I’m a big advocate of thinking outside the box. One of my mantra is to differentiate your brand in the marketplace or die. A bit harsh, I know, but it gets my point across. You have to find a way to distinguish your brand from your competitors or face being forever lumped in with the competition by your prospects. I’ve done my best in the past to come up with unique, slightly irreverent ways to brand one of my companies from my competitors; from offering one-point-of-contact customer service to cheeky postcard campaigns (one of which was so popular Newsday re-ran it in their newspaper). I have worked to make Advantage Payroll recognizable.
For these reasons, when I read about the marketing scheme by the head of the Washington State Potato Commission last year, I couldn’t help but admire the unique, attention-grabbing marketing ploy. Chris Voigt’s 60 day potato diet challenge was definitely clever since it’s his job to advocate that potatoes are a “nutritious, cost-effective vegetable that should be part of a well-balanced diet.” To push this message, Voigt ate nothing but potatoes between Oct. 1 and Dec. 1. He had them for breakfast, lunch and dinner — about 20 potatoes per day cooked in a multitude of ways. While some may call him crazy, I respect his efforts to draw attention to federal proposals to bar or limit potatoes in some programs by using his diet to argue that potatoes are high in nutrients. It certainly caught my attention.
The end result; Voigt actually lost 21 pounds and dropped his cholesterol level by 67 points to a healthier level, while gaining national attention for his cause, an appearance on the TODAY show and numerous write ups in newspapers and online communities across the country.
While I don't advocate eating just potatoes for a month, I do suggest that you should not be afraid to be different or to try something new with your marketing. If your brand does not stand out, your competitors will.
ARE YOU AN EVERYDAY ENTREPRENEUR
In today's tough economy, people are realizing that while the government can help assist in job creations, two out of three jobs are created by small businesses. As people are laid off, forced into early retirement or cannot find a job after graduation, more and more people are starting or considering starting their own business. Now is actually one of the best times to start a small business and almost half a million businesses were created in 2011. Anyone can start a business, but do you have the characteristics and strength that it takes to overcome obstacles and make smart decisions?
As a serial entrepreneur myself, I’ve experienced not only great success but great failure. Having started my first business at age 23, I felt compelled to share some of my favorite insights in The Everyday Entrepreneur with today’s entrepreneurs and small business owners in order to help them succeed in today’s tough economy. Realizing I wanted to share more than just my knowledge, I interviewed 10 visionary entrepreneurs such as Jeff Hoffman, member of the founding team of Priceline.com, and Ken Davenport, a Broadway producer who revolutionized the way shows are financed by using the crowd sourcing method for his latest Broadway hit, Godspell.
So, what makes a great entrepreneur? One of the interesting things I discovered in my interviews with other entrepreneurs is that we all started young and almost all of us had a paper route as a kid. You don’t see kids delivering papers anymore, but when I was growing up most paper routes were delivered by kids before they went off to school.
Another common theme is our work ethic; it developed young and carried us through our teenage years, whether it was selling Cutco Knives door to door like Ken Davenport or selling Burpe seeds like Jeff Hoffman, but we were always finding new ways to make money. We were the first ones in the office and the last ones to leave and we were constantly in motion, always looking for the best new product or service.
An important characteristic that we all share is the ability to take risks. Every entrepreneur needs to be comfortable with the fact that they are the bottom line; it starts and ends with them. Striking out on your own is not an easy decision. Are you comfortable potentially going without a stable salary? Not knowing when your next deal will close? How will you handle a major supply line issue? Entrepreneurs take small risks every day, but to win big, you need to take big risks. One of the entrepreneurs I interviewed even compared being an entrepreneur to skydiving. You need to check your parachute, know your jump and be prepared, but you also need to be able to jump out of the plan.
These are just some of the basic questions you need to ask yourself when thinking about starting your own business. Are you ready to take big risks? Are you ready to be the force that constantly moves your organization forward? Can you be the dynamic leader or the industry expert that your role will demand? These are just the first of many questions you need to ask yourself before embarking on your own entrepreneurial journey. Is it always easy? No. Will there be days that discourage you? Yes. But myself, I wouldn’t have had it any other way.
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ROB BASSO is a recognized business leader, sought-after speaker and published author. Rob is an
everyday entrepreneur with a mission, no a passion, to help small businesses navigate their way to
success. By taking risks and developing creative concepts he has built a reputation as a successful
entrepreneur who is committed to assisting others seek and achieve their American dream. His list of
achievements includes: founder of Advantage Payroll Services, investor of several Broadway shows,
founding investor in Empire National Bank and creator of BassoOnBusiness.com. As owner of
Advantage Payroll Services, he has grown the company into one of the premier payroll, tax-filing, and
processing firms, serving more than 2,500 businesses and processing thousands of checks each week. At
Basso on Business, Rob shares his experiences and those of other successful business people with a
community of aspiring entrepreneurs and has created a destination where business owners can get
important tools, strategies and real world information that is vital to success. Rob also hosts a web
program that features innovative entrepreneurs and businesses. Each episode is paired with Working
Lunch with Rob, unique forum designed to motive and support small businesses. A firm believer in the
business, body and mind connection, he paired with Matt Basso of Iron Lotus Personal Training to create
BusyFit, a highly effective 25 minute workout for busy professionals. Rob is a frequent guest on Fox
News and Fox Business and has well-read monthly blog on the New York Enterprise Report and the
American Express OPEN forum. He is a frequent contributor to multiple news publications such as
Newsday, Long Island Business News, Forbes.com, Entrepreneur.com and more. A believer in the
connection between business, body and mind, his first workout DVD BusyFit is available on
Amazon.com. His book, The Everyday Entrepreneur, hits bookstores in fall 2011.
Rob can be reached at:
T: 516‐931‐0540 Email: ccesarino@BassoOnBusiness.com
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