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What is the key to small business success?

If last year was one you'd rather forget then I have some good news for you - it's history. A new year is here and with a new year comes new possibilities.

But there's a caveat - if you continue to do what you've always done, you'll continue to get the same results you've always gotten.

The last year was a difficult year for many businesses and unfortunately many have not made it into the new year intact and some have not made it at all.

I know that some of you wish business was easier, however instead I'd ask you to wish you were better.

In fact, don't just wish you were better - make the commitment to become better. Make the commitment this year to improve your business skills and thrive in a year that is likely to have more changes and more opportunities than any other year in history.

Here's how.‍‍

Do You Want to Grow Your Business Rapidly?

Then you need to market it. But not just any marketing will do. In my Lean Strategy Course, I show you the exact techniques I've used to start, grow, and exit several multi-million dollar businesses, so you can too.

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The Key To Small Business Success

In my observations of and discussions with many successful entrepreneurs over the years, I have discovered the one trait above all others that leads people to build successful businesses.

That trait is persistence - the ability to get up and try again and again after failure.

The formula is: try and fail, try and fail, try and fail...then finally success. Many entrepreneurs take years of failure to become a so-called “overnight success.” So small business success requires persistence.

Would it surprise you to learn that on average the number of times most people will try something before giving up is less than one? This is particularly a problem in sales.

That's right, most people don’t even try once before giving up; while others give it the half-hearted single try. Fear of failure has them paralyzed like a deer caught in the headlights.

It is so rare to see someone achieve spectacular success on their first try, that it can pretty much be discounted or put down to blind luck. More often than not, you'll encounter several failures prior to experiencing success.

Real entrepreneurs are a very different breed from most people. They will try 3 times, 10 times, 100 times until they achieve the result they are after.

This is the single biggest trait that sets entrepreneurs apart from other people. Having failed so many times they start to lose, or at least manage to tame, their fear of failure.

You might also want to check out the Formula For Rapid Business Growth.

Fear Of Loss Is Holding Your Small Business Success Back

The average person is more motivated by fear of loss than hope of gain. My take on the matter is there are basically two options when it comes to deciding whether or not to pursue a desired goal:

• Option 1 - Do it and there is a chance you will not achieve the desired goal
• Option 2 - Don’t do it and you are certain not to achieve the desired goal

To most entrepreneurs it's a no-brainer - option 1. You've got to be in it to win it.

However, while this kind of attitude is accurate, it does not take in to account the corresponding losses that sometimes accompany not achieving the desired goal.

This fear of negative repercussions is what stops most people from even trying. This could be loss of pride, loss of money or what is perceived as wasted time or effort.

So what to do? How do we keep the fear of loss from paralyzing us?

The best way I know is to simply play out worst case scenarios. Playing them out in detail puts you in control. Once you start playing them out, you often also start coming up with possible solutions and countermeasures which make them far less scary.

The last thing to do is ask yourself two questions; how likely is the worst case scenario to occur and if it did occur what could I do to reverse it so I am no worse off than when I started. You’ll be surprised how often this will be enough to neutralize your fear of failure.

Most people play not to lose. You should play to win.

Practice The "Until" Philosophy For Small Business Success

All of the most successful people I know practice what I call the “until” philosophy. This wonderful philosophy drives you single-mindedly until you smash down every barrier between you and your goal.

They've told you the mountain is too high, it's too far, it's too steep, it's too rocky, it's too difficult. But with an unshakeable resolve you say, “You'll soon see me waving from the top or dead on the side, because unless I reach the peak, I'm not coming back."

This is one of the key philosophies that separates the masses from the top 3%. The masses are seduced and distracted by the  that comes along. Their efforts are weak and scattered and their results are the same next shiny new thing that comes along. Their efforts are weak and scattered and their results are the same.

If it takes a hundred different things to try to solve my major problem, why wouldn’t I try every single one? How many books would I read? How much advice would I seek? How long would I work at it? As many or as much or as long as it takes. That is the “until” philosophy.

Adopt this trait and I promise you'll never be the same!

Or consider hiring a coach? Business coaching has massively helped me to hone in on priorities and scale my business. So if it can work for me, it can work for you.

If you enjoyed this article, you may also enjoy our article on Building Business Systems. It will help you to skyrocket your sales and attract investors.

The two make or break activities in every business is innovation and marketing.

Pretty much everything else you do in your business is a commodity, which can (and often should) be outsourced or delegated.

Your time as a business owner is extremely scarce and valuable. As such you should be laser focused on the two highest value tasks in your business - innovation and marketing.

Do You Want to Grow Your Business Rapidly?

Then you need to market it. But not just any marketing will do. In my Lean Strategy Course, I show you the exact techniques I've used to start, grow, and exit several multi-million dollar businesses, so you can too.

Tell Me More

Innovation In Business

Firstly a word about innovation – by innovation, I don’t mean re-inventing the wheel or coming up with something completely new.

In fact, I seldom recommend that, as it is expensive, risky and time-consuming.

I would much rather take something existing, which I know works, and simply replicate it with predictable results.

Innovation simply means having some unique advantage which differentiates you in the market. Something to present you as different so that you are not competing solely on price.

This could include how it is presented, packaged, financed, positioned, delivered or even what sort of guarantee or bonus comes with the product or service.

Marketing Your Way To Success

Secondly marketing. No matter how good or how different your product is, it will make no difference if your marketing stinks or is non-existent.

History is littered with examples of technically superior products that failed to gain acceptance in the market - primarily due to poor marketing. Some examples include Betamax, The Newton, and LaserDisc to name just a few.

Good, even great, products are simply not enough. Marketing must be your other major activity for business success. In fact, it should be what you, as a business owner, spend most of your time on.

I often speak to business owners who are in need of help with their marketing. Often they will start by telling me how good their product or service is - the amazing features and benefits they offer.

I often respond with this question: "When does a prospect find out that you have a great product or service?" After some umming and erring, the penny finally drops, and the reluctant answer comes out: "When they buy it."

So here's the point. No matter how good your product or service is - no one will ever know unless they actually buy it. You need to get people to buy from you so that they can experience how good your product or service actually is.

To really get good at the art of marketing you need a marketing plan. This tells you exactly what to do at each stage of the buyer journey. Make sure you've got your marketing plan locked and loaded.

Marketing & Innovating Your Business Success

So while a great product is vital for keeping your customer. You need to be an excellent marketer to actually get the customer in the first place.

If you are not yet an excellent marketer, I would urge you to develop this vital business skill.

If you enjoyed this article, you may also enjoy our article on How to Create a Lead Magnet that Converts in 6 Steps. As a small business owner, it’s the smarter way to acquire leads for your business and build your authority.