Profile Of The Perfect Business: Part 4

the last 4 elements on my “List Of 16” — the 16 elements of what I would consider the “ideal” business would have. (as you’re joining the program in progress, be sure to read the previous 3 articles so you’re up to speed on the purpose and intention I have with this list). Let’s look at the last 4 elements, organized into the category I call “Marketing Elements”.  These are the most interesting ones for me, given that I love the marketing process.

Area #4:  Marketing Elements

In previous articles, I’ve looked at a business from a very high level view in terms of the industry it’s in and the pros and cons.  We then moved deeper into the business itself, looking at things specific to that business.  And now, I want to cover what I think most entrepreneurs completely overlook – key marketing elements that drive that business. Marketing is not only the #1 most important skill as an entrepreneur, but it’s also the least understood by entrepreneurs .. giving those (like you and I) who understand a massive advantage. So let’s look at the 4 key marketing elements that can really drive a business to success (or hold it back). Element 1:  Relational (vs. Transactional) One of the most attractive elements of a business model is when there is a real or perceived need for your clients to keep coming back on a consistent basis. I know this seems obvious, but it’s amazing to me how many entrepreneurs overlook this issue! Some businesses are naturally geared to this — for example, many service businesses lend themselves to developing a relationship (and recurring revenue) from clients, because the client has an ongoing need for the service.  This would include things like chiropractors, dentists and hair salons among many other examples.  There are also many other businesses that generate repeat business such as restaurants, pet stores, grocery stores, etc. However, some businesses do not, on the surface, appear to be set up for recurring or repeat clients.  For example, a company that offers divorce mediation and settlement likely doesn’t get a lot of repeat clients, and a new home builder is unlikely to sell a new house to the same client over and over. Every business is different, but the most attractive businesses are those that have the ability to create and maintain an ongoing relationship with clients, as opposed to being based on single transactions. The reason is obvious – if you can bring a client on and have them continue to buy from you, that’s much less work (and cost) than to have to go into the market and constantly find new clients just to keep your revenue at the same level. If your business is based on transactions, the question is .. how can you begin to offer services, programs and products that allow you to move into a relationship with your client, as opposed to them buying once and never thinking of you again? Element 2:  Brand Based (vs. Personality Based) This is another element of a business that gets challenging for so many small business owners. Typically, when you start out, it’s YOU that your clients are buying and coming back for.  That’s fine when you’re just starting out, but what happens when you’re working 80 hours a week because your clients ONLY want to deal with you? What happens when you decide it’s time to “get out” and you want to sell the business? If you’ve focused all of your marketing attention on making the business about you .. you’re screwed. Again, every business is different .. and in some business models, it’s almost impossible not to include or inject some or a lot of your personality.  In some cases, it IS you that people are buying, such as a personal services business.  If you’re a real estate agent, it is you that people are coming to you for. One of the things that you need to think about is this: how can you build a brand with your business so that it’s not just about you personally? Let me use a couple of my own businesses as examples.  First, you’re reading this article on the SimpleWealth website.  It’s not the “Greg” website, because we deliberately decided to try and build a strong brand around the content and material that I create.  Now the truth is that SimpleWealth and me personally are heavily intertwined.  Chances are, you came to this site originally because of me personally, as opposed to the SimpleWealth brand. And therein lies the challenge for many businesses where you are the primary product.  The sad truth is that it’s almost impossible to develop a sellable business in the worlds of speaking, writing books, coaching and training.  Even Tony Robbins would have a huge issue trying to sell his business without him involved in it (and he’s tried, along with many other major speakers and trainers). This isn’t to say it’s impossible to leverage or brand what you do in a personality-based business so that it can be sold .. but it’s difficult. This goes for real estate as well, another one of my examples.  Years ago, I decided to offer real estate agent services specifically to investors (as opposed to home buyers or sellers).  Instead of making it the “Greg Habstritt Team”, we called the company InvestorsAgent.  It wasn’t about me personally.  I was the face on the company and brought in our clients, but we had a team of agents trained by me that worked with clients. Ultimately when we moved out of that space, we were able to sell the brand for a modest amount to another entrepreneur interested in serving the investor market. Bottom line – when your business is tied to your personality, or even worse, relies on you being active in the business .. you’re creating a business that likely can never be sold, or least will only ever be valued at a fraction of what it would be if it was a brand independent of you. Element 3:  Emotional Sales Process Anyone that’s successful in marketing or sales knows this to be true: emotions are what drive buying decisions.  100%. Yes, we likely to rationalize and justify our decisions with logic and reason .. but the reality is that every buying decisions involves emotional triggers and needs. And that’s why if your business involves an emotional sales process, that usually means it’s a very powerful business to be in. The flip side of this is true as well — if you’re in a business where the decisions are being made logically, non-emotionally and based on a very simple set of criteria .. that’s likely not a fun business to be in. One obvious example of this is any business where your client is making their decision based on price. If you are selling on price, STOP IT.  Just stop it.  Only one business in the world has been able to make that work long-term, and they’re an extreme outlier. You will never build a successful business competing primarily on price. If you try, the consequence is what I’m talking about  — when it’s just about price, there’s little emotion involved in the process. Your job is to figure out how to involve emotion in your sales process, so that your prospects can become emotionally invested in you, and what you sell. Element 4:  Aligned With Your Passion I’ve left this as the last of the 16 elements, but it’s actually one of, if not THE, most important element .. The chances of having a successful, thriving business go up exponentially when the business is somehow related to your passions. No, it doesn’t have to be .. but it sure helps. The problem is, so many people start a business “for the money”, or “for more time off”.  Of course, ask them how that plan’s going a year or two later, and most will tell you they don’t have more time OR more time. The reality is that if you LOVE your business, you’re able to weather the challenges and negative periods where you question why you’re doing it.  If you’re only running a business for the money, not only will you likely not make the best decisions for your clients, but you’ll also be more apt to give up any time there’s a challenge. After coaching thousands of entrepreneurs over the years, this ends up being one of the most significant reasons for challenges and failure in business — the entrepreneur started the business primarily for the money, and everything else as an afterthought. So I’d suggest you have a heart to heart with yourself about your business — is it something you REALLY love, or are you doing it for the money?  The answer should start to guide you in the direction you need to go. I know from my experience, the businesses that I’ve been the most successful with have been those where I LOVE what I’m doing. And another true (not often unsaid) fact is this:  your love can change!  I know mine has.  I’ve been involved in businesses that I really did love, but over time, I lost some of the excitement and connection to them.  And when that happens, faking the love doesn’t cut it. As an entrepreneur, you grow, evolve, learn, change and adapt.  And it shouldn’t come as a surprise that your loves and passions can also go through that same process.  Never be afraid to admit to yourself that you do not love your business any more.  That realization and admission can be one of the most important and empowering thoughts you ever have, because it then opens you up to new possibilities. I know a lot of business owners that are going through the motions, pretending to be excited about their business .. but they’re really not.  They’re trapped, but they don’t know of any other alternative .. so they keep at it.  Not surprisingly, the business declines and suffers. I’ve learned from experience, never be afraid to break up with your business if it’s not giving you what you want. And the way you can minimize this possibility is to make sure you absolutely love the business you’re going into before you make the commitment! So there you have it!  The last set of 4 elements of my “List of 16”. I’m going to do a follow up post in this series to not only summarize the entire list, but also offer some answers to the many questions that people have about this list. I’ll also tell you a little bit more about one of my businesses that I’ve gotten involved in recently specifically because of this list. In any case, I hope this list gives you a powerful filter to look at your business through, and creates some new thoughts and ideas for you. If you have any questions about what I’ve posted so far, feel free to post a comment or question below and I’ll do my best to answer them!  ]]>