Make your first million in the Resession! – Bill Cain

This week we have Bill Cain. Bill is a specialist in strategic business building and marketing in the SME sector. He also has years of experience in management and leadership development, in all sectors of industry, whatever the size of the organisation. Visit his website for more info: nextstep-entrepreneur.co.uk

Bill will be talking a little about his own entrepreneurial background and work within Southampton. He will also be outlining a few opportunities that he sees as arising from the current economic downturn.

These are my notes:

Stop Waiting, Start Selling.

If you want to get through to business directors:

1. Talk about their business' successes… then, ask if they've thought about the improvement you can offer.
2. Focus on Customers and Sales
3. Create management systems that free up your time
4. Entrepreneurs should not let themselves get tied up all the time
5. Check out Seth Godin's "Tribes"
6. Remember they are incredibly cost conscious at the moment. SELL THE SAVINGS.

"Age is not barrier if your ideas can stand up for themselves"

Starting a Company

• Find the Customers THEN find the business
• Legislation is excellent for making money fast if you can move fast. Look out for changes
• Have conviction in your investments
• Ask questions of everybody you meet. If they are in business mode, you should be selling.
  • Use the internet for marketing if you can. Check out Twitter, Linked in and Facebook.
  • Always ask questions when networking. "Have you thought about trying to save a bit of money in the current"
• If you leave a team together too long, new ideas may stop flowing. Mix it up. Break the pecking order, keep it fresh.
• Don't get comfortable, business can go stale
• Don't worry about "bootstrapping" to start but..
• Big ideas need big funding but be prepared to take a small percentage of the massive pie.

Doing Business in the Recession

• Loads of organisations going out of business
  • Expensive kit available very cheap! Just because they are failing doesn't mean you would.
  • Markets are opening up for strong, lean companies
• Your first leverage (borrowing) should come from close by
  • Beg
  • Borrow
  • Steal
• Generate ~20 ideas on around the same topic.
  • Gives you a basket to pick from.
  • Many will not work. It's not a problem though - you will have all the angles.

Doing an MBA Once You're Already Successful

• The people you meet are inspiring
• The ideas and concepts seem a little old hat.

Once You are Running

• Once you've built a customer base, ask them what they want. Find it. Sell it to them.
• The most effective sales pitch is a referral.

Conclusion

• Set yourself a target
• Look at what you've got. Most people don't use their skills properly. So you're already better than them
• In this economic climate…everyone is worried about starting -> COMPETITION IS LOW!