In a message dated 1/31/01 6:27:04 AM, ar writes:
<< Is finding customers is part of this course?
***yes, I feel strongly if one has no customers, one has no business***
The great discovery every novice makes:
" in any field there is a club, whose
members deal with each other primarily."
***this novice made that discovery too, and I hope my course reflects that
knowledge.***
The trick is to be accepted in the club.
***Yes, and I lay out steps I believe are the shortest distance between
outside and in***
This entrance
fee takes couple of years of pain and suffering.
***"Passion" means "pain", and hence the first exercises we do are related to
determining what your passions are - after 25 years it is still painful to
see others products who arent quite right, or worse yet, competitors products
who sometimes are better, if you are passionate, the pain never goes...but
the entrance fee is providing a value, not pain and suffering, and certainly
not years to get in. You can get in on day one by providing a value, and the
entrance committee is customers. they decide if you are allowed in or not,
so again, that is why we start with customers.***
I understand it, so I am looking for a member of the
club to work for.
***This is always an option, but you dont need a class to work for somone
else, this class is designed for those who wish to start a company from
scratch...***
You make the class fun, but the joke is on us, is it?
***I truly do try to make the class fun, even going as far as studying M V
Martialis for tips on epigrammatics, the style best suited to internet relay
chat communication. But I am baffled as to what the joke would be, and why
would it be on the students...please do elucidate.***
You wrote:
***this .. without customers you are doomed, and you
need no partners to get customers.***
OK.
What is the secret? My impression is the secret is:
staying in business for 2 years,
nocking at 1000 doors,
being rejected 99% of the time,
***I think this is what most people do, nothing secret aboout it, and it is a
terrible waste, and certainly not what those successful have done. As you
will see, the patterns I lay out are nothing like you imagine here.***
until (if ever) you become accepted as a legitimate
member of the club.
99% of aspirants are broke in that time financially,
psyckologically, physically, and become taxi drivers
and computer programmers. The rest 1%, the lucky ones,
prove it can be done, so new suckers would keep trying
***again, membership is decided by customers, no one else. if you provide a
value, you are a member from day one. merely proposing to provide a value
has always made me a member from day one. the only question is HOW MUCH
value you provide, and you can tell how much value you provide by your
income. yes, very many people do not succeed at business (or at poetry, or
at love, or at mathematics, or any of many attempts, but somehow life goes
on...I am passionate about skiing, sex and chess, but not very good at any of
them...am I bitter? heck no... I just keep at it and hope my partners dont
quit on me.)... What this class offers is a detailed look at what steps may
be taken to start a real business, steps those you see who have succeeded
took. If 99% fail, it is because 99% did not provide a value in the
marketplace. Ski lessons from someone who knows how might help me.***
You started working FOR SOMEBODY, which is a
secret of success probably.
But you boldly declared that you can teach us the
trick of breaking in on our own.
***yes, at 19 I went to work for an import company as a delivery boy. I went
to work for others who started their own businesses. It took at least ten
years to learn what it takes to start my own business (I am a slow
learner)... then I started my own... the skills necessary to work for someone
else are not the skills necessary to start your own biz... this class
focusses on starting your own, something I started teaching because nobody
else teaches this (there are some who claim to, but they dont bother with
finding customers or suppliers or products). Not only do i teach what it
takes to start your own, I take you through the very steps. I dont want you
to take my word for anything...I want you to go through the steps that those
who are successful go through, and then you tell me what happens.***
The message is too sckeptical to say it in the class,
I don't want to be a "party pooper", so I am sending
it outside of class. >>
*** I actually enjoy the challenges...but if your premises are wrong, might
your conclusions be wrong?****
john
Wednesday, January 31, 2001
Re: Trade Worldwide Classroom Password
Monday, January 29, 2001
Re: Question from Week 1 of Worldwide Business in 9 Weeks
In a message dated 1/28/01 10:13:14 PM, lisa_ writes:
<< In reading your notes - how does one find customers first - without
outlaying capital - and without travel expenses? I will be traveling back
to Africa mid Feb returning to CA late March/April. Am I really missing the
boat here???
***travel to africa, miss the boat? amusing metaphor...anyway... not miss
the boat, just off course maybe. Two issues, art is harder since it is so
subjective (and you apparently have the passion part, so half the battle is
won) and "organize around the resource."
The first challenge to realize is that there may be much distance between
what the handicrafters will make and the us market will by. You with a finer
appreciation see things in the work that your customers will miss. don't try
to teach them much, because more than just a little education costs too much
and they dont want it anyway. Give them a little at a time. So job one is
to get the handicrafters to change their designs to match the USA market desi
res.
the second problem is you seem to have organized around a resource...your
connection to SA. What makes you think the USA consumer prefers South Africn
handficrafts, or wants enough to make it viable for you to provide. This is
a hard question, becuase it undercuts the presumption that "If I can get it
to USA, then I can sell it."
So here we go... you have a passion for a source, but is there a market that
shares it. Dropping off some items on consignment will tell you if there is
any market at that intersection iin that town in that consignment shop. but
whatever the feedback, good or bad, it doesnt mean much.
Later we'll see how to find out how much SA handicrafts are coming in, and to
find out what, and then you can decide if that is attractive to you.
****
The theme truly seems customers first....first rate customers. And no
outlay of monies too...
***Yes, plus, very important...the thought exercise.."if you could deal in
absolutely anything you wanted...(fill in the blank)***
Does one make arrangements for consignement with the suppliers in
Africa...then they are out the money - until sold - so what's their
incentive? >>
***Improbable... I think you are experiencing what happens when a neat idea
meets the real world, practical problems. The class is designed especially
for you... when what you hoped to do isn't quite catching on, let's look at
what will work. begin with that thought exercise...
John