by theEmother | Jan 3, 2014 | build a Mother of a Business, business ideas & thinking, buy | sell websites, BUY a Business, Buy a Mother of a Business, Finish Unfinished Business, growth by acquisition, Online Strategy incl. www, so you think you're in business, start with the end in mind, the business model
Well, it’s like any strategy really. The more pressing question is probably more about whether I, as a Business Owner, actually has any kind of strategy at all!
If yes, then adding the Online component will be less tricky.
If no, then starting from scratch, with the end in mind, is what needs to happen sooner rather than later.
Whilst the following Strategic principles will be Online focused, they apply across the greater business strategy as well…
- what’s worked and what needs to?
- who cares and how will they?
- the Online RollOut Plan
- what does this all mean to YOU, the Business Owner?
We’ll explore each of these in detail, one by one, over the ensuing days.
by theEmother | Jan 2, 2014 | build a Mother of a Business, business ideas & thinking, buy | sell websites, BUY a Business, Buy a Mother of a Business, EXIT execution, exit strategy, Finish Unfinished Business, growth by acquisition, how to sell a business, Online Strategy incl. www, Sell Your Business, SELL your Mother of a Business, so you think you're in business, start with the end in mind, the business model
That most Business Owners do not understand Online in terms of their business strategy not only misses the opportunity it presents but how it even relates to what they do and how saleable it will make the business when the time comes.
I quite often hear Business Owners, when asked about their Online Strategy, say:
- “I know I should be doing something about the whole thing but I don’t have the time”
- “I have a website, isn’t that enough?”
- “What do you mean ‘how well’s it doing for me?’, what can it do exactly?”
- etc…
What I know is that potential Buyers are asking about the Online Strategy of the existing bricks and mortar business almost every time, as part of their consideration when looking to buy. And, they will discount the price the Seller wants because it is has not been developed or activated.
If Online is not part of the current revenue mix of the business then it will not be factored into the price. As my learned colleague Robert Hurst says, “what Buyers buyer is profit, why they buy it is potential.”
If a Buyer sees the potential, that will be a reason to purchase. But, they will not pay more for the opportunity to do so, other than what is actually presented at a particular point of time. If the Business Owner has not brought an Online Strategy to bear fruit, then the privilege of doing so will go to the next owner.
So what to do about it? If creating and implementing an Online Strategy was easy to do then every Business Owner would do it in a heartbeat! In actual fact, from where I sit right now, it is not that hard but you need to be asking the right questions and developing the solutions to make it work.
My 2014 adventure will be all about understanding the questions and the solutions in detail…
by theEmother | Apr 18, 2013 | build a Mother of a Business, business ideas & thinking, Buy a Mother of a Business, entrepreneur trends (past & present!), EXIT execution, Finish Unfinished Business, Online Strategy incl. www, Sell Your Business, SELL your Mother of a Business, so you think you're in business, the business model
Another day, another conversation with a Business Owner who thinks that having a website covers off the Online Strategy question…
IT DOES NOT!
A website forms part of an Online Strategy, absolutely.
But is it not the be-all that ends-all.
In fact it is only a small part of the overall digital consideration.
From a “Sale-ability” point of view, when asked about what digital | online strategies are in place, if “I’ve got a website” is offered as the answer, the potential buyer will start rubbing their hands together in glee (if it’s a business they want that is).
Why? Because it gives them an issue on which to start down a sale price-discounting path.
Do you have to cover off every little thing to appeal to a potential buyer?
Well ideally, yes, but we know that’s not necessarily doable.
However, given the growing impact and importance of the whole digital | online space, “what is your Online Strategy?” is one question Business Owners looking to sell have to have a well-formulated and accurate response for.
by theEmother | Feb 18, 2013 | build a Mother of a Business, business ideas & thinking, EXIT execution, Finish Unfinished Business, Online Strategy incl. www, Sell Your Business, SELL your Mother of a Business, the business model
Had a 5:30 meeting today between a seller and a potential buyer. Thought this will be OK, out by 6:30 max, no problem.
7:30, still standing in the street with potential buyer, attempting to ask more questions…
aaaarrrggghhhh
Got to thinking, why this was so?
Was the Information Memorandum not detailed enough?
Was the potential buyer not prepared enough?
Neither of these are the case. In fact, there was probably too much detail and prep!
What it is… a potential buyer, who as an experienced buyer at that, is looking to buy into a market he does not understand.
Actually, let me be more specific. It is not the whole business he does not understand, it was only part of the business, ie the Online component. He knows its a market he should be playing in but knows enough about it to b e dangerous!
I envisage a whole lot more questions to come yet…
Business Owners, soon-to-be past or present, you must have a handle on Online and how it impacts your business.
If you have not started this journey already, please do so now…
by theEmother | Jan 11, 2013 | build a Mother of a Business, business ideas & thinking, Online Strategy incl. www, so you think you're in business, the business model
Good learning here #BusinessOwners… note to self: thoroughly think through#OnlineStrategy rollout and execution…
Every experienced social media manager knows that social media can be unpredictable. Sometimes, you expect one kind of response from your social followers, but get something completely different instead. As a result, we have social media campaigns that go viral in the blink of an eye and online campaigns that turn total failures (see the infographic) and even cause quite a damage to the company’s reputation.
But not everything is unpredictable in this life, of course, and certain conclusions can be drawn from other people’s so called social media fails. Live and learn, as they say! read on…
