Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 30, 2017

In fact, I can condense the sum of my business experiences into eight key disciplines: Start with a total and ongoing customer focus. Don’t assume anything until you have done market research and listened to real customers. Then assume the customers will change over time, so never stop listening.

Ideas 72

Ideas Startup Metrics Entrepreneur 72

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 7, 2017

Entrepreneurs always work hard to create an innovative product or service, but often count on standard seller marketing for sales. But the reality is that sellers are no longer in charge of the customer buying process. The best way to do this is with real customer interviews. Include planned measurements and metrics.

Search Engine Optimization 58

Search Engine Optimization Startup SEO Customer 58

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 31, 2017

“Sleeping giants do wake up,” I always say, to remind new business owners that nobody cares what you do when you are not a threat, but when you get some real traction with customers, competitors will come out of the woodwork with a vengeance. You need quantified value for customers to see, feel, and pay for.

Metrics 58

Metrics Resource Startup Training 58

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 5, 2017

Having a website won’t help if customers can’t find it. Expect to spend your limited budget on marketing. Word-of-mouth and minimal marketing does not drive a sustainable business. Word-of-mouth and minimal marketing does not drive a sustainable business. Use social media to actively engage with your customers.

Social Media 57

Social Media Search Engine Optimization Startup Customer 57

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 10, 2018

They want to grant deserving customers special concessions, or fix a broken process, but are convinced it may cost them their job, or find that no one above them seems to care. If these still exist in your organization, they are huge red flags and you can be certain that you are losing your best employees as well as customers.

Startup 62

Startup Organization Customer Custom 62

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 24, 2017

Many are reluctant to really “market” themselves, and have trouble differentiating their offerings to clients, except by price. From his own successes and failures in this domain, he explains how the rules and customer expectations have changed in today’s world, and he offers some practical guidance on how to survive in this new world.

Social Media 56

Social Media Pricing Technical Review Demand 56

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 8, 2017

You can jump into social media with a poor brand definition, poorly focused content, unrealistic expectations of customer service, or be killed by malware or viruses. For some customers and many investors, a heavy focus on social networks and viral marketing may be a negative, rather than a positive.

Social Media 58

Social Media Media Platform Tool 58

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 6, 2017

New business owners are rightfully proud of the changes they bring to the market, so they readily admit that change is good. Yet these same entrepreneurs often quickly get set in their ways, and find themselves resisting changes to their own business, and begin to fear further customer change in their domain.

Press 56

Press Tool Metrics Startup 56

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 16, 2017

That fosters a lack of attention to new markets and new competitors, instead of an eagerness to learn and innovate. Some things need to be done whether we like them or not; for example, daily cash-flow analysis and business metrics. They see customer support as positive lessons to improve quality and processes.

Software Review 57

Software Review Technical Review Startup Press 57

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 24, 2017

Test new things and keep testing in your market for things that work. Measure your agility by putting metrics on change. Count the number of new projects, time and resources required to implement, and measure the return in revenue, customer satisfaction, or cost savings. Create a non-online memorable customer experience.

Customer 52

Customer Custom Technical Review Summary 52

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 14, 2017

As a startup, you need to use your limited resources to excel at a few core things for your best customers, in order to stand out and get the momentum going. I found some good lessons in this regard in a new book, “ Becoming Facebook ,” by Mike Hoefflinger, the former Head of Global Business Marketing at Facebook. Less is more.

Competition 65

Competition Social Media Metrics Customer 65

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 10, 2017

In my view, that’s why “two heads are better than one” in starting a business – one with the passion and skill to create an innovative solution, and the other with a business savvy, customer focus, and the ability to build and lead a team. They keep their priority on communication, marketing, and an innovative business model.

Ideas 67

Ideas Product Startup Satisfaction 67