I started off in sales in 2007 after a career as a public servant. I had no idea or clue as how to sell or how to garner leads. The small investment brokerage firm that I worked with (not for because I was not on salary) had a sink or swim mentality. It was a big mistake for me to join them and a bigger mistake for them not to offer any sales training or support. I left them two years later, and one year too late. I started doing business as Bison Business Solutions in 2009, but I was not incorporated until 2010, when a friend of mine, whom I respected a great deal, asked me to join forces with him. His only request was that I changed the name of the company to Bison Business & Technology Solutions. The idea was to join his IT company with my insurance and retirement planning company. Was it a good idea?
That depends on who you ask. Were you to ask my wife, she would positively say, “no!” I disagree. Had my friend not been so double minded and unfocused, I truly believe that we would have made a lot of money. We were supposed to go after government contracts, and there were plenty of them to be had. The problem was that we had no clear business plan, no system to implement our plans, and absolutely no budget to market our company. Not to mention a lack of commitment from my business partner.
What I learned from the entire situation was that without a clear set of plans, a business model, a marketing model, and a sales model, you may earn some money…you may even earn a lot of money. But, you better never get sick, your vacations had better be short, and you better hope that you and your partner remain good friends. Why? Because without a plan, a proper business model, and a system to generate leads and sales, you will have to always be the point of the sale. This means nothing will ever get done without you. So, when get you sick…no leads and no sales. When you’re on vacation; no leads and no sales. When you partner or partners are gone, they will take their business with them. Once again, no leads and no sales.
So, after tittering on the brink of disaster for almost five years, I got a mentor, then another one, and another one. Then I bought a system called Cold Calling is a Waste of Time by Frank Rumbauskas, and a book called Business Model Generation, by Alexander Osterwalder & Yves Pigneur. I took a much needed course on creating business models offered by a member of my networking group; wherein, I learned a great deal of information on how to refine my business model. I have consistently read Entrepreneur and Inc. magazines since I started in sales, and other articles on sales and entrepreneurship, and I will continue to take more classes and read more books because one has to continuously study their craft.
Now, because this is a blog and not a Whitepaper, I am going wrap things up by sharing some information that I have learned. First, every salesperson and business owner (same thing to me) should start their business with the mindset of what their prospective customer wants, needs, and is willing to pay for, and not their dreams of world domination. Second, figure out how to get to this customer. Third, incorporate a business to business strategy (B2B) instead of a business to customer (B2C) model unless you are a restaurant or own a paper route. Next, find a mentor. This could have been step 1, but most people want to see some progress or else they typically feel like you are wasting their time with your dreams. The next step is to form allegiances with the people who most likely come into contact with your customer base more often than you (i.e. Accountants for the purpose of meeting small business owners). Then, once you have established connections and your customers are now calling you, start all over again. Why? Because things change. If you don’t believe me, ask the founders of Blackberry!
Walter Hines,
Bison Business & Technology Solutions
Finance Editor
ReeUrbanNews.com
“I blog; therefore, I am!”
Twitter Account: @bisonbiz2012
Website: www.bisonbiz.com
Email: walter@bisonbiz.com
