“A drug user is not buying drugs. He’s buying happiness. Know what you’re selling.”
–Anonymous Software Executive
Always keep in mind that software and drugs are the only two industries that refer to their customers as “users”!
Author, Investor, Speaker, Mentor
“A drug user is not buying drugs. He’s buying happiness. Know what you’re selling.”
–Anonymous Software Executive
Always keep in mind that software and drugs are the only two industries that refer to their customers as “users”!
One related item: know who your customers are. My wife told me about a beauty salon she sold; she’s a business broker who helps people buy and sell small businesses.
Beauty salons typically have a “seat rental” model where they either rent seats for a flat fee per hour to stylists, or they split service fees with stylists. In either way, the real “customer” of a beauty salon are the stylists, who tend to have a large group of frequent visitors who follow them as they move from one salon to another. (Other businesses that have a similar model include massage parlors, some higher-end gyms with personal trainers, etc.)
In this case, the new owner treated her stylists unpleasantly as “employees”, and they shortly left for friendlier pastures. It didn’t take very long for this owner to develop a bad name among the stylist community. She tried to hire stylists as direct employees, but she got very green stylists who didn’t attract the sort of frequent flyers who make beauty shops work. So, her business ended up failing.
Moral: know who brings in the business – it may not be who you think…