Signs that shows you have a vision…

From: My Experience

Vision, most of the people think that it is just a statement that colorize the profile of their organization, but is that right..? Not at all. A vision stands for the reason for the existence of an organization or a vision makes the organization unique and focused in their growth.

Ultimately the vision of the entrepreneur drives the organization or the vision of the organization is same as the vision of the entrepreneur. It is very evident that most of the businesses were failed only because lack of vision about their end objective. So before jumping into any business, the entrepreneur should develop a vision and should make sure that the vision is the common goal of the team.

The following are the key signs that shows you have a vision…

1- You never find time to sleep: – People with a great vision will never have time to sleep for long hours until he meets his goal or vision. Just go through our own life, we can see that we have enough time to sleep while travelling, after our heavy lunch etc because we really don’t have a vision. Once John Sculley, Apple’s ex-CEO said about Steve Jobs “He was a person of huge vision and I don’t see any change in Steve’s first principles — except he’s gotten better and better at it..” that means visionaries will never change their vision for anything…

2- You try to get expertise in your competent area: – People with a vision will always find time to tune their skills in one special area or they are highly focused in a special area where they can shine. No any entrepreneurs can start their business with a focus on many areas, so getting expertise in a special area will help you to reach your vision easily. Like Mark Zuckerberg, Bill Gates or any successful business people you can develop your unique identity.

3-You will never skip your values even in a tough situation:- When people with great vision face challenges, they will never let down their will power and will hold their values to their heart. No matter what happens, if you have a strong vision, you will keep your values because values let you to reach your vision. Like Thomas Edison.

4- You get excited in your small victories: – Small victories can help you to boost your confidence and will take you to your vision easily, people who got a vision would have milestones in their mind and when they achieve success in one milestone, they get excited that they are moving in the right path. Likewise, if you have a vision you will find happiness in even small success.

5- You dream a lot and your dreams will get updated:- If you dream the same thing for the past 5 years, then it is the symbol of you don’t have a vision. A visionary’s dream will get updated within a specified duration of time because they are moving with their time bounded goal and dream. If you dream the same thing for the past many years, you may have a vision but you are not realizing it.

6- You will enjoy what you do: – If you are passionate in your work, you will be enjoying it or you will be just doing it for a sake. People who have vision will be taking it as a passion rather than just a job and when you work, you may even forget to look at your watch. So without passion and vision you will not enjoy what you do and you will feel challenges rather than opportunities.

7- You know the meaning of your life: – It is the very simplest sign of a person with a vision in their life. He can easily express the aim of his life and living, ask this question to yourself, if you have a crystal clear answer and that is SMART then you are a person with a VISION and this is the right time to go for it…

 “Your future begins with your vision….”

Is my business growing or will it grow…?

From: My Consulting Experience

It is one of the common questions that every entrepreneurs wish to ask, yes there are many answers like, if the business is growing then your sales will increase, your profit may also increase etc, in  a way or another all the answers are true.

In a consulting point of view, the answer is BRAND RECALL shows the growth of every business; that means, a potential customer from the farthest point of your target area will prefer your business as their first choice when they meet a requirement. So a brand recall says that your brand image is in the minds of the customers where you do business, if the brand recall is true, your business is growing or the scope of growth is much higher than others. So capitalize your brand image and make the business shine at its best.

So how it is possible to do a BRAND RECALL test?

It is quite easy if you got a marketing team otherwise outsource a consulting company for do the test and analysis. The test can be done by the following:-

• Define the target areas of your business (the reach of your business)
• Prepare q questionnaire (question should not contain your business name but ask indirectly)
• Train your marketing team with the questionnaire and the objective
• Take a sample of 25 customers from all the potential areas
• Meet the customers, fill the questionnaire and find out the no. of customers who said your business name as their first option
• Take the action

Why BRAND RECALLING is not happening..?

In most of the cases entrepreneurs start their business by identifying the scope in that market but majority of them fail to communicate what his business offers for the customers, this is the main reason that the customer is not aware about the products/service, the value and the specialty of your business, so before starting the business or not delaying too much after the opening of your business, the business should EDUCATE its customer about everything that the it offers.

To create a brand recall, every businesses should EDUCATE its customer, for that the business should use all the available channels and the expenses of doing this should be considered as an investment for the growth of the business, then you will be able to create the BRAND IMAGE and by continuing the same quality of service and dealing, the brand image will be stamped in the mindset of the people and this will lead to brand recall, the symbol of your growth…

Creating Opinion Leaders: The Best Practice to Sell Your Products or Services

From: My Consulting Experience

Opinion Leader: – They don’t wear a uniform or belong to a union. You can’t identify them by sight. Opinion leaders are anyone who’s an active voice in a community. It’s somebody who speaks out and  gets asked for advice a lot.

So why opinion leaders are important to business..?

All the businesses are either providing a service or a product to its target customers, in that case the success or the failure of the product purely depends upon the comments of the target customers who used or experienced it.

So to make a positive and strong recommendation or reference about the product or service, the business should plan for making opinion leaders in the market because they can really influence the people around them. This is one of the best method to create an effective marketing in the target segment. This is why opinion leaders are important in business.

How can we identify the opinion leaders..?

Opinion leaders can be anyone or anything the customers ask for suggestion or recommendation. They are usually famous, knowledgeable and accepted by everyone in the target segment. Some of the example for opinion leaders are given below:-

a. Celebrities: They are common opinion leaders because they got huge fans and they tend to follow the celebrities even in the stuffs that they are using.

b. mouthshut.com: This one is kind of an online opinion leader, people are really looking at this site to get a clear review about the products in the market.

c. Magazine: There are magazines like ‘the automobile’, they got a relevancy in the mind of customers before buying a vehicle.

Likewise anything can be opinion leader in the market, the real success of the company is in identifying the real opinion leaders.

How to create opinion leaders..?

1- Tell the truth: – Always tell the truth to the the opinion leaders, or it will harm your company and the goodwill of the opinion leader. When a company believes its products, then that is the best method to create opinion leaders.

2- Do not create enemies: – Creating enemies is also like creating negative opinion leaders, they will kill your brand and you will find it difficult to enter in such target segment. So always believe in creating better relationship with everyone in and out of the organization.

3- The brand value: – Brand value is the most simple and the best thing that can make opinion leaders, for example we can say Apple, obviously the opinion leaders are high for that company because of its brand value and the trust.

4- Experience: – Opinion leaders must have experienced the quality, value and the benefits of the product or service without that there is no opinion leader. This is why celebrities are acting as opinion leader for almost all the personal care products.

“If you give values rather than cost, your product or service will find its opinion leaders…”

Building A Successful Organization: The fundamental Stages

From: My Consulting Experience

The stages in forming a successful organization can be compared to a construction of a strong building with strong foundation, hard pillars and safe roof. Like the same, an organization must have the following three major stages which consist of combinations of many elements:-

1. The foundation: –The basic elements that make a clear and strong foundation which can take any kind of pressure and expansion or change in the organization.

2. The Pillars: – The elements that support the growth, sustainability and the security of the organization.

3. The Roof: – The combination of elements that ensure the completion of the organization and its objectives.

1. The Foundation Elements

a. Vision: – This is the most basic and crucial element that defines the reason for building the organization or vision explains the reason for the existence of the organization, without vision it will be like constructing a building without defining the purpose that the building is going to meet.

b. Solution: – The second most elements is the solution; which means what the organization is going to provide, or what issue the business will address. All the business should provide a solution to its customer, then only the business can sustain in the market, also remember that no any issue is going to be unsolved till the end.

c. Accessibility: – This area is to identify the real beneficiaries of the organization, entrepreneur should identify the place where the business should take off and it should be accessible by all the customers who need it. There is no point in starting a business where entrepreneur doesn’t know the real beneficiaries of the solution.

d. Value: – The solution that is going to provided by the business should have a value in the industry or among the customers. The value should be unique and clear to the customers then only they will understand the difference between your company and the competitors.

2. The Pillars

a. Structure:- Structure is called as the organizational communication and information flow chart. This will clearly define who is who and where the decision making happens. A well defined organization will never give a chance for conflicts or role ambiguity and it will results in a stage where the organization receives the desired output from all levels. Key Result Area lies in the structure so there can be three levels; visionary, strategic and executive level, without these levels, no organizations run effectively.

b. Process:- A defined process flow will give a standard output for the organization, this will ensure the quality in the output even though there is frequent changes in the manpower or designation.

c. System: – A systematic organization gives a stable output in quantitative and qualitative level. This will help the top management to make the decision making faster and effective, a systematic organization can foresee what is going to happen next.

3. The Roof Elements

a. Growth Strategy: – Most of the companies face the same issue when they reach a steady level of growth, they don’t see the way to expand or diversify their business. When a business is focusing on a single service or a product, they will reach a time where there is no more growth, so the organization should have a clear plan about its growth in the industry otherwise the product or service will get obsolete. So for a healthy and long term existence, the organization should have long term and short term plans.

b. Exit Strategy: – This is also something very important; a company with a good exit strategy can keep its goodwill and the liquidity. It’s a strategy of the visionary or the entrepreneur to choose the exit strategy, many of the entrepreneurs prefer to keep the brand name as their surname, others let the company grow and later they sell it for a better value.

Make an organization which speaks about itself with pride…

Why Entrepreneurs Fail..?

From: My Own

2014 – 15 a new business year for all entrepreneurs, so before planning for the next year let’s have a small review about why most of the budding and growing entrepreneurs fail in their business. This article is just to reshape our views and vision about the business that we run today and the businesses that we are going to  start in future.

We can see, most of the billionaires were started their business from a scratch and now they are enjoying the value of their brand and they are growing and growing, at the same time there are entrepreneurs who are burning out because of loss and frustration in the business.

So why entrepreneurs fail even though they invest their time and effort in their business..? 

1. Survival Driven- (Trying to make money before creating value):- This is one of the most difference between successful and failed entrepreneurs. Successful entrepreneurs always give importance on creating value than making immediate profit.

Wealth is a result of consistently providing solutions to the problems of humanity. If you doubt me, go ask Bill Gates, Warren Buffet, Mark Zuckerberg and the likes. These are people who simply followed their passion (purpose driven) rather than following money (survival driven) and yet made a great fortune. (from Mr. Philip)

2. Lack of Business IQ (No proper planning and preparation):- The quest for making a business sometimes results in learning zero knowledge about the industry and the business. To grow a business the businessmen should learn day by day about the changing trends in the industry, people and the style.

I would tell an example: In a motivational training class, a man asked to the speaker “My industry is filled with bargaining customers and I could make only very minimum profit. So how can I make a better business..? The speaker told him you made a better profit in the beginning of your business but you were blind in analyzing the changes in the industry, you could have started a diversification when you felt the changes in the industry.” (Thanks to one of my clients).

This is sometimes happening, getting knowledge will help you to take right decision at right time. 

3. Lack of focus (Wandering here and there): – This is the another difference, successful business people would have a focus and they invest their time and effort to nurture that special area. Take an example of Bill Gates, Mark Zuckerberg  etc all those people have the focus.

“genius is the ability to focus on one particular thing for a long time without losing concentration.”

So when you start or run a business, try to focus on the area where you can excel and never go for a randomized business before you got a clear path.

4. Risk Averse (Fear of Failure) : – This is one of the most challenging thing. Successful business people are ready to take challenges, they see opportunities in every risk and challenges, and that is why they are remembered and successful. But failed entrepreneurs lack this quality

If you are passionate in doing business, you never mind you challenges, risk or anything, you will do it. So have a passion about your business. You can be free from risk averse by improving your business knowledge, passion and focus also by concentrating on the end result. 

5. Poor Money Management (Extravagance) : – Manage your money, never let the money to manage you. Successful entrepreneurs are good in money management, they know where to invest and when to harvest their investment, like Warren Buffet’s words “Never invest in a business you can’t understand.” 

Always remember that there are ups and downs, you should be prepared to meet the unexpected.

6. I can do well all by myself (Insecurity) : – There is a limit to what an individual can achieve alone, thus the need for team work. Successful people know what to hold and what to delegate, so entrepreneurs should encourage team work and you should act as a leader and a guide.

“Together Towards Success…” follow the line literally, you will enjoy the happiness and success.

So, you must get rid of any insecurity and every scarcity mentality you might have that someone is going to beat you to it. There are many things that are unknown to you, so you should seek help from your team, may be from outside consultants etc, this is how business grows. 

7. Lack of Vision (The shortsightedness) : – “Vision is the reason for your existence”, never start or run a business without vision or with shortsightedness, the business will sink somewhere. The businessmen should be clear about his path and the end result, then only the business can move forward.

So, it is the high time that you need to have a vision for your business and life and let the vision shows the value that you are going to provide.

“Let the business speaks about you rather than you speak about the business…”

 

Why Ecommerce Site Is Losing Money..?

The Steps in Making a Business Plan

The One and the Only One Reason for Your Failure- “The Early Exit Strategy..”

From: My Own

There is a quote from Nina Sakura that is “Things can always get worse, but only quitters quit!”;  this quote is really powerful and shows that there will be tough times when you try to achieve something that you like the most, and that is the rule.

I am talking about the personal, professional and business life of people and the key reason why they are failure when try to achieve something in their life.

The only one reason is “The Exit Strategy Without Vision”; it is because including me, people look for an exit strategy (how to quit) before they face challenges in their life, so there will always be a tendency to quit from the path even when there is a smallest challenge.

So what is Exit Strategy..?

Exit strategy is a method or practice in which an entrepreneur gets out from his investment, a person who quit from his/her mission before achieving it (if don’t have a vision). If the people have a clear vision about their life, the exit strategy might help them otherwise there is nothing other than a pile of efforts.

Why you should not think about an exit strategy in the beginning?

It is always better to think about an exit strategy only after you achieve your objectives other wise when you face challenges you will be forced to take your exit strategy and you will get back from your path and finally you will be counting the efforts rather than than the results.

Yes, there are people who took exit strategy and became very successful in making wealth and brand name. The only one reason is that they have got a clear vision on their end goal and objective.

So is an exit strategy bad in personal, professional and business life..?

It is clear that if the time is good and the vision is clear then exit strategy can bring you to the top of success. For example there are people their vision is to make wealth out of their business, so they would try hard to make the business and their exit strategy would be ‘create a great company and sell it for wealth..’ so their exit strategy is absolutely true. Likewise always have a vision before you take your exit  strategy.

In all aspects like your personal and professional life it is important when you take an exit strategy. Do things as like you don’t have any other options (exit strategy) then you will put your maximum effort and finally you will reach your goal.

6 Classic Lessons: From the writer of “The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People”

From: Stephen Covey

The 7 Habits has a way of seeping you in, with several life lessons touching on almost every aspect of life from marriage to parenting to leadership.

1. Putting First Things First

“Easy leadership is putting first things first”.

In order to be a great leader, one has to prioritize the most important things before others, and has to distinguish the most critical from the insignificant and place the critical first.

First in order, then first in priority and first in rank. If the critical is placed first, and given the critical focus and attention, there is certainly effectiveness in leadership with soar.

2. Begin With The End In Mind

It is important in everything that we do, we ask ourselves what we are trying to accomplish. It is more adept at answering this question for the short and medium term goals. You will realize, you can get better at beginning with the end in mind for longer term goals but you my still have to put in more effort to get there.

3. Think Of Win-Win Situations

“This is a frame of the heart and mind that always seeks mutual benefit in all interactions of humans”

According to Covey, Win-Win means agreements are mutually satisfying and beneficial. He says that the way people think in terms of dichotomies; win or lose, hardball or softball, strong or weak is fundamentally flawed.

4. Stick To Your Main End Goal

“The main goal is to keep the main goal the main goal”

It is important that you never lose sight of the big picture and always be determined by keeping the main thing the main thing.

Failure is hugely contributed to by losing focus. Even though you have a good start, it is essential that you avoid all sorts of distractions and attractions you may experience in life that may sidetrack you. Be focused on the main thing, and keep it the main thing!

5. Your Character Is Critical

Stephen Covey teaches us that our character is a composite of our habits, and therefore, we should know that character is very critical. Watch your habits because they determine your character and it is your character that defines your life. It is difficult to rise higher than your character’s fortitude. Your character forms the foundation for your life and for you to change your life, you have to change your character.

6. Be Good At Listening

Lastly, we first need to understand, to be understood. Listen to what other people have to say and try to understand them. Equally, they will grant you the same courtesy and respect your opinions just as you have shown them. Stephen writes,

“We have a tendency to rush things, and fix them up with good advice”

Narrow Your Focus When your sales is getting down..?

How to increase sales when the economy is down..? Its a very frequently asked question!!!!

Recently when I went through the business line, I read an article that discuss about some real factors that can bring your sales up even when the industry is down… The answer is simple:-

“NARROW YOUR FOCUS…”

When the economy gets down then the companies become panic and the CEO and other managers only give more focus on sales, so they blindly focus on marketing rather than thinking and well planning to face the situations.

As the result of this panic scenario, they may reduce the price of products, they may increase the product line but what happens at the end of the day is that they also sink with the dawning economy.

So what should be the method to get up and rise..?

The method is called “Narrow your focus..”, which means “cut down the areas that cost high and have no results. ” Companies are like plants, over time, plants expand in every direction so a good gardener trims them from time to time. ” Companies should also take this with them, they should narrow your focus on things that can shine and provide better results.

So to alive in the economy you need to build a brand, of course local companies will exist when the market is up and they will no marks when the economy is down, so make a brand and trim your focus as many companies do in the real market.

For e.g. In the case of Apple, Apple has only one or two models and that replace the older one when they release new. And they are strong and made such a brand name that no any other companies even made with their ‘n’ number of items. But when we take Blackberry or Nokia, last year they introduced more than 15 models but what about their sales..? Nothing when compared to Apple. This is called the “narrowing  focus..” and the “brand name..”

So “Narrow Your Focus..” and keep going with a brand name…