Business Plan Advice

As we all look for something special, something that stands out about the product or service plan to launch it is important to look at what expert’s got to say.

In any case it will only be beneficial to our own idea if you take a closer look at what people like Mark Cuban, Carlos Slim and Steve Blank have in mind.

Steve Blank is a New Yorker, founder or E.phipany and professor at Berkley University. In his article titled “No one wins in Business Plan Competitions” he talks about the importance of moving from business plans to business models. 

Blank is certainly in disagreement with schools that encourage business plans competition which, to his perspective, only “makes the school appear relevant to their constituencies; students, donors, faculty, VC’s”. Instead he proposes the implementation of business models. This new theory is focused on staying true to the customer rather than the market. It is an on-going and ever-changing evaluation of the company performance rather than an original plan that may or may not work.

The business model proposal is based on 5 steps:

• What did you initially think your initial business model was? (Initial business model hypotheses)
• What did you build/do? (Built first product, talked to users, etc.)
• What did you learn outside the building? (Parts of our feature set/business model were wrong)
• Then what did you do? (iterated product, changed business model, etc.)
• Repeat steps 1-4

Other great examples come from people I admire personally. Not only for being great entrepreneurs but also for being outspoken and even reckless at times.

Mark Cuban, the owner of the Dallas Mavericks, creator of Magnolia Pictures, Cable TV executive and now television contributor for Shark Tank has earned his way into the most successful people in business lists.

As I design my business plan and the goals I want to achieve by creating a new service I read that is important “not to follow your passion but to follow your effort”.

In this blog post Cuban explains the importance of time as an asset for company and stressed the simple fact that doing something that you like in a repetitive manner makes you better at it. By being better at it you start working harder for more improvements and eventually you become successful.

Finally I decided to take advice from one the richest man in the world. Carlos Slim has built a 35 billion dollar value for his companies. This magnate built most of his assets through Telmex, the biggest telecommunications and cell phone companies in Mexico.

Regardless of his image, usually a strict and money driven person, he has given excellent pointers to entrepreneurs like us. In an interview with the New Yorker  Slim talks about his business perspectives but an article written by Tiffani Jones Brand for Second & Park puts things into a much concise way:

• Create a simple organizational structure with minimal hierarchies; provide personal development and in-house training for executives.
• Don’t be a big fish in a small pond. Don’t invest in non-productive assets.
• Clear objectives and the right tools will lead you through all challenges.
• Reinvest profits in the company. Money that leaves the company evaporates.
• True corporate creativity can be helpful to both business and society.
• Firm and patient optimism always yields rewards.
• Know how to work hard, and use the right tools.
• Leave with nothing. We can only do things while we are alive. Businessmen are creators of the wealth that they temporarily manage.

Sports & social media buzz

Social Media has really been shaping the way that people interact on the Internet. It is no longer only the savvy users or the programmers who are able to reach out for current. It is mother like mine who find applications such as “Edmondo” which allows you to rate your exercise performance based on audio feedback. This may not sound very impressive, I know, but remember that 5 years ago a lot of people, including for example my own mother, where completely clueless about the Internet, smart phones or applications.

One of the most significant ways that my mother and millions of users are quickly catching on with technology are social media sites. By “friending” companies that they like and following people whom they respect they opened an incredible window for business to gain popularity, make advertising money and at the same time be under real scrutiny of the client.

An example of this connection was utilized by the MLB in the All-Star game. After last year’s event when some players where tweeting while waiting their turn at bat the Baseball league understood that the buzz was a testament of how much people cared to hear about their athletes. Now a week after the big event the numbers are in. USA Today published the success of this strategy and determined that the comments on Facebook and Twitter increase up to a %257 over last year, also, this led to a %3 increase in TV ratings for Fox.  

It is now time for the next challenge and there is already huge buzz in the industry about what’s at stake for the London Olympics. Most of the athletes participating in this competition have embraced and social media as a way to connect with fans. The experts are already calling this the “first social media games” and acknowledging the potential of generating revenue through social channels.