What Rifle Scopes Can Teach You About Identifying Lucrative Business Opportunities: Two

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Rifle Scope

Rifle Scope - Flikr Image - Owner: Andrew Magill

Okay, so last week, we started our hunt through the hazy forest of lucrative business opportunities.

We trekked through the mounts and gorges of Direct problems and Frustrations People Experience, The Angle of Usatisfied Needs, ending with the wide open spaces that the limitless range of Wants will allow us to select.

This week, we resume our hunt through the last four angles of the forest. So while you  ignore achy joints and unfounded gripes, let’s quit us like the hunters we are and belly crawl  through the undergrowth. Have your scopes ready as we negotiate the uneven terrain before us, but…

…be careful though!

Watch out for the toothy tigers of discouragement and depression. They are known to eat huntsmen alive… yes even bold ones.

And remember, like the first time, I’ll start with a brief overview of the angle in question and when the icon of a hunter appears, that’s when we’ll zoom in with our scopes to some specific areas within that angle where opportunities may lie hidden.

4.  The angle of Futuristic Wants

Taking the concept of The Angle of Wants a step further, this angle focuses on wants that may still emerge in the future. So in scoping this one, you need to become proactive.

The continuous demand force driven by human nature whereby wants become needs as soon as they are met, ensures the creation of new potential wants.  Business opportunities sprouting out of potential wants, can be found in the quest to make life easier and better for people. See The Figure below.

Take for example the telephone.  In the beginning of the 20th century, people didn’t have a need for a telephone, simply because it didn’t exist.  Nowadays, man can hardly imagine a society without telephones.   Even this need changed with time.

Nowadays, not having a cell phone has turned into an unsatisfied need. Everywhere you see people with cell phones plastered to their ear. Cellular communication that forms an integral part of people’s lives today, was once a futuristic dream. So was the laptop computer. But somebody saw where the general trend was headed and proactively capitilised on it.

Try and identify upcoming wants that may still appear as you observe current trends. Regularly study these trends and try and figure where they’re headed. A nifty resource tool here is “Trendwatching.com”. Go to there and subscribe to their free service. They’ve already taken a lot of the ache out of the tooth-ache. Hunting’s just become easier.

The person who invents a motorcar that can fly will have several futures made. His own and our world’s of congested traffic.

Hmmm….seriously though, as crazy as that sounds, just remember that the concept of  humans flying, was once a futuristic dream. Today, air travel forms an integral part of people’s lives.

So,  if you’re a techno and/or scientific geek, keep your ear on the ground and your nose in the media to keep abreast of what’s current and cooking. Read lots an’ lots o’ trade magazines and scientific journals. The only way to be ahead of your time isn’t time travel, but to know what’s happening currently. Also read and / or watch media with a futuristic focus.

5. The Angle of Individuality and Differentiated Tastes

It’s a fact that “Aunt Mildred” does not necessarily like the same things as “Uncle Walter”. People have different likes and dislikes. If you didn’t figure that out yet, I’m letting you in on the secret now… Cater to this and you’re in business. Differentiated tastes are the reason, for instance, that the invention of the automobile evolved into the motor industry.

Like “The Angle of Wants” discussed in part one, this one is also limitless in the variety it offers you. There are about 8 billion people on the planet and they ALL have differentiated tastes.

An inability to nail a business opportunity here, has definitely nothing to do with a lack of variety or because “all the niches are saturated’. Something else maybe, but not the excuse that all the “good ones have been taken”.

For example, a new design for cell phones in the form of fruit, jewelry or cute animals is sure to sell like Aunt Mabel’s hot puddings on an icy county fair.

6.  The Angle of Value Adding (Innovation)

A Focus from this angle can also help expose new business opportunities. Folks are always looking for getting the best value for their money.This means that if you can find more cost-effective ways to solve existing problems, you’ll be in good business.

Finding ways to increase value to existing customers means either having to reduce the cost of an item or increase its benefits or both. Right,so what is value?

Well, a useful equation for our discussion here is:

Value = Benefits – Cost.

Meaning that if you add value to a product / service, the additional benefit must have more value than the cost to create that benefit. Makes sense, doesn’t it? Otherwise, there’s just no way the customer’s going to surrender his hard earned cash to you. No way. He must find the value more than the money he’s going to cough up or no deal.

Let’s look at a few areas and activities where you can maybe find value-added opportunities (there are many more – this is only for starters):

  • Shops/Services

Always examine existing products and services in your field of interest, and ask yourself the following questions:

  • How can this product/service be improved?
  • What products are missing from the range?
  • Can this product be produced at a cheaper cost?
  • Can the packaging be improved?
  • Can the product be aimed at a different market?
  • Can the service be delivered more promptly?
  • Ask “what if?” questions about existing businesses, for example: What if it operated 24 hours? What if operated at night? What if quality was better?
  • Advertisement

You can study or analyse product or service advertisements on TV and magazines.  Ask yourself whether they can be improved or promoted in a better way.  Ask “what if?“ questions.

  • Ask questions and learn to listen

Listen when talking to people. Listen twice more than you speak. The art of listening is something that will provide handsome returns.  Listen intensely when people complain about a product or service.  Whenever people are unhappy, there are potential problems to be solved.

  •  Household duties and appliances

Focus on household duties, like gardening, cooking, ironing, washing up, painting, looking after children, or sweeping. Is there a quicker, safer, easier, cheaper, more pleasant or less boring way of doing it? Can a new labour saving device be designed? Is it possible to improve on household appliances and other fixtures, like lights, baths, stoves, etc.?  Search for possible problems where solutions could be developed.

  •  Observing children and babies

Visit a nursery and watch how children play and interact. Can new toys and games be designed? Are there services to supply, such as a catering service especially geared towards children?  Ask “what if?” questions.

  •  Holidays

Focus on ways and means to improve the pleasure people can experience when going on holiday. Zoom in on possible problems they might experience.

  •  Sports and hobbies

People take part in a hobby or play a sport; look out for products or services that are missing or can be improved. Perhaps some sporting or DIY equipment could be improved or made cheaper.  Listen and be on alert for complaints.

  •  Office equipment and office operations

See if they can be improved or what else can be created.  Don’t forget the service aspect.  Between 70%-80% of the economic activity in developed countries, are in services. What problems do the users experience?

  • Machines, processes and systems

Study them.  Maybe they can be made cheaper or better.  Ask questions in order to detect problems you could solve or help to solve.

E.g. Cell phone to open your car door…

And so dear fellow hunter, we come to the last angle in our forest.

7. The Angle of Environmental Changes

The global drive towards the conservation of earth’s natural systems and the combating of environmental ills, comprise a diverse scientific, political and social force, collectively termed the environmental movement. The movement focuses on ecology, health and human rights.

These people campaign for the sustainable management of resources and the responsible stewardship of the environment through every individual’s behaviour and public policy.

The impact of this movement is snowballing and is represented by an ever increasing range of organisations from across the globe, from grassroots level to huge in size.

Hence Earth Days…

… and Protocols and Agreements aimed at fighting global warming amongst other issues.

Consistent lobbying, advertising, other mediums of protest and speaking out by environmentalists, keep leading to the invention of a growing number of environmentally friendly products and services like bio fuel, the electric car, solar heating, etc.

Okay, so if you’re not green yet…get with the programme! Get environmentally conscious!

Start focusing on change events in the external environment; e.g. new legislation, new technology, or new social trends that might emerge.

A cool idea would be to take everyday activities and utensils (use the categories under (6) above for instance), and see how they can be made more green or environmentally friendly. For that though, you have to study what is meant by “green” and become clued up on the whole ins and outs of planet preservation (if you’re not already).

E.g. furniture, made of neither wood nor plastic, but waste materials. Or think of the impact that global warming will have on places. Try and counter that effect with innovative products.

Well, that wraps up our look at the seven different angles you can use to scout for business opportunities.

Next time, we’ll take the results from your marketing survey you did, further, and see whether the business you plan to start, is feasible or not. Crucial info to enable you to make a crucial decision. Don’t miss it!

See you there!

Resources:

1. Entrepreneurial Business School Management Course.

What Rifle Scopes Can Teach You about Identifying Lucrative Business Opportunities: Part One

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Imagine a hunter tracking game and he’s been on the move all day, barely stopping to rest and eat.

Suddenly he hears the snap of a twig on his left. Immediately he crouches and scans the surrounding area, rifle on his shoulder, eye to the telescope.

Then he sees it! A spotted deer fills the rifle telescope, apparently blissfully unaware of impending danger. He almost feels sorry for it, it is so beautiful. But heck no, he’s tired; been tracking game all day, so…

…carefully he aims, making sure that the crosshairs in the scope’s lens are dead centre, pulls the trigger and…misses. Damn!!

Then it slams him! He forgot to have his telescope’s boresight setting adjusted, so no shot would anyway go where directed, even if he was to try again later. Tired, irate, hungry and miserable he drags himself home.

Are you tired?

Feel like that hunter?

Been trying to identify money making opportunities, but for the life of you just can’t see them? Or, if you did identify and exploit them, still very little or nothing you had done ended up in you bank account?

If that sounds like you, then that rifle scope has a lot to teach you.

A telescopic sight is like a super magnifying glass that sits atop a rifle and is a sighting device that helps the hunter aim accurately at a target. It enlarges the target many times, thereby making it much more visible while the crosshairs in the lens allow the huntsman to precisely align his aim before he shoots.

Last time I spoke about looking at your talents and skills to see what you had in the way of using them to make an economic difference to your life. But why stop there, unless you want to?

Also look outside yourself to life in general when searching for opportunities. But from different angles or points of view. This will allow you to see much more that you couldn’t previously and can bring surprising rewards in terms of identifying problems people experience. And solving people’s problems is the bedrock of business.

In this post I’d like for you to come along as we take a look together at some of those angles, but unlike the hunter in the story, we’ll have our telescope’s boresighting adjusted beforehand, to not only magnify what we see, but also aim at specifics. Why?

Because it is absolutely useless knowing that the herd is out there, but you don’t know at which deer to aim. Then it was a waste of time writing this post and you’ll waste your time reading it.

However, if you look through a super magnifying glass like a rifle scope, you’ll be able to identify detail, not just generalities. Will hone in on specifics, be helped better in identifying some real opportunities…

So, get your gun and scope and join me as we go hunting for those opportunities and zoom in on them. But before we do that, you first need to do something else.

Searching for lucrative business opportunities is a lot like hunting game. In both pursuits, the physical position you assume during the process is critical. So before we set out on the expedition, we first need to work on our position.

Position…aim…!

Imagine yourself belly crawling on the wet, muddy forest floor as you hear a snort on your left, but cannot see much. So you shift your legs to a somewhat better position, one that will actually enable you to see past some foliage obstructing your view.

Looking from this different position or angle, you can see a spotted deer a short way from you, and as you move sideways even more (carefully, so they don’t hear you) an unbelievable, out of – this – world scene suddenly pops into view that seconds before was not there:

A whole herd of deer, chomping on grass!

In like manner, there can be a whole herd of business opportunities skulking out there among the foliage of life; you’ve probably just been unable to see them!

Maybe because you did not know quite where to look.

So, if you’ve been unable to spot them, it’s just a matter of looking from a different angle.

But apart from this, it’s absolutely impossible to fire off a well aimed shot from anything other than a secure position with your eye firmly trained on your target.

So, take off the eyepieces you usually wear (meaning the way you usually look at things) and put on a whole different set of blinkers, wear a different set of goggle – call it what you will – when looking at these angles.

This is the secret to success in seeing them. Keep those specs on. Even after you’re done reading here. You might be surprised at what you actually see.

So, pick up your rifle scope and snap on your goggles please. We’re going to hone in on specific parts of our money making forest and see what materializes in our crosshairs.

The different angles of the money making forest

These parts of our forest are called angles and there are seven in total. I will discuss the first three in this post and the last four in part two (coming next week. Be sure to watch for it)

I’ll start off each time with a brief overview of the angle in question and when the icon of a hunter appears, that’s when we’ll zoom in with our scopes to some specific areas within that angle where opportunities may lie hidden. Ready?

  1. The Angle of Direct Problems and Frustrations People Experience.

In a sophisticated economy, problems can usually be found in areas such as administration systems, production bottlenecks, repairs and maintenance areas. There are also usually problems present in the limitations of existing products / services and their production systems.

Admin systems: Small companies cannot always afford an admin clark. You could start a business doing admin services for small businesses. Who knows, if you’re good at what you do, word of mouth and advertising might even land you bigger clients some day than what you started out with.

Production bottlenecks: You could identify the bottleneck and create an outsource solution. Depending on the problem, unemployed labour could solve it. American engins for example, are sometimes assembled in China to solve bottlenecks in their production processes.

Maintenance and Repairs: E.g. Companies with car fleets will outsource the maintenance and repairs to an entrepreneur who performs this service for more than one company.

2. The Angle of Unsatisfied Needs.

Certain needs must be met for humans to be able to stay alive and enjoy life. Go figure! Now some needs are more important than others so they can actually be grouped in a hierarchy. Here is one by a man called Abraham Maslow.

At the bottom of the hierarchy is the need for the very basic things in life, like food, water and shelter.  On the second level, the needs for safety and protection.  The third represents the need for social interaction and recreation.  The fourth, the need to be recognised and respected, also called the “ego need” and the final level represents the need for self-actualisation.

A need is anything human beings need to make their lives easier and more meaningful.  Once a person perceives that he/she has a need, but can’t satisfy it because of some obstacle, a problem is created.  If you can solve this problem for the person at a fair price, he/she will be willing to pay for the solution, and then you’re in business!

How much this person would be willing to pay will depend on how strong the urge to satisfy the need is.  To satisfy a need, implies that the obstacle has to be removed – this is the solution. The gap between a need and the satisfaction thereof is therefore created by an “obstacle”, which in turn causes a “problem”. Solve this and you’re golden.

Physiological:  E.g. Health foods and going natural versus fabricated. Home made sweets for example are free of the additives and colourants avoided by mothers with kids who suffer from ADHD and you can make them and successfully market them as such.

Safety: Offer for example to computerize  people’s homes to make them safer etc…

Social: Social media for instance is BIG. But time is very limited and busy small business owners have a hard time managing social media marketing themselves. Offer your services in this regard, stating the importance of the issue and how you can help the company  make a success of the marketing endevour by their outsourcing this function to a guru – you.

Ego: Yep. We all have one, so capitilize on it!  Apart from brand products and unique cuts in clothing, see where you can make things personal and exclusive. Unique and personlized handbags, stationery, paintings, gift cards, shoes, bedding etc…

Self-actualisation: A great commodity to promote here is self study programmes that will empower people’s lives and dreams.

3. The Angle of Wants

As soon as our needs are fully met, they tend to expand into all kinds of related wants. As man’s standard of living improves and becomes more sophisticated, the want for new things appears.  The effect of this improving lifestyle is that new needs appear along the way all the time.

If a want becomes strong enough and is satisfied, it often changes into a need.  Due to human nature, the urge to satisfy a need is much stronger than the urge to satisfy a want.  So a want could therefore also be described as a weaker form of an unsatisfied need.

For example: You live in a small apartment. But soon, wifey says she’s no longer satisfied with it and now wants a nice little house instead. So you buy the nice little house, pack up and move. But lo and behold, not long and she’s up to her tricks again (when’s it gonna end!), so once again, you buy a bigger house and do the whole trek thing again, wishing fervently it’s the absolute last freakin’ time.

Nowadays, man perceives not having a nice house as an unsatisfied need, and possessing a mansion as a want.  Social trends play an important role in people’s wants.

The higher the level of economic development, the more new problems and consequently opportunities emerge.  This can be illustrated by the simple fact that people in poorer communities are inclined to personally perform maintenance jobs on their cars, but in the wealthier communities this is seldom the case.  It becomes a situation of the more a person has, the more he/she wants.

This is good news, because the bigger the demand for services/products, the more business opportunities you’ll have!

The sky’s really your limit here. Look at people’s wants with new eyes, they’re emerging all the time. Listen to them as they talk about what they still want to do or have (their bucket lists, you know as in the movie “The Bucket List)), read the media with a focus on this angle, soon you’ll notice waaaayyyy more wants and desires than before.

Now, climb in there and cater to some wants. You’re sure of the money.

Well, that’s all for now. Watch this spot next week for part two of the discussion on looking from different angles for money making opportunities.

See you there!

Please leave a comment, telling us about your experiences in scoping for business opportunities! We always answer queries and reply on all comments.

Resources:

  1. Bekker, Mauritz. Entrepreneurial Business School. Email him at mbekker@ebschool.com

 

How Do Backlinks Feature In Your Website’s Traffic Plan?

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Backlinks

I didn’t say you don’t know it.  Maybe you just didn’t pay much attention to it:

Backlinks are of crucial importance to any website’s traffic plan.  Without it, a website will have a hard time ranking for their most important keywords.

Your website can shoot to the top of the search engines despite some remarkably competitive keywords, if you have a proper backlink plan in place.  It will quickly and easily generate organic traffic to your website at no cost.

Backlinks As A Measure Of A Website’s Overall Relevance?

Years ago, it was possible to fool search engines in securing top search rankings simply by repeating your keywords more often on the page than someone else did.  This practice is known as ‘keyword stuffing.

It was quite hard for even the most advanced search engines because they couldn’t distinguish quality sites from spam.  You can imagine searchers leaving frustrated, unable to find what they were looking for in a sea of spam and misleading offers.  Those junk offers heavily focused on stuffing irrelevant keywords into their websites simply for ranking purposes.  They clearly had no significance to their actual websites or offers.

But something happened that changed the way websites ranked within the major search engines, offering a fair, genuine method of measuring a website’s overall relevancy to the keywords that were associated with it.

Google’s algorithms made it much harder for low quality sites to make it to the top of the search engines, because instead of gauging a websites relevancy based on keywords alone, they began to use a form of “social proof” to determine which sites were truly of the highest quality and overall value.

Their algorithms were compiled from a unique formula to determine which sites were “real” sites – sites people would actually want to visit from websites that were using questionable tactics to position themselves within the major search engines.

Their programmers determined that if enough quality sites were linking to a particular site, that it should be given more weight in the search engine results.

The trouble was, many legitimate sites were new, or just hadn’t been found by other sites, yet.  In addition, many webmasters won’t link to their “competition” just to obtain relevancy, so it left a lot of legitimate sites struggling to obtain (and maintain) adequate positioning in the search engine for their main keyword phrases.

Legitimate sites had to find a way to stand out from all the spam, as well as their competition.  They had to find ways to get links back to their sites, even if other webmasters wouldn’t link to them.

And so backlinks became the new method of showcasing the popularity and overall relevancy of websites.

Unfortunately, a lot of spam sites also use backlinks to help boost their search engine rankings.  You have to make sure your site contains unique content, is easy to navigate, and really sets itself apart from all the other sites out there.

If you do this, backlinks can boost your search rankings tremendously.  You could even rank well for keywords you never thought possible if you do a good job of obtaining backlinks to your site from authority websites that are relevant to your overall market.

The more back-links you have, the easier it is to secure your position within the search engines and influence search results so that your website is considered relevant and appears more often.

It’s no wonder that so many people have turned their attention to building an expansive, solid system consisting of hundreds of permanent back-links.

Organic FREE search engine traffic consists of some of the most targeted, relevant visitors you’d ever get, and if you are able to secure your position within the top search results for highly targeted keywords, you could eliminate any need to pay a fortune in pay-per-click marketing.

Keep in mind that search engines determine how relevant (and important) your website is not just by the NUMBER of back-links pointing to your website but by WHO is linking to you.

This means that not only do you want to focus on building a high number of back-links but that you also want to focus on quality back-links that are housed on authority sites.

Quality And Quantity Are Equally Important

QUALITY and QUANTITY are equally important when building your back-link system, and don’t kid yourself, if the search engines are forced to choose between the two (and if you have an equal number of back-links as a competitor in your niche), the “vote” will go for the site with the highest number of quality back-links.

This means that you want to do your best to develop back-links on established websites in your niche.

These are sites that have been around for quite some time, have developed a following, established a community and of course, receive a significant amount of traffic each day.

While you can (and should) incorporate a variety of back-links into your system, including links from authority sites that may not be directly focused on the same topic or theme as your website, always keep in mind that incoming links from quality websites will always play a greater role in maximizing your search engine ranking and overall exposure.

There are many different ways to begin your link building campaign and while many of the traditional strategies can be time consuming, once you have developed a solid back-link structure and begin to increase your search engine positioning, you will be able to easily maintain it.

Keep in mind that by building a solid backlink structure,  the traffic you do receive from the major search engines will be exceptionally targeted, and far more interested in the products or services you are offering.

Just remember, don’t become complacent once your rankings improve.  Keep building backlinks as time goes on, because if you stop, another site will keep building and pass you in the rankings.

You don’t want to end up losing the rankings you worked so hard to get, so incorporate these backlink strategies into your ongoing marketing campaign and position yourself for permanent high placement within the major search engines.

I am passionate about helping you because I know how hard it is to get your search engine raking up.  So I decided to give a very valuable resource away for almost next nothing.

For a very limited period you will be able to buy a fully downloadable e-book  ‘Get More Backlinks – Make More Money!’ for only $2. Yes, only $2!

This e-book is jam-packed with indispensable information and covers all you need to know about this crucial topic.  This means more traffic to your website and money in your pocket!

The book will be available soon.  Don’t miss the opportunity to buy this for the meager amount of $2.  The price will go up to $12, but this is your opportunity to buy it for only $2.

Here are some of the topics covered in this remarkable book:

  • Introduction To Backlinks
  • Feeder Site Backlinks
  • Article Directory Strategy
  • Backlink Forum Marketing
  • Backlink Blogging
  • Directory Backlink Strategy
  • Generating Backlinks Via Social Bookmarks.

Please don’t miss out.  In order for us to keep you updated about when the book will be available, please leave your email address here.  You are under no obligation to order once the book becomes available.  We know the value of this book and just don’t want you to miss out.  We’ll keep you posted…

 

It takes more than money to make money

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You’re late on paying the mortgage. Again. Not only that, the bank just phoned with threats of repossession. (Nobody else knows yet).

On top of that, junior wants to go on his hockey team’s Antarctic – for – the Uninitiated trip that costs more money than you make in a year, and to break his heart again…well, that just breaks your heart.

Also, your wife is nagging again to visit her family from out of state; but once more you tell her, she above all people should know that’s just not possible right now. The look on her face tells you just what she thinks.

So once more you crawl into your car to the job you’ve done forever and hated forever.

Sound familiar?

To many of us, it’s a depressingly familiar scenario even if the details may differ.

Or, worse than that, there may actually be no job to crawl to. In which case, such a scenario becomes infinitely more horrible.

But what if…

… that scenario can be turned around? What if you can start making more money today than you have right now?

No, really…I mean that.

What if, in a while, that wife really could visit her family and junior could go on that trip and you could, without worry or guilt, enrol for that coveted course or buy that piece of electronic equipment or whatever, after you’ve paid all your dues? Wouldn’t that be great?

You bet.

And it’s possible. For you. For everyone.

But before that…

…becomes possible, you have to give something away…

You have to give your talents away. And talents here do not refer to the Roman money unit. No, it refers to your natural aptitude or marked inborn ability for accomplishment of any kind.

We have been wired in such a way that all of us (by last count, about 8 billion of us), has something to offer (talents and skills) in the way of solving someone else’s problem or need.

A need is defined as anything human beings need to make their lives easier and more meaningful.  Once a person perceives that he/she has a need, but can’t satisfy it because of some obstacle, a problem is created.

And the beauty of it is that you can get paid for the solutions you offer.

The problem, however, is…

…many of us don’t realise the spade with which to dig wealth, lies not in something outside us, but inside. It lies in our minds.

No wonder Napoleon Hill wrote a book called “Think and Grow Rich”. 1

This problem is componded by the fact that we feel trapped by so many things; low paying jobs, bills, an inability within ourselves to break free from such constraints etc. The reality on the outside somehow moves inward and becomes a paradigm2 that forms the metal bars that imprison us in a cage of hopelessness.

All of it totally unnecessary. And reversible.

Mmmmm… (Doubt not. I kid you not.)

Ok… how?

The mechanics

Start looking at the talents and skills you have. And in the next post, we’ll also look at other places together that can reveal more possible problems for you to solve.

Say for example you can make beautifully crafted models of war implements used during the middle ages. You can advertise them, offer them to hobby shops, go on road shows with them, and sell them at craft markets. Sooner than later, word will spread and you’ll be making money out of your skill.

Somewhere, someone will want what you can offer and pay you for it. Because it will solve a problem / need they have. Collectors will pay to have such models.

Easy eh? Then why is it so hard sometimes?

Either because you just can’t believe it can be that simple (see no. 2 above again) or because you’re looking in the wrong place.

Well, it really is that simple because wealth is not created by mineral or other resources, but by trading solutions (or products and services) to problems. Solve a problem for someone and hey presto! you’re in business. Just think about it and you’ll realise it to be true.

You can also miss spotting where there are problems you can solve. In the next post, we’ll specifically look at different angles you can inspect up close to see if there are problems you can solve and in the process earn an income.

The more quality “solutions” you put into the economy, the more you’ll be able to sell and the more money you’ll be able to make. Now, it does not matter in what position you find yourself currently. If you’re in a job, you can still look for problems, solve them and make money. You just have to work out the when, where and how.

And if you’re currently unemployed, you just have much more time on your hands for the same action, but maybe more impetus to actually make it work for you.

And the result …

…of using our unique abilities to benefit one another?

Well primarily…

  • A more fulfilled you.
  • And a higher standard of living for you and everybody else

A secondary upshot of this will obviously be less poverty, crime, social ills etc.

We need each other. In the words of the poet John Donne:”No man is an island unto himself”.

And the beauty of giving yourself, is that you’ll be getting far more out of the deal than mere money. You’ll get fulfilment. Now what possible price tag could be on that?

So, the long and short of it all… you have to give to get!

****

Don’t miss our post next week on some possible places where you can find problems to solve and turn them into money spinners.

See you there!

Resources

  1. http://www.amazon.com/Think-Grow-Rich-Napoleon-Hill/dp/0449214923
  2. http://ebschool.com/2012/04/locked-in-a-paradigm-prison-that-paralyses-your-world/
  3. Bekker, Mauritz. Entrepreneurial Business School.

Our Surefire 4-Word Competitive Edge

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People trust someone more who speak straight to their face instead of spreading rumours behind their back…  Even if it means that one sometimes have to step on toes to get the message across.

I thought it would be a good idea telling you exactly what we stand for and how we go about doing our business.

All successful online businesses need to have a unique selling point or USP.

The mere fact that we are into online content creation says absolutely nothing.  Millions of others do it and so are millions of others, almost daily, going out of business.  I come across many promising blog sites with first-rate content, but with zero comments.  This means that people out there probably don’t even know about their existence.  Nobody knows they have something important to say … or who they are.

Worse even … what makes them different from all the other zillions of bloggers?  Maybe they don’t have a clear picture of exactly what their USP is.

So what’s our USP or what makes us different?

Well, if you take the words content, faith, online and laughter and ask anyone what they have in common you’d probably end up with the answer … “nothing”.  And so it is…  On the surface they have nothing in common.

What would you do if I told you that those four words make up our unique selling point?

Let’s look at the following diagram of concentric circles…

Diagram of 4-Word Competitive Edge

Content for Building an Online Business

The centre or core of the diagram is content.

Sonia Simone defines content in one of her latest Teaching Sells posts: “Content is communication that gets your audience closer to what they want, that keeps them engaged and attentive, and that persuades them to take some kind of action.”

According to this definition your writing isn’t content unless it has:

  • An audience of people with a need, …
  • … who are clued-in, and …
  • … who are being made ready to react.

Content serves a human audience in whose lives their wants and needs play a crucial role.  But they must be made aware of it.

It addresses their needs … it gets people closer to a result they want.

That result could be a smarter home in an upmarket area, a better relationship with their children, a more fulfilling marriage, a profitable business, an adorable body, lots of freedom and money, health and a long life, the attention of a stunning girl, happiness and fulfilment, a new car.

Some people want things that are insignificant and some people want things that are profound.

As creators of content we decide whom we can best serve, and how.  In our case it is about building a profitable online business with all the associated information and software our clients need.

Our clients are newbie’s, but also more experienced people who need products or services to improve their existing businesses.  Sometimes we develop our own products and often we resell the products of reputable affiliates.  This covers the what and to whom…

The how has everything to do with the innate characteristics of the content … this is where humour, faith and the web comes in…

Laugh Your Way Through Life

There is truth in what Jean Houston said: “At the height of laughter, the universe is flung into a kaleidoscope of new possibilities.”

Did you know that people who laugh a lot does better in their businesses?  They beat depression and create better and more meaningful relationships.

Employees experiencing too much stress in the work place become too serious. The general opinion is that serious people are more responsible and more productive… This is not true.

More productive people are those who take their work seriously but take themselves lightly.

Scientific research shows us that laughter can help to resolve workplace stress and many related problems.

To us in the online industry…  humour is the only tool available to deliver laughter.  We try to bring humour into the internet business environment and we do this through blogging – content jam-packed with sound teaching … but with a tinge of humour.

To Believe or Not to Believe…

“I know now, Lord, why you utter no answer. You are yourself the answer. Before your face questions die away. What other answer would suffice?”
― C.S. Lewis

The third circle is labelled “Faith”.  We here at Nichebuz do business by the Book and as Christians all our business dealings should always be underpinned by sound Biblical ethics.

Having said so, we would like to assure you that it is not our aim with any of our websites or email marketing campaigns to try and convert anybody to the Christian faith … far from it.  Also, our blog is not a place where adherents to other religions, atheists or agnostics should feel unwelcome or uncomfortable.  All of you are most welcome and we’re happy to have you here.

The purpose of mentioning faith here is twofold.  Firstly you can keep us accountable for maintaining our business practice within the confines of what we profess to believe and secondly, that you know where we come from and why we operate the way we do.  We want you to know what we believe, what our rationale is and what you can expect from us as far as moral matters are concerned.

For us it is a matter of “in him we live, and move, and have our being…” and we strongly urge people who comment to refrain from humiliating or rude remarks.  That’s not on.

On the Internet, Nobody Knows…

“National borders aren’t even speed bumps on the information superhighway.” ― Tim May.

I think it was Robert Wilensky who mentioned Borel’s 1913 theory that said if we have a million monkeys banging on a million typewriters, they will eventually reproduce the entire works of Shakespeare.  Dr Wilensky jokingly concluded:  “Now, thanks to the Internet, we know this is not true.”

To put it plainly, the amount of garbage already floating about on the worldwide web by far exceeds the tedious efforts of many millions of monkeys … but there’s another, very positive side to this…

The last circle on the periphery of my diagram, encompassing all the other inner circles, is labelled “online”.  It represents planet web – the place where people do business in an ever-increasing volume.  This newly emerging sector, compared to offline sectors, has followed a growth curve all this time since inception, registering unprecedented growth levels and making heavy profits at a time when merely breaking-even is considered lucky for most offline companies.

I’m not saying that this is all plain sailing … Far from it…  All I’m saying is that the internet is here to stay and it won’t go away.  We need to utilise it.  We need to develop content, build websites, launch new products, plan marketing campaigns…

For this to happen we need to build relationships and tribes or call it online communities.  We MUST get people to subscribe to our mailing lists.  In order to do this they must first like us, trust us and be eager to receive stunning content from us.

Is Our USP Unique?

I don’t even know whether our USP is unique at all.

I only know that to succeed… and that means for anybody to succeed in the blogosphere… we need each other.  There is not even an inkling of a possibility that we can build links without building online relationships.  For this purpose they are the same.

For those who feel comfortable with our 4-letter USP, we extend a hand of friendship and we invite you to come on board.  It’s true that one hand washes the other, so from our side we’ll do our level best to promote the products and services of those who feel comfortable to associate with us.

We invite you to “fling [yourself] into a kaleidoscope of new possibilities” across the “speed bumps on the information superhighway.”

AU REVOIR!

1 King James Version of the Bible: (Act 17:28)  For in him we live, and move, and have our being; as certain also of your own poets have said, For we are also his offspring.

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Tattler Reveals All About What Your Customers Really Want

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Gossip Girl

Gossip Girl owned by Arman Dz – FLIKR Image

You have been told in various ways that you have to give to get. Your mom told you when you were little, your teachers told you and later all the different business ideas you were exposed to, said the same thing.

So now you want to do that. You want to make that difference. Because you want to “get” in the process.

But you don’t know how. Besides, the last time that we talked, we talked about how you’re supposed to find out what your customers wanted if you have any hopes of sales success. And you simply cannot see how “giving to get” has any relevance to what is called a “marketing survey” or finding out what your clients want.

Well, it’s quite simple really.

To be able to give in such a way that it will be perceived as valuable and therefore will be bought, you have to find out what to give. And to be able to give the client what he wants, you first have to determine precisely how that “what” will look.

If the “what” is what the client wants, it will be perceived as valuable, he will then buy it and you will get.

So, giving is getting!

Ok, so if you want to get inside your customers’ heads, you obviously already know who they are. This presupposes an existing client base, or in the absence of an already existing one, a target market which you have identified on the basis of proper market segmentation. You have also determined this segment’s buying power and know there is money out there.

Of course, it could also be possible that your existing clients are buying quite well, but that you have since the start of your operation developed a new product / service you want to test drive and unsure about how customers will react.

Whatever the case, you need to know what’s going on in their heads. The niftiest tool for collecting that kind of data is the survey.  

This trusty steed usually takes different forms and delivers different kinds of results and successes. Each has its pros and cons and small business entrepreneurs are probably not going to make much use of methods that tend to be capital intensive like telephone and postal surveys.

  •  Telephone surveys are used when the contact period is short, time is limited and funds limited. Pros are the fact that it is quick and any problems / questions can be discussed directly. Cons are that it is easy to lie over the phone and only folks with phones can be contacted.
  • Postal surveys are sometimes better than telephonic ones in that most people don’t like giving their opinions directly and the geographical area might also be too big. The contact person also cannot influence the situation and the individual does not have to react immediately. But, they require clear instructions and their reaction rate is normally low and slow.
  • Personal surveys involve a face – to – face situation. Pros are that more questions can be put and answered. Questions can also be customised for individuals. If the person okays it, tape recorders can be used. However, this method is time consuming and labour intensive.
  • Observation can also be used as a data collection tool. Researchers can try and observe the behaviour of the consumer. Or mechanics / and or electronics like computer scanners at check out counters are used collect very specific and useful information. But a big con of this method is the fact that you can observe what people do, not why they do it.
  • A favourite with researchers nowadays, is the focus group method. Typically the survey entails inviting about ten people to a specific venue where selected topics are discussed in depth. Some researchers will ask specific questions which the customers will answer. Other researchers will merely act as observers and make copious notes of the proceedings. Sometimes tape recorders are used to observe things like body language and tone of voice.

Okay, now you know what kinds of surveys are in the stable, so next up we need to lay out how you actually go about constructing one. You need to formulate a basic questionnaire that includes all four P’s of the marketing mix, namely questions about your product, its price, distribution and promotion.

Take for example a fast food business. You could ask the following:

Q1 (Product / service related question):  If a new fast food outlet opens in your area, which types of food(s) would you like to buy?

Q2 (distribution related question):  If we have a delivery service, will you make use of it at an additional cost?

Q3 (Price related question):  1.Are you prepared to pay $5 for a hamburger?

If the answer is no, then ask:

2. How much are you prepared then to pay for it?

Q4 (Promotion related question):  If you had to advertise a new fast food outlet, which media channel would you use?

And when developing a questionnaire, you must consider the following about the questions you’ll ask:  the type of question, question format, wording and sequence of the questions.

So, now that you that you have your questionnaire in hand (copied some x amount of times); do you go down to the mall and pester the daylight out of some poor unsuspecting souls traipsing through the shelves, trying their best to do grocery shopping?

Heck no.

Not without knowing exactly how big the representative sample size of your target market must be. Because then the data you collect will reflect an inaccurate picture of the market you wish to cater for and should you proceed with plans on the basis of that skewed picture, you’ll run the danger of wasting time, money and effort on air.  No, your sample size must represent the target population as accurately as possible.

And you won’t do any pestering either, because sensitivity to people’s needs and time constraints might have you initially only asking two marketing related questions, namely whether they will buy your product and what they will pay for it. You can always tackle the other questions later, thus preventing customer irritation by not holding up potentially harried and hustled types.

But here’s the big thing. The selection of your samples must be random.

But how do you do the random thing?

Okay, here’s the short version:

Draw 2 random samples of 15 people in each of your target markets (if there’s more than one obviously). For example, interview the first, fourth and eighth prospect according to the random number you draw from a random number table. (See fig 1 below)

43962 70992 65172 28053 02190 83634 66012 70305 66761 8834443905 46941 72300 11641 43548 30455 07686 31840 03261 89139 00504 48658 38051 59408 16508 82979 92002 63606 41078 86326 61274 57238 47267 35303 29066 02140 60867 39847 50968 96719 43753 21159 16239 50595 62509 61207 86816 29902 23395 72645Fig.1 Example of a random number table

Summarise the results of each and compare stats. If the results have a less than 20% deviation and correspond in 80% of the answers given, you can assume your sample size is big enough.

If not, you have to double the number of correspondents by drawing 2 new samples of 30 respondents each and then compare results. As soon as there is an 80% match, you can stop.  So you keep doubling up until the 80% matching point.

Easy peasy.

Going down to the mall to do market research, is also just an example. You can be as creative as needs be with the methods you come up with to get the data you need.

Go to someone’s home. Or a football match. Whatever. You’re in charge and you get to say what you’re going to do to get what you need. Short of illegal of course.

Delivering what customers want is a win-win situation. They get what they want and so do you. Everybody gets to go home happy.

Till next time.

Resources:

1. Mauritz Bekker. Marketing management. EBS 2009

Entrepreneur, are you making this fatal mistake?

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Despondent Man

Despondent - Flikr Image. Owner: Phillie Casablanca

You’re worried. Very worried.

You’ve been doing everything you know to do. Your SEO efforts are paying off and enough people visit your site. You’re regularly writing killer posts and guest blogging and getting some pretty cool comments. You’re building hard at that tribe and your following is coming along nicely…

But…

Nobody is buying your stuff!!! You do have stuff for sale, don’t you?

Why is that you ask?

Definition of stuff: products and / or services.

To give one possible answer that question, I need to build a case; so allow me to give you some illustrations. This post might be a bit lengthier than some others, but buckle up and hang in there please.

It just might answer your question about why nobody is responding to your marketing efforts, relationship building, heck most everything that makes up an on- or offline business!

The doctor and the appendectomy

Imagine you lying on an operating table and the doctor walking in and snapping on some latex gloves. You’re booked for an appendectomy (eh…that’s removing your appendix surgically if you didn’t know that) and feeling very apprehensive and nervous.

You sure hope the doctor knows what he’s doing, given all the mal practise suits taking place in the world and the oceans of gripes from people complaining about the wide incompetence of the medical profession in some places and all.

After he’s snapped on the gloves, he reaches for a bottle of Vodka on the table behind him (what! In an operating theatre??!!!!…), then turns to you and forces your jaws open. Then, with the help of his assistant, pours it down your throat while you can do all not drown in the gushing torrent of burning liquid.

Gulping like mad, you wonder why he wants to sedate you in this archaic way and whether he’s ever even heard of anaesthesia. Your alarm and anxiety bells notch at max.

Still spluttering and coughing, you see him turn to a satchel next on the counter, standing close by the now virtually empty bottle while he plucks out an insanely thick text-book and starts paging furiously. Your alarm and anxiety bells, previously at max, now boom off the chart, as you hear him say:

“Now lemme’ see, just  how do we do this procedure again?”

Absurd huh?

Yet, this is the tack many entrepreneurs take when confronted by knowledge that to them is boring or that they think is irrelevant to their business, but actually turns out to be critical to success.

Like that doctor who should have mastered an accurate understanding and practise of key knowledge before he tried to operate, some entrepreneurs have a hit and run attitude where they touch only on some issues like marketing and the study of keywords, then they close their eyes to everything else out there because it’s all too overwhelming and just hope for the best.

Know anybody like that?

Well, I do.

I was like that.  

Sure, I understood concepts like SEO and the use of long tail keywords etc, marketing and the absolute necessity of learning copywriting and many others and I could practise most of them. But please, never came to me with knowledge about the workings of the economy (economy savvy über führers don’t shoot me! I amended my ways since then!), because that bored me to distraction.

Yet, I was trying to perform an appendectomy from a textbook, only focussing on some parts in said textbook while ignoring the rest and hoping for the best.

And here I was, wondering why nobody was really interested in what I had to offer!

Now, lest you think I’m advocating an A-level study of economics, I’ll hasten to add: anything but!

No, all I’m saying is that it is often part of the problem you have when your focus is not wide or inclusive enough. Well, I’m still building that case, so let’s get on with it

No joke Mr Caveman!

In the beginning, Mr Caveman realised at some point that he needed to make a deal. Mr Grotto, his neighbour who slept quite close to him on the cosy bat shit, could make spears for hunting a lot better than what he could. So he decided to make a deal [always comes down to that, doesn’t it].

If he did the hunting (which he was better at anyway), and Mr Grotto made the spears for him to use, they could get to share the meat equally.

And so it was.

But that didn’t solve the problem they always had with available water. The closest stream was high in the mountains and it took most of the day just to get to it. Which was a problem, because that left very little day light for hunting.

Until Mrs Pless of the neighbouring cave one day showed up and asked whether they were interested in the water she wanted to trade with them for meat. She couldn’t hunt very well and her kids were always hungry. For that matter, so was she…

She told them she managed to build a canal from the spring up in the mountain down to the bottom close to them. All they had to do, was give her some meat and she would give them some water.

And so it was.

The biggest problem Mr Caveman now faced, was how on earth was he going to kill enough meat daily for three people plus some kids?

Obviously he needed more people. What to do? What to do?

Mmmm…Aha! Mr Neanderthalus is also good at hunting! Maybe he’ll also be interested in the trade-off, so he’ll just ask him!

And so trading began. And networking. Based on the timeless principles of supply and demand.

Economics 101: The simple version for dummies, idiots and other nerds

Fast forward many 1000’s of years, and you still see that simple action taking place all over the globe, just magnified gazillions of times.

It’s still as simple as solving people’s problems (hello! that’s what business is: solving problems!) and trading those solutions (your products/ and or services) where demand and supply determine the values of these solutions. It’s still about I give you something you want and in return you give me something I want at a price we’re both satisfied with and then we’re both happy…

Of course, the whole economic process globally is vastly more complicated than that, but at heart, that’s precisely what it comes down to. People helping each other by offering their talents and skills, (you variously know this as solutions or as services and products) in exchange for payment.

That’s the economy in a nutshell.

Great, you say, “BUT WHAT DOES THIS HAVE TO DO WITH ME!!?”

Ok, ok!! Getting to the point right now!!

Remember that wide all-inclusive focus I referred to earlier? Well, I want you to adopt one now if you haven’t already.

Say for example many people are looking for products that will solve their SEO problems, but you’re offering your services as an orange A4 paper origami artist. If that describes you, you might as well close up shop.

It’s fatal! Because you’ll be shouting at the deaf.

See, if your customers ask for water, they’re not going to be interested in meat.

Or maybe you’re offering what some people want, but not enough people. Enough people must want what you offer for your efforts to be viable.

Jon Morrow of Copyblogger says that “you have to know what keeps your customer awake at night.”Meaning, you have to know your customer intimately. And then ply your stuff around that.

If you’re out of feeling with what your customers want, nothing will help your plight and make the pain go away. Not even awesome sales copy. Like master marketer Doberman Dan Gallapoo told Ben Settle “Brilliant copywriting won’t sell a turd”.  Meaning if nobody wants what you’ve got, your business is toast.

First figure out what the customer wants. And whether enough people want it. Then market that and you’ll have the bees fighting each other for the honey. Don’t try and market what you think they’ll be interested in. Most businesses that struggle, lose the plot right there.

It’s as simple as that.

Aren’t you perhaps offering a product / service nobody is interested in?

Find out what they want, and give them that. Nothing else. Nothing less.

Which then begs the question: how do you find out what they want?

We’ll explore that answer together next time.

See you then!

Elmarie

PS. You have to admit that it all was necessary to make the point. The illustrations, talk about demand and supply…yep…all of it. Thanks for sticking it out!

Please leave a comment about what your take on this marketing difficulty is.

Elmarie is a word architect for and founding member of Nichebuz Creative Business Ventures. She also does other creative writing and copywriting. Whenever she’s not forging words, she enjoys developing people, nature walking with Pieter and her Yorkies and reading

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Locked in a Paradigm Prison that Paralyses Your World?

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Raw intense fear pricked his skin and fissured up his back. He had to will his heart to slow down its wild beating, much like when he’s outmanoeuvring a wild animal, intent on his demise.

“Hey”, the pale young man on his left babbled in that strange tongue, “you look like you’ve seen a ghost! It’s only another honking bleedin’ horn…!” He slapped him on his often painful shoulder while laughing.

Since he’s come here yesterday with these strange men, he found himself in an alien world that he understood very little of. He could not figure out its towering temples [high rises for living and trading], hard unfriendly roads [tar] and non-living moving things [vehicles and ships].

But the worst was the awful racket. It kept him leaping with fright! The sounds were even more terrifying than anything else he’s had to endure so far. Back home was nothing like this place. Nothing.

Suddenly he saw a man pushing a strange thing full of bananas. He couldn’t believe his eyes! How could one man carry so unbelievably many bananas?

“That’sh a wheelbawwow with bananash”. The pale one again, muttering with a mouth full while pointing at a vendor pushing a cart with a yellow mound of bananas on it.

Since this was the first time he understood anything really, he was eager to communicate that. Excitedly his head bobbed up and down. Yes, now he’ll have something to tell his village! 1

*****

All he could remember back home in the Malayan mountains where he was the tribal chief of what resembled a stone-age village, was the huge number of bananas one man could transport.

*****

Paradigms. What are they?

Many definitions exist, but it’s basically how you think and why you think like you do.

It’s the composite structure framed by the totality of your beliefs, good and bad, that directly influence how you perceive the world

The truth of how paradigms influence our view of the world, is amply illustrated above by Arie de Geus’s story in “Living Company” [slightly…ahem… edited] in which an intelligent tribal chief from an isolated, near stone-age village in the Malayan Mountains, was taken out of his home turf and plonked into the concrete jungle of Singapore with its high rises, tarred roads and vehicular and naval traffic as part of an experiment.

Our chief couldn’t understand much of anything he observed since there was no previous experience in his mind to tack new incoming data to. The only image he could relate to was that of bananas since his paradigm was that of village life in a primitive setting. Even after being back in his village for three weeks, the only thing he could remember was the banana incident. He could only see what he knew!

It seems that the human mind cannot comprehend what it has not experienced before. Even though only a theory, this view seems credible and experience shows this to be true in the examples I’ll quote later on. Our chief certainly bears this out.

The good, the bad and the downright ugly

Paradigms can be both good and bad. And become ugly.

Good ones give you an easy recipe to order your life by and solve problems that regularly occur within set parameters. They allow you to develop positive expectations about your world based on prior assumptions and experiences.

But when fixed paradigms cause mental blocks that restrict you from assimilating or even seeing new information or solving some gritty problem, they are bad and can become dangerous. Bad ones keep you from seeing important truths or reality like it really is. When they withhold you from seeing changes in your environment you must react to, they’re not only bad, they become ugly.

You see, once you have a vested paradigm (a.k.a. your mind so damn well made up about something), you will automatically ignore information impulses beyond this set of beliefs. That was our chief’s experience. And not only his, but every person’s who has failed to see to see the new and adapt to it if needs be.

Don’t believe me? Read this…

Somewhere in the 1940’s, a guy demonstrated a new photographic process to a major photographic manufacturer in America. There was no camera or film in his demonstration, but rather a box, charging device, light bulb and black powder instead. The idea behind the invention was that it allowed one to make an exact reproduction of the original image.

The picture his crude “tools” reproduced was dim, but traceable.

The manufacturer could not see the sense of this invention as this did not really square with his idea of photography, and coldly declined interest. So he became one of many firms that passed up the opportunity of what would eventually become the multi billion dollar photocopying or xerography industry.

Why did he pass up such an unbelievable chance?

Because he could not see past his own frame of reference, made up by the established modes of photography. His mind was so set by the accepted way of doing things he simply could not see the great opportunity glaring at him.

He could not see or accept new data (like our chief), because it fell outside his paradigm. This is called the paradigm effect and when that is so strong that you are unable to see what’s under your nose, you are said to suffer from paradigm paralysis.

And examples of paradigms preventing people from moving ahead and moving onto the new (and sometimes better!) abound. Just take shopping for example.

In the 90’s, Jeff Bezoz founded Amazon and online shopping was born. But the concept also required an EBay and the Social Media platforms to catapult it into the wider public’s frame of reference before a significant shift in thinking started taking place and more and more people began shopping online. Now, it’s part of a global culture.

It was just unthinkable that you could shop outside of a shop that you did not drive or walk to!

Now, this bound to happen again and again. To you and me…

Unless…

Unless you consciously change it. Shift the rails your paradigms glide on without losing any data already programmed in your thinker. When that happens, that you are able to change a current paradigm to a new one, it is referred to as a paradigm shift.

Time for new treads

Okay, you see the need to change or broaden some of your paradigms, but how do you do it?

There are many ways, but I like the one detailed by Mauritz Bekker of the Entrepreneurial Business School (EBS). He says though that it’s important to realise that paradigm shifting is a process that’s not going to happen overnight.

He sees this process as taking place in the following phases:

  • Phase 1: Start to challenge existing paradigms with contradictory facts.
  • Phase 2: You begin to see a discrepancy between what you believe and what you   experience.
  • Phase 3: By asking the question ”Why must I stick to something if it doesn’t work for me?”, you’ll manage to disconnect from the existing paradigm.
  • Phase 4: The actual paradigm shift takes place as you keep focusing on a new desired outcome / new knowledge.
  • You can now use the extended  / new paradigm to recognise & solve any problems you might have.

Actions that will jumpstart and accelerate this process, include:

  • Adding new knowledge to what you already know. Never stop learning.
  • Always asking questions and never accepting mediocre explanations.
  • Observing with the aim to learn. Focus on what interests you. This way, you’ll perceive things others will miss.
  • Zoom in on new inventions / or research findings.
  • Sharpen your ability to perceive with all five senses.
  • Develop your intuition.
  • Challenge your current beliefs. 2

Are you an inmate in Prison Paradigm without knowing it?

Resources

  1. A free retelling of Arie de Geus’s story of the tribal chief in “The Living Company”.
  2. Bekker, M. The Successful Entrepreneur, 2009. p.54.

 

Entrepreneurs: Can anyone become one?

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“Midas of the dump” 1

“Damn!”

Sucking the oozing blood from his finger, the young man motions to his elderly hireling. “Load this in the trailer please” he says after he weighs the finds on his heavy-duty scale.

He rarely helps mine for scraps these days. Before he got someone to help him do the “dirty” work; he cut himself all the time. Now it’s a different story. The old man digs for most of the scrap steel while he lounges around or drinks coffee at “Le Café Rubbish” in the middle of the rubbish dump. He weighs every bit of steel and later sells it at about 2.50 ZAR per kilo. That nets him between R14 000 to R25 0000 per month.

Makes him feel like a rich man. Besides, he’s no longer aware of the horrid stench that invades every pore out here, clings to every particle.

The money that came as the by product of his successful problem solving idea, smells too good. He has no shortage of clients either. They gladly pay for his solution.

Paul Hanase, the self made entrepreneur, is the king of rubbish.*

*****

Mining filth.

As hard as it is to imagine, there are thousands of people who do this everyday and make a living out of it. Often, a good living; in fact, better than you think. Truly, one man’s trash is another man’s treasure.

But Paul’s story is just like thousands of other accounts about people who saw a gap and monetized it. Either in the interest of survival or because they had been entrepreneurially wired from birth and could not help spotting an opportunity and acting on it.

Like Chippy Brand.

Mining is also in his resume, but not filth per se. Although a lot of years, working like a dog in inhospitable circumstances, saw him roughing it; farming veggies and living in a mobile home with his wife and four kids.

Another king Midas

Civil engineer, construction man and farmer turned hotel mogul, Chippy monetized one opportunity after the other that eventually landed him around age 75 on his own game farm (farming again!) in South Africa’s Eastern Cape with more money than he can count and a family to die for.

Says he: “n mens moet self die geleenthede soek, somme maak en dit dan laat vaar…of aanpak” (one must seek the opportunities him-/ herself, do the math and either go for it or leave it) 2

*****

 So, is there a difference between these two and if there is, what is it?

Some people seem to be born entrepreneurs. They can no more help seeing a gap in the market and capitalising on it than a lion can chase game. Among them are the Richard Bransons and Bill Gates’ of the world.

They always stand out. The many problem solving opportunities they spotted, grabbed, developed and monetized in their respective pasts, are littering the highway of their successes.

The zillion dollar question here is:” can this skill/trait be taught even if you did not grow up with it?” By now, there is enough evidence to give a secure answer to this.

Yes.

It’s a bit like leadership (and a bit different too).

Some people are born leaders. They can no more stay hidden in some obscure hole than our lion chasing frenzied game. They’ll always emerge to take the lead somehow. To not do it, goes against their nature and will lead to self torture and slow death of the faculties.

Others, who are not born leaders, and somehow have to lead, can learn leadership skills and will apply them with a certain degree of success. Maybe they won’t become a Nelson Mandela or Oprah Winfrey, but they will lead in their own sphere of influence. Their pack will follow them.

Doesn’t matter how gigantic that sphere is. Or how tiny.

The one lot has the trait; the other lot will follow seminars or courses that teach them the skill. That’s not to say that the born leaders won’t follow any courses, because they might very well and in that case their leadership abilities will become even more amazing.

It just means that those with the trait, will instinctively exhibit leadership skills without having been taught to do so, while people in the other category will have to learn them from someone who teaches them and eventually will do very well regardless of whether he / she was born with the intuitive skill to lead or not.

However, entrepreneurs are a bit different.

A lot of what the world perceives as an inborn entrepreneurial trait has to do with the environment someone grows up in. Environment plays a key role in the development of entrepreneurial abilities and can foster them in a youngster from an early age.

They’re not inborn as such, but rather inculcated from an early age. Just look at great entrepreneurs. A background study of their early childhood will by and large tell you this.

That’s a cool thing because it’s never too late to create the right environment for entrepreneurial thinking to flourish!  Allow me to explain:

Just say you’re 50 years old and stuck in a job you hate and have never entertained any kind of entrepreneurial thoughts in your life ever. You did not grow up in an environment that encouraged this kind of thinking, but lately you’re seriously considering breaking out of it, either because you’re fed up with the rut, or because you have to or whatever: do you still have a chance? Can an old dog really still learn new tricks?

Absolutely!!

Okay, so how do you become an entrepreneur?

Without sounding simplistic, I’ll give you the short version: by changing your mind!

Shift your paradigm. Let your innate gifts and abilities guide you. Find out what you love to do, for it all starts here. Then look for problems around you in this area. Find a solution that people will want to pay for, market it and you’re golden.

Actually, it is a bit more involved than that. Hook up with us or some other credible institution that will teach you these timeless principles and get you clued up and fired up to entrepreneurial lift-off.

The Midas in YOU

The beauty of this is that the longer you find yourself in entrepreneurial mode and thinking, the more the trait will follow in the wake of the skills that you practise!

You might not become an overnight millionaire or instant fairytale success. So what?

You will gain the priceless education and privilege of taking care of yourself and others, up your self worth and maybe even overcome some personal and other obstacles in the process. Paul did and he’s not the world’s next Richard Branson. At least not yet, not that I know of…

You get to cast the stones of entrepreneurial endeavour and its spin-offs in your own pond and see the positive ripple effects of income that’s generated, maybe relationships that are formed and strengthened and other benefits, such as something that has not previously been possible, but now is.

In your own orb of influence, you become the force field that impacts the lives of others through what you do.

*****

Chippy Brand is a super entrepreneur in whom both the skills and the trait manifest. And Paul?

It is not entirely clear from this account whether he mines trash simply because he wants tot survive or because he saw a gap he could monetize or maybe a bit of both. Question is: does it matter?

Probably not. Because if it’s not there yet, the trait will follow the skill he practices day by day. Just one day, whoop…it will pop up.

Bottom line: entrepreneurial skills can be taught and developed. Therefore there’s no excuse.

So, when do you start?

© Elmarie Bouwer

Sources:

1. Mariechen Waldner. Your trash – their cash.  2011-08-07 10:00 .Accessed 20/03/2012.

http://m.news24.com/citypress/SouthAfrica/News/Your-trash-their-cash-20110806

2. Mariska Spoormaker.  Die man wat Sol Kerzner nie kon bekeer nie. 20/11/2010. Accessed 20/03/2012.

http://152.111.1.87/argief/berigte/dieburger/2010/11/19/BJ/5/MariskaChippyBrand.html

* Based on a real account

 

Entrepreneurship in the Dock and Why You Should Care

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Someone once said that the wheels of western civilization (now eastern too) run on oil.

This truism speaks of universalism and in this context, equally seems to apply to the concept of entrepreneurship that underpins so much of our global day to day living.

Setting the stage

Entrepreneurship.

What is it? Why should you care?

A loanword from French, this term is bandied about by guru and non-guru alike and the general definition seems to refer to an owner / manager of a business enterprise who makes money through risk and initiative.

Why this is an inadequate definition, we’ll see shortly as we’ll get to a more useful one.

There is an ongoing fistfight about whether it can be taught or whether it is an inborn trait. According to some, you either have it or you don’t (more on that in an upcoming post).

Is life on earth possible without it?

Consider this: entrepreneurial thinking is what got our cold wet ancestors out of the rain and snow and into some cave. It made them plant grain, hunt deer and propelled us forward to right where we are now on earth.

Everything we enjoy, from the bed we wake up in each morning right through to the glass of milk at bedtime and everything in between, is the end result of some entrepreneur taking what was and through innovative thinking and application emerged with a product / service that addressed a need / want at a specific point in man’s history.

So the answer is a resounding no.

No economic growth, eradication of disease, poverty, homelessness or anything else can happen without it.

Okay, then where does it all start?

Think it starts with resources like oil, gold and land? Wrong!

It all starts with a problem solving idea.

The mind of man is the primary resource of entrepreneurial innovation. Every product or service started out as a problem solving idea in the entrepreneur’s mind first. To apply creative innovation to resources like gold, oil and land and turn them into valuable need satisfying artefacts that will benefit everybody, requires…wait for it…entrepreneurs!

Do you now see how important this specie is?

Yes, but just what exactly is an entrepreneur? You never got to that definition.

I know. Just wait, getting there…

Well, I could bore you silly with the fact that, amongst others, these people share a common set of characteristics that include passion, risk-taking, a success drive, are vision and goal oriented, persevere against all odds, are hardworking, listen to their gut feelings or that they have the ability to live with uncertainty etc.

Or, I could launch into endless tales of serial entrepreneurial greats, some of them rags to riches accounts that will keep your butt glued to your chair, your eyes on the screen and hope engulfing you.

But I’d rather show you.

Keep in mind though, all these traits and more, are exhibited by the individual described below. And they are present in the countless other entrepreneurs that grace business case studies, manuals, entrepreneurship studies, history…okay, you get the point.

But what about that freakin’ definition?!

And then, only thén after this, we’ll try our hand at that freakin’ definition. As you’ll see, things are not always what they seem.

The meteoric rise of [ the] Phoen…eh…Virgin

They said he was dyslexic. Tired of the monstrous effort and waste of time, he dropped out of school at 16 and started a student magazine that sold well.

At 20 he began a mail order music company that catapulted him into an entrepreneurial orbit that would eventually have him knighted for his contribution to free enterprise and billed as the fourth richest man in Great Britain. Included his owning two islands and living on one of them!

Geez! Some people always have all the luck…

(Luck…?… has nothin’ to do with it)

He now has over 200 different companies in over 300 countries that comprise the travel, tourism  and leisure sections as well as the mobile, TV, broadband, radio, music festival, finance and health worlds.

Your phone possibly wears his company name; you might fly in one of his planes some day (or have already), will likely buy music from one of his many stores and might even allow his Virgin Galactic company to ferret you into outer space.

His Virgin Green Fund is a[n] “… independent…firm investing growth capital in the renewable energy and resource efficiency sectors in North America and Europe.”1

In 2007, he announced the Virgin Earth Challenge, a “$25 million prize to encourage a viable technology which will result in the net removal of anthropogenic atmospheric greenhouse gases”2

Virgin Unite 24902, is his proud attempt to unite the peoples of the earth in which “[w]e connect people and entrepreneurial ideas to make change happen. To help revolutionise the way government, business and the social sector work together – business as a force for good.”3 He wrote a book about this. It’s called “Screw Business as Usual”.

24902? 

“Our planet is 24,902 miles in circumference. This was the inspiration for Virgin Unite 24902 in our effort to drive an active global community along every one of those 24,902 miles. Using entrepreneurial approaches [emphasis mine] and collaboration, Virgin Unite is employing business-based solutions to tackle problems like youth homelessness, unemployment and health and environmental crises – the 24902 group is joining forces to drive change in the world.”

And all this from solving problem ideas?!  Let me start thinking…let me start thinking…let me start…

The worldwide impact of this man is huge. And yet, for all he is now, Sir Richard Branson started out plain ordinary. Very ordinary. Just like you and me.

So, what made the difference?

The freakin’ definition

To answer that, we need to whip up that promised definition. Definitions are like pot handles that allow to you can grasp something properly and jostle it into submission.

So let’s have a closer look at that French word now. Coined in the 1800’s by Jean-Baptiste Say, it reads that an “entrepreneur is a person who shifts economic resources out of an area of low productivity into an area of higher productivity and greater yield”4

Myriads of definitions since (good, bad & ugly), built upon that foundation. According to Mauritz Bekker of the Entrepreneurial Business School who teaches entrepreneurship for a living, this is someone who creates something new to his own benefit and that of mankind.

Says he:”…this is a person who manages to develop / create a new solution (product / service) that the market (individuals, organisations, government etc) is willing to buy”.5

Willing to buy…?

Sounds like Thomas Edison, who after patenting a vote-recording machine and marketing it to the Massachusetts legislature who showed no interest in it whatsoever, vowed he would “never waste time inventing things that people would not want to buy.”6

He immediately grasped the importance of sales appeal as a prerequisite to success. Not like selling sand to Bedouins. Don’t expect to make a killing.

The key ingredients

It really all starts with a problem solving idea. Okay, so where do you get them?

Look for problems other people might have and try and solve them. Business, at heart, is just that; solving existing problems and getting people willing to pay for those solutions.

That’s what Sir Richard did when he started each one of his myriad companies. And what every other entrepreneur on our lifelong list did.

Even a mom, who makes a novel sandwich for her 5 year old, displays entrepreneurial activity with monetary spin-offs. The sandwich is so yummy that Tommy no longer nags her to go out and buy the hamburger he craved.

In short, there is an entrepreneur hidden in all of us. And if we hope to solve mankind’s problems, that hidden entrepreneur must be developed in all 8 billion citizens!! And there you were, thinking only the Bransons of this world are entrepreneurs!

Just shows you, things really are not always what they seem!

Okay. Now you’ve got that fantabulous problem solving idea. Package it in the set of characteristics mentioned above (all of them) and you’re golden. And if that one doesn’t work, find another one even if you have to keep on and on and on…

Says Sir Richard…”Screw It, Let’s do It”.

That’s entrepreneurship.

© Elmarie Bouwer

Sources:

  1. Virgin Green Fund.  Accessed 7 march 2012.http://www.virgingreenfund.com/
  2.  Virgin Earth Challenge. Accessed March 2012.  http://www.virgin.com/subsites/virginearth/
  3. Virgin Unite 24902.Accessed 7 march 2012.http://www.virginunite.com/Templates/info.aspx?id=f811ef3a-643b-4de9-9737-a67960cc5d0c&nid=521199a2-5847-4ec0-bca1-19052a110da8
  4. Gem, 2009:11
  5. Bekker, Mauritz. Entrepreneurial Business School. Thank you Mauritz. You know more about entrepreneurship than anybody else I know.http://ebschool.com/people/mauritz-bekker/
  6. Thomas Edison.com Accessed 8 March 2012. http://www.thomasedison.com/biography.html#bell_bredding