How Your Business Can Be One Of The Most Profitable Companies In Your Industry
The Most Profitable Companies, Solve Problems That Nobody Else Can Solve
“Companies that make money, solve problems that no one else is willing to or has the know-how to solve.”
Most business ideas are about keeping customers happy. And one of the most effective ways of doing that is by eliminating problems. While there are obvious issues like hunger, acne, travel, bad breath, etc., there are others which nobody acknowledges. These problems become like an arrow stuck in your head that disturbs you, but because there’s no way to take it out you learn to live with it.
Stuff like risks, undesired situations, and negative emotions become an annoying part of your life, yet you live with it. But if a business finds a solution to one of these unacknowledged problems, people flock to buy it. And consequently, it’s those companies that become the most profitable companies. Those who are able to solve problems nobody else is willing to or don’t know how to, find the most success.
The first step is finding out what problems your customers have with your product. What problems is your product solving (or creating in some circumstances)? This may take a couple of calls or this may take a couple of hundred calls. Direct feedback is the best. I recently had a marketer who was working with an app company tell me that users found the current interaction too cumbersome. The app was solving one problem but creating another. They switched the mode of communication and the adoption and retention rate sky rocketed. Flip the gains, to see the pains they get out of it, and solve them!
The Most Profitable Companies: Cost related
Whether we like to admit it or not, money and time are two things that weigh heavily on everyone’s minds and decisions. People are sensitive about the value of time and money they spend on something, as both are limited and precious. Find out what do your customers find too costly? Time or money?
The Most Profitable Companies: Performance
Take feedback from your customers to determine if your product is under-performing in any way. If so, what are the reasons? It could be because of a lack of features, quality of performance, time and convenience in using it, or it’s just not working properly. A happy customer is a satisfied customer, whose expectations have been met. Look for ways that current solutions are under-performing.
The Most Profitable Companies: Barriers to adopt
Maybe some issues are straight up preventing potential customers from adopting your product. It could be pricing issues; the cost could be too high for some people to afford. For some people, it might have a steep learning curve, and it takes time for them to learn how to use it. For others it’s simply the resistance to change – they’re OK with what they have.
The Most Profitable Companies: Frustrations
Sometimes the things that annoy people are quite unexpected. Remember when Starbucks went for a plain red cup for Christmas last year, and a social media storm blew up on multiple networks protesting the coffee giant’s intention to “destroy Christmas.” Sometimes your customers get frustrated and irritated by things not associated with the function of your product or service, yet holds great meaning to them. With everybody tweeting their every little thought, the micro-blogging site Twitter is a great source of opinions on your product. You can sift through and see what aspects of your product they struggle with.
The Most Profitable Companies: Priority
Entrepreneurs feel good when they hear customers say how their product solved a problem. The thing they should understand is that it’s not about solving a problem, it’s about solving a problem that ranks high on their list of grievances. People tend only to worry about the top 5 or 10 issues on their list, and so the solution the product provides doesn’t make a substantial impact.
To make your product more relevant in a consumer’s life, see if there is any way your product can solve a problem in the top 5-10 of the list. Find out what predicaments keep your customer awake at night, and remain at the forefront of their mind throughout the day. If you can’t, you might just be in the wrong customer segment.
The Most Profitable Companies: Fear
Risks come with everything. Financial, social or technical risks are always there with a product or service, but it doesn’t mean you can’t work to reduce or eliminate them. They have a significant bearing on customer purchasing decisions, and can also harm the product’s reputation. If customers don’t feel safe using the product, they will not only stop using it themselves but will also recommend others not to use it. Negative word-of-mouth marketing has destroyed brand reputations, and ultimately the company themselves, in the past.