It often does not occur to the entrepreneur that they could, or even should, have their business revolve around them.
But there are good reasons to do business on your terms, and there could be some significant drawbacks to following in the footsteps of your competition.
Here’s why you should build your business around your preferences.
Differentiate Yourself
Most businesses are in danger of being made redundant by competition. With the rapid rise of disruptive business models, you never know when a new player in your niche might come along to turn your business inside out.
If you’ve been doing things exactly as other players in your market have been doing them, your business has been at risk for quite a while. It may be time to give your business a thorough once-over before it becomes irrelevant.
The good news is if you already know what your competitors are doing, then bucking convention should prove easy. If you see everyone headed one way, turn, and run the other way as hard and as fast as you can.
Most entrepreneurs end up creating businesses that blend in with the rest. If you put your preferences first, you will rarely make this error.
Charge More
The idea that you can’t charge more for your products and services is mostly rooted in the notion that your business offers the same thing as your competition does. If you’ve adequately differentiated (see the previous header), you’ll be amazed by how elastic price points become.
Differentiating your business includes charging more for what you offer. It’s not logical or rational. But there exists a category of customer who wants the best, and their assumption is the best always costs the most.
The adage that if you charge double and lose half your customers, you’ll be in the same position financially as when you started holds true – with the added benefit that you’ll free up time and resources you can reallocate, preferably to marketing investments.
Be a category breaker, not a category setter.
Enjoy Your Business More
Remember what it was like to start a new business? Weren’t you excited beyond belief? Wasn’t there some part of you that felt like your business could change the world?
What often happens is entrepreneurs get a few years into their business and simply can’t believe how much work there is to do. They exhaust themselves, and they feel like they can’t get away from their business long enough to recharge their batteries.
If you build your business around your preferences, you will still need to work hard, but since you will have chosen your hours, location, price point, and all relevant factors to match your inclinations, you’ll enjoy your business more.
For instance, just because everyone else is open 9 – 5 doesn’t mean you need to follow suit. You will be able to serve customers others aren’t by opening between 2 PM and 9 PM. It’s about what works for you.
Final Thoughts
It seems unimaginable to most entrepreneurs that they could set up their businesses to serve them. But most give up before they even try.
Is it time for you to reassess your business and course adjust before it’s too late?