Being a successful business entrepreneur requires being able to maintain a healthy balance between passion and reality – between the emotional reasons why you’re in business and the realities of carrying out the day-to-day tasks in getting the business off the ground and keeping it afloat. To put the odds of success more in your favor, it helps to think like a journalist who is trained early on to use the five “w”s and a “how framework”.
Who, what, where, when, why, and how.
Delving into these questions and answering them will help comprise the strategic underpinnings of your business and guide execution and operations.
Who — is your target market? Be specific – it can’t be everyone. If you think this way you are destined to fail. You can’t be all things to all people. Get into the head of your customer base (i.e., what brings someone to you, why would he/she be interested in what you have to offer). Create a representative persona on each key segment– think through every possible detail of a representative person’s life, background, and thought process. Customer or user personas help us make better business decisions and help us communicate efficiently and effectively.
What – do you do? Even more so, what problem are you trying to solve? Dig deep—what are the pain points that people may have? What value in addressing or solving them do you provide?
Where — do people (i.e., potential customers and existing customers) congregate both on and offline? Where do people find out about you? Meet your target market where they’re at.
Why – are you in business? Why should people care? No, it’s not just about making a profit – that’s just the result of why you are in business. If you do nothing else – be able to communicate why you exist—it is the heart and soul of your business. People don’t buy what you do; they buy why you do it.
How — are you different from your competitors? If you tell me you have no competition, I’m going to scoff at you. Even Alexander Graham Bell, the inventor of the telephone, had competition. For example, the post office was a competitor. The answer to this “how” question tends to be more factual – the “proof” points that cater to the rational part of people’s brains and help them justify the emotional component of their decisions/actions.
As you go about crafting the story of your startup, think like a journalist who asks the tough questions. If done correctly, it will lead to compelling answers that will provide the foundation for your business strategy, get everyone involved on the same page, and ultimately guide the execution critical in growing your business.
Cindi Rosner is a hands-on, full-stack marketer and business strategist who has over fifteen years experience helping start-ups and small businesses develop and execute efficient, cost-effective, multi-channel marketing plans and programs, brand strategies and customer acquisition and retention campaigns (both online and offline). She is also a marketing consultant and part of the Startup Connection resource team.
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