Wednesday, May 11, 2011

Don't be a commodity

+1 Demo: Async load What exactly is a commodity business? A commodity is a fungible product that can be bought or sold, and is done so at the lowest possible price.

In a perfect market (such as the stock market), a commodity is bought and sold daily, and it makes no difference who provides that commodity, they are all deemed to be equally valuable. (Think crude oil, orange juice, pork bellies, corn, etc...)

Isn't that what you want? To have your goods and services sold? Yes, but the second part of that equation is what kills you; at the lowest possible price.

How do you avoid being a commodity? One of the ways to avoid being a commodity is to be unique. Upscale romantic restaurants offer fine dining, at prices that are multiples of a basic fast food experience. Why? Because they have created a unique ambience, experience, and culture that allows diners to know that they are getting more than a hamburger and fries...they are getting an experience. When the romantic restaurant rose above being just a food purveyor, and became an entertainment/experience purveyor...they stopped being a commodity.

Vangie Berry used to say, "The best are always free. The value of their service more than pays for their fee." If you want to NOT be a commodity, one of the options is to be the best at your profession.

Think of attorneys. There are thousands of attorneys that are scrambling to pay their bills, and then there are attorneys that have people lining up to hire them, at exorbitant fees. Why? Because, in law, second place means that you lost. They can afford to charge huge fees because their clients reasonably expect them to win. In law, winning is everything. So they can charge the fees that they want, while other attorneys are giving away their services.

What are some ways that you can "de-commoditize" your business? One technique, that has been shown to be profitable, is to offer excellent client service. One of the ways to do that is to find out EXACTLY what the client needs, by asking them open ended and closed ended questions to probe and discover needs that the client might not have realized. I have included a link to a video that explains this in detail. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HX-ePkaFTOg

Years ago, at the height of the mortgage refinance boom, I was working for a lender in Colorado. I complained to my boss that we had too much competition. He rebuked me and stated, "If you give the client service that is better than anyone else, you have no competition".

How do you do that? By asking a series of open ended, and closed ended questions to discover exactly what the client needs, and giving them a unique solution. When you do that, they will refuse to go to anyone else.

In summary, if you want to avoid being a commodity, be special, be unique, and give such great service that the client will refuse to go anywhere else.

Performance

+1 Demo: Async load Dr. Pete Lorins stated that Performance = Motivation X Ability X Opportunity.
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Here is a link to his article. In it he describes the best ways to maximize performance. http://brainstormcapital.blogspot.com/2011/05/performance-motivation-x-ability-x.html

It is not just enough to have ability. The world is full of failed geniuses. It is not just enough to have motivation. There are millions of people that are starving right now, but have no idea how to take their motivation and make millions from it.

The biggest challenge is the opportunity.

Let's define opportunity. Opportunity is having a great idea, and the capacity to transform that idea into reality. It is the second part of that equation that stops most people.

What would happen if you could take your motivation, ability, and opportunity and combine them in a manner to make your baby idea grow into a profitable business? You would have success.

Brainstorm Capital Group is dedicated to helping entrepreneurs, and potential entrepreneurs turn dreams into reality.

How do we do that?

A business needs several things to get started and succeed.

It needs Capital. Without capital, no business has the money to begin operations, let alone create the product necessary to sell. Fortunately, in this internet age, it is possible to sell products/services with little money by making use of the available resources and maximizing their effect. (This takes expertise).

It needs Expertise. I used to work for a business process outsource provider that had the knowledge and skill sets to take other people's ideas, maximize them, and create a new business model. It benefited all parties, because it used expertise to take a raw idea and monetize it. Expertise is needed to start a business, structure it, create products, and market them. Most individuals do not have this expertise, which is where an operation like Brainstorm Capital Group is needed.

It needs a venture. If you have a vague idea, but no firm grasp on how you will produce the product/service, or market it, you have a dream, not a venture.

Brainstorm Capital Group is the bridge builder to put the inventor, investor, and the expertise together to create a new business, or help an existing business thrive.

If you are interested, listen in to one of our new telinars/teleconferences coming soon. Please contact Dr. Pete Lorins at (407) 272-0873 for more information.