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From idea toВ first sales. Tips for starting a business from successful entrepreneurs
Alexander Semenov
This book is suitable not only for those who are just looking for a business idea but also for those who already have a business. This book will help you find an idea, choose a sales strategy, tell you about the basics of online promotion, and much more. Also, throughout the reading, you will be given the tasks performing which you will well progress in creating your business. I sincerely hope that this book will be the beginning of something new, the beginning of positive changes in your life.
From idea toВ first sales
Tips for starting a business from successful entrepreneurs
Alexander Semenov
© Alexander Semenov, 2023
ISBNВ 978-5-0053-5097-8
Created with Ridero smart publishing system
Preface
Dear Reader!
This book is not based on my experience, although I started businesses and even now I am the founder of YourGroup Holding (yourgroup.ru.com) in my 17 years, but I can not give business advice because of the small amount of experience. BUT DON’T YOU DARE CLOSE THIS BOOK! I have talked to many successful entrepreneurs, learned a lot from them, and I am ready to share this information with you. This book is suitable not only for those who are just looking for a business idea, but also for those who already have a business. This book will help you find an idea, choose a sales strategy, tell you about the basics of online promotion, and much more. Throughout the reading, you will be given the tasks recommended for completion. Of course, you may not fulfill them, but know that only you are responsible for your future.
IВ sincerely hope that this book will be the beginning ofВ something new, the beginning ofВ positive changes inВ your life.
WHERE TOВ START
The motivation ofВ the entrepreneur
There are many motivations, for example:
– Business to realize your dreams
– Business to implement your ideas and initiatives
– Business as a financial instrument
– Business for your financial well-being
– Business for your personal and professional development
Understand why you need toВ be an entrepreneur.
Three qualities necessary for an entrepreneur:
1) Determination
2) Attention toВ detail
3) Perseverance
How toВ find your business scale and format
There are four business scales:
в„–1. Self-Realization (aВ business where money is not the main goal)
в„–2. Closing needs (aВ business that will allow you toВ close your needs, but no more)
в„–3. Sustainable business (aВ business inВ which the owner can afford toВ give work toВ other people)
в„–4. Wildest dreams (Corporation)
Make a decision – what scale of business do you choose for yourself.
The bigger the business, the more money you need toВ launchВ it.
How and where toВ look for business ideas:
1. Do what youВ like
2. Do what you doВ well
Formula for success: interest + skill = your business idea.
When you understand what is interesting, you need toВ determine the type ofВ activity:
в—Џ Sell what you are interestedВ in;
в—Џ Teach what you are interestedВ in;
в—Џ Advise on aВ topic that interestsВ you;
в—Џ Share information about what you are interestedВ in;
в—Џ Invest inВ aВ field ofВ activity that interestsВ you;
в—Џ Engage inВ production inВ aВ field ofВ activity that interestsВ you;
в—Џ Organize events that interestВ you;
в—Џ Take care ofВ what interestsВ you;
в—Џ Provide entertainment inВ aВ field ofВ activity that interestsВ you.
Task: choose three ofВ your areas ofВ interest that are very important toВ you today, and then choose three ofВ your areas ofВ expertise that you are best versed in, connect three areas with three competencies and see what kind ofВ business you can build.
How toВ choose the most promisingВ idea
Now you have 3—4 business ideas. What should you do next? Every business idea can be tested. In order for the project to start well and develop well, you need to take into account two points:
1. Resources (your funds, capabilities, and competencies);
2. The speed ofВ the launch ofВ this project;
Now rate each project from 1В toВ 10В points, based on what resources you have and how quickly you can start the project. The project that scored the most points should be implemented first.
What employees are needed and how toВ distribute roles betweenВ them
Success inВ business depends on the quality ofВ the team.
There are 4В roles inВ the team:
1. Controller (result-oriented and goal-oriented. This person will always keep the whole team inВ good shape and remind you ofВ the results)
2. Motor (aВ person who creates the right mood ofВ the team, which has no obstacles, who will move the entire project and promote it toВ success)
3. Support (aВ person who creates high-quality relationships between team members)
4. Analyst (aВ person who provides information for decision-making)
Ideally, each person should have aВ role, but at the start you can combine all these roles inВ yourself. However, these roles must be present inВ the team.
Task: right now, think about whom you specifically need toВ attract toВ the team, what kind ofВ people can they be? What can you already actively manifest inВ yourself, and who do you need?
HOW TOВ BUILD AВ BUSINESS MODEL
What is the business model and how it helps the company. How toВ model aВ business toВ reduce risks
The business model is aВ visualization ofВ your future project. The business model is used toВ describe the basic principles ofВ creation, development and successful operation ofВ the organization, reflects the mechanisms and logic ofВ the business, covering its key areas.
Everything is simple, if you have aВ good template. Fortunately, there is such aВ template-this is the template ofВ Alexander Osterwalder.
Task: fill out the template.
Start working with the template with consumer segments. Move sequentially along the pattern from the right part toВ the left, working through each block.
What questions toВ ask yourself when building aВ business model?
в—Џ InВ the В«Consumer segmentsВ» section, you should ask yourself the following question: В«What groups ofВ customers is my business focused on? Who will come and buy my products and services?В»
в—Џ InВ the В«Value PropositionsВ» section, you should ask yourself this question: В«What can IВ offer my customers? What customer needs will we meet?В»
в—Џ InВ the В«Customer RelationshipsВ» section, you should ask yourself the following question: В«How will customer service be organized?В»
в—Џ InВ the В«Channels ofВ Distribution, Sales and CommunicationsВ» section, you should ask yourself the following question: В«What will be the points ofВ contact ofВ the company with the consumer?В»
в—Џ InВ the В«Sources and amount ofВ RevenueВ» section, you should ask yourself the following question: В«What will our customers pay us for and how?В»
в—Џ InВ the В«Key ActivitiesВ» section, you should ask yourself the following question: В«What does the company do best toВ generate revenue streams?В»
в—Џ InВ the В«Key ResourcesВ» is toВ ask yourself this question: В«What do IВ need inВ order toВ start aВ business?В»
в—Џ InВ the В«CostВ» is toВ ask yourself this question: В«What are the costs involves our business model?В»
в—Џ InВ the В«Key PartnersВ» toВ ask yourself this question: В«Who and what IВ can charge, inВ order toВ facilitate their main activity inВ business?В»
These are the main questions you should ask yourself when filling out the template.
Recommendations for getting started with the business model template
What you will need:
1. Large sheet ofВ paper
2. Stickers
3. Pencils
4. Lots and lots of patience…
Let us start with aВ little warm-up, you need toВ ask yourself the questions: В«What do IВ want toВ achieve byВ starting aВ business? What do IВ want toВ avoid? What do IВ want toВ keep, leave unchanged?В» The answers toВ these questions should be written down. These questions are very important because they describe your goal.
Write the answers to the questions of the blocks on colored stickers and glue them to each part of our template. Let there be many answers. If there are no answers somewhere, but only questions – write down the questions. At this stage, it is important that there is a lot of material.
After the template is completed, based on what is written inВ the template, try toВ tell the story ofВ your business as if it already existed, functioned, and worked. As you talk, move from the right side ofВ the template toВ the left side ofВ the template. Based on the template, describe your business:
– as its owner
– as a client of this company
– as a competitor or bystander
When you tell and follow what is written, you will surely find more hidden resources, broken connections, inconsistencies, questions. This is all material for you toВ think carefully and add information toВ your template.
The last step in working with the template is to commit the plan. Record what decisions came to your mind after you have written the entire template and told the story of your business. Record what you need to do, in what time frame, and how you need to do it. When you have a ready-made plan of action, you can consider that you are already a few steps away from success. But it’s too early to relax, you need to start acting.
How toВ get expert help when creating aВ business model
Each ofВ you who tried toВ work with this template has already appreciated how many ideas, thoughts arise along the way, and how difficult it is toВ В«digestВ» all this material alone. Therefore, it makes sense toВ go toВ those people who can help you, who are experts inВ some kind, who have aВ lot ofВ life and business experience. But you need toВ go toВ these people according toВ strict rules:
– invite 3 to 6 people to discuss your business idea, if you invite more than 6 people, there is a risk that the discussion may come to a standstill due to a difference of opinion
– define the role of each participant
– describe the basic logic of the template, the questions, and the main areas in this template
– introduce your business idea to the audience based on the template blocks
– enter a ban on criticism. Keep a constructive mindset when working with your business model
– fix all the meanings
– say, «thank you» to everyone who participated in this discussion
External factors and their impact on the business model
Even the best ideas are broken down byВ reality, even if you have drawn the business model very accurately and clearly, attracted the best experts for advice, the fact is that there are still aВ few things toВ consider:
1. Consumer advice. Be attentive toВ the customers ofВ other companies, because the customer always knows better how toВ provide him with aВ service or how best toВ deliver the goods.
2. External environment. Analyze the environment, look for trends that occur in the economy around us which industries evolve, what industries are in the stage of decline – all this important information, which will allow you time to adjust your actions and make management decisions.
As you move forward with the business model, you have already noticed that this work provides aВ lot ofВ answers toВ your questions and helps you make an actual management decision. If you were able toВ get aВ complete picture ofВ how your business will function, then you probably already have the answers toВ these questions:
– Is this my business?
– Can I raise this business or do I need partners? And where should I look for them?
– Do I really want to do business?
– What will my customers get?
– What values do I create in the world, in life, in the market?
But also many other answers. All these answers lead you toВ the main decision-the willingness toВ implement your business idea.
WHO ARE YOUR CUSTOMERS?
Classification ofВ business types
There are 3В ways toВ make money inВ business:
1. Production:
1) own product
2) product according to the customer’s documents
3) product development for the purpose ofВ selling technology or business
2. Trading:
1) sale ofВ everyday products and distribution ofВ goods ofВ large manufacturers
2) franchise (work under the brand ofВ the product manufacturer)
3) independent purchase ofВ goods from the supplier
4) wholesale trade
5) selling aВ digital product
3. Provision ofВ services:
1) training
2) consulting
3) preparation and execution ofВ documents
4) representation ofВ the client inВ relations with third parties
5) body care (treatment, beauty care, fitness, etc.)
6) maintenance ofВ the territory, equipment; household services
7) transportation, logistics services,В etc.
All these activities can be divided into 2В classes:
1. You are part of someone else’s big business
2. You are implementing your own entrepreneurial initiative
Task: take aВ pen, paper, aВ completed template and see what type ofВ business your business belongs to. This will determine how you will build your future business strategy.
Features ofВ interaction with clients inВ different types ofВ business
Those ofВ you who decide toВ do business selling everyday products, your business will be little different from the business ofВ aВ neighboring outlet. InВ this case, you do not need toВ make any large amount ofВ efforts toВ study your customers, the target audience. Those who offer you goods for sale have long done this for you. Your task inВ this case is toВ pay great attention toВ the location ofВ your outlet, how customers come toВ your business, how they findВ you.
There are only three ways toВ get customers:
1. Point of sale – in the flow of customers, for example, the most crowded street in the city.
2. Attracting Customer Flow toВ Point ofВ Sale
3. Face-to-face meetings with the client.
When we talk about the target audience, we very often mistakenly define В«who is our client.В» You need toВ know four clear characters who are inВ contact with our product:
1. User (the one for whom the product is made)
2. The one who pays the money. Very often, someone who pays money is not aВ user, for example, mom buys aВ toy toВ herВ son
3. The person making the purchase decision. It may well be that my mother has money, but the decision toВ buy aВ toy is made byВ dad.
4. The one who gives advice toВ the person making the purchase decision. For example, aВ person with whom dad consulted.
Basic Principles ofВ Customer Development
Before we go any further, we need you toВ pay attention toВ one very important thing: that today we live inВ aВ world ofВ oversupply, overproduction, inВ aВ world where you can buy everything, there would be money, so now you need toВ be puzzled not byВ how toВ develop your product and В«pushВ» it toВ the market, but byВ the fact that we discuss every step, every stage ofВ the development ofВ your product-invention with our potential customers and at this stage ofВ discussion we make them our supporters, future buyers.
To solve this problem, several techniques have been devised that allow you to bypass it. One of these methods is called Customer Development. If everyone used to talk about creating a product, now everyone is starting to talk about creating customers. As entrepreneurs, you should not try to find a niche that you will fit into, but create your own niche. When developing a product, you need to interact with your future customers, studying their demand at every step, at every movement around the development of your product. You need to create this audience that will buy from you. Remember that a product is a fairly broad concept. It can be anything you produce, whether it’s buns or a service.
InВ Customer Development, there are 3В principles toВ follow:
1. AВ hypothesis is just aВ hypothesis. When you go toВ people and start talking toВ them, things may not be the way you imagined them toВ be.
2. Verification-confirmation of hypotheses, confirmation of your facts. You should go to people, talk to them, offer them your product, test this product on them, look at feedback, go back to your office, think about everything you saw, heard, what comments you received, refine your product and go back to people (this is the third principle – cyclicity).
3. The cyclical nature ofВ constant product development. We made aВ product, tested it on potential customers, realized what needed toВ be changed, changed it, and went back toВ testing. And so on until you get aВ convincing answer from your potential customers that they are satisfied with everything, they like it, they share your thoughts.
Task: think about who you might ask, whose opinion you might be interested in, when you talk about your product, idea, or solution toВ aВ problem. Take aВ pen, paper, and make aВ list ofВ 20В people you can talk toВ about your business idea.
The product life cycle. The userВ path
Very often, when an entrepreneur begins toВ study customers, the market, build aВ business, thinks narrowly about his business, inВ aВ very narrow area, does customer research, conducts analytics, etc. This is aВ mistake that does not allow you toВ see aВ huge number ofВ opportunities that lie inВ the time interval when the client before he came toВ your office, and after he left you. There is aВ huge amount ofВ advice on how toВ improve your business, distinguish it from competitors, and make it interesting for the client. How do you find these tips? If we recall the product-oriented approach, there is such aВ thing as the В«Product LifecycleВ»:
1. development
2. production
3. delivery toВ the point ofВ sale
4.В sale
5. transportation
6. Installation
7. training inВ the useВ of
8. maintenance and repair
9. dismantling
10. removal and disposal ofВ the product
1. Production:
1) own product
2) product according to the customer’s documents
* The steps depend on the specific product
And if you follow this whole wide chain, you will see that inВ fact you could be useful toВ the customer both before installing your product, and after he decided toВ get rid ofВ your product. Moreover, you can find places where you can earn extra money. For example, you can organize training for the customer toВ use your product. You can do it for free, trying toВ encourage sales, but you can do it for money. Imagine that you understand that there can be huge problems with the disposal ofВ your product, you cannot just take and throw your goods out on the street, for example, fluorescent lamps, and they need toВ be disposed ofВ inВ aВ special way. You may have the idea ofВ expanding your own business or starting aВ completely different business related toВ the disposal ofВ already old, used goods.
The user’s path – the actions and emotions of a person at all stages of the product life cycle. Where the customer was happy with the product, where he had problems with the interaction of your product.
Now, if you superimpose the В«product lifecycleВ» on the В«user pathВ», you can be surprised toВ find the very places ofВ growth ofВ your business where the customer actually had some serious problems with the use ofВ your product or service.
Task: try toВ suggest what doubts or problems your customer may have at different stages ofВ using your product or service.
The answers can be the basis for making marketing decisions
The consumer matrix is another way toВ generate aВ huge number ofВ ideas for your business.
The client:
1. Buys the product
2. Does not buy the product
It’s obvious. But why the customer buys or does not buy – questions that are more difficult to answer. This is what the consumer matrix is for.
There are only 3В options for why the customer uses your product (service) or not, and whether they use it at all. These are the reasons:
Task 1: Find all these six categories of people. Only customers can point out the advantages and disadvantages of your product. People of the first category, ask the question – «Why buy from us?» the arguments of these people will be the basis for communication with those who are still not your client, of two «Why not buy from us?» 3 – «Why buy a substitute product?», 4 – «Why don’t see the value in the product?» – these people will be able to point out the «weaknesses» of your product, of 5 – «Are there Any restrictions?» the answers these people can be the basis for marketing decision making, 6 «In which case the product will be relevant?» As you can see, the quality of the questions determines the quality of the answers. Answers are the basis of communication with potential customers.
You will have only two types ofВ answers:
1. Positive
2. Negative
Also obvious. If everything is clear with the В«positiveВ» ones, then you need toВ work with the negative ones.
Task 2: Write down all the positive and negative reviews inВ aВ list, and next toВ each ofВ the negative reviews, five solutions for how toВ fix these problems. Solving these problems will improve your product, and therefore increase the number ofВ customers.
Consumer Research
We have only two opportunities toВ get feedback from people:
1. Interview: you ask questions, listen toВ answers, and take notes.
2. Observation: see how the customer uses the product, recordВ it.
Task: to conduct 50 interviews, asking the following questions: «What suits you in the product? What doesn’t suit you? Why?» Structure the information you received from people. After the interview, thank the person and ask: «Can I contact you again?» Very often, people are very actively involved in the research process, and many of them begin to actively follow the development of the product, and are happy to become customers.
Your task is toВ В«get into the skinВ» ofВ the client and understand what prevents the client from starting toВ use the product (service) right now. When you ask questions, you should understand that aВ person says one thing, thinks another, feels aВ third, and does aВ fourth.
Your main task is toВ find customers and make deals with them. Therefore, you should know everything about the client: what he breathes, how he lives, with whom he communicates, what he is interested in, what he is not interested in, how he dresses, etc. Remember that customers bring money toВ the business; they should be the focus.
THINK LIKE AВ MARKETER
How toВ improve the efficiency ofВ the business model?
Let’s go back to the Alexander Osterwalder’s template (I hope you filled it out). This model gives us much more opportunities, it can be used as a real analytical tool that allows us to look at our business and understand what it should be.
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