned.
Together, we track and measure progress in concrete terms. We look at client pipeline growth, conversion rates, sales volume, cash flow, and even the broader impact of their work on their clients and community.
Clarity creates traction you can see and results you can sustain.
What does that look like for your own business?
What Slow Growth Is Really Telling You
Hopefully you can see that hitting a plateau doesn’t mean your business is broken.
When the data tells you things have slowed, often in the form of fewer inquiries, slower conversions, or inconsistent revenue, it’s a sign to pause and look deeper.
In order to do that, I like to dig into three areas of my marketing.
#1: Relevance: Are you solving the right problem, right now?
Your clients’ world has changed dramatically this year. The economy feels unpredictable, the political landscape is changing daily, people are more cautious and fearful, and priorities have shifted.
If you’re still using the same or barely tweaked marketing message or strategy that you used last year, it’s time to ask yourself:
Does my core offer still solve the most urgent problem my audience is facing right now?
Am I addressing the pain or frustration that keeps them up at night, not just the one that sounds good on a sales page?
Do they really know how I can help them? Is that coming through loud and clear, or is it all too vague?
For example, many of my clients used to sell “growth”, meaning they helped clients scale or expand, but now, many of their buyers want stability and sustainability. They’re looking for smarter systems, leaner teams, and reliable revenue.
When your message reflects this current urgency, your audience immediately feels seen, and that is a powerful way to build trust.
#2. Resonance: Does your message sound like them… or like you from two years ago?
Even if your core offer still fits, the language of your marketing may be out of sync. Buyers today don’t want promises of instant success; they want to know you understand the pressure they’re under. They want to know that you actually understand that they’re working harder than ever without seeing the results they used to.
To test resonance, look at your content through their eyes.
Are you naming what they’re experiencing in real time? Things like slower leads, tighter budgets, decision fatigue, and burnout.
Do your case studies and stories reflect what’s relevant today? This requires a deep degree of awareness and empathy on your part. Surface level marketing and stories will not work.
When they read your posts or hear you speak, do they think, “She gets exactly what I’m feeling”?
If not, it’s time to refresh your messaging. When your words echo your audience’s lived experience, your marketing does the heavy lifting for you.
And let me be crystal clear about something here. This is NOT about marketing funnels or rebranding. This is about really doing the work to understand your audience, their needs, and how you can meet them where they are.
#3. Results: Can people clearly see what working with you helps them achieve?
Here’s the big one. Most entrepreneurs can talk endlessly about their process, but in a slower market, people aren’t buying a process, framework, or “transformation.” They’re buying actual outcomes.
Ask yourself:
Can I name the specific, measurable results my clients get from this offer?
Do I share data, stories, or transformations that prove it?
In my business, the clarity I help clients gain isn’t about feeling more confident (although they do); it’s about what that clarity makes possible. Here’s what I mean:
When we work together, my clients rebuild their message so they can articulate their value in a single, powerful sentence that sticks.
They refine their offers to align with what their market actually wants, often simplifying from three or four offers down to one high-performing signature service.
They strengthen their visibility strategy by identifying where their audience already pays attention and showing up consistently in those spaces.
As a result, they attract the right clients (not just more inquiries), see steadier revenue month over month, and can track their progress in real numbers using things like pipeline growth, conversion rates, sales volume, and visibility metrics like podcast bookings or media mentions.
When clients can picture what success looks like with you, not just imagine it, conversion accelerates.
How to Rebuild Traction (Without Burning Out)
When I took my own medicine and started adjusting my business, everything changed. Here’s what I focused on and what I help my clients do now.
Clarify the Tangible Results You Deliver
I hope by now you can see that selling “clarity” or something else equally generic won’t do. We have to define what clarity creates for your clients.
For example, in The Bold Rebuild™, I help female business owners use that clarity to make tangible, measurable changes in their business. We:
Rebuild their business model and offers around one bold, profitable big idea, often simplifying a cluttered offer suite into a streamlined ecosystem that generates consistent monthly revenue.
Align their message and content strategy so they consistently attract the right-fit clients, the ones who already value their expertise and are ready to invest.
Develop a visibility plan that turns thought leadership into revenue, whether that’s landing paid speaking opportunities, doubling podcast guest appearances, or creating partnerships that expand reach and income.
The effect of articulating the outcomes you help clients get means they don’t have to put the pieces together for themselves. That kind of leadership from you is invaluable.
Simplify What You’re Offering
In uncertain times, simplicity sells. If your offer suite is overrun with all kinds of things, it might be time to pause and ask…
Which offer creates the biggest transformation and best ROI for my clients right now?
Which ones drain my energy or create confusion?
Go all in on what’s working and cut everything else loose.
Rebuild Trust Through Consistency
Right now, relationships convert faster than tech and automated funnels. We’re living in an era where AI and automation are stripping out the relational elements of our businesses. When you show up where real connection happens, on podcasts or panels, at networking events - in person or virtual, or even with your email list, people notice.
This is where you get to be YOU. It’s where you get to share the behind-the-scenes lessons you’re learning (I did that in spades with the women on the waitlist for my Egypt Retreat), be transparent about some of your ups and downs, and help people know YOU - the human version - in an authentic and real way.
If there’s one thing I’m sure of, it’s this: people don’t need polish; they need proof that you’re someone who listens, leads with integrity, and can help them close the real gaps they have in life or business.
This Season Is About Refinement
This moment in business is about sharpening your focus, being strategic and real, and knowing exactly what you help people achieve and building everything - your message, your offers, and your visibility - around that.
That’s what rebuilds traction when everything just… stops.
If your business feels like it’s hit a wall, this is the work we do inside The Bold Rebuild™. We’ll refine your message, align your offers, and rebuild your visibility strategy so you can get real traction again. All you have to do is grab a spot on my calendar. We’ll talk through your unique situation and build a plan to jump start your business.
