There is a moment in every business when a major turnaround happens. This is sometimes called the “A-Ha” moment.
Have you had yours? If so, what will you do about it?
My moment happened during a marketing training session. The host could or would not answer any of the questions that I asked him. To be honest, I knew that he couldn’t.
His non-responsive attitude answered the question. He does not have a clue what he is talking about. If I am miles ahead of him in knowledge and experience and he is leading this session, why am I following him?
My “A-Ha” moment was a welcome boost of confidence. Sometimes that is all you need.
Marketing and business – confidence is a key to success.
A turn around point takes a business from a negative and unprofitable state into a more positive one. One that drives sales. Unfortunately, it usually happens after a disappointing downwind or loss of profits. It is the proverbial difference between the success or failure of the business. During this period business owners either start to give up, lose faith or pick themselves up.
Businesses that are able to turn things around can emerge as industry leaders.
How your company adapts during this time is often what will decide its future.
3 Stages of Business Model Success
- Investing a great deal of time and money.
The risk factor is very high at this point. Everything is unstable and you are still developing the model for your business. You may change direction several times before you find what works best.
You need to ask yourself – how useful and different is my business from everyone else?
If you cannot answer the 5 W’s, your business is not ready to move forward.
When you have finally developed your model, created your plan of action and gained clients, you will move on. For some, this may take years. You will need to have the money, time and patience to wait it out.
It is crucial at this stage that an owner learns to give up control when it starts to grow. Many business owners tend to micromanage. They have invested a great deal of time and energy. And, they fear others cannot do what they do properly. This is, of course, an unrealistic fear. Micromanaging is what will lead to failure. It is a bad management style says Martin Webster in Leadership Thoughts.
- Turning your business into a profitable one.
The turnaround phase is what usually sets profit in motion, but it can happen at any time. It is the realization that either you’re heading in the right direction or not. If things are going well, you should keep heading on this path. If they are not going well, you need to make changes in the way you’re doing things.
It is at this point where most businesses fail. Confidence plays a huge role here. Do you have what it take as a leader? Can you admit you need help and work to change it.
This is where determining if your business model is profit or passion driven.
Did you create your business strategy for you or your clients?
Do you develop things based on your own needs or those of your target market?
How often do you say,”It’s my business and I will do it my way?”
Do you invest time into creating new ideas or are you set in your ways?
A business will never grow if the only person’s needs and desires it is satisfying is your own.
- Securing your business so growth can begin.
When you finally have your plans in motion and moving in a positive direction, you can begin to secure your future.
You cannot run before you learn to walk otherwise you will fall flat on your face when you run out of breath. The same is true about your business, if you’re not making a profit and you try to grow too soon, you will run out of money.
You need to make a reasonable profit before you can begin to expand. This is a catch 22 phase because often the only way to make a profit is to grow. Learning how to create a balance is what will help you to succeed during this time.
Marketers do not view Key Performance Indicators (KPI) as either negative or positive. They use the information gained from a variety of analysis to get results. It can take a very long time.
“The fact is, no matter how much time or money you invest in your business if there is no passion you will fail. A positive attitude goes a long way to achieving success. This is the best way to move forward and ride the waves towards business and career success. It doesn’t happen overnight and it doesn’t happen if you don’t try,”says Patrick Roy, mobile chat app developer.
How successful will your business model be?
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