Plenty of startups try to determine the perfect business model to take to market only to find that the market doesn’t need, want or understand what they are presenting.
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When I was working on building my first startup, Really Bad Things(TM) happened on an alarmingly regular basis. I was in my early 20s and living in Birmingham, Alabama (where there was no startup ecosystem at the time). So, when something happened that we thought would quite possibly kill the company, one of us (I had a co-founder) would freak out. Sometimes, both of us would freak out. Sometimes, we would freak each other out. Then, we would ultimately decide to take the Scarlett O’Hara (Gone With The Wind) approach — “I’ll think about that tomorrow” and get back to work. After all was said and done, things worked out quite well. But, there were so many “near fatal” events, that we lost count.
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That business plan, that business plan,
I do not like that business plan.
I do not like the writing part,
I do not even like to start.
I do not like them at a bar,
I do not like them from afar.
~Dharmesh (with h/t to Dr. Seuss, who I read every day to my son)
Several years ago, I met with Noam Wasserman who had recently joined Harvard Business School as a professor. I initially came across Noam because he was doing some fascinating research on startups — particularly in the arena of founder relationships. When I met him for lunch, he brought up some of the toughest issues I’ve ever encountered in my entrepreneurial career: Should you start a company with a close friend or family-member? Is it wise to divide equity in the startup equally among the founders? If you had to pick, do you want the cash (get rich) or the control (be queen/king)? What about your co-founders? Deep, deep, topics. Continue Reading…
One of the most important elements of a marketing strategy is the development of an ideal target customer profile. Effectively understand who makes an ideal customer allows you to build your entire business, message, product, services, sales and support around attracting and serving this narrowly defined customer group. Continue Reading…
The ‘new’ timeline layout that Facebook users have recently had to get used to is now being rolled out to Facebook Pages too. Along with new real-time Facebook insights, brands really have an opportunity to develop their Facebook marketing strategy and create added value for users. The new timeline for brands will automatically update to all pages on 30th March 2012. Some innovative brands have already adopted this new layout and are beginning to utilise it to their advantage. I’m going to present some ideas on how you as a brand can take advantage of the new features on your Facebook page.
Let’s look at the new features:
Social media essentially converts online information into an interactive experience. In the simplest terms, this means allowing viewers to share content with friends and followers through websites like Facebook, Twitter and any number of other online communities. Continue Reading…
I believe the future of business and commitment building resides in the idea of viewing your business as a platform for your community. Continue Reading…
If you’re like many entrepreneurs these days, business is slower than you’d like. Because, in addition to an economy that’s forced people to think much harder about where they’re spending their money, the Internet has created a lot more competition. That means clients, customers or patients can be harder to come by.
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Social media marketing is an essential component in any Internet marketing campaign, whether on a local, national or globe scope. It is the platform that allows for business owners to reach out and interact with customers, like-minded consumers, colleagues, top niche influencers and more in a direct manner, all done in real time, while also dovetailing and strengthening SEO efforts. Many businesses of all sizes are already taking advantage of the power of social media marketing. If you’re not, 2012 (now) is a perfect time to start.
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