My favorite question to ask entrepreneurs is the: so your company is similar to Ning? Or the Khan Academy? Or Skillshare? It's the question entrepreneurs hate the most but must be ready to answer immediately. The answer demonstrates how they've positioned themselves which is critical to success in every aspect of starting a company. It will lead your marketing campaign, impact your financing options, and set the direction for your product development.
We ask the question because having context helps us better understand a product or company. It also helps us categorize the company which improves recall. It's a necessary evil and one I love seeing a person answer as they tend to cringe or jump with excitement. It really differentiates those who are prepared and know their market from those who still have plenty of work to do.
The reason they hate the question is because being compared to your competition (whether you see them as competition or not) sucks. You end up living in their shadow if you don't demonstrate a clear difference in value or functionality which can become a tremendous barrier for future activity with the person asking the question. Know why you're different, be ready to demonstrate it, and out execute your competition.
Hopefully I'll actually start my "How To Get a Job" series on Thursday. Like the best consultants, I'll be offering advice without my own successful outcome. Only difference is I'm not getting paid for it.
We ask the question because having context helps us better understand a product or company. It also helps us categorize the company which improves recall. It's a necessary evil and one I love seeing a person answer as they tend to cringe or jump with excitement. It really differentiates those who are prepared and know their market from those who still have plenty of work to do.
The reason they hate the question is because being compared to your competition (whether you see them as competition or not) sucks. You end up living in their shadow if you don't demonstrate a clear difference in value or functionality which can become a tremendous barrier for future activity with the person asking the question. Know why you're different, be ready to demonstrate it, and out execute your competition.
Hopefully I'll actually start my "How To Get a Job" series on Thursday. Like the best consultants, I'll be offering advice without my own successful outcome. Only difference is I'm not getting paid for it.
No comments:
Post a Comment