6 Ingredients cont.

4. Find a Niche

Many businesses struggle, even fail, when they try to be everything to everyone. It’s much better to find a niche or a specific area where you can become an expert. For example, instead of selling all kinds of shoes, focus on men’s dress shoes. Or instead of selling all kinds of clothing for men and women, focus on business casual attire.

A niche is a great way to attract customers and stand out from the competition. It’s also easier to market to a specific group of people, since you can tailor your advertising and website content specifically for them. Your messaging will be better. Your money will buy more. Your strategy (your plan to serve the market and grow) will be easier to create. Easier to execute.

Once you dominate your Niche…find another and duplicate your efforts.

5. Focus on Service First

Everything in your business starts and ends with the customer. The companies to understand this, WIN. Buying a car is a great example of this.

If you have purchased a car before, you probably still have PTSD. The car buying experience is stressful…to put it mildly. From the time you pull onto the lot, and the salespeople start circling your car like sharks circle a helpless swimmer, to the time where you begin talking price.

Some dealerships know this. Knowing this stress factor creates friction in the buying process. So, they change the way people buy cars. No circling salespeople. No upselling. No creative pricing and long negotiating. It cuts much of the friction out of the process. And that is worth something. I have paid slightly more than I could have elsewhere just to have that stress-free experience.

Happy customers are the best marketing tool a business has. Being laser-focused on serving them first will pay dividends for years to come.

6. Become a Value Multiplier

Have you ever heard of someone who “everything they touch turns to gold?” I think of them as a value multiplier. They are the people who seem to be able to turn anything into a profit. They look at a business and know exactly how to make it more profitable. They see opportunities in every situation. They have an innate ability to know what will work and what doesn’t, even before they’ve tried it.

Some say it’s something you are born with. Others say you develop it over time. I think it’s a little of both. What does it look like to be a value multiplier? I am glad you asked…

First things first…I don’t think of myself as one. I have spent significant time with a few that are. One common trait is curiosity. Everything begins with “I wonder.” Sometimes it can be tiring to be around a value multiplier. Like spending a day with a 5-year-old. They see the world through a different lens. They don’t accept what is. They question it; they challenge it; they look for ways to improve things. They always ask why.

Value Multipliers are very aware of what they are doing and how it relates to their goal. In other words, decisions go through the filter of value.

Going through your day, ask yourself if that meeting is adding value. Does that 3rd email add value…does that piece of equipment or software add value? Real value. Is that client adding value…are YOU adding value to that client?

Exercise that muscle, and over time I know you will multiply value in your business and in life.

If you'd like to talk to Brad about coaching, click here.