ONE OF MY FIRST READS THIS YEAR – 2020:
FIVE ROUGH GUIDELINES FOR CREATING A SUCCESSFUL BUSINESS
INSPIRED BY : SIR RICHARD BRANSON
After five decades in business, I’m often asked if there is a shortcut to success. Unfortunately there isn’t. “IF ANY “I haven’t found it yet – Said Sir Richard.
..and YES , we can all agree ; in fact, if you have already found one please share.
Creating a successful and profitable business takes time, since you build your reputation as customers learn to trust and rely on you, one by one.
Also, there’s no guarantee that spending a huge amount of money on marketing will slingshot your business forward. If you spend your time looking for shortcuts, you will find one right out of business – he added.
See , I speak for myself and the companies I have worked for or with when I say there have been days when the money spent VS the value or rather the profit have been a slap in the face.
While there are no set rules for succeeding in business, Sir Richard has embraced some rough guidelines that can be very helpful to most of us and I will be selfish not share them with my readers. Now buckle up, grab yourself a cup of coffee, a note book and pen because we are about to switch it up to a whole different level.
- Create a useful product or service
Above all else, you should not go into business purely for financial reasons. Running a company involves long hours, sacrifices and hard decisions; if you don’t have a better reason than money to keep going, your business will more than likely fail, as many new businesses do. This is because we allow greediness, poverty, lack of self esteem get in the way of what is supposed to be driven by passion.
So, please read this with me …
It’s important to create something of use that is going to benefit society as a whole. If you do something you truly care about, you will be in a much better position to find customers, connect with them, and keep them coming back.
Once you have decided on the type of product or service that interests you, focus on how to do things differently from the competition: Do your research, find a gap or an area ripe for innovation, and position your business in a way that sets it apart.
- Simplify your message
I still don’t even know ONE and ONE =? So …yah, imagine how bad things can get in regards to interpreting one core value of products/services, message or even overall brand.
Customers don’t just shop for a brand and its products, but also identify with its core values. Ask yourself, why did I start my business? Be honest – this will help you establish an authentic value and voice. Then break your message into something simple.
Understanding your product/service, your purpose and what it stands for, great customer service, good value and innovative alternatives to our competitors’ offerings are some of the greatest take away from Virgin. This ensures to minimize the time, money spent on messages that don’t represent the brand’s core value and further resonate with our customers.
- Market yourself
Marketing is a powerful tool, but it doesn’t have to be expensive. “Use yourself. Make a fool of yourself. Otherwise you won’t survive.” There is no room for “I am shy, what will people think, who will even ….” STOP and JUST DO IT.
YES, we do not have to do what everyone is doing. Be creative. Find your tone, know your brand, do things your own way, and create waves. The free advertising will follow.
- Embrace social media
Tools like Twitter, Instagram and Facebook are wonderful ways to get your message out to a wide audience. Social media is not only more cost-efficient than advertising, but it also offers great opportunities for innovative engagement with your customers. Use it to your advantage.
Remember that there is a difference between selling and marketing. Of course, selling a product through social media doesn’t always work but can be used as a tool to simply communicate with your customers in an authentic way and have fun. As you build an online profile that people can identify with and trust, you’ll find that they will soon become customers.
The feedback you receive on social media can be invaluable, especially when your business is just starting out. Listen to your customers’ comments about your company or business offerings to gain an understanding of what you are doing right and wrong. You can also use this feedback to sharpen your social campaigns and measure the effectiveness of your calls to action.
- Keep on enjoying what you do
They say save the best for last. See now this is the definition of “parte after parte after parte” when you do what you love, you most certainly will love and enjoy doing it as opposed to just doing it for financial reasons.
If you genuinely love and believe in what you do, others will take notice and share your enthusiasm.
If you find your interest flagging, it’s time to make a change — switch from operations to management, move on, expand into new territories, anything that interests you. To find success, you need to be fully committed – Sir Richard!!!!
I can promise you this post is certainly going to be a part of me throughout this year and years to come because I for one have been doubting myself and reading this made me 100 times better and bigger mentally. I might actually be ready to take up on my next role. STAY TUNED.
Please enjoy and don’t be selfish, go ahead and share it with your friend, family, colleagues, neighbors and everyone that you wish the best of 2020.
I have tones of personal and inspiration posts and guest blogs piled up on my sleeves and literally drowning in good juice right now. STAY ON A LOOK OUT; WE ALL WANT TO MAKE IT IN LIFE.
Xoxo Belz!
DARE BEYOND!