naijapreneur

The Psychology Of Business Success: How To Succeed As An Entrepreneur

Tito Philips, Jnr. — Mon, 14 May 2012 15:14:05 +0000

Success is naturally desirable. You want success, I want success, and we all want success. But how come only a few actually succeed?

This was the theme of a discussion I got into over the weekend. It is a question I suddenly realized was unanswered in so many lives. And as I shared what I’m about to share with you in this unusual article during the discussion, I found out it was NOT so much of a secret, but rather often overlooked.

It turned out; success is not only naturally desirable, but also naturally attainable. Meaning, it is within your power to desire success and also within your natural capacity to achieve it. Those who succeed in business and in life are not superhuman; they just follow 3 simple but often overlooked steps to guaranteed success.

And guess what, these 3 simple but often overlooked steps to guaranteed success is applicable to every area of life; business, relationship, academics, finance, health, etc. But because I write for entrepreneurs, I will focus more on the psychology of business success here. The lesson you should pick out here is applicable to every other sphere of life. I want to believe they get so overlooked because of their simplicity. We humans often believe to succeed; the steps must be very complex that’s why only a few achieve success. If you are one of such people, you are about to be dazed!

The Psychology Of Business Success

Anyone and everyone who succeeded in business or desires to succeed should repeatedly follow these 3 simple steps. Do the following and your success in business is guaranteed!

1. BEGIN With The End In Mind

This is the critical first step to success in business. Success is a destination, a journey, an end you want to get to in business. Without a clear picture or idea of what this end is, nothing else matters.

If you ask anyone who ever achieved success, they would tell you they had an idea of what they wanted to achieve. Successful entrepreneurs know what they want to get out of their businesses. They don’t dabble into business without an end in mind. They begin their entrepreneurial journey with a picture in mind.

This has been the foundation of all my teachings on entrepreneurship. I never fail to re-iterate it again and again; successful businesses are purpose-driven. They have a clue of where they are going. They have a clue of what they want to achieve. They have a clue of what they want to create. They begin with the end in mind.

In the world of business and in life generally, beginning with the end in mind has been given different names such as; purpose, vision, goal, objective, aim, big picture, dream, desire, mission, ambition, etc. It is not such a big deal other than just knowing where you are headed. It is so simple, yet so overlooked.

I find many entrepreneurs who set out in business with only one end in mind; profitability. And they wonder why they don’t succeed. The problem is so clear; profitability is not a destination. Profitability is an outcome. A derivative of achieving something else. It is a reward gotten for doing something else. And if you don’t begin with that something else in mind, you can’t get the profitability you set out for.

Here’s why.

The first thing every business makes is not profit, but value (a solution in the form of products/services to a problem people have).
The second thing every business makes is not profit, but customers (those who need the value the business creates -products/services).
The third thing every business makes is not profit, but credibility (market trust earned from repeatedly delivering value).
The fourth thing every business makes is not profit, but systems (a structured way of ensuring the continuous creation, communication and delivery of value to the customer).
The fifth thing every business makes is profit, an accumulated monetary reward earned from doing all the above.

There you are, you cannot put profit first because you it’s not the first thing you make in business. It’s the last thing you make.

So, the end in mind every entrepreneur who desires business success ought to begin with is not profitability, but utility.

Utility is the benefit, value, satisfaction, change, impact, contribution, difference you want to make in the life of the customer through the business you’ve set out to build.

In other words, what is our business? What is the work we are here to do? What is the change we want to create?

2. LEARN What It Takes

The second simple but often overlooked step to guaranteed success in business is learning what it takes. The success of every journey lies in the preparation. Knowing where you are going is not sufficient, if you are not armed with enough information on how to get there.

Successful entrepreneurs are able to build successful businesses that matter because they first desired it and then they became students of the process. For every kind of success you desire in life, each requires a set of universal processes you must follow. A firm commitment to study the required process to attain the kind of success you desire is what differentiates those who succeed from those who don’t.

A lot of entrepreneurs have a strong desire for success, they know where they are headed but only a few of them commit to the learning process. You see such entrepreneurs looking for success overnight. They go after the latest business gimmicks in town and hope to hit a jackpot soon. This is a losing strategy.

Enduring Success is built on a long term process. Nothing that lasts was ever created overnight. Learning what it takes is simply paying the price for the success you so desire. This is the often overlooked secret of successful entrepreneurs; they are students of business. They don’t stop learning about business. They are leading the market because they are learners. They know what it takes to get to where they are headed and get what they want. They master the process of business success.

3. ACTION -Do The Work

The third simple but often overlooked step to guaranteed success in business is action. No amount of learning will get the work done if you don’t get off your butt and do the work required. No amount of purpose, vision, mission, goals, and ambition will get you to where you desire if you don’t get off your butt and do the work.

Successful entrepreneurs do the work. They act on their purpose, vision, dreams, mission, goals, etc. They act on what they learn. They don’t just study, they practice, they apply, they implement, they execute.

You are never going to succeed until you begin to work out your own success. Doing the work is how dreams become reality. Doing the work is how purpose is fulfilled. Doing the work is how profit is made. Doing the work is how businesses that matter MATTER.

You cannot run away from the work, and if do, then forget about success.

Conclusion

Business Success is a choice that successful entrepreneurs make by following a three part process;

1. Know where you are going — [begin with the end in mind]

2. Learn how to get there – [learn what it takes]

3. Get on the road — [do the work]

Your turn

How are you pursuing success in business?

What other simple but often overlooked step is missing here?

What step do you find most challenging of these 3 discussed above?

Drop your comments in the section below. I’m counting on it!

Customer Buying Process: The Key To Selling MORE 99% Of The Time

Tito Philips, Jnr. — Thu, 10 May 2012 11:39:37 +0000

There’s no limit to how much money you can make in business if you have mastered the art of selling. In business, profit comes from revenue and revenue is sales.

Without sales, your business is going to eventually die.

You already know this, so I am not going to belabor the issue of selling. This unusual article is about unveiling the most overlooked secret of selling.

How can you sell more every time?

How can you simplify the selling process?

How can you close the sale 99% of the time?

This is what this unusual article has been written to answer.

Let’s begin!

What Is The Most Overlooked Secret Of Selling?

To answer this question, you’ve got to understand first that selling or closing the sale is an outcome. It is something that happens only after several other things must have happened. Meaning, sales is not made in an instant. Several factors must be well aligned long before the decision to buy is made.

So here’s the most overlooked secret of selling; eliminate every barrier to sale!

That’s as simple as it sounds. To sell more 99% of the time, get rid of every hindrances to making the sale. In other words, to make the sale, shorten the buyers’ decision process.

How To Sell More

To sell more, you need to understand how people buy. People make buying decisions daily. Meaning that people naturally love to buy stuff; there’s an intention to buy. They just need help going through the buying decision process. So what does this suggest to you as an entrepreneur?

The problem with selling is not from the target buyers per se, but from you the seller. To the buyer, buying is a decision. To the seller, buying is sales. To sell 99% of the time, as the seller, you need to see from the buyer’s perspective. To them, what you call sales is a decision they make after considering several things. So customers will buy if you the seller can make the decision to buy easy for them.

How do I mean?

Sales are never made in an instant. A sale is an event that occurs between two people; a buyer and a seller. It is an outcome you get after several other things must have occurred both on the part of the buyer and on your part as the seller. The buying process starts long before the actual sale is made. These other things that need to happen before the actual purchase decision is made, is known as the buying decision process.

The buying decision process is like a funnel; buyers enter into the funnel triggered by a need or problem they have, next they go in search of potential sellers, from here they select a list of likely brands to buy and evaluate them on certain preferences, and finally they come out of the funnel with a purchase decision from the most preferred seller.

Customer Buying Decision Process

Buyers go through 5 critical stages that influence the sales. Understanding them is how you unlock the secret to selling more 99% of the time.

1. Need Recognition

The buying process begins with need recognition. This is when a buyer identifies a problem that requires solution or a need that must be met. There are two sources from which the buying process is initiated;

Internal Stimuli
External Stimuli

When the buyer’s recognition of a problem is inspired by the desire to satisfy basic human needs such as; food, shelter, security, etc. This is a buying process triggered by internal stimuli.

But when the buyer’s recognition of a problem is inspired by the desire to satisfy other higher human wants that are shaped by the environment such as cars, vacation, luxury goods etc. This is a buying process triggered by external stimuli.

To sell more 99% of the time, as an entrepreneur, you must understand the source from which your target customers’ buying process is initiated. In other words, you must know why your target customers are in need of what you sell.

2. Information Search

The second step of the buying process is information search. This describes the period of identifying various providers [sellers] of the solution to the problem or need identified above. In other words, where do potential buyers go to look for potential sellers?

Personal Sources: this refers to information about sellers gathered from family, friends, neighbours, acquaintances etc. in other words, information about sellers obtained from referrals through word-of-mouth [free marketing].

Commercial Sources: this refers to information about sellers gathered from advertising, salespeople, websites, dealers/agents, packaging, displays, etc. In other words, information about sellers obtained from paid marketing.

Public Sources: this refers to information about sellers gathered from internet searches, mass media, news, consumer rating organizations. In other words, information about sellers obtained from respected third party sources.

Experiential Sources: this refers to information about sellers gathered from using the product, handling the product and examining the product. In other words, information about sellers obtained from personal experience.

To sell more 99% of the time, you’ve got to make your brand, product, service or company visible to your target customers through the above sources. Different target customers use different information search sources. So the more relevant the information search source you use, the more sales you stand to make.

3. Evaluation Of Alternatives

Information search is how buyers gather a list of possible sellers. Evaluation of alternatives is how they streamline them into a set of final brand choices based on certain preferences. This is where potential buyers rank sellers based on their unique selling propositions –differentiation.

So as an entrepreneur who desires to sell more, you need to figure out how your brand will stand out from other competing brands in your niche or industry. Here’s what I normally advise my clients; list out all the features and benefits of your brand, product or service and do the same for all your competitions.

What are you looking for by doing this?

You are looking for those unique features and benefits that are peculiar to your brand, product or service that is not similar to that of your competitions. This is your differentiating feature or benefit and your job is to point this out to your target customers throughout all your marketing campaigns.

4. Purchase Decision

This is the point where the buyer finally picks the most preferred brand after evaluating all other potential alternatives. Your goal as an entrepreneur is to be the most preferred choice at this stage of the buying decision process.

You want to be the seller they eventually buy from. Everything you have been doing from the beginning is finally judged here. This is the point where the sale is made. All your marketing will either get you here or hinder you from getting here.

This stage is a direct outcome of the previous stage of evaluation of alternatives. The more compelling and differentiated your brand, product or service, the easier it is for them to pick you as the most preferred choice. Bringing us back to the ultimate question; why buy from you?

To answer this question, make your offer irresistible, create a sense of urgency like a promo or bonanza or limited openings, provide money back guarantee and show testimonials. Anything that you can package along with the particular product/service that will convey more value for money must be included in your offer.

5. Post-purchase Behaviour

The buying decision process doesn’t end when the sale is made. You don’t want to just make the sale; you also want to build a profitable relationship with the new customer you just got. So at this stage, you want to ensure the buyer gets value for their money.

This is the after sales process where the customer measures what they got from your brand against what they expected. If you delivered as you promised, then you can be sure of a repeat purchase from the buyer. But if you don’t deliver as promised, then forget about the customer.

The greater the gap between what you promised and what you delivered, the greater the customers’ dissatisfaction. What does this tell you? If you want to sell more 99% of the time, only make the promises you can keep. Don’t over promise and under deliver. There’s no point in making the sale and losing the customer afterwards.

Conclusion

To make the sale 99% of the time, you need to eliminate all possible barriers to the sale. These barriers come up at different stages of the buying decision process. Identifying them and getting rid of them is how you get the buyer to choose you as the right seller to buy from.

Here’s the 5 critical processes people go through to buy;

Need Recognition: why do they need what you are selling?
Information Search: how do they find you?
Evaluation of alternatives: why buy from you?
Purchase Decision: why buy now?
Post-purchase behavior: why buy again and again and again?

The faster you get buyers to go through the 5 buying decision process above, the faster you can make the sale. In other words, to sell more 99% of the time; know why they buy [Need Recognition], make it easy for them to find you [Information Search], define and always communicate your uniqueness [Evaluation of alternatives], make a compelling offer [Purchase Decision], make promises you can keep and keep the promises you make [Post-purchase Behaviour].

Your Turn

What other barriers to sales are you familiar with? And how are you helping buyers to quickly go through the 5 buying decision process?

Unusual Entrepreneur Interview With Mark Harai Of MarkHarai.com

Tito Philips, Jnr. — Mon, 30 Apr 2012 18:23:23 +0000

Welcome to another edition of the Unusual Entrepreneur Interviews and today I am very honoured to have gotten this Unusual Entrepreneur in question. His name is Mark Harai, an entrepreneur with over 20 years experience. He blogs at MarkHarai, a blog on entrepreneurship, startup and how to leverage the new media for business growth.

If you are just joining us for the first time, this is the unusual entrepreneur interview series. It is a parade of unusual entrepreneurs who are changing the world and profiting from purpose. Profiting from purpose by changing the world isn’t an impossible dream as many tend to think of it, but a realistic one as many unusual entrepreneurs have extraordinarily proven.

It is my life mission to understand the unusual qualities of such unusual entrepreneurs and inspire as many others to profit from purpose by changing the world. If you’re not yet familiar with our philosophy of unusual entrepreneurs, kindly download our free ebook: The Entrepreneur’s Journey. This is the official manifesto for anyone who wants to change the world and profit from purpose.

Let’s begin!

Interview Questions Part 1

ENTREPRENEURSHIP: Awakening the Spirit of business

1. Can you please tell us a little about yourself and your business? What do you do? How do you do it? Why do you do it and who do you do it for?

I’m an entrepreneur/ business consultant. I live and work on a beach in Costa Rica with my wife of 14 years and 4 of my 7 kids. I also have 2 grandsons My clients are U.S. based, so I work remotely via the internet. I help businesses, typically in the areas of marketing and business development. I’ve been working for myself for over 25 years.

I help entrepreneurs and business owners leverage my experience in starting businesses, growing businesses and expanding them. I’ve also been on the social web for a few years now and this has provided me an opportunity to help business owners establish their voice online. It’s what I do and who I am. It’s second nature. I work with other like-minded entrepreneurs to help them realize their vision and aspirations.

2. How would you describe your entrepreneurial journey into the world of business?

Exciting. Scary. Feast. Famine. Difficult. Natural. Rewarding. Hairball. At the end of the day, fulfilling. Living the life of an entrepreneur is not just a job, it’s an adventure! It stretches you emotionally, physically and mentally. You never ‘arrive’ and settle in to anything for too long; there are always new problems to solve and exciting things to experience and learn. It’s definitely not for everyone; entrepreneurs are built by the failures they endure and overcome.

3. Where there any key incidents or life changing events that inspired your decision to become an entrepreneur?

I grew up with parents who were entrepreneurs and worked in their businesses. After realizing my dream of playing professional football was not going to happen (fantasy), I found myself kind of lost and without direction. So, I started my first business when I was 21 years old and have been doing it and helping others do the same ever since.

4. When you started out in business, what specific idea, purpose or vision was your key driving force?

From an early age I felt like I had a big purpose for being born and that I would build hospitals and feed the hungry. I’ve been very fortunate to have been able to help many people in need, although I haven’t built any hospitals yet – but there’s still time and I’m not quitting anytime soon

5. What is your take on the general notion that entrepreneurs should build a business around what they naturally love to do?

When you do something you love, it’s not really work – it’s more like going out to play. You wake up every day inspired and excited to move things forward. It beats the heck out of having to do something in life that you dread.

6. What is your personal life mission as an entrepreneur? That is; what contributions do you want to make with your life or what would you like to be remembered for as an entrepreneur through the businesses you create when you die?

When you look at folks like Bill Gates or Warren Buffet, they are saving lives and making the world a better place for all. That is my inspiration. Besides building businesses, there is nothing more rewarding then making life better for others. It’s the right thing to do.

7. What would you describe as the purpose of entrepreneurship? That is; what role do entrepreneurs play in the world?

They imagine and then build our future – and in the process create jobs and mentor future entrepreneurs to do the same. They make the world go around.

8. How are you changing the world through the business, products or services you create?

Business is people and personalities. People change lives. If you positively impact the people around you and help them realize their full potential, your changing one ‘little world’ at a time and these in turn will have an impact on the world around us. It’s a vibrating effect that trickles down to thousands or even millions of lives in communities, cities, states and even countries if your reach is international.

Interview Questions Part 2

STRATEGY: The unusual execution of business best practices

9. What would you describe as your secret formula for business success?

Serving others. It’s not a “What’s in it for me” mindset that changes lives and builds great companies – it’s “How can I best serve others to maximize productivity and results.”

10. How do you identify business opportunities and what metrics do you use to measure their viability?

I’ve always had close friends who are techy types, so I’m usually on the frontend of the next ‘big thing.’ Examples: telecommunications, cellular, dotcom, and now the biggest opportunity of all – the social web. My hunches have been spot on in identifying up and coming trends.

11. Do you have mentors, business coach or external consultants that you work closely with to grow yourself and your business? If yes, to what extent would you describe their impact on your business? If no, are there any particular reasons?

Absolutely yes. Most of the people I’ve worked with are older than me. I’m attracted to gray hair – always have been when identifying people I want to learn from. I leverage the wisdom, experience and knowledge of people I respect who have done the things I want to do successfully. They’ve been there and done that and leveraging the experience of others can save you time and money by avoiding the mistakes they’ve made.

12. How do you strategically use your time as an entrepreneur?

I build teams of qualified professionals who are masters at what they do to build businesses. I’m a big picture guy that can bring talented people together to maximize results. The most successful entrepreneurs I’ve been around are visionary’s who have the gift of embedding their passion and vision in others. Great teams of talented people who believe and join in your vision can change the world.

13. How do you generate profitable customers for your business? What unusual approaches do you adopt for marketing your products/services?

I like JV’s [Joint Ventures] and strategic partnerships. It’s much easier to build momentum for new products and services by leveraging the customer base of an existing successful business. It’s typically much more cost-effective to reach profitability rather than spending money on advertising and marketing to buy a market.

Expanding on the previous answer, in order to secure the right strategic JV/ partnerships, you need to solve a problem, enhance their products or service offerings and have immediate upside profit potential for the party who has the (your) market.

14. Many entrepreneurs complain about not succeeding in business due to lack of adequate funding, what is your take on this matter and how do you cope with funding issues in your business?

Many businesses I’ve been involved with have been very capital intensive to get started. Laying cables in the ground, acquiring FCC licenses, building cell towers, acquiring the necessary legal counsel and accounting firms to attract investment capital was a mid 7 figure investment minimum before you could collect any money from paying customers.

The only way I’ve ever funded a new businesses such as these is by assembling the best talent with proven track records, having a solid plan and sharing our vision with qualified individuals who have the ability to fund the business. I have found this is one skill many entrepreneurs lack. They don’t teach you how to do this effectively in school. The most successful entrepreneurs I’ve known are those who put themselves in front of qualified investors and are not afraid to ask for the money and they eat rejection for breakfast, lunch and dinner and like it.

15. When starting out a new business, who are the likely possible partners or professional service providers you would recommend every entrepreneur work with?

Obviously, in the times we live in, tech savvy partners can help out a great deal for establishing an effective online presence and even build the products you might offer the marketplace. As well, I recommend that every entrepreneur develop solid relationships with legal counsel and accounting firms. These are paramount if you need funding or want to sell or take your company to the public markets in the future. If this is the goal, you need to have your foundation and structure right from the beginning.

16. The pricing of products/services is always an issue for entrepreneurs, what unusual approach do you take when it comes to pricing?

When I work with partnerships and strategic joint ventures, my pricing model is typically cost + 20%. That leaves plenty of room for your partners to market your product or service, get it distributed to the marketplace and make a good profit.

Interview Questions Part 3

MISCELLANEOUS: Resourceful Recommendations, tools, books, and ideas for entrepreneurs.

Through the social web, you now have access to the brightest minds in business on the planet. They’re sharing their experiences, do’s and don’ts and best practices every day. If you want insight from folks who are making the world go around, start subscribing to and reading their blogs. Every resource you need is at your fingertips. The key is building relationships with people who can help you. The social web is not powered by technology; it’s powered by conversations and connections that evolve into working relationships.

17. Were there any particular questions you expected me to ask that is beneficial to entrepreneurs and I didn’t? Kindly share with us such questions and their relevant answers here.

All good here Tito. Thanks for having me

Your Turn

You’ve met Mark, what did you learn from this unusual entrepreneur?

Share your views below in the comment section.

Thank you for your time!

7 Warning Signs Of A Dying Business

Tito Philips, Jnr. — Sun, 22 Apr 2012 22:46:02 +0000

what are the warning signs of a dying business?

Every dying business sends out certain warning signs before the eventual collapse. For the observant entrepreneur, this disaster is avoided by taking certain strategic measures. But for the non-observing entrepreneur, this disaster seems to creep in suddenly.

The death of a business is not as sudden as many tend to assume. Just as there is no such thing as overnight business growth, there is no such thing as overnight business collapse.

Accidents seldom kill businesses like it does kill humans.

Sicknesses seldom kill businesses like it does kill humans.
So what kills businesses then?

Businesses die as a result of these 3 deadly factors;

Negligence
Inexperience
Greed

Negligence: I am writing this unusual article to help you fight against this number one deadly factor that kills most businesses –negligence!

Negligence is simply not paying adequate attention to your business. Negligence is about being too busy ‘working in’ your business that you forget the importance of ‘working on’ it.

Working in your business = doing business

Working on your business = building a business
Later on in this unusual article, I will be pointing out 7 warning signs of a dying business. Knowing them will help you to be less negligent.

Inexperience: This is the second factor killing most businesses and to some extent, this also has its root in negligence.

How do I mean?

Inexperience is not an excuse for failure. It is true that the best teacher is experience. But it doesn’t always have to be your own experience. Leverage on the experience and expertise of others ahead of you in different areas of your business. That’s why smart entrepreneurs always surround themselves with mentors, consultants, coaches and other professionals generally smarter than them on specific areas of their business.

You cure inexperience with borrowed experience. It doesn’t have to be your own experience!

Greed: this factor is self explanatory. Any attempt to bite more than is ethically allowed will kill your business faster than the first two deadly factors.

Your business will die if you give customers less value than they pay for – greed.

Your business will die if you give your employees less than they contribute – greed.

Your business will die if you think your own needs is far more important than the needs of others –greed.

You cure greed by following the golden rule of business.

Those are the 3 deadly factors that can kill your business. Let’s now identify the 7 warning signs that inform you of their presence. In other words, the 7 warning signs of a dying business are the different ways Negligence, Inexperience and Greed manifest their selves in your business. They represent the symptoms of the 3 deadly factors that can kill your business.

The 7 Warning Signs Of A Dying Business

What are the obvious symptoms of a failing business?

1. LOW SALES

This is the most obvious sign of a dying business. Why? Because sales is the lifeblood of every business. Without sales, there is no cash flow and without cash flow, there is no business continuity.

Sales is to a business what blood is to we humans.

So when you begin to notice a period of low sales in your business, be on the alert, your business may be dying!

In this unusual article; what to do when business is slow, I described the first step you need to take in managing a low sales period.

2. NO INNOVATION – Nothing New

Variety they say is the spice of life. Meaning, people love new things. Your business will always be at the front of your customer’s mind if you regularly innovate –come up with new things.

So here’s the big question; when was the last time your business introduced something new [product/service] into the market?

To remain in business, you can’t afford to rely on past glory alone. You’ve got to keep reinventing yourself through innovation.
IBM held on to their past glory as the industry leader of mainframe computers and watched Microsoft steal away the global market of desktop computers through their user friendly Windows Operating Systems.

When there’s nothing new about your business, you bore existing customers and discourage potential new ones.

3. NO DIFFERENTIATION – Nothing Unique

Be careful of making the mistake that innovation is the same thing as differentiation. I listed these two warning signs after each other to make this clarification.

New and unique are never the same.

New ≠ Unique.

New = better than former

Unique = different from others

What is differentiation?

When you list out all the characteristics of your business, product or service and compare it with that of others in your industry; differentiation is those attributes of your business, product or service that isn’t on any of your competitor’s list of attributes.

Differentiation is about having a competitive edge above your industry peers.

Differentiation is about focusing on a specific point of uniqueness separate from your industry peers.

Businesses that last stand the test of time because they are different from others in the same industry. Customers treat you like others when there’s nothing unique about you.

So here’s the big question; what’s unique about your business in comparison to your industry peers?

4. NO POSITIVE WORD OF MOUTH –referrals and testimonials

Are people talking about your business, product or service? If yes, what are they saying? If no, then you are as good as dead. Period.
When customers no longer talk about your business, then you don’t matter. Businesses that matter get talked about by their customers.

How do I know?

By the number of referrals and testimonials such businesses get.

So here’s the big question; how many referrals and testimonials has your business generated this year?

If your customers aren’t talking about you to their family and friends, watch out. They aren’t talking because you are not WORTH talking about.
To make them talk, give them something worth talking about –innovate, differentiate, blow their mind!

5. LOW EMPLOYEE MORALE

Until now, the four warning signs discussed above focus mainly on your business’ relationship with your customers. That is; what customers expect from your business and what you expect from them. Now it’s time to shift the focus to the people who make the products/services you sell to customers –your employees!
How are they? How is your relationship with them?
They are the first customers of every business. After your purpose, they come next. They greatly determine the success of your business, because the products/services you offer for sale in the market come from their collective efforts.

So here’s the big question; how well are you paying attention to your people? How well are you taking care of them? Are they working with a clear unity of purpose? Are they at their best possible self ever? Are they working as one – a team?

A business with high employee morale is a healthy business. So to know how well your business is doing, check how well your people are doing.

6. POOR CASH FLOW MANAGEMENT

If sales is the lifeblood of a business, it is so because of cash flow. After sales, the next financial indicator of a healthy business is how well they manage their cash flow.
Oftentimes a Profit & Loss (P&L) statement may show that a company is profitable, yet the company is struggling to survive.

Why?

The answer lies in their cash flow.
Successful small businesses become successful large businesses when they understand that cash is king and actually focus their business on generating, and preserving, cash.
What is Cash Flow?

Cash flow refers to the inflow and outflow of cash within a business. That is; the flow of money – where is it coming in from [account receivables] and where is it going out from [account payables]?
Managing your cash flow properly is ensuring you never run out of the financial resources necessary to sustain your business. A business that runs out of cash is a dead business!

So here’s the big question; how smooth is the flow of cash in and out of your business?

To accurately answer that question, below are two key indicators of poor cash flow management, both must be avoided to keep your business healthy financially.

Overstocking Goods

Having stock that you cannot shift or sell quickly is a serious waste of funds and points towards poor cash flow management. Cash is tied up in inventory, the less stock the better. So only order what you can sell: you can always order more as demand increases.

Poor Ordering and Invoicing Practices

Do you meticulously keep detailed invoices and accounts, outlining who has bought what, when they bought it, how much they owe and whether or not they have paid yet? If the answer is no then this must be fixed quickly.

There are 10 more symptoms of poor cash flow management besides these two, but I can’t cover all here. For more on cash flow management, visit mycashflowdoctor

7. NO LEARNING AND DEVELOPMENT

Innovate or die.

Differentiate or die.

Change and grow or die.

Learning and development is the secret of competitiveness in business. To remain relevant in the market, you need to keep changing and keep growing. The moment you stop learning, you start dying. This is as true for individuals as well as businesses.
Your capacity to innovate is dependent on how much you learn and develop.

Your capacity to differentiate is dependent on how much you learn and develop.
So to do more, learn more.

To be more, learn more.

To have more, learn more!

Your Turn

From experience, yours or that of others, what other warning signs of a dying business can you add besides the 7 mentioned above?
Which of these 7 warning signs are you currently experiencing in your business and how do you intend to strategically correct it?

Speak your mind; share your thoughts and questions in the comment section below.

Unusual Entrepreneur Interview With Bamidele Onibalusi Of YoungPrePro.com

Tito Philips, Jnr. — Mon, 16 Apr 2012 10:56:19 +0000

How Unusual is Bamidele Onibalusi

Welcome to another edition of the Unusual Entrepreneur Interviews and today I am very honoured to have gotten this Unusual Entrepreneur in question. His name is Bamidele Onibalusi, a 18-year old entrepreneur and the founder of YoungPrePro, a blog on how to write for traffic and money.

If you are just joining us for the first time, this is the unusual entrepreneur interview series. It is a parade of unusual entrepreneurs who are changing the world and profiting from purpose. Profiting from purpose by changing the world isn’t an impossible dream as many tend to think of it, but a realistic one as many unusual entrepreneurs have extraordinarily proven.

It is my life mission to understand the unusual qualities of such unusual entrepreneurs and inspire as many others to profit from purpose by changing the world. If you’re not yet familiar with our philosophy of unusual entrepreneurs, kindly download our free ebook: The Entrepreneur’s Journey. This is the official manifesto for anyone who wants to change the world and profit from purpose.

How Unusual Is Bamidele Onibalusi?

Bamidele’s passion is writing and through writing he has been able to achieve so much despite is young age.

Below are two examples of his unusual accomplishments as a young entrepreneur changing the world through his writing and profiting from purpose.

1. Earning over $50k in one year at the young age of 17 writing articles for clients he got as a result of blogging.

2. Building a blog that now gets an average of 30k visits monthly and featured on major top blogs online, including Business Insider, ReadWriteWeb, Problogger and DailyBlogTips.

Interview Questions Part 1

ENTREPRENEURSHIP: Awakening the Spirit of business

1. Can you please tell us a little about yourself and your business? What do you do?, how do you do it?, why do you do it and who do you do it for?

Thanks so much for the opportunity, bro! I’m Bamidele Onibalusi, a Nigerian blogger, writer and internet entrepreneur. I also own YoungPrePro.com, a blog where I help other writers learn to make money and get traffic.

I write for income and traffic, I do it for myself, and I do it because it’s cool. Seriously, I first heard about the possibility of making money online when I was 14, when someone came to our church to organize a seminar about making money with the internet through Forex marketing; my interest was piqued, and I was ready to do anything to attend that seminar. Eventually, I was unable to attend the seminar, but I kept on researching to learn more about how to make money online.

I discovered an article by Steve Pavlina on how to make money blogging towards the end of 2010, and the main advice in the article is centered on giving value to your readers and not expecting something in return. Steve is a very persuasive writer, and he was able to get me hooked to his idea. That was how I started blogging.

My main reason for blogging is to help others. While it will be cool to make money from my efforts, nothing makes me happier than getting emails and comments from my readers that they are motivated and inspired by my articles.

2. How would you describe your entrepreneurial journey into the world of business?

To be sincere, being an entrepreneur is full of challenges, but I guess that’s the joy of it. It’s just like gold; to get the best out of gold you have to refine it, and you have to do that with fire. I believe the challenges I go through is what makes it worthwhile.

3. Were there any key incidents or life changing events that inspired your decision to become an entrepreneur?

Actually, nothing I can remember. Just that I was so determined never to work for anybody, and I wanted to be very rich when I was young; not a rich man who can’t sleep because he wants to earn, but a rich man who can earn money when he is sleeping. When I heard about the internet, I knew it was the opportunity I had been waiting for.

4. When you started out in business, what specific idea, purpose or vision was your key driving force?

My driving force was my goals. I’m not that motivated by people; I love people, especially when they succeed, but I do ask myself how I can be better myself. I’ve always been a dreamer, and as a result I had a lot big goals I wanted to accomplish (I still have), and it is these goals that I look up to whenever I feel “tired”.

5. What is your take on the general notion that entrepreneurs should build a business around what they naturally love to do?

Well, I agree. I currently have around 3 websites, and I have built several websites before YoungPrePro, but the only reason why YoungPrePro is so successful is because it has my personal, undivided attention. I have spent thousands of dollars on my other sites, but I even fight myself to pay attention and personally monitor them; that’s the importance of passion. You need to monitor every business you invest yourself or resources into, and that’s exactly what passion enables you to do.

6. What is your personal life mission as an entrepreneur? That is; what contributions do you want to make with your life or what would you like to be remembered for as an entrepreneur through the businesses you create when you die?

Seriously, I still don’t know that yet. Primarily, I want to help other writers succeed, I want to help others get the motivation and self-confidence that they are worth a lot, and I want to influence people towards success. But my ultimate mission, I guess I still have to go through life enough to know what that is; after all, I’m only just starting

7. What would you describe as the purpose of entrepreneurship? That is; what role do entrepreneurs play in the world?

They change the world! Entrepreneurs create businesses, they inspire people to business, and they teach people to confidently do whatever they want; you don’t need to spend your life in an office working under somebody else when you can easily achieve a lot more through your own business.

8. How are you changing the world through the business, products or services you create?

By helping writers achieve their dreams. This could be through them making more money, increasing their fame, and building up their confidence.

Interview Questions Part 2

STRATEGY: The unusual execution of business best practices

9. What would you describe as your secret formula for business success?

My tenacity; that is, my persistent determination to succeed at whatever I do, no matter what the obstacles may be.

10. How do you identify business opportunities and what metrics do you use to measure their viability?

Competition is one major thing I use to determine a solid business opportunity; not extreme competition, but healthy competition. If a lot of businesses are investing their money into something every day, then it is working.

11. Do you have mentors, business coach or external consultants that you work closely with to grow yourself and your business? If yes, to what extent would you describe their impact on your business? If no, are there any particular reasons?

No, not at the moment! I do read a lot of books, blogs, and I listen to podcasts for information and motivation.

12. How do you strategically use your time as an entrepreneur? What key activities would you recommend entrepreneurs use their time for?

Aha, I think that depends on you. I think it’s a really bad idea to take time management advice from me; I’ve spent as much as 25 hours in front of the television watching a single movie at a stretch before, so I guess it’s all about how you want to use your freedom.

13. How do you generate profitable customers for your business? What unusual approaches do you adopt for marketing your products/services?

My main approach is giving value. Clients, customers, and whoever your business engine is, will come when they see value in your work. People gather where value is, so give value to get results. Also, don’t underestimate the impact marketing can have; network with influencers in your field, look for ways to leverage the audience of others and be creative enough to try new marketing approaches.

14. Many entrepreneurs complain about not succeeding in business due to lack of adequate funding, what is your take on this matter and how do you cope with funding issues in your business?

Aha, I guess if that’s your complaint, then it’s a question of how creative you are. People don’t just fund businesses for fun, or because you deserve it, they fund businesses because they believe there’s going to be a return in it for them. Let investors see your business as a potential source of great profit, and they will be happy to pour any amount into it.

15. When starting out a new business, who are the likely possible partners or professional service providers you would recommend every entrepreneur work with?

Google! This is the best website on the entire planet, so ignore it at your own peril.

16. The pricing of products/services is always an issue for entrepreneurs, what unusual approach do you take when it comes to pricing?

The first thing I do is realize that not everybody will be willing to pay my price, and the second thing is that people only pay what they think your product/service is worth. Provide adequate value, and charge what you think you’re worth. Also, make sure to check out what the market range is to ensure you aren’t being cheated, or that you aren’t charging a lot more than the market pays.

Interview Questions Part 3

MISCELLANEOUS: Resourceful Recommendations, tools, books, and ideas for entrepreneurs

17. Where there any particular questions you expected me to ask that is beneficial to entrepreneurs and I didn’t? Kindly share with us such questions and their relevant answers here.

Seriously, you killed it with your questions! I think everything is perfect just as it is!

Your Turn

You’ve met Bamidele, what did you learn from this unusual entrepreneur?

Share your views below in the comment section.

Thank you for your time!

ONE LAST THING!

There are a million and one unusual entrepreneurs out there in your network, this site was built strictly for them. Help spread the word if you have been blessed by this unusual article. Please retweet on Twitter, share on Facebook, Linkedin, google+ and forward via email.

How To Do Business Like Jesus Christ

Tito Philips, Jnr. — Sun, 08 Apr 2012 15:06:36 +0000

How Did Jesus Do Business?

What is Jesus Christ to you?

To some, he’s the greatest human who ever lived.

To others, he’s the saviour of the world.

To me, he’s the greatest entrepreneur ever!

WHY?

Because he invented SALVATION and helped mankind solve our greatest problem ever; eternal life!

Jesus didn’t just die so you can make HEAVEN. He died so you can also reign on EARTH by building a business that matters, change the world and profit from purpose!

The 7 Business Principles Of Jesus Christ

The story of Jesus Christ is the most told story in the whole of human history. This is because it contains so much valuable lessons that have powerful impact on people.

In the spirit of Easter, I bring you 7 unusual business lessons from the life of the greatest entrepreneur ever -Jesus Christ!

1) PURPOSE – why do you exist?

This is where it all begins in business as well as in life. Unless the end is as clear as crystal, it’s impossible to achieve greatness.

Jesus had a clear purpose for coming into the world – to save humanity from eternal damnation and give eternal life.

“For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son that who so ever believe in him shall not perish but have everlasting life” –John 3:16

As entrepreneur, Jesus knew what is business was; to die so that you and I can have eternal life.

Great entrepreneurs begin with the end in mind. They have a clear purpose why they are in business. As a matter of fact, they started business to fulfill that purpose.

To them, business is how they fulfill purpose. You can only build something great if you started with something great in mind.

To discover your purpose as an entrepreneur; click here to download your copy of our FREE manifesto; “The Entrepreneur’s Journey”.

You will learn how to awaken the spirit of business within by discovering your purpose.
You will learn how to start and build a business that matters.
You will learn how to change the world and profit from purpose.

Click here to grab your free copy now!

2) MESSAGE – what is your gospel?

Gospel means good news.

As an entrepreneur, Jesus had a gospel [message] he really wanted people to hear. His message was very compelling;

“Seek ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness and all other things shall be added unto you”. –Matt. 6:33

This is a very compelling story. The idea of going after only one thing [kingdom of heaven] and having every other thing else is definitely a good news many people would love to hear.

As an entrepreneur, what is your message?

I talked about the importance of having a compelling message in this unusual article; The 3Ms Of Highly Effective Marketing.

Having a compelling message is crucial to your entrepreneurial success. A message is the foundation of all your marketing and the essence of your brand. Without one, your marketing will be ineffective.

Here’s the link again, The 3Ms Of Highly Effective Marketing.

3) POSITIONING – who are your target market?

No one business can single-handedly meet the needs of everyone. The whole world is not your target market; even Jesus recognized this brutal fact.

“I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.” –Matt. 9:13

As an entrepreneur, this is a major mistake you must avoid. Not everyone is your potential customer.

You have to differentiate and position your business so that those who will value what you are offering [product/service] can identify you easily.

Jesus didn’t stay in the church like a pastor would; he was on the street in search of those who were lost. The lost don’t come to church, they are in the world and Jesus understood this perfectly.

Positioning is about identifying your target market and going to them where they are with a message they want to hear.

Stop trying to be everything to everyone. Be something to someone -POSITIONING!

4) DISCIPLESHIP – who are your vision partners?

No great thing was ever achieved single-handedly by an individual.

Jesus didn’t attempt to save the lost all by himself despite all his divine powers. He enlisted the help of others who were gifted in diverse areas.

“Come, follow me,” Jesus said, “and I will make you fishers of men.” –Matt. 4:19

Why did he do this?

The reason is so simple, but not so obvious.

Jesus realized he wasn’t omnipresent –being everywhere at the same time. He knew he was going to die on the cross for the sin of mankind.

He had to raise others who would succeed him and carry on the gospel [message] while he was gone. These were his 12 disciples.

As an entrepreneur, are you trying to go it all by yourself?

This is how many end up in the deadliest business trap ever. You must realize that you are not going to be here forever. What you build should outlive you. The best way to do this is to institutionalize your business by working with a team of vision partners.

While I do understand that at first you might start out alone, this is no excuse not to seek out vision partners along the way.

Great businesses are not the result of an individual, but the collective efforts of several individuals.

5) INNOVATION – where are your signs and wonders?

Being great is not by mouth.

Being great is a function of impact –signs and wonders.

Great entrepreneurs are great because they make great things happen.

Jesus is the greatest entrepreneur ever because he was the most innovative ever.

Jesus healed the sick.
Jesus made the blind see.
Jesus walked on water.
Jesus turned water to wine.
Jesus rose the dead.
Jesus rose up from dead.
Above all, Jesus invented salvation, mankind’s passport to life after death.

As an entrepreneur, your greatness is tied to how much great things you can make happen. Jesus made great things happen. He performed signs and wonders. He made impossible possible.

And here’s what he has to say to you about innovation;

“Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever believes in me will also do the works that I do; and greater works than these will he do, because I am going to the Father”. –John 14:12

6) PROFITABILITY – how much souls/customers are you winning?

Great entrepreneurs build profitable businesses.

As there are two kinds of business; good and great. There are also two types of profit; kind and cash.

In Jesus’ case, his profit was in kind.

His profitability is measured by the number of lives he saved. His business is saving lives so his bottom-line is measured in kind not in cash.

As an entrepreneur, part of building a business that matter is being profitable. As a matter of fact, the more your business matters, the more profitable you become.

Businesses that matter make these two types of profit; kind and cash.

Your profit in kind is the ‘good’ [impact] your goods and service is having in people’s lives.
Your profit in cash is the money you are paid in exchange for the goods and services you provide.

Both are essential to your entrepreneurial success. In fact, your profit in cash is determined by your profit in kind.

The origin of both types of profit is value. It’s the good in your product/service that attracts people to pay you money in exchange for it.

“The generous man will be prosperous, and he who waters will himself be watered.” –Prov. 11:25

7) LEGACY – what will you be remembered for?

The true mark of great entrepreneurs is their ability to leave a mark in the sand of time.

Every December, we celebrate the birth of Jesus.

Every April, we celebrate his death and resurrection.

This is a man who lived over 2000 years ago and yet the world hasn’t ceased to remember him year after year.

Why?

Because his legacy leaves on.

Jesus is not the only entrepreneur who has been able to achieve this feat. There are others like him whose legacy transcends their lifetime and are remembered throughout history.

But in his case, he gave his life to fulfill the purpose of the business.

“Just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” – Matt. 20:28

Great entrepreneurs use their lives to fight for a cause.

What are you prepared to die for?

What cause are you fighting with your life?

Conclusion

To do business like Jesus, you have to follow his 7 business principles;

1) PURPOSE – why do you exist?
2) MESSAGE – what is your gospel?
3) POSITIONING – who are your target market?
4) DISCIPLESHIP – who are your vision partners?
5) INNOVATION – where are your signs and wonders?
6) PROFITABILITY – how much souls/customers are you winning?
7) LEGACY – what will you be remembered for?

Your Turn

How has the life and principles of Jesus Christ impacted how you do business?

Customer Psychology Marketing: WHY Do People BUY?

Tito Philips, Jnr. — Mon, 02 Apr 2012 08:58:55 +0000

Why DO People Buy?

I recently read a very unusual article by Dov Gordon on Firepole Marketing, titled; 3 Questions to a Consistent Flow of Clients (Beware the Marketing Plumbers!). I really recommend you read it, as in RIGHT NOW!

This unusual article is a follow up on what was shared there. I have always been emphasizing this point on naijapreneur. And it’s so painfully true;

people don’t care about you, how much success you’ve achieved or even what you have to sell.

People care about themselves first, second, third and up to infinity.

People are naturally selfish; including me, including you!

If you want customers to buy what you have to sell, here is what you need to do;

Forget about what you want or don’t want and focus on giving them what they want and getting rid of what they don’t want!

The 40/40/20 Rule of Marketing

Here is a fact that explains why customers buy. The “40/40/20 rule” explains what constitutes the response for a marketing campaign. It breaks down like this:

40% of the success of your marketing is dependent on the target audience
40% of the success of your marketing is dependent on what you’re offering [product or service]
20% of the success of your marketing is dependent on creativity [presentation]

This rule was popularized in the 1960’s by a direct mail guru named Ed Mayer. The first 40 represented your target audience. Meaning, 40% of the success of your direct response marketing program was tied to your message being sent to the right audience.

The second 40 stood for offer. Meaning, 40% of the success of your direct response program was centered on having the right offer for that audience. And 20 was creative. The copy and art are obviously important, but only if they relay the right message to the right people.

As you can see, customers don’t buy because your ads are very creatively done nor do they buy for any other reason besides their own. 80% of marketing success that brings about astounding sales is dependent on utility.

You have to know ‘what to sell’ [offer] to those ‘who needs them’ [target audience].

Why Do Customers Buy?

Customers buy for the following reasons. Provide these reasons and the sale becomes natural.

1. Utility – why should I buy this?

The answer is simple according to Dov Gordon in his unusual article; customers buy because they are interested in two things. These two things they are interested in are the same two things you and I are interested in. Because all of us are only interested in the following two things:

Getting rid of a PROBLEM you have and don’t want and / or

Creating a RESULT that you want and don’t have.

Very basic and so true!

People pay for products and services for one or both of these reasons.

They either want a problem they have solved or they want to have a result they currently lack.

No more, no less.

Economists were smart enough to coin a word for these two reasons why people buy. They called it utility.

What is Utility?

Utility they said is the satisfaction derived from the consumption of a particular product or service. In other words, utility = satisfaction derived = value.

Products or services sell not because of you have bills to pay, or because you have needs to be met. In fact, if you ever hope of selling anything, you have to get ‘YOU’ out of the equation and focus on ‘THEM’.

Products or services sell because your customers want utility.

People don’t pay for products or services, they pay for utility – what the product or service can do for them.

In a previous post, I talked about the need for utility by asking this question; does your business matter? I asked some very harsh questions in that unusual article because I needed to challenge your thinking about what you ‘think’ matters and what ‘really’ matters.

The simple truth is that people don’t give two cents about you!

Forget about yourself and all that you ever want and focus on creating something SIGNIFICANT for others. This is how you get customers to buy whatever it is you are selling.

Until people can see utility in what you are offering for sale, you will never get them to buy.

So what problem do you help solve and what results do you help create for your customers?

2. Credibility – why should I buy from you?

The second reasons why customers buy is credibility. Customers buy from people they trust. After a customer sees the utility in what you are offering for sale, the next thing they want to see is credibility. Are you for real? Can you really deliver this utility? Are you capable of delivering on your promise?

This is very crucial for making the sale. You can read more about how to establish credibility in this unusual article; why credibility comes before profitability.

3. Relevance – why should I buy NOW?

I see the value in your offering, I trust your ability to deliver, but is what your selling relevant to my current situation?

I am interested in what you are offering for sale, based on certain track record, I think I trust your brand, but how well is your solution –product/service suitable for my current needs?

This is the most crucial phase of the three reasons why people buy. To successfully get over this phase, two key skills are required;

1. The ability to question skillfully

2. The ability to listen carefully

To uncover the relevance of your product/service to the current needs of the customer, you’ve got to dig deep beyond the surface. People find it naturally difficult expressing their deep desires until skillfully led. The more you skillfully ask questions and listen carefully and patiently to the answers, the more the customer will open up and talk to you.

In Psychoanalysis, this is called the Freudian slip. Psychologists have found that if you allow a person talk about himself freely, eventually he will slip. He will blurt out what he is really thinking about at the moment.

The job of the entrepreneur is to create the kind of environment where the customer feels comfortable expressing himself openly and honestly. Your goal is to create a comfortable environment with your personality, ask open-ended questions with words such as what, where, when, how, who, why, and which. And then listen carefully and patiently without any interruption.

The importance of asking skillful questions and listening carefully is this; the person who asks the questions is in control of the conversation.

Notice how job interviews are conducted? The candidate is put on the hot seat and the interviewer is in charge of the entire conversation. The same is applicable in every kind of scenario; the person who asks the questions is in charge of the conversation.

Through your skillful questions and careful listening, you are leading the customer to the point where they feel comfortable enough to voice out their ultimate concern. Once you get them to this point, the relevance of your offering would be clear enough to them and the desire to buy now would be present.

Your Turn

Why do you think customers buy? Are there any other reasons besides the 3 mentioned above?

What are you selling; features or benefits? Have you discovered the utility in your product or service? How do you creatively convey this utility to your target customers?

Why should people buy from you? What should make them trust you enough to buy from you? How have you communicated your credibility?

How well do you understand the pressing needs of your target customers? How relevant is your offering [product/service] to their pressing needs?

Join in the conversation, share your comments below.