How to expand your entrepreneurial vision - Kansas City Business Journal:

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But changing is easier said than done. How do you acquire a freshh perspective? How do you open your mind to new possibilities?? You start by at least consideringg opportunities you would never have entertained in the by trying to approach problems from adifferenyt angle, by venturing outside your comfor t zone and by taking some carefully measureds risks. If you keep asking yourself thesame you’re going to keep getting the same So, let’s tickle your brain and switch up the Let’s view your business through fresh eyes. Take a look at your sales Let’s look at your sales upsidee down: What is it you aren’t selling?
Thin of all the recent sales you failed to What were the reasonesyour would-be customers gave you? • Are your customers askinfg for a product or service that you don’t offer? In that is it time to expand your portfolio to includ something new? • Are customers objecting to your prices? Shoulde you re-evaluate your pricing methodology? Provide less expensiv version of current offerings ? Expand payment terms to make purchasing more attractive? Are customers asking for smaller quantities than your current minimums allow? In a soft market, increasingv throughput is smart. Can you adjust your work flow to make smaller ordersprofitable ? Think back over the past year or so.
Is there anything different aboutyour customers? For example, one entrepreneurt I know owns a martial arts studio. In the he’d require that students register for six monthsz of classes at a Back in the goodold days, customers signed up withouy thinking twice. Today, registrations are plummeting. Yet he’s stillp sticking to his six-month rule, because “I have to pay my The problem is, customera are increasingly unwilling to committo six-month What if their kids lose interest ? What if a parent loses his or her job? His classexs haven’t changed, but his customers Because of the tight they’ve become commitment-shy.
If he wants their business, he’lk find a way to accommodatew them. For example, he could offer month-to-month memberships. Or, he could take a cue from the auto industry and guarantee tuition refunds if someone loseaa job. Yes, he has to pay the rent. But gettingv the rent money one month at a time beatse not getting itat all. He’se operating under an outdated assumption. Now, what about you? Are you operating by obsolete that discourage customersfrom buying? Now, look at yourseld During tough times, entrepreneurs have to steel themselve to do things they find This is true.
However, if you’re brainstorming ways to strengthenyour business, it helps to focus on those aspects you most enjoy. Chancesz are, these are your strengths. If you like what you’r doing, you’re more likely to stick with it. So ask what is it you like best aboutyyour business? What strengths can you build on? What areasx can you grow? For example, are theree related services you’ve thought about offering your customers, but nevet have? Perhaps now is the time to act. Ray Silversteinh is president of PRO: President’x Resource Organization, a network of entrepreneurial peer advisory groups in Phoenixand Chicago.
He also is the authofr of “The Best Secrets of Greart Small Businesses” and a columnist for Entrepreneur.com. You can reacg him at 800-818-0150 or