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Process & Business Expansion

Why Family Business Success Planning is Important?

Introduction

  • Does your family-owned business falling?
  • How to make a Family Run Business successful?

??Hundreds of big family-run businesses collapsed over the last few decades in India due to a lack of efficient family business succession planning.

Most often, conflict among family members owing to leadership and wealth management and lack of long term planning lead to debacle of family-run businesses in India

 

In the view of problems faced by family-run business owners, the following 5 steps will help you to make proper family business succession planning process in the long term. 

Step #1: Long Term Leadership and Strategy

It is the first step of family business succession planning. 

The family-owned business that lacks long term leadership and strategy doesn’t go a long way. Success and longevity of a business depend on the long term vision and mission for executing strategies. 

A family run business often has old-fashioned leadership, which is incapable of formulating innovative execution strategies, involving new capital and people for a longer period.

With paternalistic control over its day-to-day affairs, such businesses are incapable of recruiting external people. 

Such a conservative style of doing business may work for a short period but fails in the long run. 

A leader in the family-run business must be capable of making an action plan for a longer period to maintain its credibility in the market. 

Step #2: Succession Planning

Pathetic family business succession planning has long been the prime reason behind their failure since centuries in India. 

The absence of systematic succession planning of business often triggers conflict among family members on the exit of an incumbent. 

According to the PwC report, ’Only 15% of family-owned businesses have a robust succession plan.’

During a sudden crisis of leadership, if there is no systematic pipeline of leadership, family members start confronting each other for the succession of business and end up hurting business.

Family elders who are heading the business need to best

Categories
Process & Business Expansion

How to get J-Curve in Business?

?Introduction

  • Are you worried about continuous loss-making in your business?
  • Do you want your business to get J-curve growth?
  • What is J-curve in business?

No business has ever become successful without having committed any mistake. 

They became successful through bringing in continuous improvements in their businesses.

In essence, they adopted J-curve growth strategy to turn around their business.

J-Curve in Business

After continuous failures, when a business makes a remarkable re-entry into the market in a new avatar, it is denoted as J-curve growth in business.  

J-Curve in business is a situation when a business makes a steep upward movement after the persistent downfall.

Let us understand J-curve growth in the business world with the help of some examples.

Instagram
   

It started as a mobile gaming application named Burbn but failed as it was a heavy application to run on mobile phones.

However, people liked the function of uploading photographs by taking selfies.      

It was re-launched again with the name ’Instagram’ with full features of photo uploading and sharing and it gets J curve in business.

YouTube
     

It started as an online dating site. It failed. It was bought by Google in 2006 and it converted it into a video search engine.

Today, it has become the world’s largest video sharing platform. It gets J curve growth in business.

Flipkart and Amazon
      

They started as small online book stores. After learning from mistakes, they brought extensive changes in their business model and finally, they get J curve in business.

Paytm
        

J-curve effect could well be understood by how Paytm became India’s number 1 payment transfer platform over the night. 

It started as a small online mobile recharge website, which was a failure.    

With astounding J-curve growth, it bounced back and became India’s largest online payment platform.

Facebook
    

It started as an online dating site, named, Hot or Not
. It failed because people did not want to be disliked by others in public.

Learning from previous experiences, Mark Zuckerberg launched Facebook that became the world’s biggest social media platform. 

Shopify

It was started as a snowboard equipment venture. It proved to be a failure.    

It was launched as an online platform for budding entrepreneurs to use this to customize their online store, build a new sales channel, manage unlimited inventory and track your sales and growth trend. From this online platform, it gets J curve in business.

Groupon

It was initially launched as an online socially responsible platform to mobilize people towards any social cause.

It was converted into a category crusher, where a group of people come for heavy negotiation and discounting and it got J curve in business.

Twitter

ODEO was a mobile application used to search and subscribe podcasts. It could not sustain itself in the market against Apple’s iTunes. It was launched again as Twitter and today it is the world’s biggest microblogging platform.

Starbucks

Till 1983, Starbucks sold coffee beans and coffee machines.

While traveling to Europe, Howard Schultz, the founder of Starbucks got an idea to sell brewed coffee to customers.

Today, it is the largest chain of coffeehouses across the world.

Android
        

Similar was the story of Android which was launched by a group of people in California in 2003 as a platform to connect the camera with the computer.

It got J-curve growth when Google acquired Android in 2005 and brought significant changes in it. Today it is the single largest mobile operating system in the world.

In the above example, you can observe that no business became successful in the first attempt. They had to taste the failure, before becoming successful.

Your first product is never your final product.

Your first product is meant only for testing. So, if you get failed, then do not worry. Learn from the mistakes you made and build an improvement cycle.

Categories
Process & Business Expansion

How to increase market share

??Introduction

  • Do you want to know how to increase market share?
  • Do you want to take your business to the next level?
  • Do you want to monopolize the market?

If you are struggling to get your business on track or want to know how to increase market share to compete in the market, this article is going to help you a lot.  

It will not only help you to increase your market share but to monopolize the market as a whole.

Do not Compete, Monopolize the Market

This point will help you to know how to increase market share. 

In a competitive market, you have to struggle to increase your market share. However, in a monopolistic market, you get the 100% market share and competition becomes null and void.

Instead of Improving Your Weakness, Improve Your Strengths 

If you keep focusing on improving your weaknesses, even after endless efforts you won’t be able to reach 100% perfection. But, if you identify your unique signature strength and focus on improving that strength, you will attain 100% perfection quickly.

For example:

If you get 3/10 marks in public speaking and 7/10 marks in article writing, then public speaking is your weakness. If you try to improve your public speaking, then it will take a lot of time and effort to reach 10/10.

On the other hand, if you focus on improving your writing skills, then it will take less effort and time to reach 10/10 from 7/10, as you are already good at it.

Thus, in business, you should keep on working on your unique signature strength. This will help

you to increase your market share.

Become Unique Not Best

?’If you try to be the Best, you will become number one. 

But, if you try to remain Unique, then you will be the Only One.’

If you become the best, you will have the largest market share. But, if you become unique, 100% market share will be yours.

For example:

?If you are not good at cooking, then it will take so much time and energy to improve it a bit. You will feel difficulty in improving it as it’s not your area of interest and part of your psychophysical nature.

But, if you are good at motivational speaking and you invest the same energy and time in it, then you can improve it quickly. You can become a master and mentor in this area and will be recognized for your talent all over the world.

Outsource Your Weaknesses

If you are weak in cooking food, then instead of wasting your time and energy in improving it, just outsource it, and focus all your energy in your strength. 

The same goes for business, rather than investing all your resources in improving a weak area, just get it done by others and focus all your energy in improving strong areas to increase your market share and become unique enough to monopolize the whole market.

Identify your Unique Signature Strength

If you will create another Facebook or WhatsApp, no one will use it. Original property registry comes for thousands of rupees, but the photocopy has no value. Don’t try to copy others, instead try to be original. 

  • Don’t Copy Success
  • Break the Rules
  • Change the Rules
  • Create new strength
  • Focus on strength

You Were Born Original, Don’t Die Like a Copy
 

Since childhood, you are trained to improve the areas in which you are weak. Leave that old notion, now the rules have changed, today you can make a career in any field. You just need to identify your unique signature strength. The market has evolved in the digital world. Whatever is your strength, it can become your career.

’Stop trying to fit in; when you were born to stand out.’

Times have changed, now, you don’t need to become a doctor, lawyer, engineer or chartered accountant: you can become what you believe in.

Categories
Process & Business Expansion

How to Develop a Business Model to Make Loyal Customers?

Introduction

  • How to develop a business model?
  • Are you unable to developing an effective business model?

You might be a budding entrepreneur and like other successful entrepreneurs, you also might be vying to establish a successful business.

But, are you too struggling to develop an effective business model?If yes, then this article is a must-read for you.

If you too are looking for ways of how to develop a business model, then the “ABCDE Model” as we have created, is going to help you out as much as never before.

What is ABCDE Model?

A = Analyze || B = Brainstorm || C = Create || D = Deliver || E = Evaluate

Let us look at all aspects of the ABCDE model one by one.

Analyze

For developing an effective business model you need to analyze your target customers and the target geographical area.

You need to put your feet in your customer’s shoes to understand their behavioral pattern and their needs.

It is then only you will be able to strike the right chord of your customers.

Brainstorm
Analyzing is followed by brainstorming the gathered data along with your team to understand the customers’ needs.

A small survey can be done in the market to understand your customers’ needs.

You have to do an assessment of your target customers by asking them questions.

On the basis of analysis of those surveys and responses, you have to create your product or service.

Create
After understanding the customers’ needs, and developing an effecting business model, you have to establish your factory or business to start production of the desired product or service.

Many entrepreneurs think that the success of their first product will either make them millionaire or doom them.


While producing your first product, keep in mind that the first product is never your final product. It is only meant for testing and not for success.

So, you must be prepared for the first failure!

But, you must analyze ‘why the first product failed?’ and improve accordingly.

Deliver
After producing a product or service, your next step should be the delivery.

You need to select a proper channel to deliver and distribute your product or service to the customer in a cost-effective manner.

Evaluate
Now, as you have delivered your first product, it’s time for you to evaluate your product by getting customers’ feedback.

It is also called testing, measuring, and adapting.

You need to assess whether you have achieved Customer Delight or not.

If not, then you have to bring changes in your product accordingly.

You have to improve your solution architecture repeatedly to reach Customer Delight, which is a continuous process.

If you genuinely adopt the “ABCDE Model”, you will never have a question like how to develop a business model that can take you to the level ahead.

Categories
Process & Business Expansion

Importance of Distributor Selection Criteria 2025

If you want to expand your business in the whole country, you should have a good distribution network. You should have a big distribution network including distributor, wholesaler, retailer, and dealers.

Partner or Distributor Selection Criteria

How can you grow exponentially with the help of proper criteria for the selecting and appointing distributors?

Selecting and appointing distributors involves the following activities:

  • Conduct the due diligence of your partners or distributors accurately.
  • Understand the pattern of the sales success and financial pattern of your partner or distributor.
  • Check the balance sheet of the distributor.
  • Check the profitability and Earnings before Interest, Depreciation, Tax, and Amortization (EBIDTA) of the distributor.
  • Determine the amount of cash and debt of the distributor.

If your distributor is in debt, he will try to come out of debt with your help while you are seeking his help to succeed.

In such a case, both of you won’t be able to succeed. So, distribution channel selection criteria play a vital role in the success of your business.

Recruitment Process Manager or Channel Partner Manager

Along with a strong distribution channel selection criteria, you need to establish a recruitment process to expand your business in the whole country.

Hire recruitment process manager. He/she will perform the following functions:

  • Check and search channel partners in all the territories of the country.
  • Understand the succession planning of different territories.
  • Identify the distributors and retailers who can replace the existing non-performing distributors and retailers.
  • Collect the professional relationship data of distributors and partners.
  • Forecast the sales of the company from different territories.
    Forecast the manpower required in different territories to expand the business.

Recruitment Package

  • Provide great offers and a total solution to the distributors and partners. Give proper training and services to the distributors and partners.
  • Make an exciting price catalogue for the distributors and partners so that they can estimate their Return on Investment (ROI) easily.
  • Provide demo team support and marketing support to the distributors and partners.
  • Show your media plan support, product customization feature, and testimonial references to the distributors and partners.
    Provide guarantee, warranty, free samples, scheme, and incentives to the distributors and partners.
  • Understand the business of your retailers and distributors.
    Identify how your retailers and distributors are earning and losing money.
  • Provide a clear goal to your distributors and partners.
    Provide an up-selling incentive to your distributors and partners.
  • Invest some money and time on distributors and partners by attending their family functions, conducting corporate lunch, etc. to build healthy relationships.

In some businesses, you don’t require a distributor or retailer. You can go online or build some alternative channels to reach your customers. You need to understand which channel is required in your business.

Categories
Process & Business Expansion

Product Positioning Strategies to Grow Your Business

The first rule is to identify your perfect audience because you cannot sell the product everywhere at different prices.

Whether you are an Entrepreneur, a Businessman, a Start-up or a Sales-executive, everyone wants to know the best product positioning strategies for their company or products in the market.

To position your products effectively, you should use the product-quality matrix. In the product quality matrix, there are primarily four product positioning techniques.

You can position your product in any of these markets depending on the type of product.

Let’s study these four quadrants, i.e. the product positioning strategies in detail.

Quadrant #1: Value for Money Market

In this market, companies sell good quality products at a low price. Such products are value for money.

Let us study some of the product positioning strategies examples of value for the money market.

For Example:
Suzuki’s car is considered as value for money because not only it’s resale value is good but also runs smoothly.

Another example is Relaxo; their slippers are long-lasting as well as pocket-friendly.

Quadrant #2: Opportunistic Market

  • In this quadrant, prices of the products are high but their quality is low.
  • There are no regular or repeat customers and products. Therefore, the vendor’s sole intention is to make as much profit as possible like the market at the Railway station, Highway or at Cinema halls.

Let us study some of the product positioning strategies examples of opportunistic market.

For Example:

Every day new tourists visit the Taj Mahal in Agra. So, shopkeepers’ or vendors’ priority is to make a maximum profit not to provide high-quality products or services.

 

Remember, in a defined category, if you are offering products at a high price with low quality, then your business will not survive.

An opportunistic market can only survive in limited space; hence you should carefully position your product.

Quadrant #3: Chinese Goods Market

  • In this quadrant, both the price and quality of products are low.
  • Here, buyers usually price-sensitive; therefore, sellers dump their cheap products in such a market for a better return.

Let us study some of the product positioning strategies examples of Chinese goods market.

  • You must have seen Chinese toys; their shelf-life is very short as the product is of low quality but the price is very competitive.
  • Here, the financial value becomes your proposition, for instance, Chinese lights on Diwali, Road-side toy seller, etc.

Quadrant #4: Premium Market

  • In this quadrant, both price and quality of product are high.
  • Branding and positioning of the product are done in such a manner that high-quality products can be sold at a very high price.

Let us study some of the product positioning strategies examples of the premium market.

 

For Example:

Brands like Versace, Louis Vuitton, Gucci, etc. are selling purse, bags, clothing lines, and accessories at a premium price.

A good quality bag which can be bought at ? 7000, they are selling similar products at over ? 70,000 – 80,000. They have positioned their products in such a manner that they sell selected products at a premium price. They have a limited market but huge margins.

Similarly, the actual price of Apple’s phone may be ? 30,000 but they sell the product for over ? 70,000 and get huge margins. Apple has created high aspirational value for their product so much that even a common man is willing to buy it on loan.

Generally, brands stick to one of the four quadrants but there are some organizations who use different product positioning strategies to launch their products.

For Example:

Relaxo’s brand, Flite comes under value for money quadrant but its Sparx brand is positioned under premium quadrant.

Similarly, Maruti Suzuki has positioned its Nexa in the premium segment. For this, the company had opened a separate Nexa showroom because they were not able to sell the product at premium prices.

If you will try to move into a different quadrant with the existing brand or without creating and positioning the new brand, the market will drag you to the lower quadrant again.

Therefore, to create a different brand, as done by Relaxo, you have to change the positioning of the product completely.