Time Lag

Business and nature have a great deal in common. The most pertinent being the law of reaping what you sow. The catch with reap and sow, is that there’s always a time lag. The lag varies depending on the venture, just as it does depending on the crop:

seedling

 

Vegetables               

 2 to 3 months
Grains & wheat           1 year
Fruit                             3 to 4 years (min)
Olive plantation           10 years
Pine plantation           15+ years

The size of the yield will also vary depending on the crop and investment. Some plantations only ever yield once. Some can yield for 500 years (olives)

The fact is, as entrepreneurs all we have are seeds. So, time lag is unavoidable. When we’re planning for our start up we need realistic expectations for the harvest. It’s just not the same as investing in property, securities or even an existing business. We find fertile ground, plant our seeds, work hard and cross our fingers.

Chances are we may not reap at all. We could fail on our first crop. Maybe they’ll be adverse weather conditions, or we’ll simply make mistakes nurturing our plantation, due to inexperience.

One thing for sure, the more crops we sow, the greater our chance of yield.

Product vs. Service

Which is better for your start up? I say service, qualified by the fact that I have just been involved in a product launch. The main advantage with a service is that every customer experience is new production run. You can change the delivery – instantly.  Not so if we have just produced 10,000 widgets. We must sell first, then adapt and improve. Services have the following advantages:

This is not to say products don’t have advantages. They are just more difficult to launch. Of course, both products and services can be successful. But for our first start up foray, we should try to make it as easy as possible.

Top 10 reasons your start up will fail

Top 10

  1. You don’t really believe in what your doing, making or selling
  2. You’re only motivated by money
  3. You took funding from people who are only motivated by money
  4. Your start up defies the laws of sustainability / health and wellness
  5. You believe that your ‘remarkable’ product will gain automatic distribution
  6. You have a long & complicated supply chain
  7. You think viral marketing is easy
  8. You don’t really understand the importance of cash flow
  9. You lose interest because you took too long to bootstrap it
  10. You believe that having the ‘best’ product will make you successful
  11. Bonus reason: You give up when things get hard.

Your thoughts?

Top 10 reasons your start up will succeed

Top 10

  1. You had the courage to leave paid employment
  2. You need it to succeed as it’s your only source of income
  3. Your idea is at least as good as the worst successful business you can find
  4. You don’t care what your mum, dad, ex colleagues, brother et al think
  5. You’ve always been a good story teller at school, work and home
  6. You can tolerate long periods of loneliness
  7. You’re not motivated but money alone
  8. You’re not scared of financial risks
  9. You understand that marketing doesn’t mean advertising
  10. You know that nothing sells itself, not even ipods

Your thoughts? Other reasons?

Irony

Meeting with two business associates I asked them if they had ever considered the irony of entrepreneurship. We don’t like the companies we work(ed) for, and yet we desire to build a company of our own. Albeit, a different model.

The challenge is to ensure we don’t become what we despised.

Advertising in 2007

When we don’t have to think about how to promote a new start up that’s when we have it – a model that can work. If it seems so simple it will promote and spread itself, that’s when we could have a remarkable product.

 

All too often start ups think advertising will drive them into the audiences’ consciousness. If you have to convince me with paid for advertising, chances are you’re not very remarkable. Distribution and digital word of mouth are far more important.

 

Once upon a time we had to rely on advertising. It was a trusted source because our means of gaining information, on things, products, services, and politics was limited. The advertisement really could inform.

 

In a world of low trust and digitally connected people, do we really need advertising anymore?

Stressed?

Here’s a new product which demands eyeball time. 1-bil

 

A stress remedy in an everyday format.

It’s everything an energy drink isn’t. It’s the opposite in fact.

Further inspection will reveal:

A single minded proposition (100mls – not about hydration just the remedy), first to market, wildcard ingredient (jujube), targeted yet limited distribution (only available on the net & they deliver right to your cubicle) and many other startup strategies espoused on this blog.

www.1-bil.com

With no lack of stress in the world there seems to be a lot of potential in this launch. 

Maybe there are overseas distribution opportunities for entrepreneurs?