Dealing With People: Chapter 1
Dealing With People: A Basic Guide to Marketing Consultation
Chapter 1: Three Points on Entrepreneurs
I grew up in a warehouse. My father ran an import export business that became very successful, put food on the table, clothes in the closet, and gave me a job every summer/time I got suspended. I learned how to use a copy, coffee, and fax machine at an early age. I answered phones, procured quotes and orders for the hospitality industry, and sat in on quite a few meetings at a young age.
We moved up in the world in a really lucky way, and investments came after. I’ve been with my parents while they invested in T-Shirt Companies, Chinese Cell Phone Towers, Wines, Restaurants, other family members and among them new family businesses. I’ve now consulted multiple creatives, companies, and entrepreneurs on digital marketing. Being young, knowledgeable, and ambitious in this economy of millennials is just another access point to the American Dream.
My dad has since even given a talk on TedX which I one day hope to overshadow, but in the meantime I’ve learned much from helping his marketing company, starting J.L. Rocha Collections with him, and going on to make my way in digital marketing all on my own. My experience comes entirely from entrepreneurs: both dealing with them and being one, so it makes sense to begin here with things I’ve learned to be true. My three points on entrepreneurs.
#1 - 110% Isn’t Enough.
Entrepreneurs work roughly a 56 hour work week and 63% more than the average worker.
Working on your own to head toward a goal of self sustainability for your passions takes hard work. They commit heart and soul to their thoughts and desires. Entrepreneurship requires the sacrifice of your life to your work because your life is your work. I encourage everyone to think heard before undertaking the endeavor of self-employment because if your hearts not in it, giving up seems a lot easier.
#2 - Your “Vision” Means Nothing.
I don’t mean to sound harsh, but all too often I meet with entrepreneurs that focus so heavily on “the vision” this idea of what will exist rather than focusing on the now. Additionally, your project is never going finish - businesses are fluid, they change based on time and best practice. The best entrepreneurs have a goal and focus on how to accomplish that goal, rather than what the end result will look like. The beauty of entrepreneurship is the affect your business/brand has on the world, and it has on you.
Outsourcing your work will let new perspectives and expertises complete projects and free you up to do more foundational work. Here are some good examples of the right and wrong thought process:
Example 1:
Right: I need to get my business to the public and communicate the benefits of my product/service.
Wrong: My website has to have an infinite scroll feature, and I need music to play in the background to convince people that I’m top notch.
Example 2:
Right: I need to create systems that can recreate success without stagnating my brand.
Wrong: As long as I’m around to do it all, everything will turn out right!
A great professor and playwright once told my class that when he would sit in the audience at his own shows, the only thing he cared about was that people reacted - not what they reacted. The details, values, and aesthetics are important, but the bottom line of any business is to make money.
#3 You’re The Second Most Important Thing.
One of my favorite TedTalks (besides my dads), is Simon Sineks: How Great Leaders Inspire Action. He says famously:
“People don’t buy what you do, they buy why you do it.
-Simon Sinek
The statement is absolutely true when it comes to marketing, because in this day and age of businesses online: people want to believe they’re being sold something with upfront honesty. Information is free, and everything is out there, but the most important difference between every other business in your field and yours, is that your business has you.
Infuse your self into your business: start with a few simple questions:
What product, service, or expertise can I provide that people would want?
Where do I preform this service for public consumption?
How do I preform this service in the most desirable way, and how do I get to my audience?
Why do I preform the service, and why is the way I do it important?
When do I expect to receive payment, incur expenses, and profit?
Once you’ve figured out these questions, write down your values, ethics, and your mission. Your values are the way you treat your business/brand/product/service. Your ethics are the way you treat your consumers, your vendors, employees, and planet. Finally your mission is your intention on the broadest spectrum possible.
Everything about your business is yours, from the name to the logo and even the way you train others. You will be apparent in your business, you will be infused with the whole of it, but it will always be above you. Humility and resolve two traits that I’ve seen in many great entrepreneurs. Some work too much in the business, some work too much on the business - but the best find balance to make their business shine.
Closing Notes:
This book is not meant to be the secret to success. The Kung Fu Panda Franchise made 420 million all together and even though the first film made the least money it was right: There is no secret ingredient. This book is just a basic guide to marketing consultation: a mixture of the headaches, heart aches, breath taking moments, smiles and successes that I’ve had over the years. It will have easy concepts, and some detailed explorations, but I thoroughly hope it helps you build your own map.