48 laws of power: TOP 5nonmanipulative laws for your startup sales strategy
The 48 Laws of Power is one of the most controversial books of current times; and yet, when used in the right way, it would help path your way through the complexities of your startup journey.
Truth to be told, working in a private profit-making industry would never be easy. Many factors can affect the outcome of your startup– different strategies ultimately navigate its success and failure.
Here are the 6 laws that can help you succeed in your startup– remember, when used correctly, they can be more beneficial than manipulative.
Law 28: Enter action with boldness
no one admires the brave; no one respects the timid (but stay humble)
How many times have you thought about starting a business or approaching a potential customer that seemed way beyond your perceived capabilities?
It is undeniable that business cycles and other timing factors can affect your sales closing rates. However, the perfect timing never exists and constantly waiting for the ‘right time’ eventually leads to lost opportunities.
Especially as a startup doing outbound sales, attaining leads without huge brand credibility is a difficult task. Entering the market timidly with the fear of failure or losing out could eventually lead to the demise of your business. Enter each networking event, sales pitch and opportunity with boldness would help you set a track record as a confident, trustworthy company.
Law 29: Plan all the way to the end
Establish what you want at the end and stick to it.
Imagine this: You are working a 9 to 5 job and exercise barely twice a week. One day, you wake up with the epiphany that life is too short and you want to climb Mount Everest– the very next day.
Climbing Mount Everest is difficult, but not impossible. However, not planning all the way to the end makes you reckless and unprepared. Although there may be a change of plans halfway through your journey, planning all the way to the end would allow you to plan for enough resources and strategies.
Law 35 Master the art of timing
Court your potential customers. In Law 28, we talk about doing sales with boldness; however, boldness does not equate to reckless decisions.
Understanding your client’s sales process and courting them slowly with boldness would make your pitching and services more well-executed.
Tips: Consider these few timings:
- Budget cycles
- Festive seasons
- Monthly closing
- Peak periods
- Differences in time-zone
Understanding the availability of time and monetary resources would allow you to track the time to reach out to your leads. Similarly, just because they are heading toward the end of the budget cycle, it does not mean you have lost the potential to work with them indefinitely.
Law 47 Do not go past the mark you aimed for; in victory, learn when to stop
Like in Law 29, planning all the way to the end makes you understand the limitations of your resources and capabilities. In past articles, we talked about finding your ideal customer profile and finding your first set of customers. Even though your resources might work in multiple industries, your resources as a startup are ultimately limited.
Likewise, sacrificing the quality of services for profit by taking in more clients than you can cope with would also lead to an ultimate downfall.
Learn when to stop.
Law 48 Assume formlessness
The world is constantly changing and formlessness allows you to adapt quickly to circumstances.
Take Amazon for example. Jeff Bezos established Amazon in his home garage as a tiny bookstore. With quick adaptability and formlessness, he was able to expand his businesses extensively to cover many other goods and services.
However, formlessness does not mean forgoing your principles, mission, and company vision– while sticking to your values, change according to the times.
Be like water.
