The Seven Forces of Business Mastery
The most successful businesses — and the leaders at their helm — are constantly evolving, improving, and adding value to remain relevant to their industries and the customers they serve.
In a recent interview with Entrepreneur, business coach and author Tony Robbins shares his insights into the seven forces of business mastery all successful businesses possess — and the lessons for budding entrepreneurs.
Know Where You Really Are
The biggest challenge for business leaders is not really knowing where the business is, says Robbins. They often see the state of their business, and its future growth, as being better or healthier than it really is.
“Every business has a lifecycle, just like a human being. Is your business in the toddler stage? is your business in its prime? Is it aging? What to do in your business is completely controlled by where you are.”
Understanding the business you’re really in is critical for long-term success. You can’t determine which markets you want to serve unless you take an honest look at where you are, and where you want to go.
Strategic Innovation
Finding a way to meet the needs of your clients better than anyone else is important, but Robbins emphasizes the strategic. “Some companies innovate so often that they put themselves out of business because they are not being strategic about it.
Strategic Marketing
For every business, there is an ideal customer or client. Attracting that ideal customer is, for Robbins, nothing more than a process. Master the process that gets people to want to do business with you through what he calls “value-added marketing.”
Sales Mastery Systems
A strategic marketing plan can attract the customers and clients, but businesses need to demonstrate continued growth and sales to be truly successful, says Robbins.
Financial and Legal Analysis
Business leaders need to know through data the state of their business financially, though many don’t. You can’t make wise financial decisions about your organization without being able to look at financial reports and draw insights from them.
“If you aren’t able to understand and analyze the financial condition of your business on an ongoing basis, you’re like a pilot of a plane who doesn’t know how to read the gauges in front of him.”
Optimization and Maximization
The key to experiencing explosive growth in your company isn’t necessarily far-reaching changes. Robbins advises business owners to focus instead on making small, incremental improvements to grow their businesses strategically while minimizing risk.
Create Raving Fan Customers and Culture
Robbins makes a distinction between satisfied customers and raving fan customers, saying satisfied customers will leave when someone gives them a better deal.
By contrast, “raving fan customers are loyal, they know who you really are, and they stick around even when you screw up because you’ve consistently added value to them in a way nobody else can.”