The Importance of Sticking to Your Area of Expertise

Quite a few years ago I worked in the Retail Division of Mobil Oil in Brisbane. I travelled around the state; stayed in luxury hotels; quizzed site owners about their operations; wielded power in allocating funds and appointing franchisees.

The Retail Division was seen as the flashy cousin to the dull and boring refinery operations. Everyone in Retail worked hard (more like we were driven hard!) and occasionally also got some play time as a group.

It was the '90's and the idea of combining petrol sales with convenience stores was still a novel idea in Australia. I was also heavily involved in the fast food sites located on major highways - another new concept.

Time moves on...

Over a few years the Retail Division was wound down, and slowly but surely became inactive.

Why?

Because it wasn't a good fit with the overall operation of Mobil. Essentially Mobil couldn't compete in the retail market place against the faster moving compettors of BP and Shell. It is a high investment, high risk industry.

And today it is reported that 7-Eleven buys Mobil petrol stations.

Behind the scenes it can be assumed that Mobil has struggled for many years to 'keep up with the Jones'. It is obvious that BP and Shell secured lucrative retail sites on major roads, and invested heavily in upgrading their sites.

Mobil stood still because they weren't committed to retail operations. They couldn't see a return.

The lesson here is that you need to define your market place, and your area of expertise, and make sure you stick to it. Mobil wandered into retail operations for decades without making a success of it.

Don't make the same mistake.

The Real Entreprenuer Test

I get to meet lots of business owners. Some are quite savvy and switched on to what it takes to make decisions, take risks, and run a business.

Others seem to be waiting for the magical wand to be waved over them and for their business to take off.

If you're wondering if you have what it takes to be a business owner (call yourself an entreprenuer if you want)... take this 10 question test by business consultant and serial entreprenuer Barry Moltz.

The only entreprenuer test you need to take

In this brief video interview Dan Martin from Business Zone (UK) talks with Tony Wheeler, the founder of the Lonely Planet travel guides.

Tony mentions some helpful points about the serendipitous start soe businesses make; the advice he received from his MBA mates; and how to perservere.

Interview with Richard Branson - the man behind the stunts

Richard Branson is an enigma. He appears to be outlandish, with his wild business stunts. But when you see him in normal conversation he really is much quieter - and even suffers from dislexia. Watch this Richard Branson interview for some business inspiration.

Tourism Australia gone wrong - a marketing lesson

Even large organisations get their marketing message mixed. Tourism Australia now says they want a longer term approach for their advertising campaigns. They want to copy what New Zealand and Victoria have done.

Boy... You'd think that with their history, the amount of money they spend, and the expert help they get from advertising agencies (charging a fortune for advice and creativity), they would have made this decision years ago.

But they didn't.

They've been using a bits-and-pieces approach. Trying to hook on to the latest fad (such as the ill-fated Australia movie).

The difference is now they say they wnat their own identity for Australia - like New Zealand has done with '100% Pure' and Victoria has done with it's 'Jigsaw' campiagn - both of which have run for many years.

Lesson: How can you create your own business identify? Be smart... Don't leave yourself to the ebb and flow of the latest fad or market trend.

3 Lessons From Business Survivors

According to a study done by the Small Business Administration (USA), two-thirds of all new small business survive the first two years but only 44% will still be operating by year four.

Here are three very important lessons from business owners who have survived, from an article in Business Week:

Lesson #1 - Recycle money early.
"during the crucial first years I learned you really always need to recycle money back into your business instead of taking money out of it. A new business needs to stay fresh..."

Lesson #2 - Diversfy your clients.
Rather than rely on one type of client for revenue, early on Niemeier decided to make sure he launched a firm with a diversified clientele working on educational, corporate, health care, and hospitality projects

Lesson #3 - Qualify and eliminate clients who don't 'fit'.
"But what I learned from that is that I really had to do a better job of screening and qualifying our prospective clients. Not everybody is a good client and when they don't pay their bills in a timely manner I realized we had to fire them."

Read the whole article.

Are You Preventing Your Own Success?

Are you standing in the way of your own success?

Do you set your goals so low - with a back-door planned - so you can escape the responsibility to make a commitment or achieve success?

I was reading a newsletter from Michael Port of Book Yourself Solid fame. He referred to the statistic that 80% of small businesses close within 5 years. He doesn't believe it's because of an overly competitive marketplace. He said...

I think 80% of business owners fail in the first 5 years because of one of two reasons. Either they haven’t made a non-reversible, do whatever it takes, no holds barred, beyond a shadow of a doubt, absolutely no going back, stick to it like super glue commitment to finishing what they start - to make their business work. Or, maybe they have. But, they haven't found a system that is proven to work so they can replicate it and succeed.

Recently I was speaking with a small business owner - another marketing consultant in fact. This lady is very experienced and switched on. She knows her stuff. I've known her for some years.

But in talking with her I perceived that her business success wasn't absolutely critical because she and her husband were well established. And her husband had a well-paid career.

This issue came up because my marketing consultant friend was wondering about setting revenue targets, and what to do for her own marketing activity.

I made the point to her that unless the revenue from your business is 'essential' to your personal situation it is easy to become too relaxed and not really commit to doing what needs to be done.

Developing a small business into a sustainable revenue stream is hard work. You need to be persistant. You need to learn. Only a rare few have a 'dream run' and reach their targets easily.

What I'm suggesting here is to take a reality check...

** Are you doing what you're doing to develop a serious business?

** Or, are you doing what you're doing as a part-time occupation, never really expecting it to take your full commitment?

Either decision is OK... just be realistic about what you expect to achieve.

Then make sure you put in the appropriate effort to learn, try, test, learn again.

10 Tips for Business Success

Dan Martin reports from the Business Startup show in London and highlights the presentation given by Rachel Elnaugh (a well-known UK entreprenuer). Here are her top 10 tips - suitable for just about any business I think - not only startups.

1. Is your business worth saving? If it's simply not working, move on.

2. Don't let the doom and gloom get to you. There are thousands of businesses doing brilliantly well in the current climate.

3. Why aren't they buying? Build in feedback loops about why customers don't buy. And remember, price cutting may not be the answer.

4. Is your marketing working hard enough? Keep a track of how your customers find you. If it's referrals, reward the referrers!

5. Banks aren't the only source of finance. Think who has interest in your business: key customers, key suppliers, joint ventures etc.

6. Money isn't the only form of wealth. Bartering, for example, is a powerful way to accelerate your business.

7. Spend time every day planning. If you're on output all the time, you won't get as far as if you step back and think about where you're going with your business.

8. Get help if things are going wrong.

9. Don't let the fear get to you. Everything you think about you get more of so think positive!

10. If you do 10 things and 9 go wrong, focus on the one that worked!

For more information and links visit the article here.

Success > Receivership > Then more success... See how Poppy did it.

Remember Poppy King... and her lipsticks. An Australian success at 19 years old. $5mill p.a. in sales. Out of business at 25.

Like many entrepreneurs (young and old) Poppy had a great idea but not enough business savvy.

This led to her having to sell her business, which never got back to the $5mill turnover it had during its heyday.

In this article from the Sydney Morning Herald Poppy explains what has happened since then to help her once again start her entrepreneurial empire.

Under a difference name. In a different country. But much wiser.

And it goes to show that true entrepreneurs often have a rocky road to their final destination. In Poppy's case she was offered a prestigious role at Estee Lauder to launch and run a new range. This helped her to reestablish herself, and regain confidence.

However being an employee in a corporate environment didn't suit her ambition and attitude.

So, now she's off onto her next project.

Bottom line - being an entrepreneur and business owner is certainly risky. Not everyone is a success. Not every idea is a winner. You need to have confidence and faith in yourself... and always be looking for opportunities to move forward.

Making Your First Million-dollar Sale

If you dream of making your first million-dollar sale then read these success stories from Inc.com of how four entrepreneurs made it into the big time.

It's interesting to note the main elements of success, and how they are common across many success stories.

* Being prepared for something BIG. Knowing what might happen and making contingency plans.

* Having patience. Big deals, with big companies, can take many months to mature after the initial presentation.

* Talking to the right people in the client organization. Sometimes you need to work around existing channels to get your message across.

Reminder: Don't lose sight of what is possible. If you want those big deals worth big bucks, then put in the homework and be prepared to work hard to make it happen. It's rarely an 'overnight' success!

The 6 Traits of Successful Business Leaders

Every business owner has their own set of challenges. However, an Ernst and Young study of over 200 global leader enterprises identified six fundamentals for any business to succeed and these included:

1. Managing risk;
2. Transactions and alliances;
3. Operational effectiveness;
4. Managing finance;
5. Customer recruitment;
6. People recruitment and retention.

The Sydney Morning Herald reports that many successful business are founded by second-time-around entrepreneurs. It doesn't seem to matter whether the first business venture was successful or not. The fire to succeed and passion for their chosen industry is what drives entrepreneurs to be successful.

Find out more about the Ernst and Young Entrepreneur of The Year 2007 winners.

The facts behind an inspirational start-up story - Trunki

It all started off well. Australian entrepreneur Richard Farley sat on the brightly coloured suitcase and Rob Law wheeled him around the studio. But it was when Theo Paphitis, one of Farley's fellow millionaire panellists, decided to get involved that disaster struck. The boss of...

Continue reading here...

Another real-life inspirational start-up story. Trunki, the ride-on childrens suitcase.





KEY TIMELINE

1997 - idea for new product and business
2003 - launches parent company and develops first prototype
2005 - Chinese licensed manufacturer goes belly-up
2006 - Appeared on UK start-up show Dragons Den seeking 100,000 pounds; and gets rejected
2007 - 23,000 units sold since Dragons Den; now 100,000 units sold worldwide to date

For the full story visit Business Zone UK.

Starting a new business can take many years. Getting new ideas, new concepts, and new products into the market place can be frustrating and is rarely easy.

However, this start-up story shows - yet again - that if you believe in your product, and have a good understanding of the market, you can achieve success even after being rejected and written off by others who may be seen as 'experts'.

Choosing the right PR agency, or marketing advisor.

PR is one of those areas that are really hard to pin down. Everyone has a different idea about what PR (Public Relations) is. I've seen this before when people think about how to hire a marketing consultant.

Read this story on the Sydney Morning Herald Small Business blog about VIVO Cafe in Sydney. It includes some great tips. The owner spent a fortune with a PR agency, only to get no results after many months. (See photo below of the owner Angela Vithoulkas)

That led to Angela checking other sources and finding a good PR firm. From the article:

She (Angela) began asking her customers for recommendations before settling on a shortlist of agencies whom she interviewed with direct and difficult questions before coming to her decision.

My view...

A good PR firm (like any good advisor) will spend quite a deal of time up front to ascertain your situation, and ask plenty of probing questions to find out what you really need.

And what you need isn't always what you think you want!

Choosing any professional advisor - PR, marketing, legal, accounting... is usually best done as a result of recommendations (referrals) and research you undertake independently.

And by 'independent' I mean doing the work yourself. Not just taking your friends word for it, or believing stereotypical comments. And not immediately trusting what you hear on the grapevine or latest online discussion group. Check it out properly. You owe it to yourself.

Research activities include checking websites for indications of expertise and 'style' of business. Testimonials should be found on websites of reputable providers. You would do well to also read up on the industry (even a little bit) so you have some knowledge of standard terminology and concepts. This is very helpful when asking your potential advisor questions, and listening to their answers.

If you're looking to hire a marketing advisor, you might want to review my straight shooting report on choosing a marketing consultant.

When it comes to buying professional services, be an educated customer.

Below: Angela Vithoulkas, owner of VIVO Cafe

How to Successfully Develop Your New Idea.

Anyone who has had a new business idea - or an innovation they think is worth developing - will know about the range of responses they get from others. Everything from "that wont work"... to "why are you wasting your time"... to "that's fantastic, why hasn't anyone done that before".

In this article at BusinessZone UK, Anne Miller explains how to best manage the development of new ideas. She says...

Another dangerous psychological tendency is that we tend to overestimate both how common our opinions are and how unique our abilities are.

Importantly, Anne highlights the 4 stages of resistance shown by people when presented with new ideas. The first stage is when people act as though they are blind - as if they really can't see your idea.

Anne says this is normal. So we shouldn't be discouraged by it.

This article is worth reading as it gives us some ideas on how to be more independent, and objective, when developing new ideas.

The end result will be that the best ideas will survive - not the ones we are emotionally attached to.

What makes you successful?

Business 'incubators' are designed to help fledgling businesses get support and access to resources to succeed. But does that work? What do you need to make your business a success? Do you need a complex (and maybe expensive) support network?

This post from the Sydney Morning Herald blog discusses the pro's and con's of government sponsored business incubators. It includes this key point:

Here lies a harsh reality: small and open markets, as opposed to closed and coddled regions, force businesses to think and act globally.

Many new ideas languish because they dont have a good connection with what the market wants. It is important for start-ups to have a sharp focus on market needs, and direct communication with their target audience.

In short, start-ups (and new business units of larger companies) need to be innovative and push through barriers, taking advantage of market opportunities. Waiting on help from others - be it an incubator or other advisors or partners - can often lead to a lack of responsibility on the part of the founders to take action.

Business incubators can provide valuable connections with universities, government agencies and business support services. The danger for startups joining the incubator is that founders may lose momentum and focus, whilst they deal with the various parties now involved in their venture.

Retail and technology main sources of new wealth.

Here in Australia the BRW magazine publishes an annual 'Young Rich' list. It's fascinating reading. One of the most interesting comments from a BRW writer says:

Retail and technology are still the principal sources of Young Rich fortunes. While these sectors are extremely crowded, they also have relatively low barriers to entry - anyone with a computer can start a web-based business, and budding fashion moguls can start building their empires by designing T-shirts in their bedroom. That said, the businesses that survive and prosper need robust processes and systems plus good marketing and distribution.

This goes to show that a good idea is only the start. Businesses grow from hard work and the right strategy and systems.

Data from the report shows that the Retail and Technology sectors account for 20% each of the Young Rich list. Services (other) makes up only 4%, and just 1% of the rich list comes from the Transport sector.

Geographically, New South Wales has 35% of the Young Rich, with Victoria claiming 29%. Queensland has 18%... with a surprising 11% residing overseas.

And it's good to see that 'marketing' gets mentioned as a key success factor. Need help with your marketing?