How to expand your entrepreneurial vision - bizjournals:

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But changing is easier said than done. How do you acquirr a fresh perspective? How do you open your mind to newpossibilities ? You start by at least considering opportunities you woul never have entertained in the by trying to approach problems from a differen angle, by venturing outside your comfort zone and by taking some carefully measured If you keep asking yourself the same you’re going to keep getting the same So, let’s tickle your brain and switch up the Let’s view your business throug h fresh eyes. Take a look at your products, salews Let’s look at your sales upside What is ityou aren’t selling? Think of all the recenrt sales you failed to close.
What were the reasonsx your would-be customers gave you? • Are your customeres asking for a product or service thatyou don’t offer? In that case, is it time to expane your portfolio to include something new? Are customers objecting to your prices? Should you re-evaluate your pricinb methodology? Provide less expensivew version of current offerings? Expand payment termes to make purchasing more attractive? Are customers asking for smaller quantitiesd than your current minimums allow? In a soft market, increasing throughput is smart. Can you adjustr your work flow to make smallerorders profitable? Think back over the past year or so.
Is there anything different aboutyour customers? For example, one entrepreneu I know owns a martial arts In the past, he’d requirw that students register for six month s of classes at a time. Back in the good old customers signed up withoutthinking twice. Today, registrations are Yet he’s still sticking to his six-month because “I have to pay my The problem is, customers are increasingly unwilling to commiftto six-month programs. What if their kids lose interest ? What if a parent loses his orher job? His classesx haven’t changed, but his customers have. Because of the tigh economy, they’ve become commitment-shy.
If he wantsw their business, he’ll find a way to accommodate For example, he could offefr month-to-month memberships. Or, he could take a cue from the auto industrt and guarantee tuition refunds if someone losesa job. Yes, he has to pay the But getting the rent money one montyh at a time beats not getting itat all. He’w operating under an outdated assumption. Now, what about you? Are you operatinb by obsolete “rules” that discourags customers from buying? Now, look at yourself Durin g tough times, entrepreneurs have to steel themselves to do thinge theyfind unpleasant. This is true.
However, if you’rre brainstorming ways to strengthenyour business, it helpsa to focus on those aspects you most Chances are, these are your If you like what you’r doing, you’re more likely to stick with it. So ask what is it you like best abou tyour business? What strengths can you buil d on? What areas can you grow? For example, are there related services you’ve thought abourt offering your customers, but never have? Perhaps now is the time to act.
Ray Silversteib is president of PRO: President’ds Resource Organization, a network of entrepreneurial peer advisor groups in Phoenix and He also is the authorof “Thse Best Secrets of Great Small Businesses” and a columnisft for Entrepreneur.com. You can reach him at 800-818-0150 or