THE FIVE DEADLY MISTAKES - #5

#5 - Failure to Balance All Sides of the Business

This is an error that I see even the most experienced and sophisticated entrepreneurs make. However, it is also fairly easy to resolve just by being aware of it. By "all sides of the business," I am referring specifically to the Demand Side and the Supply Side.

1. Demand Side: This is the side of the business where demand for your product or service is created. It consists of activities such as sales, marketing, advertising, PR, promotion, etc.


2. Supply Side: This is the side that actually produces the product or service and delivers it to the customer.

Based on your experience in the past you probably have a natural focus on one side or the other. For example, if you've spent 20 years in corporate sales then you may have a natural demand focus, or if you've worked in manufacturing operations then you may have a supply focus. This natural focus will probably manifest itself in your new business. This is where I see entrepreneurs spend too much time either building and tweaking their product without creating demand for it, or they are out creating demand and they wind up throwing the product together at the last minute.

Don't forget, you are now the CEO (in most cases). You will need to ensure the proper balance betweeen these two sides of the business.

Action Plan: One simple way to help alleviate this is to set-up some type of reminder system. Perhaps, once every couple of weeks you book a time with your team (or yourself) to discuss this and ensure you are focusing on both the supply and demand elements of your start-up.

Have you seen this happen with other entrepreneurs? Any input on what you would do to keep the balance?