The Ultimate Business Constraint

Running a business is tough. I used to run my own business. It was hard work. I have the utmost respect for anybody who does it.

The constraint on my business wasn’t the lack of good ideas or cash — I have plenty of ideas and I could always find somebody to lend me money.  The constraint on my business was a lack of paying customers.

• You can’t dream up a new customer
• You can’t go to a bank and borrow a customer

Finding new customers is tough.  Once you have a customer or two it is best to keep them.

Being a customer is tough

Now put yourself in the customer’s shoes. It is easy to do.

As a customer, it is hard to find a good supplier — has anybody ever asked you to recommend a good builder, or plumber, or baby sitter?  As customers, we want somebody we can trust. We want a supplier who is going to do what they say they are going to do.

Once we have a supplier we can trust we rarely look for anybody else.

The key word is trust

If you want your customers to stay then you have to make sure they trust you.

• You don’t supply substandard products
• You don’t charge existing customers more than new customers
• You don’t lock them in so they can’t cancel their membership
• You don’t fudge your legal responsibilities

If you give your customers reason to trust you then they will stay.

The greatest constraint on your business is a lack of customers. And the way to overcome it is trust.