 |
  |
|
Finding Your Own Business
Be realistic. Your chances for success will be infinitely greater if you copy or clone an existing successful business than if you try to invent your own new and unproven business concept. In other words, you have a much higher chance at success by being the tenth person in your town to own a landscaping business than by being the first person in the world to try and convince homeowners to beautify their homes by having their trees and shrubs painted different colors. In choosing a business, make life as easy as possible. Remember, you will spend a lot of time and money and will exert a lot of energy in whatever business you choose. What military experience can you bring to the civilian world? You should seriously consider the fact that the government has spent thousands training you.
Are you good working with older people, children, or teen-agers? Are you good working with your hands? Do you have any collections? Do you feel that you would be able to sell things to other businesses? When you choose a business, your choice must reflect the fact that you are offering something better, cheaper, newer, more convenient, or that fills a need. Put yourself in the shoes of your customer. Why would customers change what they've been doing and instead give you their money? What incentives are you bringing to the table?
Here's an example that touches upon all four facts. You've spent some time as a roofer and you want to start your own roofing business. There is a continual need for roofers. You know the roofing business. Here is how a warrior following the Military Action Principles™would start and operate a roofing business ... .jpg "Roofer")
Every four to six months, you make contact with your customers. You send a new brochure or announce a new offer. You send a card, without advertising, at the holidays. If there are favorable articles written about your company, you send those to your customer base. While you are in the area doing one job, you scout for other homes that need a roof, or new siding or new windows. You leave a hanging brochure on the front door knob, directing the homeowner to all the wonderful testimonials for your work on your company's website. On the website, you point out the quality of the materials you use. You have a FAQ, Frequently Asked Questions column. You explain about insurance and guarantees. You list all your testimonials and all the articles written about your company in local newspapers.  You have studied the home contracting industry. What do consumers complain about? You address those concerns on your website. Of course, if your customer base is computer-literate as more and more of the world is, you can send e-mail as well as snail mail announcements. If you are really up-to-date, you can post a You Tube video brochure. You make anyone and everyone feel that your company is friendly, neat and professional.
.jpg "Pizza")
Kevin commits himself to leaving the department store behind and starting his pizza shop. He's excited. But, when he starts telling his friends and family about his decision, the response is less than enthusiastic.First, he makes his announcement to his co-workers, who respond: “Kevin, you can't be serious. You have a great job here. How is our company softball team going to compete without you at second base? Where are you going to find another job with nice people like us? Anyway, you're right in line to take over for Ed Shempas, our hardware manager.” Yes, Kevin probably could be hardware manager when Ed retires at age 65 but Ed's only 42! Does Kevin want to wait 23 years for his next promotion? Absolutely not! Most people would just shrug and feel that that's just the way it is. Ho-hum. But, not Kevin, Kevin is a Marine. He is a warrior. He has been running in place long enough. Kevin is ready to double time to success.  “Kevin, you're not going to give up your job, are you? Everyone likes you at the store. Is it the money? I bet if you asked them, they'd give you a little raise. You should be thinking about getting married. You have a nice job. You have a nice girlfriend. Remember you promised your cousin Robbie that you would buy him a new refrigerator with your employee discount. I had you on my prayer list for all those years in the Marines. Now, you're making me nervous again. Kevin, why do you want to upset your mother?” He tells his buddies, “Kevin, have you gone completely insane? There are already at least two million pizza places in this city. What you need to do is to drink a lot more beer. Who do you think you are? Emeril? We've never even seen you make a sandwich and you want to open a restaurant? Isn't this like working in the mess hall? What kind of a Marine wants to do KP for the rest of his life?” He tells his girlfriend, “Kevin, I waited three years for you so that we could have a life together. If you open a pizza shop, you'll be working like a madman. When can we go out if you're working every night? Pizza, really, that's a sweaty job and you'll get sauce all over yourself. My little brother, Tim, was working in a pizza shop when he was fifteen. I mean, really, what kind of a life is that, selling pizzas? What about the new car you were going to buy? Please, Kevin, why do you always want to try and upset me? I know your mother and your friends are going to tell you the same thing. Kevin, are you listening?” Even at this early stage of his business planning, Kevin has already made a great deal of progress. He has an idea and he is excited by the possibilities. Why should he discourage himself by talking to well-meaning people who are only going to give advice based on their own negative agendas? They are not warriors. Eventually, Kevin will meet mentors and advisers to whom the idea of entrepreneurship is not an alien concept. Kevin's present mindset is correct, “I made it through Parris Island; why can't I do this?” You don't have to be a genius or loaded with money to start a pizza shop. There are a lot of pizza shops already in the town and that's good because it proves that people like pizza.
Kevin's Market ResearchKevin's town of Newton has a population of 40,000. There are eight existing pizza/sub/Italian take-out type restaurants. This means a shop/population ratio of approximately 1/5,000. In checking all neighboring towns, Kevin finds this ratio fairly consistent. 
To do this research, Kevin goes online to each town's website and finds the population. He then checks the Internet Yellow Pages listings for the number of pizza shops. This is pretty basic research and it takes Kevin only a few hours to complete his survey. But, already, Kevin has valuable information on pizza shop demographics for Newton and vicinity which helps him decide where to open his first shop and also starts him thinking about the site of his second shop.Early in his research, Kevin realizes that with hard work, he could make a comfortable living owning one pizza shop, but that owning one neighborhood pizza shop isn't likely to make him rich. In effect, Kevin realizes that from an income standpoint, he would be trading his job at the department store for the pizza shop pretty much dollar for dollar. The income would be about the same. By making the move to pizza, would he be gaining independence and security? At the department store, he worked to the whim of others. At the pizza shop, win or lose, at least he would work for himself. He would be controlling his own future. To arrive at his income figures and to learn the fundamentals of getting a pizza shop up and running, Kevin researches eight sources:
Source One - On-site InterviewsKevin is on a recon mission to learn all he can about the local pizza industry. He will conduct his on-site interviews in the town of Wayland, which is one city away from his town of Newton. Why Wayland? Because Wayland is a similar town to Newton and, really because very few, if any, people from Wayland buy their pizza in Newton – Kevin's opening a pizza shop in Newton would not be a threat to existing pizza shop owners in Wayland. Therefore, Kevin reasons, the owners of the pizza shops in Wayland should be willing to talk to him. By calling the Wayland town hall, Kevin is able to get the names of the six pizza shop owners in Wayland. This is public information, since to be in business each owner must have filed a DBA (Doing Business As) certificate and various restaurant licenses, for milk storage, etc. On one of his days off from the department store, Kevin calls the six Wayland pizza shops and asks each owner for an interview. He calls at times that will be convenient for the owners, either well before lunch or between lunch and dinner. For example, here is one exchange between Kevin and the owner of Wayland Pizza Palace, Mr. Angeles: 
“Mr. Angeles, my name is Kevin Romano.”Mr. Angeles doesn't recognize the name, “Who?” So, Kevin introduces himself, “Kevin Romano. I'm considering opening a pizza shop in Newton and I'd like your advice.” Mr. Angeles doesn't know if this is a crank call or what, “My advice is that there are already too many pizza places in Newton. Save your money. Forget it.” Mr. Angeles' voice is impatient. But, Kevin doesn't give up on an important information lead, “Well, sir, as I said, I'm still in the planning stage. Listen, you're a man who has been in this business awhile and I'd just like to ask you a few questions about suppliers and so on. I'd really appreciate it if you'd just give me a few minutes. Let me come to your shop. I'll buy a cup of coffee and you can be a big help to me – just fifteen minutes, sir." Mr. Angeles has obviously only been half-listening, “Where did you say you were opening? Newton? There are too many pizza shops in Newton. You want to throw your money away? OK, we talk.” Four of the six owners agree to talk to Kevin. He schedules two of the appointments for his day off the next week and two for late weekday nights when he is off and the pizza business is slower. The fifth Wayland pizza shop owner absolutely refuses to speak with Kevin. The sixth owner speaks so little English that he can't be understood. From every step of his research, Kevin learns a little more. What does Kevin want to know from these owners? What is every Marine taught to observe and record on a recon mission? Kevin wants to learn everything. His objective is to capture a piece of this market. Where do they buy their dough, sauce, cold cuts, bread, soda, boxes, and bags? Where did they buy their equipment?  Who do they use for pest control and garbage removal? What times of day are the busiest? What is the busiest day? What is the busiest time of the year? How much help is needed to run the shop? What percentage of sales is pizza? Subs? Salads? Spaghetti? Drinks? Are they planning to add anything else to the menu? Have they tried anything on their menus that flopped? Kevin would like to know income figures. What is the weekly gross? How many pizzas are sold? How many subs? Kevin sticks to asking mostly operational questions. What are your biggest problems? How do you find and keep help? What kinds of promotions do you run? Would you ever consider selling this shop? In the store, Kevin looks for a flag or a Semper Fi decal, something that will give him the chance to introduce the fact that he is a Marine. People do love and respect Marines. Kevin hopes that by establishing a rapport with the owner, he will be invited for a behind-the-counter tour of the shop. From his on-site interviews, Kevin learns that running a pizza shop is an honest living, requiring hard work and offering middle class rewards. None of these four shop owners is getting rich, but they all seem to be doing all right. The real benefit that Kevin gets from the on-site interviews is information about products and operations that you could only glean from a seasoned veteran with many years of hands-on experience. These are the pearls of wisdom.
This is the kind of specialized information that would be very difficult to find in a book or from a generic business course. Kevin learns that there is unanimous agreement on the type of pizza ovens that are best and also the type of grill ventilation to use. He learns about negotiating the best deal from the soda company and how to have a soft drink/milk chest installed. He learns about cash registers and the number of phone lines he'll need. He learns the types of pizzas and subs that sell best. He learns the best source for his baking supplies. He also hears bad experiences that certain shops have had with certain vendors. As his knowledge base widens, Kevin begins to get a real sense for what it will take to start and operate a pizza shop. Kevin doesn't begin writing his business plan until he is happy with his educational plan. He doesn't presume to know more about the pizza business than people who have been in the neighborhood pizza business for decades.
He asks and he listens and he learns. Within 48 hours, Kevin returns to each on-site interview shop with a fruit basket and a Thank-You note for the owner. Cost: $25.00 each. Public relations never hurt and Kevin will be remembered when he calls again. Source Two - Phone Interviews
The purpose of the phone interviews will be for Kevin to reinforce and support the information that he has obtained from the on-site interviews. Kevin could continue to try for additional on-site interviews, but the phone interviews will be more expeditious – they'll save time.For the phone interviews, Kevin selects two other towns, which, like Wayland, are near to Newton but where the pizza restaurants aren't in competition with Newton. In the two “phone interview towns,” there are thirteen pizza shops. Again, to personalize the calls, Kevin gets the names of the pizza shop proprietors from the clerk at the town halls. In conducting his phone interviews, Kevin expects his cooperation response rate to be lower. On the phone, the proprietors really don't know to whom they're talking. It isn't likely they will divulge “trade secrets.” Here's the difference in technique. Whereas Kevin's in-person interviews could be longer and more general, his phone interviews must be more specific. Making his calls, Kevin explains who he is and why he is calling. He asks if he has called at a good time or when he may call back. He quickly gets to his specific questions which are based on the information he has already gathered. The questions might be: “Would you recommend Braun pizza ovens?” “A Westinghouse grill?” “Do you buy your dough and sauces from Danby Industries?” “Are you satisfied with them?” “Have you ever used anyone else?” “Who is your salesperson at Danby?” “Are you satisfied with the service you are receiving from him or her?” “Who is your soft drink supplier?” “Who does your printing?” “Is most of your business delivery or walk-in?” Kevin listens and doesn't interrupt, argue or contradict. If the majority of respondents say that Blodgett pizza ovens are the best on the market and someone disagrees, Kevin lets them disagree. He listens. From his thirteen phone interview calls, Kevin achieves five extended phone interviews, with two of the five interviews leading to invitations for on-site visits. Kevin gratefully accepts. The other eight calls result in little or no new or supportive information. Kevin writes a Thank-You note to all phone interviewees. Cost: $0.75 each including postage. Kevin also installs a contact management program on his computer and starts entering all the names and phone numbers he is collecting. Kevin is beginning to build a network.
Career - The job or profession chosen for a person's life work. Referral - A suggestion to use or sell to a certain person or company. Advertising - An informational message designed to influence a person's attitude or purchasing behavior. Testimonial - A statement of praise from a respected source. Marketing - The selling of goods or services. Research - Gathering, organizing and analyzing information. Demographics - Population figures, such as age, income, gender, occupation, family size, etc. Franchise - A license granted by one company to another company to use its name, products, services, promotions, etc.
I want to open a used video game/CD/DVD store. A friends of mine sells newspaper advertising but she tells me that the average age of a newspaper reader is over forty. My market is much younger. If newspapers are out, what are some alternative marketing strategies? Why not speak with the newspaper editor about a joint venture, since he or she is probably also interested in reaching a younger market? Perhaps you can write a column on popular music, including heavy metal and rap. You should also check the demographics of your local radio stations. You might find advertising opportunities there. Again, ask about the possibility of being a resident music/games expert. Maybe you can call in with a weekly Top-Ten list. Also, call your local cable TV provider and ask about programs that might offer advertising or interviewing opportunities for you and your business. If you are really adventurous, find out about leased and public access cable opportunities for you to produce your own music program, featuring local bands. Become involved with the high schools, trade schools, and colleges in your area, and look for opportunities to sponsor musical events and to run music promotions. I'm interested in running a business from my home and I was thinking about perhaps a mail order business or eBay business. How is a home-based business different from other types of businesses?  As always, you will follow the three principles: First, offer a quality product or service that the market demands and charge a fair price. You will have to depend on your research to find a product or products that are suitable to mail order or Internet sales. You will have to determine an appropriate price which includes, but is not necessarily limited to, your wholesale costs, advertising, postage, office expenses, salaries with benefits, and profit. You will have to test various ads in various publications, or you will have to buy a mailing list. Your next steps will be fulfillment of orders and accounting. Next, if you intend to receive repeat sales, don't forget to apply principle two and appreciate your customers by acknowledging orders with a thank you and by asking for more business. You will want to offer follow-up products to supplement your original offering. Lastly, apply the principle of copying success by finding successful mail order companies so that you can copy their strategies. If you are going the eBay route, there are many books, courses and even eBay conventions. I am working in the office cleaning business for a nice guy who is no genius and not overly motivated. Yes, there is no doubt that I can do what he is doing, only much more and much better. I'm psyched to get started, but how? Congratulations, it certainly sounds like your time has come. If you have the perseverance to complete this Master Small Business™ course, you should be in good shape to begin forging a new life for yourself and your family. To get started in the office cleaning business, you need a bond and insurance to protect yourself and your customer. Then, you need a good vacuum, cleaning supplies and the courage to knock on a door and say, “May I clean your office?” If the answer is “No,” you go to the next door and then to the next. If you do this, in a very short period of time you will hear “Yes.” You clean the office, you do a good job, and you charge a fair price. You can ask the business owner if there are other cleaning jobs that you can do. You can ask for a testimonial. You can ask for a referral. You can ask if you can come back next week and clean the office again. At the end of week one, you'll have a few dollars in your pocket. Keep some and reinvest some back into your business. Maybe you'll have business cards printed and a box of Thank You notes to send to your customers. The following week have a list of your cleaning services typed and photocopied. The next week you have a uniform embroidered to advertise your company. In a month or two, you'll be ready to lease a small truck. In six months, you'll be buying new equipment and hiring help. Go for it, Warrior!
Go to Mission 5
|
|
 |
© Copyright 1994-2008, American Success Institute. The Action Principles® is a registered trademark of the American Success Institute. We are a nonprofit research, publishing, and educational corporation headquartered in Natick, Massachusetts. |
 |