The fundamental question that every entrepreneur has to answer is what makes them better than everybody else in their industry. They don’t need to be better at absolutely everything, of course. But they do need something that customers can latch onto that makes handing over their money worthwhile.
So what are entrepreneurs doing in this competitive economy to gain an advantage? Let’s find out.
Position Yourself, Don’t Prospect
When you first start your business, you’ll want to do a little prospecting. Finding new customers is essential for bringing in money that can keep your operation afloat. But after 12 to 18 months or so, prospecting won’t be as exciting as it once was. Instead, it’ll be a drain that constantly saps your energy. Finding new clients is hard and very time-consuming. So what can you do to avoid this?
The solution is something called “positioning.” This is where you set yourself up as an authority on whatever you’re selling. Become a specialist or a trusted advisor, and people will come to you for your services. Entrepreneurs who play for position are playing the long game. But if you start early, you’ll reap the rewards more quickly.
Find Talent, And Develop People
Many young entrepreneurs think that they can do it all themselves. They soon find out the hard way that this leads to burnout and an end to their passion to succeed.
Entrepreneurs should seek out talent, preferably from a top 10 executive recruiter. Then they should nurture that talent so that each member of their team achieves their maximum productivity.
Remember, there is no such thing as a dream team if all you focus on is the individual people themselves. The very best teams grow together organically, complementing and supporting each other along the way. It’s the connection between team members that really matters for long-term business success. Entrepreneurs need to avoid the urge to get involved in every aspect of their businesses. Instead, they need to focus on strengthening those connections so that their team can work seamlessly together.
Get Fans Who Are Stark Raving Mad About You
How does Apple manage to get millions of fans queuing around blocks in the middle of the night, just because it’s released a new product? Because it’s managed to make them stark raving loony about the brand. In their eyes, nothing that Apple does is wrong – because Apple has made such a difference to their lives in the past.
Now, you might be wondering how this applies to your small business. Well, you don’t have to create hordes of zealots, like Apple has, to spread the word. You just need to get people who can be brand advocates. Businesses who can get their customers to do their advertising for them do much better than businesses who have to do it all themselves.
Make sure that you have excellent client support. Treat each customer as an individual. And go out of your way to make sure that every person in your organization understands the importance of the client relationship.