Just before Christmas, we went on a family weekend to Kidwelly in South Wales. One of our day trips was to Laugharne which, you might know, is where Dylan Thomas lived for many years. When visiting his house, I came across a quote which I found so compelling, I hung it in my office and made it my new year’s resolution. The quote is: ‘Do not go gentle into that good night, rage, rage against the dying of the light’.
For many reasons, I had a very challenging year in 2017. You might think it’s odd but I am looking forward to another challenging year in 2018. I believe that we do our main development and growth in the face of challenge. This is why I have found this quote so compelling.
So, how does it connect to my work and what I do for my customers? Having run my business for three years now, I am getting better at establishing who I like to work with. I think this is a really key stage in my journey as a business owner which has had a big effect on business retention and stability. For me, the key is in my clients’ confidence in their own product and belief in their own success. If you believe in your product, you know people will be interested in it and so you are prepared to go on a journey when establishing new markets. If you don’t believe in your product, you need constant reassuring and therefore find rejection very hard. This is a problem if you are developing new business as rejection is part and parcel of it.
One thing about choosing your customers is that you need to ensure you have enough options. I specifically refer to the SME owner’s tendency to only go out hunting when the drought has reached the door. So many of us would rather deal with customers who beat us down on price and give us no commitment, rather than go and get some new ones. If you want my top recommendation for 2018, build a lead generation system and ensure that you are constantly looking for new clients and developing more products and markets. Put a stop to the feast and famine approach this year and have a great 2018.
If you are not sure where to start, here are a few things we can do to help.