The Importance of Adaptability: What Allows Startups to Succeed

It is widely renowned that a successful business is typically established on 5 pillars: the business model, the concept, the people in the organization, profitability, and timing. With these well-established, any business can successfully take off and change the world right? This is a common misconception that many businesses run on and sometimes are brutally awoken by reality. The missing ingredient here is adaptability to consumer interests. 

Start-ups have to realize that trends change and sticking to the same model can narrow their window of opportunities. It is common for companies to focus on the purpose they’ve served to earn their success. However, as history has shown us, companies unable to remain purposeful in years of change become irrelevant. Some examples of this can be seen by Blockbuster, Myspace, Toys R Us, Nokia, and the list goes on.

Researchers found that 65% of companies fail within their first 10 years in business. Why do they fail? It is often because they lack a plan for the future of the industry they’re in or simply cannot keep up.

A company can be incredibly profitable yet in a matter of months, its profitability can quickly fade if unable to adapt to the ever-changing markets. For this reason, companies must spend time analyzing consumer trends and preparing to adapt to the new trends. Now the question is what are trends companies should look for to be prepared?

Let’s look at what to consider:

Who Is Your Audience?

In recent years, millennials (born from 1980 to 2000) have dictated consumer trends immensely. The average yearly spending of a millennial is nearly $60,000 and 91% of them prefer to shop online. What does this mean for retail workers? If only 9% of the largest consumer base prefers to shop in a store, could stores become obsolete in the future? Generations come and go, and so does their influence on the economy.

Millennials are the largest consumer age demographic in the United States (the country with the largest consumer market). Companies should frequently review the trends of the audience they’re targeting, chances are millennials will be involved in this audience. Marketing teams must meet to discuss strategies in appealing to the audience, also to decipher where they can best reach them. 

Sales Process Involvement

As an entrepreneur, you delegate tasks to individuals throughout the organization which is the right thing to do. However, the one area a business leader must not detach themselves from is the sales relationship with consumers. Actively engaging with your customers provides the highest level of insight into changing consumer trends and values. This is especially useful for smaller companies. As the leader of the organization, maintaining a direct and positive relationship can lead to repeat business. 

You Never Know Enough

It doesn’t matter how successful you or your company are, you never know everything and should never have an attitude that demonstrates that you think you do. “Much of what I stumbled into by following my curiosity and intuition turned out to be priceless later on” - Steve Jobs. Always being open to new ideas, trends, discussions, and changes is a tool that will carry businesses through even the toughest of storms. Leaders should make it a priority to never become complacent and always look for new ways to inspire.

Conclusion

Success can have its downsides if handled improperly, specifically if the success is viewed as the end goal. No matter what anyone has achieved, it is impossible to achieve the highest level of perfection. Organizations and leaders should aim to set the bar higher, look for new ways to provide value, and never fall into the trap of comfort.  

Written By Ben Brown

—

ISU Corp is an award-winning software development company, with over 17 years of experience in multiple industries, providing cost-effective custom software development, technology management, and IT outsourcing.

Our unique owners’ mindset reduces development costs and fast-tracks timelines. We help craft the specifications of your project based on your company's needs, to produce the best ROI. Find out why startups, all the way to fortune 500 companies like General Electric, Heinz, and many others have trusted us with their projects. Contact us here.

Imposter Syndrome: Overcoming the Feeling of Not Belonging

Our achievements can sometimes feel like they’re moving faster than we are, that we are not yet the person we’ve created through hard work. This is a common psychological response when we step into a new role known as imposter syndrome. This feeling can overpower us in some cases, making us worry that we are not good enough or capable of handling the role. It is important to recognize that giving in to this feeling is not allowing you to move forward.

However, “not giving in” is a lot easier said than done, especially when we are competing against ourselves. Yet, having this feeling is a good reflection of your character, it shows you have humility. In a leadership role, humility is a defining characteristic of great leaders. This is in contrast to leaders who lack humility and almost have a sense of entitlement to possess power. 

The first thing to do when you begin doubting yourself is to think back to everything you’ve been through to get to this point. If you’ve just been promoted, think of all the late nights, early mornings, and sacrifices it took to get there. Think of the times your staying power was tested but you knew what you were doing was worth it.

You want this added layer of confidence to do your job effectively, but overcoming your inner voice can be very challenging. When this is the case, it’s important to know how to gain your confidence back. Not only is this important for yourself, but it is pivotal to effectively complete tasks and reach objectives. If you are in a leadership role, imposter syndrome can loom over your ability to lead others. The risks for not taming imposter syndrome stack up.

With that said, let's look at what you can do to solve it:

Seek Out Advancement

People can be doing a great job in the position they’re currently in, an opportunity for advancement in the company can come up but they won’t go after it. Why won’t they go after it? It’s simple, they don’t think they can handle it. However, it’s important to know that this will lead to someone else in the role to which you may or may not agree with their leadership.

Know your worth and you set your standards. Why settle for less when you know you can do more? If the ideas you bring to the table can benefit the organization, then holding them back is a disservice.

Ask Questions

A lot of times stepping into a role you’re nervous about will make you feel like you should know everything. This is never the case, don’t feel that you should go into it knowing everything, be curious and observe. No matter what position you’re in you should always ask questions up and down the hierarchy. Now with this, you’ll need to ensure that the questions you ask are meaningful.

Again, humility is important but too much humility can make you seem incompetent. Questions regarding areas you need to be caught up to speed on should, by all means, be asked. On the other hand, if there is something you can answer yourself by simply doing research or observing, then do that.

Find Supportive People

Working with others means being part of a team. Members must support each other, which means there is a level of trust established within the team. Cohesion within the organization will allow production processes to operate much more smoothly. Communication can flow much more effectively and issues can be handled without confusion. In addition, a trusted support group will build your comfort being in this new position. Once you identify the people you can depend on, you can build a network. 

Conclusion

Feeling out of place in a new position is normal, it reflects well on your care and consideration for the task at hand. While this humility is a good trait for a leader, it does have the power to hinder your ability to oversee your duties effectively. Recognize times when you need to ask for help and use your emotional intelligence to assess each new challenge.

You will inevitably find ways to build this comfort in your new role. While they may not always make you want to jump at the challenge, they will have their pay off. Don't be afraid to take risks, discomfort is what will mold you into a competent leader.

We work with successful companies to increase their net profits using exceptional custom software solutions, contact us here to see how we can help your business grow!

Joining Forces: Company Collaboration Benefits

While businesses are working towards goals, competition will inevitably arise and pose some concerns within the organization. This is especially true if sales are tight between two organizations or one is outperforming the other. When this happens, brands tend to label each other as “competitors” and work hard to gain the upper hand. While this in some cases gives brands character and contributes to their public image (Pepsi Vs. Coke) other companies can be hesitant to work together even when provided the opportunity.

Yet, not every company should be quick to close themselves off to collaborations. Opportunities for collaborations should always be considered by brands, as a partnership can lead to a bigger audience. This is especially relevant in start-up companies as they are growing. Partnerships with other companies can be beneficial to their publicity. The joining of organizations can offer fresh perspectives and input from both parties aimed at benefiting both businesses.

In addition, there’s access to greater capital for both parties when their networks combine.

Now is brand partnership and collaboration necessary? No, not every company will benefit or feel comfortable merging. This is especially true if an organization has built itself to a point of high performance on its own. However, other organizations can benefit from their creative process and audience reach. A good example of a situation where mutual benefits can be achieved would be two brands targeting the same audience but providing different services.

Take GoPro and Red Bull, their products appeal to extreme sports athletes yet serve different purposes with their products. A collaboration between them opens up access to wider audience exposure, skills/experience, and advertising advantages. This is one situation where collaborations can work in many different ways. Now how can your organization apply this methodology in a way that will be beneficial?

Here’s what you can do:

Build A National Network

Expanding your reach is the ultimate goal with collaboration, what better way to do that than connecting with organizations established out of your territory. For example, if you are a Canadian company based in Ontario and the majority of your product sales are from your province, with a close second being British Columbia. Partnering with a company based in British Columbia expands your reach to their market. From there you can continue to branch out as sales and demand increase. 

Promote Your Partnership

With a partnership between brands, the influx of clientele should be maximized by promoting what you’re offering. This is when utilizing your network and social media is essential. Creative teams should develop drafts as a top priority when collaboration is official. Social media is especially important here, sharing your content is efficient and receiving feedback is much more direct than anywhere else. In addition, calls to action can be easily accessed by your audience (Instagram has a great CTA feature) so be strategic with the ad approach you take. 

Collaborate On Products Or Services

Does your business lack the ability to earn high-profile clients or lockdown contracts because the client chooses to go with a bigger or more well-known company?. At the moment of rejection, it is easy to label that company as competition. However, an optimistic leader may see an opportunity for growth. Especially as a small business, having the opportunity to partner with a larger organization can offer a bigger base for clientele.

In addition, you both may bring something to the table that the other doesn’t. Joining forces in some way can prevent missing out on sales growth and help both organizations grow.

Conclusion

Running a business is never a solo effort, it requires support from the bottom up with an endless need for collaboration within the team. This collaboration, however, can reflect beyond the team to the organization as a whole. Opportunities for partnerships can provide an abundance of learning opportunities and take an organization beyond anything it could reach on its own. Essentially it comes down to what will best benefit both parties and appeal most to the target audience. 

We work with successful companies to increase their net profits using exceptional custom software solutions, contact us here to see how we can help your business grow!