5 Questions Every Wannabe Business Mogul Must Answer

Dear Reader,

I started my own Internet home-based business last week, poking my eyes out from under the pile of leaves I was hiding under? Actually, I have been working as a sales and marketing manager for a publicly traded billion dollar company for the past 8 years and still do. I grew my business with a major U.S. retailer from zilch to over $13 million annually in sales, sitting at my desk with a phone, an Internet connection, decent products, and my imagination. No marketing budget allowed.

I have found there are five basic questions every successful business professional must answer in preparation for going to market and succeeding in it. You will recognize these questions, so I am going to design this article as an exercise, so once you have completed it, you will walk away with the five most important questions answered. The objective of this game is for you to find one product or service to sell to people who need and/or want it. The rules of the game are simple: set a target, focus on it, and keep after it until you win. Winning is fulfilling customer wants and needs the best, so they will give you enough money to cover your costs and reward you for your excellence. The game is no fun sitting in its box in the closet. You must reach up, pull it down, and start playing to have any fun. Minimum required materials: one sheet of blank paper, one pen or pencil, one or more players. To get started, complete these exercises:

Exercise #1: Who are my customers?
Brainstorm for 5 minutes with a pen and blank sheet of paper. Focus on getting the ideas on the paper. Do not censor yourself. If you already think you know the answer, keep trying to find more answers and more prospective customers. Do the exercise now.

Visit http://searchmarketing.yahoo.com/rc/srch/ and use the Keyword Selector tool for 5 minutes and enter your customer brainstorm ideas one at a time to see how many Internet searches took place on your customer the prior month.

Brainstorm for 5 minutes on the following questions: How can I help my customers reach the people searching for them, their products and their services? What products and services can I design to bring my customer together with his audience?

List your top three customer niches (e.g. optometrists, opticians and ophthalmologists).

Exercise #2: What am I selling?
Take 3 minutes and quickly list your current products and services If you do not have a product or service yet, simply list ideas and concepts based on your hobbies, passions, interests or areas where you want to know more.

Remember how you are selling is intimately wrapped up in what you are selling. List how you will be selling. Will you cold call your prospects? Will you write a newsletter? Will you conduct demonstrations? Will you utilize customer testimonials? Will you train your customers? Will you manage your customer?s problems for them? How about radio? TV? Internet audio? Internet video?

Brainstorm for 5 minutes and get some juicy ideas. Focus on writing down ideas and concepts for new products and services. Get your friends, co-workers, boss, and other interested people involved. Alternatively, bang it out yourself. Either way works. Consider creating informational or educational products for fast turn around and high margins.

Visit http://searchmarketing.yahoo.com/rc/srch/ and use the Keyword Selector tool and enter your ideas into the tool and list the number of searches associated with each of them.

Evaluate your list of concepts, list your #1 new product and service concept, and commit to testing it with your customers and prospects.

Exercise #3: What is my price?

Estimate your production costs.

List your profit target. Make sure you cover all your costs.

Make sure you mark up the price above your costs.

Decide your starting price and test different price points with customers and prospects.

Reminder: Prices do not have to remain the same. They?re like water. Your prospects are like seasons. Sometimes winter. Sometimes it is summer. Be flexible.

Exercise #4: Why will prospects and customers fill the gap between their need and buying?
Brainstorm for 5 minutes to come up with reasons why your customer and prospects will choose your new product or service will meet their needs. Write your answers down in bullet points.

What actual need does my new product or service fulfill?

What is my record of accomplishment with them?

What sources of proof do you have to support your claims?

How will you demonstrate your product or service to them before they buy it?

What guarantees will you offer?

What else will turn the light on for your customers?

Exercise #5: What do my customers get out of my product or service? Here we go again?
Brainstorm the benefits your customers will get out of doing business with you? Think big and small. See the big picture. See the little picture. Be your customer.

What physical benefits will your customer enjoy?

What emotional benefits will they enjoy?

What intellectual benefits will they enjoy?

What spiritual benefits will they enjoy?

Bonus Exercise: Go read a good book. Call or email me if you want a few suggestions.

In closing, just a quick word of encouragement. You already have the vast majority of the answers and information needed to succeed with your passions and interests. Get started. Go for it!

Garth Bradley, B.A. Garth studied Philosophy at the University of California, Irvine. He studied the Japanese martial art of Aikido for many years. He is a member of American Mensa. He has won many awards for sales success at a publicly traded billion-dollar company. He was recognized as Rookie of the Year. He was also recognized as Account Manager of the Year for Highest Revenue over Target. He has been recognized in several other ways. Most recently, he managed a $26 million dollar line of business. He lives near San Francisco with his wife and son. He recently started his own Internet based business.

Copyright 2005 Garth Bradley. Please feel free to pass this
article on to your friends, or use it in your ezine or
newsletter. It's a shareware article.

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Garth Bradley 1350 Hayes Street, Suite C4 Benicia, CA 94510 (707) 746-1875 www.garthbradley.com