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Articles from Geoff Ficke | Selfgrowth.com
- Strategic Alliance - The Underused Option - by Submitted on Aug 24, 2009 from Geoff FickeYou are an entrepreneurial inventor with marvelous ideas in your area of expertise. The ability to create models, prototypes and concepts flows easily from your fertile brain. Nevertheless, all you have to show for your creative efforts is a garage full of dead end stuff, despite all of your ...
Views: 988(2 votes) - The Importance of the Unreasonable Man - by Submitted on Aug 24, 2009 from Geoff FickeAlmost every person in the world takes a certain pride in being a reasonable person. They will make prudent choices based on their background and attitudes. The safe decision minimizes the chances of being wrong. No one likes to be wrong. The safe decision, however, carries little upside ...
Views: 1345(1 vote) - Which Business Structure Is Best For Your New Enterprise? - by Submitted on Aug 24, 2009 from Geoff FickeThe type of business structure you organize for your new enterprise is greatly determined by your personality, realities, needs and experience. Millions of people in the United States never enter into any type of formal business structure. This includes the bulk of the black or underground ...
Views: 1338(1 vote) - I Can’t Find Funding. Is My Idea Dead? No, Consider a Campaign to License! - by Submitted on Aug 24, 2009 from Geoff FickeMost inexperienced entrepreneurs are unaware of the many options and alternative strategies available to push a new idea or invention to market. The most common approach they seek to implement is a classic funding round. When this avenue fails, and with overwhelming frequency it does, the idea ...
Views: 1644(1 vote) - The Business Model Must Be Innovative and Flexible - by Submitted on Aug 24, 2009 from Geoff FickeWhat does the following list of companies have in common? A&P Hudson Motor Car Co. Montgomery Ward TWA Horn and Hardart Studebaker Indian Motorcycle Bonwit Teller Woolworth Bethlehem Steel Polaroid LTV These Companies were successful, recognizable brands in their respective ...
Views: 1170(1 vote) - Patents, Trademarks, Copyrights, Trade Secrets Protect Your Invention! - by Submitted on Aug 23, 2009 from Geoff FickePatent numbers are issued sequentially, beginning with the number one. Patent number one was issued to Samuel Hopkins on July 31, 1790. It took 75 years for the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) to issue patent number 1,000,000. Patent number 7,000,000 was issued February 14, ...
Views: 1855(3 votes) - How Do Investors Read Business Plans? - by Submitted on Aug 23, 2009 from Geoff FickeThere are hundreds of thousands of business plans floating around and attempting to find a funding home. I receive hundreds of business plans annually myself, and can definitely state that 99% of these documents are laughable as presentations of an exciting investment opportunity. I am not ...
Views: 1278(3 votes) - Make a Friend Everyday, Network! - by Submitted on Aug 23, 2009 from Geoff FickeHave you ever noticed how successful people always seem to have a very wide net of friends and acquaintances? Howard Hughes became an infamous recluse only after he was fabulously wealthy. His network of business associations enabled him to excel in aviation, manufacturing, heavy industry, oil, ...
Views: 1266(13 votes) - Napoleon and Alexander the Great Are Innovative Role Models Even Today - by Submitted on Aug 23, 2009 from Geoff FickeDuring the 18th century the royal courts of Europe were starved for exciting and fresh entertainment formats. The staid choral recital, piano concerto, plays and opera had been standard fare in all of the great palaces for centuries. Each court strove to offer something more modern, more cutting ...
Views: 2796(3 votes) - Organize the Business Structure That Is Right for Your New Enterprise - by Submitted on Aug 23, 2009 from Geoff FickeEvery business requires a structure that will withstand necessary legal and governmental scrutiny. The choice of how to organize a new enterprise should be made based on the needs and capacity of the owner(s) to maintain and detail the records, history and finances of the business. Many ...
Views: 2662(3 votes) - Make Your Business Plan Read Like An Action Novel - You Are Guaranteed to Receive A Stronger Response - by Submitted on Aug 22, 2009 from Geoff FickeLet’s face it, nobody confuses writing or reading a Business Plan with a Bruce Willis action movie or a Tom Clancy novel. A Business Plan is a serious presentation that details an economic opportunity being offered for funding, licensing or sales consideration. Detail, research, financials and ...
Views: 1014(1 vote) - Competition Keeps Successful Entrepreneurs Sharp - by Submitted on Aug 22, 2009 from Geoff FickeEvery sports fan knows the story of a sports team competitively peaking at the right time on the road to winning a championship. The Pittsburgh Steelers won the 2006 Super Bowl even though they only had the second best record in their division. In addition, they had to overcome the huge hurdle ...
Views: 1446(2 votes) - When Selling Do Not Confuse Objections and Conditions - by Submitted on Aug 22, 2009 from Geoff FickeMy first sales manager, a grizzled old veteran with a no excuses allowed attitude used to tell me, “there are no lousy products, just lousy salesmen”. As a rookie salesman I thought the comment surely a strange one. Of course, there are bad products I thought. I know a bad product when I see ...
Views: 1541(1 vote) - Selling Is the Most Important Job For Every Entrepreneur - by Submitted on Aug 22, 2009 from Geoff FickeLet’s consider the example of an entrepreneurial inventor attempting to market his newest creation: a portable hydrostatic body fat test appliance. Design is complete, testing is finished and results exceeded initial assumptions, several working prototypes have been built, UL Approval is in ...
Views: 1332(2 votes) - Marketing and Selling Are Crucial to Success...and Very Different Tasks - by Submitted on Aug 22, 2009 from Geoff Ficke“an aggregate of functions involved in moving goods from producer to consumer” – Webster’s Dictionary, definition of “marketing” “to give up property to another for money or other valuable consideration” Webster’s Dictionary, definition of “selling” Many new entrepreneurs do not ...
Views: 1800(2 votes) - A Business Model That Keeps on Giving - by Submitted on Aug 22, 2009 from Geoff FickeIf there were an Entrepreneur’s Hall of Fame, Wayne Huizenga would be a charter member. Most people recognize the Wayne Huizenga as being the former owner of the Florida Marlins baseball team, and the current owner of the National Football League’s Miami Dolphins. These are the types of gaudy ...
Views: 1499(1 vote) - A Strong Sales Model Underlies Every Assumption In a Business Plan - by Submitted on Aug 21, 2009 from Geoff FickeOne of the most difficult tasks a new prospective entrepreneur faces is the construction of a Sales Model. Many books devoted to instruction for writing a business plan devote little or no attention to this vital exercise. The knowledge needed to assemble a quantified, qualified and clearly ...
Views: 2095(1 vote) - The 10 Commandments of Selling - by Submitted on Aug 21, 2009 from Geoff FickeThe 10 Commandments of Selling Every successful entrepreneur must achieve a level of sales competence. Short of spending valuable capital on hiring sales professionals, there is no alternative. Selling is to business as fertilizer is to agriculture. Nothing happens in a company until ...
Views: 2481(1 vote) - A Business Model That Really Succeeds at Warfare - by Submitted on Aug 21, 2009 from Geoff FickeMercenary soldiers have been used by nation states since Biblical times. The Romans used Goth mercenaries to fight Hannibal and his Carthaginian army. The English used Celtic warriors to defend them against the Vikings. The British used Hessians during the Revolutionary War here in the United ...
Views: 2252(2 votes) - Making Public Relations Work for Your Business - by Submitted on Aug 21, 2009 from Geoff FickeThe magic word that every consumer loves to hear more than any other is, FREE! Sales promotions offering a free sample or product inducement are always exceedingly popular. Human nature being what it is, the opportunity to obtain something of perceived value for nothing is usually very ...
Views: 1380(1 vote) - What Modern Marketers Can Learn From A 100 Year Old Artisan Auto Maker - by Submitted on Aug 21, 2009 from Geoff FickeH. F. S. Morgan launched his eponymous car manufacturing company in England in 1909. For a century, through world wars and great economic turbulence, Morgan Motor Company has produced some of the most stylish, desirable automobiles ever produced. Unless you are a classic car enthusiast, you ...
Views: 1253(2 votes) - A Professional Demeanor Screams Success - by Submitted on Aug 20, 2009 from Geoff FickeThe importance of a professional business presentation can not be overstated in determining the fate of a new business opportunity. Nevertheless, it is amazing how many times the presenter does not apply these same essential professional requirements to their own person. You only get one chance ...
Views: 5134(1 vote) - What Makes an Entrepreneur Different - by Submitted on Aug 20, 2009 from Geoff FickeStudies indicate that entrepreneurs are born, not made. As a serial entrepreneur myself, having worked with dozens of successful entrepreneurs, I can confirm that this is a truism. No two are exactly alike, but they are different from those who fail, or worse, never try. I am often asked what ...
Views: 1559(1 vote) - Bootstrapping Your Way to Success - by Submitted on Aug 20, 2009 from Geoff FickeThere is no more accurate American descriptive phrase of the rags to riches success then: “He pulled himself up by his bootstraps”. The pioneers, backwoodsmen, cowboys, whalers and other prototypical American hero classes all possessed an air of courage, self-reliance, and belief that they could ...
Views: 1254(1 vote) - The Man Who Invented Modern Athletic Shoes Inadvertently Revolutionized Commerce and Sports - by Submitted on Aug 20, 2009 from Geoff FickeI grew up in the 1950’s playing basketball hour after hour on city playgrounds. The public courts of the day were nothing like those found today in most American towns. There were no lights, a steel, kidney-shaped backboard (ugh!) with bent rims, occasionally a steel chain net and no lines ...
Views: 5522(3 votes) - We Plan Exact Vacation Routes But Often Start a New Business with No Road Map - by Submitted on Aug 20, 2009 from Geoff FickeSeneca “The Younger”, the great ancient Roman philosopher famously observed, “If one does not know to which port one is sailing, no wind is favorable”. The intent of his words is clear. Knowing where you want to go is the essential prelude to planning how to get there. Unfortunately, many people ...
Views: 958(2 votes) - How a Cool Food Product Lost an Important Marketing Advantage - and Died - by Submitted on Aug 19, 2009 from Geoff FickeHow a Cool Food Product Lost an Important Marketing Advantage - and Died Recently I was interviewed by a national small business magazine about a topic that is all too real; and very problematic for small businessmen. The author of the story was trying to solve a simple problem that many of ...
Views: 1310(2 votes) - How An Immigrant With Just a Few Canaries Builds a Vast Fortune - by Submitted on Aug 19, 2009 from Geoff FickeIn the 1920’s Germany was in tatters. The formerly great empire was dismantled, the powerful army humiliated by its defeat in World War I and the population starved, cold and living in despair. Businesses that had been successful before the war were decimated by the outcome. There was no way to ...
Views: 1294(2 votes) - How an Ingenious Footwear Idea Snatched Defeat from the Jaws of Victory! - by Submitted on Aug 19, 2009 from Geoff FickeSeveral years ago my marketing consulting firm reviewed a most clever, novel, exceedingly commercial concept in casual footwear. We met with the designer who had created the collection and were excited by everything we saw in the initial presentation. The footwear possessed a universality of use ...
Views: 1098(1 vote) - Use Affinity Licensing to Jump Start New Product Sales - by Submitted on Aug 19, 2009 from Geoff FickeI recently met a bank executive who had been laid off in a corporate downsizing. The man was understandably concerned about his and his family’s future. He lived in an area that was experiencing exceptionally stark economic circumstances. This gentleman had received a modest severance package, ...
Views: 1110(1 vote) - How to Make a Single Mall Kiosk Into a Multi-National Company - by Submitted on Aug 19, 2009 from Geoff FickeOne of the bigger mistakes we see new entrepreneurs and startup businesses make is to try to hit a home run right out of the box. My experience in the days when I played baseball, and in building a solid business foundation, is that when purposely trying to hit home runs, you usually strike out. ...
Views: 4923(1 vote) - Making Hobbies Profitable A Boating Enthusiast Invents a Fun Job - by Submitted on Aug 18, 2009 from Geoff FickeWe have all heard some version of the old saying, “find something you enjoy doing and make your living in that field”. For most people that would seem to be easier said than done. Millions of these working Jane’s and Joe’s go to employment that is not physically, psychologically or financially ...
Views: 1228(1 vote) - How Exclusivity Makes a Premium Liquor Brand a Cultural Phenomenon - by Submitted on Aug 18, 2009 from Geoff FickeAs in so many consumer product categories, it would seem that there is little room left for innovation in mature businesses like liquor. Most of the world’s best selling alcohol brands have pedigrees that extend back for generations, if not centuries. Johnnie Walker scotch, Jack Daniels whiskey, ...
Views: 3557(1 vote) - The Flight Delay That Resulted in Launching a $100 Million Gift Business - by Submitted on Aug 18, 2009 from Geoff FickeAnyone that flies regularly knows the blank feeling that sweeps over us as we hear that our flight has been delayed, or worse, canceled. Minds race while reviewing how to kill time, are there alternative travel options, can I reset the meeting I had scheduled on the other end of the flight? As ...
Views: 1185(1 vote) - A Marketing Axiom: You’re Never the Greatest, Only the Latest! - by Submitted on Aug 18, 2009 from Geoff FickeMy first professional job after finishing college and Marine Corps service was with a small cosmetic company in the early 1970’s. The beauty industry at that time was in the golden age of its creativity, growth and competitive balance. There were numerous firms able to exist and flourish by ...
Views: 1530(2 votes) - The First Commercially Sold Mouthwash Actually Invented a Malady for the Product to Cure - by Submitted on Aug 18, 2009 from Geoff FickeThe first commercially successful mouthwash product is still one of the most famous: Listerine. First marketed in the late 19th century as a surgical antiseptic, the product enjoyed modest success. Listerine was created by Dr. Joseph Lawrence and Jordan Lambert and named in honor of Dr. Joseph ...
Views: 2405(1 vote) - The World’s Oldest Watch Manufacturer Stays on Top by Constantly Innovating - by Submitted on Aug 17, 2009 from Geoff FickeOne of life’s great pleasures is travel. The opportunity to view distant lands, experience new food and drink, sample exotic cultures and meet local citizens is always rewarding. One of my most prized experiences when I visit any new land is to sample local produce, manufactured goods and learn ...
Views: 5540(5 votes) - How Lack of Foresight Doomed An Early Auto Manufacturing Pioneer - by Submitted on Aug 17, 2009 from Geoff FickeWhatever happened to the Stanley Steamer automobile? From the production of Stanley’s first model in 1897, the Company outsold every other firm that produced internal combustion powered vehicles until the brands demise in 1924. The Steamers were safe, durable and easily maintained. So what ...
Views: 1655(2 votes) - Innovative Design Is Essential To Contemporary Consumer Product Success - by Submitted on Aug 17, 2009 from Geoff FickeI have often written and referred to the difference between convergent and divergent products. Convergent products are simple design improvements on existing models already being marketed. The push button radio, the car radio or a clock radio are examples of convergent products. These examples ...
Views: 1764(1 vote) - Differentiation for a Small Brand Is Essential - Consider Organic Tea - by Submitted on Aug 17, 2009 from Geoff FickeRecently my marketing consulting firm was approached by the owners of a young organic tea company seeking guidance in piercing the retail product distribution channel. The entrepreneur’s behind the venture were hard working, passionate and fully committed; both personally and financially. They ...
Views: 1266(2 votes) - The Prolific Inventor That the World Has Mostly Forgotten - by Submitted on Aug 15, 2009 from Geoff FickeThe Prolific Inventor That the World Has Mostly Forgotten We learn at an early age that Ben Franklin was America’s first great inventor; Henry Ford invented mass production, Thomas Edison the light bulb and the phonograph and the Wright Brothers invented the first airplane. These men, and a ...
Views: 1138(1 vote) - The Oldest Tea Merchant in the World Is Still a Marketing & Branding Phenomenon - by Submitted on Aug 15, 2009 from Geoff FickeAny traveler to London is naturally overwhelmed with the many sites, sounds, history and majesty of this glorious ancient capital, especially first time visitors. Buckingham Palace, Westminster Abbey, the Thames, Big Ben the Horse Guards, 10 Downing Street, St. James Park, St. Paul’s Cathedral, ...
Views: 4584(1 vote) - Persistence Pays Off For Driven Product Marketers and Inventors of WD-40 - by Submitted on Aug 15, 2009 from Geoff FickePersistence Pays Off For Driven Product Marketers and Inventors of WD-40 Along with duct tape, probably the most common product handymen keep in the garage for tackling household chores and repairs is the ubiquitous lubricant spray WD-40. I am a mechanical klutz. But when something needs ...
Views: 1465(1 vote) - A Poem to Inspire Every Aspiring Marketer & Entrepreneur - by Submitted on Aug 15, 2009 from Geoff FickeToday poetry is not a culturally prevalent or popular art form utilized to convey deep thought or the meaning of ideas. To be sure, there are contemporary poets, published works of poetry are available and the United States still recognizes a living “poet laureate”. However, for vast swaths of ...
Views: 2749(1 vote) - Need or Want: Your New Product or Service Will Succeed if it Addresses Need - by Submitted on Aug 10, 2009 from Geoff FickeI have always tried to teach my children the difference between needing and wanting a product. This is a value judgement that applies to every human, many times in surprisingly differing ways. People born to great wealth view need far differently than those of us born to the lower classes. I ...
Views: 1862(3 votes) - The Ten Commandments for Entrepreneurs - by Submitted on Aug 10, 2009 from Geoff FickeI am often asked by aspiring entrepreneurs for tips that are essential to being successful in launching a new commercial venture. Below I have assembled the big 10, something like the 10 Commandments, only for entrepreneurial success. The items covered below are not negotiable in the process of ...
Views: 2951(3 votes) - Opportunity and Innovation - The Power of Weird Thinking - by Submitted on Aug 10, 2009 from Geoff Ficke“The Big Idea” that will make an entrepreneur successful is not obtainable by filling in the blanks on a magic invention template. Where do ‘The Big Ideas” come from? Why are some people able to develop exciting concepts and others, though constantly scheming, achieve nothing of value? How do ...
Views: 2040(2 votes) - Where Does the Money Come From? - by Submitted on Aug 10, 2009 from Geoff FickeFact: In 2005 over 500,000 new business incorporations were organized in the United States. Fact: Of these 500,000 new businesses less than 1,000 received venture capital funding. There are vastly more entrepreneurs seeking start-up funding than there are available funding sources and ...
Views: 1341(3 votes) - Is Now the Best Time to Start a New Business? - by Submitted on Aug 10, 2009 from Geoff FickeI am often asked if these are good times for new enterprise opportunities? Should I wait? Is the economy down? Is it a good funding market? Is competition too intense? These, and dozens more stated concerns are nothing more than self-imposed hurdles to movement. Now is the best time in ...
Views: 1208(4 votes) - Why Is the Right To Fail So Important?...and, Why It is Mostly Unique To America - by Submitted on Aug 10, 2009 from Geoff FickeThe American economic system of capitalism is unique in the industrialized world. Forms of capitalism exist in many countries, and the one general statement that applies to its usage is that capitalist countries are always more prosperous than non-capitalist states. That being stated, why is ...
Views: 1274(1 vote)