3 Steps To Good Business
What makes a good business successful?
The statistics for small business start-ups are pretty scary. Depending on the research you follow, between 80 and 95% of businesses fail within five years. And surviving through the first five years means very little with regard to surviving through the second five years.
"I don't know how you do it. I could never take that much risk in my life."
That's the quote I hear from the vast majority of people who would rather have a job working for someone else than to take the entrepreneurial plunge of self-employment. Of course, with national unemployment at 9% and underemployment close to 16%, I must wonder about how "secure" many of those jobs really are.
You Call the Shots
There are hundreds (if not thousands) of books you can read that will tell you how to run your business. There are countless firms out there willing to consult your business (for a hefty fee) and tell you how to run it, too.
But just as is the case with your personal finances, your business will never be a success when someone else is telling you what to do along each step you take. We human beings are not wired to do our best in a command-and-control environment (something about "free will" gets in the way). Rather than taking orders for each task from someone else, a better practice is to understand what needs to be acccomplished in the end and then find your own best way.
Actually Quite Simple
What needs to be accomplished for a business to be successful? You will want more customers/clients/patients who will happily buy from you and tell others to buy from you as well. You will also want to be able to deliver your product/service profitably. This is actually quite simple and requires only three major concepts that must be understood and addressed - especially by the owner/founder/leader of the enterprise.
The 3 Steps to Good Business Are ...
1) Understand Your Value Proposition - What is the value your business brings to the market place. People are going to be handing over their money in return for products or services. What are they getting in return? Of greater importance, what are they going to get in return at an emotional level. Human beings are - at the core - emotional creatures. We don't buy things because they are logical. We buy them because they allow us to feel something we want to feel or be the type of person we want to be.
2) Share Your Value Proposition - This is what marketing is all about. Identify people who will find value in what you have to provide and then help them connect the dots and "discover" you - "You want/need this widget. We have this widget. It is available at a cost that is less than what it is worth (in value) to you. Want to buy one?"
3) Exceed Expectations - Once a person hears your value proposition (because of your marketing) and decides it is something they want (at some emotional level), they WILL come to your business to buy your product or engage in your services. When this happens, beating their expectations will build trust and lead to referral and repeat business. Falling short of expectations may still end up in a sale, but you will have to work twice as hard for any chance to get a second order.
Having a Successful Party
Think of your value proposition (step 1) as if it were a party. The marketing is your invitation - it describes the party and how much fun it will be to attend. When people decide to come to your party (and if there is good value there, they will attend), you will want to be sure that they have a good time. Ideally, they'll go home at the end of the day and tell their friends about how great an experience they had - that you throw the best parties - and that their friends will want to go next time.
If you throw a party and nobody attends, it isn't necessarily because the party sucked. More likely, people didn't even know you were having a party ... so they stayed home, instead.
John
ALTUS Wealth Solutions offers Business Coaching services at a reasonable cost - to help you articulate your Value Proposition and share it with your target market. Call 805-476-0333 to schedule your FREE 10-minute Business Accelerator Assessment.
John D. Buerger,
CFP® is a Business Coach and