Over the past few years I have had the honor of speaking with many entrepreneurs. They come from different walks of life and backgrounds, however, no matter what their business the struggles are similar. The heart-breaking thing is many of their struggles can be avoided so easily if they only opened their mind.
I'm so passionate about trying to save the entrepreneur from the very mistakes that caused me so much money and heartache in the beginning that I actually wrote a book about it, Yanking Bootstraps - Bootstrap Your Business to Success.
The 5 Struggles of the Entrepreneur
The struggles of the entrepreneur are many but here listed are my observations and personal experiences of the top ones. So often I get asked, "how can I get more clients?", however often in reality they aren't willing to do what it really takes.
1. Entrepreneurs don't understand the importance of choosing a niche. So many entrepreneurs are under the impression that selling to everyone keeps options open. The reality is, not choosing a market niche closes the incredible opportunity of expertise-driven branding and selling. Choose a market niche and own it. You're able to design marketing efforts that attract your ideal client when it's very targeted. Successful marketing is hard enough as it is, not identifying a target market intensifies that difficulty many times over.
2. Entrepreneurs don't properly communicate their value. So many entrepreneurs over-complicate what they do or sell. They aren't focused on their real value to the client and articulate their messages badly. Today's consumer has a very short attention span and needs to know right away what the impact of your offering does for them. In a sentence you should be able to articulate the value of what you do and saying it should be like breathing. If you don't understand the true value of what it is you do - how do you expect others to buy?
3. Entrepreneurs don't know how to leverage the Internet and don't put the right effort into learning. The Internet is here to stay and its power is accelerating. My followers know that my first business failed because I didn't know how to leverage the Internet, as a result it's my mission to make sure it doesn't happen to others. The Internet holds so many opportunities to expand the profit margin yet in most cases they go untapped. People will invest very little in websites that they use incorrectly. They're focused on the wrong things when it comes to their website. It's supposed to be used as a tool to grow your list and generate leads - yet instead it's used as an over-priced brochure.
4. Entrepreneurs often don't value their time. Time costs money bottom-line. Entrepreneurs need to put a dollar sign on their time and make sure they make it. When you're working in your business during the day - don't take time out to do things that don't pay you what your time costs. If something happens and you need a repair to your WordPress site for example, don't spend YOUR entire day trying to diagnose it. It's cheaper to pay someone else that can get easily repair something in an hour that you may spend a whole day on. Even if it cost $150 to pay someone else, hopefully your time in a day is worth more than that.
5. Entrepreneurs sometimes think small. Small thinking produces small profits. You must invest in your business and take it seriously if you plan to be profitable. I know many entrepreneurs that spend years trying to get a business of the ground and they will dribble money into it here and there over time. Over a three year period the money an entrepreneur sprinkles over a business that isn't profitable adds up. Yet they scoff at paying someone like me to coach them through the process. Someone that has been there, done that, and can tell them exactly what to do. It just doesn't make sense.
I see so many professional marketers out there pushing their messages on vulnerable entrepreneurs that are looking for an easy solution and it outrages me.
"Make a million dollars a year just working 4 hours a day!"
"Build your list to 10,000 people in just 30 days with very little effort!"
"Easily get more clients with these methods!"
Professional Internet marketers know exactly what entrepreneurs need to hear to buy their products. They know that entrepreneurs want it easy, and they want it now. Professional marketers know that struggling entrepreneurs want high reward for a very small investment of time, effort and money. They use that point to get them to join their lists so they can sell them their products.
Here's the truth. It's hard. It's really hard. There are no quick fixes. However, the struggle doesn't have to be as hard as some make it. The trick is you have to stop chasing your tail and making the same mistakes over and over. Learn and leverage! You have to learn how to market your business properly - learn how to leverage the Internet. Most importantly of all - expand your mind and stop thinking small.
Step up to the plate, take a deep breath, and play a bigger game.