CLIMB YOUR WAY OUT OF HELL
TO PIVOT OR NOT….
Therein lies the question!
The strategy of a long-distance runner,
Doesn’t apply to a sprinter.
The moves of a mass advertiser,
Rarely apply to a micro-marketer
You pivot when:
a. the traditional revenue stream has dried up.
b. competition is heating up, making your solution a commodity.
c. when the economy isn’t supporting you.
Tick all three for the current climate.
What isn’t a pivot?
A logical progression of business as it grows is not a pivot. That is evolution. If your business is offline, then moving online is a natural growth move. It cannot be classified a pivot.
Gentle nudges and pushes also do not constitute a pivot.
What is a pivot?
A pivot is a fundamental shift in using your strengths to arrive at new solutions for old or new client segments. When the old is not working, it needs to make way for the new. As defined by a book called “The Lean Startup”, a pivot is
“A structured course-correction designed to test a new fundamental hypothesis about the product, strategy, and engine of growth.”
Guess these companies:
This company started as a video dating service. People could upload short videos to describe an ideal partner. This business idea didn’t take off. So, the founders used what they had and pivoted to offer a completely different service.
This company started with a goal to create a camera platform with a cloud portion for storing photos online, and for smart cameras to connect to PCs. This company also pivoted.
The first example is YouTube, while the second is Android OS.
Once you decide it is time for a pivot, and realise what constitutes a pivot, here what needs to be done:
ACTION TESTING
Once you have identified 2–3 new ideas and segments, you need to hit the market fast. Test it with live clients in an agile manner. Is it working? Is it solving their need? Do they like it? Will they use it continuously? Do they love it? Do they love it so much that they will market it to their circle?
TWEAK
If it isn’t working, check what can be tweaked. You have tested it in a small market. Is the idea wrong? Timing wrong? Or the selected client segment wrong?
Give the idea some more time before you write it off.
If it works, then…
SCALE
If it works, check how it can be scaled. One client or one micro- segment at a time.
FASTEST FINGER FIRST will remain a constant!
Here’s what the devil has to say:
It’s ok to be wrong.
It is not ok to be silent and not do anything.
The market needs solutions. You need to be out there providing it (for your client segment).
Again, plan for being wrong and write down how you will handle it.
Tweak, run the next circle, measure, scale.
F A S T.
— — — — — — —
This is part eleven of the series: Climb your way out of hell: Outlier Marketing to overcome worst-case scenarios and grow your business
11. If it is working now, assume it isn’t!
10. Evaluate the people around you
9. People. Facts. Life: Does a customer really change behaviour?
8. How does one marketing a business today?
7. The Map PART TWO: Get out of hell
6. The “Get out of hell” market map: Part ONE
5. WHAT ARE THE FOUR ECONOMIC RECOVERY SCENARIOS?
4. The entrepreneur’s hell: Part TWO
3. The entrepreneur’s hell: Part ONE
2. How to make a business plan in the face of the pandemic?
1. When well laid plans fail…
The full book is available on Amazon: Climb Your Way Out Of Hell
Pravin Shekar is an outlier marketer, parallel entrepreneur and a raconteur.
mic @ PravinShekar.com .
Pravin is the author of seven books: Devil Does Care, Marketing lessons from Mythology, Getting paid to speak, a Virtual Summit Playbook, Climb your way out of hell & a collection of travel pics/romantic poems, and stories from the heart!
http://tiny.cc/PravinShekarBooks
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