Finals are coming to an end for this semester. If you are a senior, that gives you about 5 months until you hit the real world. And 5 months ain't a long time, but it is enough time to investigate launching your own business.
Check out this resource, it has a lot new material and links (plus articles from this BLOG): www.collegiateentrepreneur.com
If you plan on owning your own company, you can start now. Plus you can live off of your folks for a while to while you ramp up.
5 months and counting!
Tuesday, December 11, 2007
Wednesday, October 31, 2007
Ivy Schools to County Colleges - It Just Doesn't Matter
I don't care how smart you are or how talented your are or what college you went to. When it comes to launching a company that stuff just doesn't matter. What does matter is how smart you BELIEVE you are, how talented you BELIEVE you are, how driven you are, how focused you are and how persistent you are.
I have come to realize we achieve what we believe. It doesn't matter what your background is or your education is, what matters is what you believe you can or can't do. Yes, you background and experience has a great influence on your beliefs. But once you realize you have the right and you have the ability to change your beliefs, you can acheive what you want.
So if you are a County College grad, don't feel that you can't achieve what an Ivy Leaguer does. Just follow you passion, be persistent and truly, truly believe in yourself. Then again if you are an Ivy grad... you too need to be passionate, persistent and truly, truly believe in yourself.
College is over... and we are all on common footing. The ones that believe are much more likely to achieve.
I have come to realize we achieve what we believe. It doesn't matter what your background is or your education is, what matters is what you believe you can or can't do. Yes, you background and experience has a great influence on your beliefs. But once you realize you have the right and you have the ability to change your beliefs, you can acheive what you want.
So if you are a County College grad, don't feel that you can't achieve what an Ivy Leaguer does. Just follow you passion, be persistent and truly, truly believe in yourself. Then again if you are an Ivy grad... you too need to be passionate, persistent and truly, truly believe in yourself.
College is over... and we are all on common footing. The ones that believe are much more likely to achieve.
Tuesday, October 2, 2007
What Are You Saying???
It has finally clicked in my head (after countless years). A consumer of my product or service, doesn't give two hoots about me or my company. BUT they care really only about certain aspects of my product or service.
I realize now that I confuse my clients and prospects by telling them way too much about stuff they don't give a crud about. I need to focus in on the one thing that makes a difference and keep talking about that.
There is a company out there that is doing it - talking clearly and concisely to what their customer cares about. As I observe them and what they are doing, they are proving that a clear purpose backed with a clear message results in rapid growth. The company, called Hedgehog Leatherworks (http://www.hedgehogleatherworks.com/) knows their customer. They service a very focused group, people that are survivalists. Survivalists are people that go out to the woods with a knife and the clothes on their back and can live out in the wild, just like that, for weeks or months.
Hedgehog constantly listens to their customer, and as a result have developed a product (a leather sheath) and a message that is perfectly tuned for the customers needs and wants. The customers of Hedgehog Leatherworks need a sheath that is durable, balanced, silent, sturdy, flexible, stealth, harmonious with nature, minimal design yet maximum functionality. The list goes on and on. Hedgehog clearly knows this is what their customer wants, and they know how to say it "Survival at your fingertips". To me, the antithesis of outdoor survival, that saying makes no to little sense, but to the end customer it resonates the absolute definition of what this product means... and sales are going up.
Who is your customer? What is the one thing they really care about? Answer those questions, and tell them what they want/need to hear over and over ...and you are on your path to a successful launch!
I realize now that I confuse my clients and prospects by telling them way too much about stuff they don't give a crud about. I need to focus in on the one thing that makes a difference and keep talking about that.
There is a company out there that is doing it - talking clearly and concisely to what their customer cares about. As I observe them and what they are doing, they are proving that a clear purpose backed with a clear message results in rapid growth. The company, called Hedgehog Leatherworks (http://www.hedgehogleatherworks.com/) knows their customer. They service a very focused group, people that are survivalists. Survivalists are people that go out to the woods with a knife and the clothes on their back and can live out in the wild, just like that, for weeks or months.
Hedgehog constantly listens to their customer, and as a result have developed a product (a leather sheath) and a message that is perfectly tuned for the customers needs and wants. The customers of Hedgehog Leatherworks need a sheath that is durable, balanced, silent, sturdy, flexible, stealth, harmonious with nature, minimal design yet maximum functionality. The list goes on and on. Hedgehog clearly knows this is what their customer wants, and they know how to say it "Survival at your fingertips". To me, the antithesis of outdoor survival, that saying makes no to little sense, but to the end customer it resonates the absolute definition of what this product means... and sales are going up.
Who is your customer? What is the one thing they really care about? Answer those questions, and tell them what they want/need to hear over and over ...and you are on your path to a successful launch!
Wednesday, August 29, 2007
Some of Your Customers Are Thieves - Kick 'Em To the Curb
Picture this. Your doorbell rings. Two guys wearing ski masks are standing there, holding big black bags. They ask if you have any money. You say that indeed you do, then invite them in and ask if they’d like a beer while they ransack your house. You chat them up as they stuff your prized collection of DVDs into the bags. You hold the door for them as they carry your new wide-screen plasma out to their stolen truck. You follow them out and hand over a stash of rainy day cash they’d missed, then wave as they drive away, laughing their asses off.
Insane, isn’t it. More likely your house has chain locks and web cameras and a pit bull named Spike, not to mention an alarm system straight out of a Bruce Willis flick, and you’ve never departed your house without leaving the TV on, full blast.
So let’s get real. Chances are you’re doing something just like this in your business. Okay, maybe not with a cold beer, but you’re inviting total strangers in that are robbing you blind. They’re called Non-Paying Customers, and chances are they really are laughing their asses off as they drive away. They’re not thieves, per se, but the effect is the same: they come, you invite them in, they take from you, then they leave without paying you a plug nickle, or at least the full value of what they’ve taken. The more this happens, the more money you’re losing.
The equivalent of our metaphoric pit bull named Spike is a new attitude on your part. It begins with the understanding that there are three types of customers out there: those that pay, those that don’t pay, and those that don’t show up at all. Obvious? Perhaps, but don’t take this lightly. Because too many businesses, especially new businesses, are so hungry for customers that they happily take in anyone who happens along, paying or not. Serving them may help some of your numbers, like revenue or hours billed, but it if isn’t stuffing your bank account full of bottom-line cash, its bad business.
But wait, you say. Any customer is better than no customers, right? An easy assumption, but it’s wrong, and it’ll cost you. Because every minute you spend with a non-paying customer is a minute you could be spending with the real deal, which means you’re taking a double hit: not only are you expending time with no return, you’re sacrificing valuable time that should be bringing dollars in the door. For every minute you waste on a free-loader, the equivalent minute spent on a paying customer costs you twice the time for half the money that you should be earning. Any way you cut it, that’s bad math and bad business.
So let’s look at those three types of customers again and put them in order. Paying customers are great. No customers, that’s actually fine. Non-paying customers, not good. How can no customers be “fine?” Because you’re not expending time and incurring costs, which is the case with non-paying customers. Which means, you could instead be investing this non-revenue time in building your business, looking for real customers and contributing other value-adds.
It’s gut-check time. Are all your customers paying their way? Get real about this and separate the wheat from the chafe, and then send the chafe packing. Or better yet, convert them to paying customers, whatever that means in your business. If they walk, say thank you before the door hits them on the butt as they leave, because you’ve just freed up time to make your business better in other ways. Better to not render a service or incur a cost with no ROI than to not get paid.
You’re probably thinking this is easier said than done, and you’re right. But it’s worth the pain. Look closely at your client list and ask a few tough questions about what you see there. Do they pay you willingly? Do they shout out when they have a problem, allow you to fix it, and then pay you for your time and effort? Or do they act like they’re entitled to your time? Can you get them to pay using a method that is acceptable to your business? If the answers are no, then you need to learn to say the same thing to these customers: no. It’ll be awkward, it’ll hurt like hell, but it’s like getting a shot – it’s all for the best, and it’ll heal what ails you in the long run. The good news is that they all won’t run for the door when they sense your new get-tough attitude, and for those that stick around you’ll have turned a bad apple into apple pie.
Remember, you’re in a game in which winning or losing is a bottom-line proposition, not a numbers-through-the-door statistic. At the end of the day, all that really matters from a business perspective – not to undervalue the personal relationships involved – is how much money you have in the bank, not how much is owed to you. Look for and cultivate solid paying customers, and nothing else. The non-payers, those thieves at your door with the ski masks and a bag, need to be converted to non-customers instead of being invited in for that glass of wine and access to your jewels.
So now you know. Start kicking the dead beats to the curb and bolt the door behind them. When you do, you’ll have the time and energy to be a more gracious host to your honored guests, the ones who pay their bills, ones to whom you’d happily give a cold beer. Who knows, you might even want to change your name to Spike.
Give this a try ...and you are on your path to a successful launch!
Insane, isn’t it. More likely your house has chain locks and web cameras and a pit bull named Spike, not to mention an alarm system straight out of a Bruce Willis flick, and you’ve never departed your house without leaving the TV on, full blast.
So let’s get real. Chances are you’re doing something just like this in your business. Okay, maybe not with a cold beer, but you’re inviting total strangers in that are robbing you blind. They’re called Non-Paying Customers, and chances are they really are laughing their asses off as they drive away. They’re not thieves, per se, but the effect is the same: they come, you invite them in, they take from you, then they leave without paying you a plug nickle, or at least the full value of what they’ve taken. The more this happens, the more money you’re losing.
The equivalent of our metaphoric pit bull named Spike is a new attitude on your part. It begins with the understanding that there are three types of customers out there: those that pay, those that don’t pay, and those that don’t show up at all. Obvious? Perhaps, but don’t take this lightly. Because too many businesses, especially new businesses, are so hungry for customers that they happily take in anyone who happens along, paying or not. Serving them may help some of your numbers, like revenue or hours billed, but it if isn’t stuffing your bank account full of bottom-line cash, its bad business.
But wait, you say. Any customer is better than no customers, right? An easy assumption, but it’s wrong, and it’ll cost you. Because every minute you spend with a non-paying customer is a minute you could be spending with the real deal, which means you’re taking a double hit: not only are you expending time with no return, you’re sacrificing valuable time that should be bringing dollars in the door. For every minute you waste on a free-loader, the equivalent minute spent on a paying customer costs you twice the time for half the money that you should be earning. Any way you cut it, that’s bad math and bad business.
So let’s look at those three types of customers again and put them in order. Paying customers are great. No customers, that’s actually fine. Non-paying customers, not good. How can no customers be “fine?” Because you’re not expending time and incurring costs, which is the case with non-paying customers. Which means, you could instead be investing this non-revenue time in building your business, looking for real customers and contributing other value-adds.
It’s gut-check time. Are all your customers paying their way? Get real about this and separate the wheat from the chafe, and then send the chafe packing. Or better yet, convert them to paying customers, whatever that means in your business. If they walk, say thank you before the door hits them on the butt as they leave, because you’ve just freed up time to make your business better in other ways. Better to not render a service or incur a cost with no ROI than to not get paid.
You’re probably thinking this is easier said than done, and you’re right. But it’s worth the pain. Look closely at your client list and ask a few tough questions about what you see there. Do they pay you willingly? Do they shout out when they have a problem, allow you to fix it, and then pay you for your time and effort? Or do they act like they’re entitled to your time? Can you get them to pay using a method that is acceptable to your business? If the answers are no, then you need to learn to say the same thing to these customers: no. It’ll be awkward, it’ll hurt like hell, but it’s like getting a shot – it’s all for the best, and it’ll heal what ails you in the long run. The good news is that they all won’t run for the door when they sense your new get-tough attitude, and for those that stick around you’ll have turned a bad apple into apple pie.
Remember, you’re in a game in which winning or losing is a bottom-line proposition, not a numbers-through-the-door statistic. At the end of the day, all that really matters from a business perspective – not to undervalue the personal relationships involved – is how much money you have in the bank, not how much is owed to you. Look for and cultivate solid paying customers, and nothing else. The non-payers, those thieves at your door with the ski masks and a bag, need to be converted to non-customers instead of being invited in for that glass of wine and access to your jewels.
So now you know. Start kicking the dead beats to the curb and bolt the door behind them. When you do, you’ll have the time and energy to be a more gracious host to your honored guests, the ones who pay their bills, ones to whom you’d happily give a cold beer. Who knows, you might even want to change your name to Spike.
Give this a try ...and you are on your path to a successful launch!
Wednesday, August 15, 2007
Win on 1 of 3, Lose if You Try To Do More
No one can be the best at everything... obviously. If you think about it, no one can be the best in the world at more than one thing. Well maybe someone is, but I have yet to hear about it.
A business entity is just like a human entity, it can only be the best at one thing. So why do businesses try to be all things to all people? Probably because it seems like the right thing to do. But it isn't.
In my experience, when it comes to a company it can only differentiate on one of three things. Quality, Price or Convenience. Pick one and dominate it. Try to do all three better than anyone else and stick a fork in you, your done.
A classic example is McDonalds. Clearly they differentiate on Convenience. It is important to note that they don't ignore Price or Quality. But they surely don't lead in Price or Quality. McDonald's definitely does not have the best Quality burgers (any local diner will serve you a better tasting burger) nor do they have the best Prices (you can go to the local supermarket and buy 6 frozen burgers for the cost of a BigMac). McDonalds is Convenient though and they lead in that category. You can get a burger within 30 seconds of walking into the place. Actually you and I judge them some much by convenience that if it takes 2 minutes to get a burger - we're pissed.
Could you imagine McDonald's giving up their lead in Convenience by offering better Quality (maybe they could cook your burger to order. Medium rare?) or if they become the Price leader (you cook your own burger, but it only costs $0.20). Nope they would fail. But with their exclusive near manic focus on Convenience, they maintain a lead.
Examples are all around us. Walmart - Price Lead, Virigin Atlantic - Quality, Home-Depot - Convenience, SouthWest Airlines - Price, the list goes on and on.
As you build your business, which is the 1 you will chose to lead with. If you are committed to just one and do everything you can to foster it, you will win. If you try to lead on all three, you are in trouble.
The final thought: Every decision you make must always foster your lead differentiator (Quality or Price or Convenience). When you Lead with 1 (and pay attention to the others) ...you are on your path to a successful launch!
A business entity is just like a human entity, it can only be the best at one thing. So why do businesses try to be all things to all people? Probably because it seems like the right thing to do. But it isn't.
In my experience, when it comes to a company it can only differentiate on one of three things. Quality, Price or Convenience. Pick one and dominate it. Try to do all three better than anyone else and stick a fork in you, your done.
A classic example is McDonalds. Clearly they differentiate on Convenience. It is important to note that they don't ignore Price or Quality. But they surely don't lead in Price or Quality. McDonald's definitely does not have the best Quality burgers (any local diner will serve you a better tasting burger) nor do they have the best Prices (you can go to the local supermarket and buy 6 frozen burgers for the cost of a BigMac). McDonalds is Convenient though and they lead in that category. You can get a burger within 30 seconds of walking into the place. Actually you and I judge them some much by convenience that if it takes 2 minutes to get a burger - we're pissed.
Could you imagine McDonald's giving up their lead in Convenience by offering better Quality (maybe they could cook your burger to order. Medium rare?) or if they become the Price leader (you cook your own burger, but it only costs $0.20). Nope they would fail. But with their exclusive near manic focus on Convenience, they maintain a lead.
Examples are all around us. Walmart - Price Lead, Virigin Atlantic - Quality, Home-Depot - Convenience, SouthWest Airlines - Price, the list goes on and on.
As you build your business, which is the 1 you will chose to lead with. If you are committed to just one and do everything you can to foster it, you will win. If you try to lead on all three, you are in trouble.
The final thought: Every decision you make must always foster your lead differentiator (Quality or Price or Convenience). When you Lead with 1 (and pay attention to the others) ...you are on your path to a successful launch!
Saturday, August 11, 2007
Blood Money - A "401K" Savings Method for Your Business
I recently received a notice congratulating me on donating a gallon of blood. I quickly did some research on Wikipedia and learned that the human body has slightly over a gallon of blood pumping through it. Clearly, if I gave a gallon of blood in one sitting I would be a goner. Shoot, even if I only donated one third of my blood (approximately 3 pints) in one sitting I might suffer some tough consequences. But since I donate one pint of blood at a time, my body hardly misses it and I can donate as frequently as seven times a year without missing a heartbeat (pun intended). My blood donations have quickly piled up and in a very short time I have given a gallon.
We’ve all heard that cash is the lifeblood of our business. I think it’s hard to argue otherwise. Shouldn’t we treat our money like our business’s blood? Just like a medical emergency, a business in need of fiscal attention often requires an infusion of capital.
Medical needs sometimes can be predicted and sometimes can’t. Regardless of the timing, with a pool of easily accessible blood reserves the chance for survival dramatically increases. Sometimes our business problems are predictable and other times they blindside the living crud out of us. Regardless of the timing, with a pool of easily accessible cash the chance for business survival dramatically increases.
That’s why you need to regularly “donate” business cash flow to your reserves. The best method is by taking your profit first. What do I mean by this? Every time money comes into the business, and I mean every time, a percentage is automatically transferred into a separate account. Just like a pint of blood, a healthy business will hardly feel it being withdrawn. I like to call this reserve the Profit Distribution Account (PDA).
How much money can be transferred to the PDA without threatening the health of the business? Most stable companies should be able to post a profit of 10% to 25% after all expenses. So trying starting with a low threshold, maybe 5% of every inbound dollar goes to the PDA. Over time slowly increase the percentage and monitor closely to see if your business gets woozy. Once you have consciously (more often subconsciously) adjusted expenses and cash outflow to sustain your PDA withdrawals, you will quickly accumulate a tremendous cash reserve. Be cognizant not to stow away too much money too quickly. Just like donating blood, the rapid drain of cash exiting from business operations will cripple or kill your organization.
Should tough times come upon your company, and they often do, you now have a source of funds that you’ve built up. The PDA’s dinero reserve will see you through these times. On the bright side, as these funds grow they will ultimately be in excess of any imaginable rainy day needs. At that point you should take portions as an equity distribution. Trust me, it’s a real nice way to reward yourself for running a healthy business. There is a nifty little process I recommend on how to do this, but I’ll save that for another article.
If you’ve never given blood, I strongly encourage you to do it. There’s no question it saves lives. If you don’t currently donate to your company’s PDA account, I strongly encourage you to start. There’s no question it saves companies.
Start a PDA for your company...and you are on your path to a successful launch!
We’ve all heard that cash is the lifeblood of our business. I think it’s hard to argue otherwise. Shouldn’t we treat our money like our business’s blood? Just like a medical emergency, a business in need of fiscal attention often requires an infusion of capital.
Medical needs sometimes can be predicted and sometimes can’t. Regardless of the timing, with a pool of easily accessible blood reserves the chance for survival dramatically increases. Sometimes our business problems are predictable and other times they blindside the living crud out of us. Regardless of the timing, with a pool of easily accessible cash the chance for business survival dramatically increases.
That’s why you need to regularly “donate” business cash flow to your reserves. The best method is by taking your profit first. What do I mean by this? Every time money comes into the business, and I mean every time, a percentage is automatically transferred into a separate account. Just like a pint of blood, a healthy business will hardly feel it being withdrawn. I like to call this reserve the Profit Distribution Account (PDA).
How much money can be transferred to the PDA without threatening the health of the business? Most stable companies should be able to post a profit of 10% to 25% after all expenses. So trying starting with a low threshold, maybe 5% of every inbound dollar goes to the PDA. Over time slowly increase the percentage and monitor closely to see if your business gets woozy. Once you have consciously (more often subconsciously) adjusted expenses and cash outflow to sustain your PDA withdrawals, you will quickly accumulate a tremendous cash reserve. Be cognizant not to stow away too much money too quickly. Just like donating blood, the rapid drain of cash exiting from business operations will cripple or kill your organization.
Should tough times come upon your company, and they often do, you now have a source of funds that you’ve built up. The PDA’s dinero reserve will see you through these times. On the bright side, as these funds grow they will ultimately be in excess of any imaginable rainy day needs. At that point you should take portions as an equity distribution. Trust me, it’s a real nice way to reward yourself for running a healthy business. There is a nifty little process I recommend on how to do this, but I’ll save that for another article.
If you’ve never given blood, I strongly encourage you to do it. There’s no question it saves lives. If you don’t currently donate to your company’s PDA account, I strongly encourage you to start. There’s no question it saves companies.
Start a PDA for your company...and you are on your path to a successful launch!
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