What is success in business? Business success is achieved when a company offers a product or service that fulfills a need its clients have, and does so in a way that is profitable, repeatable, and sustainable.
There are a number of drivers of small-business success.
(1) Having goals (long term) and objectives (short term), strategies and tactics to address the organization’s issues.
(2) An established relationship between where you are today and where you want to be at a future point in time.
(3) Find and fill the gaps of your clients’ and potential client’s needs, wants and desires.
(4) Have a methodology to analyze your results and refine your actions to get to the next level of performance.
Leandro Herrero has identified characteristics of companies that succeed.
Successful organizations have a vision — a strong future-looking narrative. They don’t get up each morning and look in a mirror and say, “How are we going to make money today?” They have a plan and a well-articulated vision of the future. A long-term vision also provides a base for consistency since everyone knows the goal and keeps their eye on it.
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They have a sense of urgency which propels them from point to point on their path to achieve SMART objectives. They are resilient and have plan A that they will initially follow, but also have a plan B and maybe even a plan C to address changes in their markets, in the overall economic conditions that impact their business environment.
Those businesses that are successful are willing to take measured risks, but also learn from their mistakes that will most definitely occur when they take actions that are more than safe ones.
They also understand their value proposition for each market segment in which they participate, keep it fresh and constantly are testing their target customers to assure that their needs, wants and desires are being met.Successful enterprises are tenacious. They have to have determination to reach beyond their comfort zone to increase their market share or bring new products or services to market.
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If one is to be successful, the enterprise needs to be customer-centric. It is really easy to get wrapped up on personal goals and lose site of the real goal — customer satisfaction. When the focus is on the customer, business owners create a culture that is centered on the customer, their needs and the ultimate satisfaction, not on them. They focus on Michael Gerber ’s second stage of the e-Myth Revisited – systems. Systems that allow for the delivery of customer satisfying services or products.
Successful businesses never stop marketing
To be a successful organization marketing must be more than “good.” No matter the longevity of the organization, successful businesses never stop marketing. After 46 years in business Scargo Cafe continues to market their offerings via their loyalty program, recognizing birthdays, and frequency of use.
At the head of every successful venture are strong leaders. Not just at the top but at all level of the organization.
According to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce , leaders at every level are the backbone of thriving businesses. They are able to motivate their employee base to follow the vision. When the employee base has as much passion for the products or services as the leaders, then they develop fanatics and loyal customers via their focus on customer needs. When the employee base is motived and empowered by passionate, committed leadership, then they carry the organization’s banner or vision into their work. They are empowered to make decisions and take ownership of their work.
Businesses remain successful if they are flexible, adaptable and can pivot to meet the needs of their customers even in times of stress when economic, political or environmental factors turn against them. They remain successful when they can pivot to meet changing customer needs and trends.
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Successful businesses keep their promises. They do what they promise, when they promised it and check in with their customers to assure they are satisfied when the work is completed. They walk the talk.
Successful businesses on Cape Cod & the Islands don’t fall into the Cape Cod Syndrome. Not returning calls. Not arriving at the time agreed upon without calling. Not providing timely quotes for work. Small-business systems allow entrepreneurs to rise above this debilitating syndrome.
Being a successful small business is not by accident. It takes planning, attention to detail and top-down leadership day-in and day-out.
Contributed by Marc L. Goldberg, Certified Mentor. SCORE Cape Cod & the Islands. www.score.org/capecod, [email protected]. 508/775-4884. Sources: US Chamber of Commerce, 10 Essential Things Successful Businesses Have in Common, Sammi Caramela, 10 Characteristics of Companies that Succeed, Leandro Herrero
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