What is a business?
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A successful business is not a greedy group of people looking to take advantage of others. A successful business is not an anonymous name providing an anonymous service. A successful business is not a wealthy individual that was lucky enough to inherit the successful business from someone else.
A successful business is an individual or group of individuals who can offer another individual or group a service or product that gives both parties a profit of some kind. Just as you wouldn't buy a rotten apple, business that don't offer an enhancement to their customers' lives will not last very long.
Which business is more likely to survive:
* A restaurant that sells hamburgers that taste good, are inexpensive and are served quickly, or a restaurant that sells cold half day old hamburgers for twice the price?
* A computer repair company that fixes a user's problems and follows up to make sure they are happy, or a company that charges to fix a problem, makes matters worse and forgets the user immediately after payment?
* A clothing store that sells shirts that fall apart and look like they're from the disco days of the 70s, or a clothing store that sells modern clothes that last?
Sure, the 3 questions are stupid: we all know that businesses that don't meet their customers needs don't last. Yet this is a common sense question that many business owners ignore, and I believe you have to ask yourself a standard question every morning: Are my customers gaining something worthwhile out of doing business with me? If you are not in business yet, ask yourself a similar question: Can I provide a service or a product to others that offers better value than other companies in my area? If you're getting the itch to do something on your own, but haven't found the driving force to actually starting it, your first step is to see if your service or product is needed. When I think about starting a new business, the first thing I do is go talk to other small business owners in the area: retailers, insurance companies and small law firms. One of the hardest things to do as a small business owner is building up the courage to talk to people and see if they might need your service. Since you aren't a business owner, yet, what do you have to lose? Go hit up a few strip malls and chat with the owners (they're usually there during the week). Ask them about your particular business, and see if they're happy with their current provider, or if they don't even have one. You may be very surprised at how easy it is to pick up a customer or two just from talking about the product or service you want to provide.
Before you can start a business, you have to understand what a business is. Don't look at Wal*Mart or your national burger joint for an example, the interplay between a small business and its customers is very different. Understand that what you provide has to give the end customer some value: either a financial gain, some time saved or less frustration in their lives. This is the key to understanding if you are ready to start your own shop.
A successful business is an individual or group of individuals who can offer another individual or group a service or product that gives both parties a profit of some kind. Just as you wouldn't buy a rotten apple, business that don't offer an enhancement to their customers' lives will not last very long.
Which business is more likely to survive:
* A restaurant that sells hamburgers that taste good, are inexpensive and are served quickly, or a restaurant that sells cold half day old hamburgers for twice the price?
* A computer repair company that fixes a user's problems and follows up to make sure they are happy, or a company that charges to fix a problem, makes matters worse and forgets the user immediately after payment?
* A clothing store that sells shirts that fall apart and look like they're from the disco days of the 70s, or a clothing store that sells modern clothes that last?
Sure, the 3 questions are stupid: we all know that businesses that don't meet their customers needs don't last. Yet this is a common sense question that many business owners ignore, and I believe you have to ask yourself a standard question every morning: Are my customers gaining something worthwhile out of doing business with me? If you are not in business yet, ask yourself a similar question: Can I provide a service or a product to others that offers better value than other companies in my area? If you're getting the itch to do something on your own, but haven't found the driving force to actually starting it, your first step is to see if your service or product is needed. When I think about starting a new business, the first thing I do is go talk to other small business owners in the area: retailers, insurance companies and small law firms. One of the hardest things to do as a small business owner is building up the courage to talk to people and see if they might need your service. Since you aren't a business owner, yet, what do you have to lose? Go hit up a few strip malls and chat with the owners (they're usually there during the week). Ask them about your particular business, and see if they're happy with their current provider, or if they don't even have one. You may be very surprised at how easy it is to pick up a customer or two just from talking about the product or service you want to provide.
Before you can start a business, you have to understand what a business is. Don't look at Wal*Mart or your national burger joint for an example, the interplay between a small business and its customers is very different. Understand that what you provide has to give the end customer some value: either a financial gain, some time saved or less frustration in their lives. This is the key to understanding if you are ready to start your own shop.
posted by A. B. Dada at 10:20 AM
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