Entrepreneurs are not as smart as we think we are

This piece was originally published in March of 2004.

Recently my landscaping company hired a marketing research company to help us find out for certain why our past clients chose us and why other consumers would pick us. I’m done guessing why they chose us; I want to know for sure.  We’ve done this in the past, but the information is so important, we’re doing it again. And that’s what I wanted to talk to you about this month – the importance of finding out why your clients did, in fact, choose to do business with you.

Entrepreneurs are a funny bunch. Whether you are one or work with one, you can undoubtedly identify with some of the following conclusions:

Entrepreneurs are creative. They are frequently coming up with new ideas. Some of them work and some of them do not.

Entrepreneurs are not afraid to take risks. There is story after story of the entrepreneurs who put everything on the line to make their businesses work.  Sometime the gambles pay off, sometimes they do not.

Entrepreneurs are excellent at talking themselves into the brilliance of their very own ideas. Some of them work, some do not.

Entrepreneurs sometimes don’t use logic. Once in a while you can get away with this, but most of time it will cost you.

Do any of these sound like you or your boss? I’m willing to bet that they do. And please don’t feel badly if I have described many of you very well.  I know how entrepreneurs think because I am one! You see, we really don’t answer to anyone, have few people challenge us, and end up making many decisions without the proper proof because we can. It is our business! However, smart entrepreneurs also know that any time you can improve your chances for success, you need to do it. I have an idea this month that will do just that, so read on carefully.

One of the biggest mistakes I made for years was marketing to my clients in the way I thought they wanted to be marketed to. You see, clients and prospects want to buy; they do not want to be sold. All of your marketing should center on this premise. We forget to ask our clients why they chose us; we think we can read their minds. For years, I sent out an eight-page newsletter, when all that I really needed to do was a two-page newsletter. For years, I sent out coupons, when all I needed to do was call people back right away. And for years, I spent thousands of dollars on advertising that did not work, when all I needed to do was ask my clients to tell their friends and family about us!

The reasons you think people do business with you are potentially not the same reasons your clients really do choose you. I encourage you to take some time and find out the real reasons your clients do business with you. It should be something that becomes part of your follow-up routine. Each time you complete a job, call or better yet visit with the clients and ask, “Why did you do business with us?” If you really see the value in this information (and I hope you do), then either hire a firm that specializes in surveying folks or, if your budget is tight, hire a marketing student from a local college and get them on the phone and sending out surveys to your clients. The sooner you find out this information, the more effective your marketing will be and the less money you will waste.

Once you find out the reasons your clients chose you, you can craft messages that work. Let me share with you what can happen when you follow my advice. A landscaper I have been working with in Atlanta, Georgia, thought for years his clients did business with him because of his prices. He was certain he was correct. I challenged him to find out for sure.  Once we surveyed his clients, we found out that price was not the real reason his clients spent money with him – his timely and friendly service was. Consequently, he raised prices slightly and hired a person whose sole job was to call and visit clients and make sure they were happy. 

On the written survey, we also asked the question, “Where did you hear about us?” Just by doing this, my client found out that most of his business was coming from other happy clients in the form of referrals, not from the $3,000/month yellow page ad he had. At last check the company’s sales and profits were up substantially, all because he decided to prove his theory. Had he not done this exercise, he never would have known why his clients did business with him and left money on the table. 

I hope you will spend some time in the next few months asking your clients why they do business with you and do more of that. Sure, this is a lot of work, but nothing in life comes easily and, more importantly, sometimes entrepreneurs are not as smart as we think we are.