If we were to guess, we would say a lot of people who go into business do so for different reasons, but at least one thing is common to with every entrepreneur- making profit!
It is very difficult to find a person who will remain in a business where making a loss seems to be the order of the day as this will put a major financial strain on the individual. So now that we know making a profit is essential to the survival of any business, how do you ensure you build a profitable business?
Get A Great Team
Jim Collins, best-selling author of “Built to Last” shared some really insightful tips on why some companies make the leap from Good to Great. He said, “It is better to first get the right people on the bus, the wro
ng people off the bus, and the right people in the right seats”.
He also says, “People aren’t your most important asset. The right people are”. Not many businesses can survive having negative, unproductive, unagreeable and uncreative people on the team. This may be the singular most important factor in building a profitable business.
Make Smart, Timely Decisions
One thing you would do very frequently, as an entrepreneur, is decision making. Some of those decisions would come with a lot of risks. Aspects like opening a new line, a new branch, taking on or letting go off people, trusting a supplier or client; These decisions come with varying level of risks and urgency and if you learn how to correctly assess these risks and manage them, you will have a very profitable business.
Exercise Restraint
As we already mentioned, taking risks is one thing you would have to deal with; but here’s the thing – Jumping at everything that looks like an opportunity to hit it big may not be the wisest thing. Risks must be taken, but they must also be measured first. Except in a few cases, building sustainable and profitable business is a result of hard work and time and not jumping with open arms at every “opportunity”.
Traps sometimes look like opportunities.
Build Commitment
A Chinese proverb says, “The hunter who chases two rabbits, goes home with no rabbit.” It is tempting to have a Plan A and Plan B, all the way to Plan Z, and even possibly have sub plans like Plan A-i and Plan Z-iii. But you honestly cannot go into business with the mindset that you will bail at the first sign of danger, as soon as things don’t go your way. With that mental attitude, you aren’t likely to get very far. If you have a Plan B, it should be on how to make Plan A work.
Believe in Your Product
If you are not creating a novel product or service, your potential customers already have businesses they patronize. As a matter of fact, even if you are introducing a new product which you see as the next best thing after sliced bread, your potential customers have probably already been using other products or services. So how do you introduce your product to them?
It takes some level of belief in your services and products to tell the market to take a chance on you instead. You must refuse to allow your voice be drowned in the cacophony of a crowded market place. No one is likely to believe in your product if you don’t. Confidently pitch your value offering and you will be well on your way to building a profitable business.
Sell, Sell, SELL!!!
If you have the best product in the market, or even in history but no one knows about it, you will not have a profitable business.
So sell it at every opportunity you get, every time you get and in every creative way you can. Do not engage in ‘hope marketing’ where you hope some kindly angels would print fliers for you or whisper into the ears of the multitude. Put out what you do consistently. Let everyone know about it and do not give them the slightest chance to forget. The biggest global brands still advertise so there is no reason why you shouldn’t.
