I have worked with thousands of business owners – some have been successful and some have not. I believe there are two key questions that you have to be able to answer positively if your business is going to be one of the successful ones.
These questions are:
- Do you know how to do the business – can you create the product or perform the service?
- Are there enough people who want what you have?
Can You Do It?
What skills do you need to operate your business? I have talked to people in workshops who tell me they are going to open a law practice, and they are not lawyers! There are some “barriers to entry” in many endeavors and a prudent business owner figure out what these barriers are and how to get over them. Being good at what you do is the first step to building a business, happy customers are a minimum requirement for a successful business.
Do Enough People Care?
You don’t have a business unless you are able to sell enough product to make a profit. A business makes money. If you can’t sell enough products to make a profit then what you have is a hobby, not a business. You will spend some time figuring out how to find the customers that want your work. Hopefully your customers have enough money that they will buy from you. The ideal customer likes your work and can afford to pay for it.
The secret to a successful business lies in expanding on these two basic questions – learning how to be good at your work and finding the best customers.
I have written a book entitled Starting a Successful Business: Stuff You Need to Know. An online course by the same name is also available. Find out more here: http://www.startingasuccessfulbusiness.ca/
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