Category Archives: Finding your ideal niche

Investors, your board, and you: Who controls strategy?

You’re building a company from your vision and a passion, and lots of people are going to tell you that you have this or that wrong, and that it just won’t work. Business plans rarely survive market contact The truth … Continue reading

Posted in Depending upon others, Finding your ideal niche, Positioning | 2 Comments

Can a revolutionary concept be too late to market?

Too many startup businesses, especially in the technology world, are built upon brand new concepts that have not yet been proven in the field against products from other companies that already have revenues flowing. As a rule, creating a product … Continue reading

Posted in Finding your ideal niche, Ignition! Starting up, Positioning | 2 Comments

Do you want to control your business destiny?

There is nothing quite as thrilling in business as igniting a startup and watching it blossom.  Especially when starting a company with personal savings or money from relatives and friends, early signs of success are intoxicating.  Each new customer, each … Continue reading

Posted in Finding your ideal niche, Ignition! Starting up | Leave a comment

Can you profit by serving early adaptors?

I am a gadget freak, often purchasing new technologies in their first release.  And my closet is full of such gadgets, from early pen-based computers to early brick-sized cell phones to an electronic handwriting recognition pad received as a gift … Continue reading

Posted in Finding your ideal niche, Positioning | 4 Comments

Can you defend your pricing niche against your competition?

This week, we continue our series on marketing and positioning. There can be nothing more important in your business planning that selecting the proper pricing niche, making your story clear using that niche, and the defending your position against the … Continue reading

Posted in Finding your ideal niche, Positioning | Leave a comment

Faster is sometimes more valuable than better.

And doing both well usually wins the day. This is one of those arguable insights, where both sides win.  Dell is a great example of emphasis upon fast, creating a customized computer in 48 hours or less, bringing in assemblies … Continue reading

Posted in Finding your ideal niche, Growth!, Positioning | 2 Comments

Wasted time is money lost.

[wdm_image_effects effect=”no_effect” animation=”slideInLeft” shape=”no_shape” color=”#000″ social=”” title=”Wasting-ti” description=”Wasting-time” id=”3056″ show=”hover” counter=”0″ size=”thumbnail”/] There is a relationship between time and money that is more complex than most managers think.  Fixed overhead for salaries, rent, equipment leases and more make up the … Continue reading

Posted in Finding your ideal niche, Growth!, Protecting the business | 1 Comment

Greatly exceed early customer expectations.

First customers are critical. Greatly exceed expectations at all costs. There is so much history behind this insight, and so many stories that illustrate this point.  Your first customers for any product or service form your reference base, the important … Continue reading

Posted in Finding your ideal niche, Positioning | Leave a comment

Find your “teacher customer.”

Your customers know what they want more than you do.  Find one to teach you. [wdm_image_effects effect=”no_effect” animation=”slideInLeft” shape=”no_shape” color=”#000″ social=”” title=”red-apple-” description=”red-apple-for-teache” id=”3035″ show=”hover” counter=”0″ size=”medium”/] This week’s insight came from personal experience and from a good friend who … Continue reading

Posted in Finding your ideal niche | Leave a comment

Everything changes from concept to release.

[wdm_image_effects effect=”no_effect” animation=”slideInUp” shape=”no_shape” color=”#000″ social=”” title=”Plan-a-b-c” description=”Plan-a-b-c” id=”3044″ show=”hover” counter=”0″ size=”medium”/] You can take this headline as a rule, not an exception.  You’ll recognize the truism, “No battle plan ever survives contact with the enemy” first stated by German … Continue reading

Posted in Finding your ideal niche, Positioning | Leave a comment