“As a general rule, the most successful man in life is the man who has the best information” – Benjamin Disraeli
Okay. So you have a vision for your business and are implementing it step-by-step, day-by-day. Customers flock to your business and beg you to sell to them. Your products or services are exactly what they want, and are hard to get elsewhere. You’re in tune with your customers’ current and changing needs and desires…and life’s good.
If the above scenario describes your business then you’re way ahead of most business people. If not, then there are a couple of things you can do to move towards it.
This is Part 3 of the Future Vision Map series. If you missed the first two parts, check them out here. Last week we talked about how to define your future business vision, and today we will delve deeper into how to understand the market (your customers, competition, etc.) and your business (strengths and weaknesses) so you’re best positioned to implement your vision in the current (and constantly changing) circumstances.
I once asked an experienced and highly successful Canadian media entrepreneur for the single most important piece of advice he could give me. What he said to me still resonates with me even today. His words of wisdom were, “Don’t be a solution looking for a problem”. Oftentimes, as entrepreneurs, we have ‘great ideas’ and ‘visions’ and ‘business plans’. We want to implement them exactly as they are, come what may. More often than not, things don’t pan out exactly as we want them to. As Steven Blank puts it, “No business plan survives the first contact with the customer”. Once you take your idea to the street, your customers will begin to hint to you what they need and want. It’s your job to then temper your vision with what customers will actually buy!
This is not a one-time initiative, but a constant one. It goes something like this: You have a vision/idea. Get feedback from potential customers. Tweak. Go to market – test it out with a small sample of customers. Get feedback. Tweak. Go back to market again.
Along the way, it’s also important to constantly be aware of whether or not your business has the skills, knowledge and resources to deliver on the customers’ changing needs and wants.
Getting Inside Your Prospects And Customers’ Minds
Ask:
Um…yes. It’s that simple. Want to know what your customer’s want? Ask them. Pick five customers or prospects you know, and survey them one-on-one. Create mass surveys (we use surveymonkey.com, but there are several others you can use) and send them out to your email list, if you have one. If you don’t have an email list, design a survey and post it on your Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn pages (and others). Some people also use Google Adwords and Facebook Ads to promote their surveys (although I haven’t had much success with this tactic). For ideas to help you design your survey and what you should be asking/learning from your customers, check out Cindy Alvarez’s blog post for a few tips.
Read:
You don’t need me to tell you there’s a gold mine of information out there on any topic, for free. A simple Google search will give you several pages of information on your market and competition. You can also check out relevant industry associations, chambers of commerce, etc. for information on your customers.
Your next stop should be to research keywords on Google (I use Google Keyword Search Tool, but others prefer other similar tools). Think of the keywords people would search for if they were searching for your product or service. Use a keyword tool to gauge the relative popularity of search terms. If no one’s searching for solutions to the problem your product/service solves, then that’s an insight in itself.
Comments on social media are also a great way to gauge trends. Search for relevant keywords on Twitter to learn what your target audience is saying. Also do a simple Google search of your keywords and look for blog posts addressing similar topics. Then look for comments on the blog posts to gauge what people are saying about the topic.
Another method that works well is that of reading Amazon reviews. Go to the Amazon page of books covering your topic and read the 1-star and 2-star reviews. These reviews will give you an idea of the problems people face in your market.
Look Inward To Deliver On Customers’ Current And Changing Needs
Once you have an idea of what customers’ actually want or need, make sure you’re aware of what it takes to deliver on those needs and wants. Focus on the following:
Knowledge: What do you need to know in order to effectively deliver your product/service to the customer? Does the customer increasingly purchase online? If yes, you need to know how to market to them online. Does the customer value service over price? If yes, do you or your team know how to provide excellent customer service?
Skills: What skills or talents do you or your people need in order to deliver on customers’ needs or wants? Analytical skills are paramount if you’re running a consulting business. If you’re running an Audio Visual installation company, sharp programming and calibrating skills may make a huge difference in today’s digital environment.
Resources: Finally, do you have what it takes to deliver on customers’ needs and wants? If sales cycles are long for your chosen market and business, do you have enough cash reserves to see you thorough lean times? If your customer insists on a physical storefront, do you have one at your disposal? Make sure appropriate resources are available before you commit to delivering your product or service.
In conclusion, the the most important point I’d like you to take away from today’s post is this: the right information can help you create the business of your dreams. Never cease seeking information, both about your customers and about your own business. The best entrepreneurs I know always keep an ear to the ground and listen not only to what’s happening around them, but also what’s happening (and required) within the four walls of their companies.
Thanks for being with me on this journey of the Future Vision Map – we’re now half way through the series. Next week, we’ll talk about strategy. You now have a vision, and you’ve validated that vision with your customers/prospects. You now need a strategy to win in the marketplace. What exactly is strategy? Wait till next week to find out!
P.S. – If you have any questions or clarifications about my ideas/thoughts in this article, let me know by posting a comment. We would love to hear from you 🙂
© 2012 DemGen All Rights Reserved.
Faheem Moosa is DemGen’s lead business strategist and developer of the Future Vision Map. He can be reached at Faheem@demgen.com
