Meet Your New Boss: The Customer
There are a plethora of reasons and motivating factors one might embark down the avenue of entrepreneurship. Working with many, I get a variety of responses to the key question of “what motivated you to get started?” For some it’s a passion for a product they love and want to take to market, others maybe have an extensive knowledge and insight into a particular industry and want to monetize it. But there is one factor that does come up either directly from some of our clients and in the general entrepreneurial landscape and it is the “I just don’t like (want to) working for someone else.” reason.
As a new small business owner, it’s true, you do not work for someone else, instead the reality is that you now work for hundreds of people, individuals, and groups. Every move or decision you make will be scrutinized, noticed and reacted upon with little to no empathy. Your new boss is the general population; your target marketplace, the clients or buyers of your product or service, and unlike a conventional boss, they don’t have to be kind or respectful to you or abide by any work regulations or etiquette.
Welcome to your new career. Compensation: optional, depends on what and when the boss decides to pay you, in the form of sales. Work Life balance: non-existent, 24/7 requests reviews, complaints and demands. Benefits? On your own there, enjoy finding and paying for your own vision, dental and 401k. And finally, your new boss, with little to no warning will fire you, walk away and never return, and the effects are felt immediately, not merely financially, in losing patronage, but in some cases the split won’t end quietly. After terminating you, your boss goes out and actively slanders you to any future employer then publicly writes about their view of how bad of an employee you are, even if false, in an effort to never have you work again.
This all sounds like the worst job and person to work for in history and if this example were a reality in the corporate world that person would probably face a defamation lawsuit, and the company would have no one willing working there and rightfully so. Well, that company is called Entrepreneur INC, and your boss: the customer. Congrats, you start Monday!
The executive you now work for is the customer and as an entrepreneur the customer engages in this type of cutthroat behavior constantly and face no recourse in doing so. If it has not happened yet to you or your small business, it will, especially as you grow and scale, and the unfortunate results of their actions can put you completely under.
A great example is the restaurant industry; how many times has one bad review from a powerful food critic completely touched an entire establishment. It happens on the daily, restaurants will do almost anything including bribe unhappy patrons to avoid public condemnation, even if the claims brought forth are entirely unfounded.
That leads to another factor to consider, a manager or executive at a regular job was put in that position for a reason, they have a relative amount of experience, go through a lengthy qualifying process and interviews to take on a leadership position. Your new boss, as an entrepreneur, the average people, have little to no qualifications, yet their opinions carry even more weight than a corporate leader ever could. It’s almost unfair, well, it is, and dealing with this difficult dynamic is not for the faint of heart.
If you are an individual tired of working for other people, or don’t like listening to authority, entrepreneurship won’t serve you any better.
The customer IS always right, even if they’re wrong, the mindset and skillset needed to be a consistent success as a business owner, is to listen to and take into account feedback constantly. Park the ego, and work to become more understanding and humble. Get used to using words and phrases like “I apologize” or I “completely understand” and “how can I change” work to make them become a familiar and valuable part of your vocabulary when dealing with customers. To serve we need to exhibit empathy, no empathy means no understanding, and no understanding equals no connection. A sale cannot be completed without a genuine connection.
The most successful businesses, if you look closely at them, all serve people and make their lives a bit more comfortable and easier. Successful entrepreneurs embrace the role of being in support of their customers, collaborative and empathetic, willing to learn and listen. You don’t get to 5 start reviews and receive repeat orders or patrons by lacking the ability to empathize, actively listen and serve your customer base. Your customers AKA your new boss is a guest in your house, treat them as such, take care of them and in turn they will take care of you…should they please.
To succeed in this new world of entrepreneurship the mindset and mentality to serve needs to be at the forefront off all your operations. The key is to remember that entrepreneurship is not about being your own boss, but true success lies in the ability to become the ultimate employee.
To gain personalized guidance for your business on this topic and others contact us.
- Vince Calace
Founder - Venture Business Development