The best thing about being an entrepreneur is that you are always learning. You learn from books, magazines, seminars, mentors, partners, people who surround you and above all, from your good and bad experiences. And all that contribute to the success of your entrepreneur journey.
Unfortunately, not every start-up climbs up the ladder of growth. The Small Business Association reports that about 30% of the start-ups give up in less than two years while about 50% and 65% of businesses shut-down in less than five and ten years respectively.
The fact clearly states that a successful business does not see the limelight with just a matter of luck. And releasing a product or service is just a beginning. Get it going in the market is what determines your success rate. Here are the five lessons that you should remember on your entrepreneurial journey.
Place Customers Before Profit
Customers are the foundation of your business. Good and satisfactory customers hold a strong foundation. Your business is not defined by the profit but it’s in direct proportion to how many satisfied customers you own.
Once you’ve helped the customer by delivering the best service or product, you’ll not only see them availing your service again but also recommending it to their friends and family. The best part is that your loyal customer does not leave you even if your competitor is providing the same service in low prices. Therefore place customers first in order to generate a long-term profit.
Focus On Your Best 20% of Customers
This strategy is popularly known as the Pareto Principle and has been greatly followed by successful entrepreneurs for so long. It simply states to focus on 20% important tasks, for they bring the maximum output and productivity.
Many companies and organizations practice auditing in managing their revenue generation. A perfect audit of your company will let you know about the 20% of customers that are generating 80% of income.
These customers play a major role in your success. Giving priority to them will save a huge amount of your time and resources.
Also, note that providing value to first 20% of your customers does not mean that you take others for granted. Help everyone, but help the important ones better.
Be Proud Of Your Products And Services
Be proud of what you are selling. Lack of enthusiasm and passion reflect your lack of trust in your own product. Business is not only about selling, but’s also about having faith in one’s product even after facing rejections. An optimistic salesman cares more about his target than the obstacles. As Zig Ziglar’s famous piece of advice goes, “If you believe your product or service can fulfill a true need, it’s your moral obligation to sell it.”
Continuously Strive For Excellence
No product can be made excellent in one shot. In fact, no business can reach a level of perfection. Even the giants like Google, Amazon, and Facebook too are finding possibilities to improve their networks.
Though you cannot attain perfection, you can strive for the best, and the best product is the result of continuous hard work. The downfall of businesses is certain when the owners believe that their product is perfect and no improvements can be made.
Make Sure You Enjoy What You Do
Hating the business you are doing only brings a half-hearted success. It will be easy to work and remain productive when everything is going good in life. But the real challenge is to continue achieving the numbers during the hard times.
There is a higher probability that you give up on your business while facing rejections again and again. On the other hand, if you love what you do, you will have a ray of hope and faith that someday somehow you’ll overcome the obstacles.
Conclusion
Starting a new business is an act of courage. Not everyone is bold enough to listen to their gut feeling. Continuing and pushing it on the road to success is difficult yet possible.
The top priority for many successful businesses is their customers. If they are happy and satisfied, your business is also going to reach the top. Then comes analyzing your important customers and serving them with the products you are passionate about.
Now I ask you: What do you think about customer loyalty? Do you focus on generating revenue or helping your customers? Share your views in the comments below.
About the Author
Nakul Grover is the author of Superhuman In You, published in 2015. He has been writing on self-improvement since 2014 on his blog Positive Life Project. He loves spending his leisure hours in reading books and learning new skills.