Born Entrepreneur - Stories, Thoughts & Analysis

Innovation is great. Change is great. New things are great. But WAIT! Why are you innovating? Why are you changing? Why are you introducing new things? This book opened up my eyes to a new perspective. We need to always be careful that we’re not changing just for the sake of changing. Sure everyone is “innovating,” but really, is that what your company needs?

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Renovate Before You Innovate: Why Doing the New Thing Might Not Be the Right Thing

by Sergio Zyman

1. Know the difference between core competency (what you know how to do) and core essence (who you really are as a brand) and why a solid understanding of core essence is the heart of any business success.
2. Renovation no longer doing different things with your existing assets and competencies, but doing BETTER things with them instead
3. Innovation pitfalls
   a.  They focus on leveraging their core competencies instead of their core essence
   b.  They grow horizontally instead of vertically
4. Quit worrying about new businesses, new brands, and new customers. Instead, worry about how to make better use of the ones you already have
5. Don’t grow horizontally by chasing new customers and getting into new markets and new business. Instead, grow organically by focusing on existing customers, existing businesses, and existing markets.
6. Studies have found that increasing customer retention a mere 5% can boost profits by 50%
7. Loyal customers are less likely to wait for promotions, so you can charge them more.
8. Ability to grow organically you must leverage:
   a.  core competencies
   b.  core essence (most impt.)
   c.  your assets and infrastructure
9. To develop a renovation mentality:
   a.  Commit before you ever start something new to measuring results of every single dollar you spend on marketing
   b.  get the idea of giving price concessions out of your mind
10. ***The purpose of marketing is to drive sales, and every dollar you spend on marketing should generate measurable results***
11. Instead of asking “what other businesses are there like us?” you should ask “what other choices does my customer have?”
12. Recipe for creating an Experience:
    Offer easy access
       a.  don’t have to work too hard to get what you want
       b.  you can decide on spur of the moment
    Be a social, shared experience
       a.  I can tell someone about it
       b.  I derive pleasure from seeing someone else it enjoy it
    Be interactive
       a.  You can tough it, feel it, move it, shape it.
       b.  Gives you immediate feedback
    Be unexpected
       a.  It surprises you
       b.  It’s not what you expected (in a good way)
    Be personalized
       a.  It can be customized to you
       b.  It’s not the same for everyone every time
    Remove the negatives
       a.  it can distract you
       b.  it makes time go by fast
13. Post purchase: consumers want confirmation that what they bought was the right purchase
14. Try underpromising and over delivering
15. Post purchase goals: encourage product usage and encourage repurchase
    - loyalty programs
    - customer service surveys
    - regular newsletters with tips and articles for how to use the product
    - using marketing and advertising to remind customers of the needs and wants the product satisfies and how using it will improve their life
16. the quality of the post purchase experience is up to you just like the prepurchasing experience is up to you

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