No man is an island and that certainly holds true for entrepreneurs. You should foster relationships and partnerships in your entrepreneurial endeavors to propel your business forward. No business owner can be all things to all people and most business owners focus on a core competency as a way to niche-market themselves. I’ve found, in my coaching business, that many people prefer to work with specialists rather than generalists.
Here are some ways you can grow your business if you grow your partnerships:
- If you have a company that manufacturers products, look for a fulfillment partner so you can concentrate on the manufacture and hand off the fulfillment.
- Do you run the show from overseeing the manufacturing to making sales presentations? Determine where your core competency lies and delegate the rest. Maybe you’d be better served to bring on a sales team or a sales person.
- How are your products distributed? Do you need a sales person to help with distribution and perhaps find new channels?
- Have you considered white labeling your products? Using your own product but licensing them and re-labeling them under another name? You see this a lot in the electronics industry.
- Who is handling your marketing and promotions? Do you have a blog for your business? Are you interacting on social media to reach new clients? It might make sense to work with either a marketing and public relations firm and a blogger to help with the promotions of your product.
The same partnerships can be formed for those who provide services as well as those who provide products. Determine what you need, what you can delegate and find a partner.