It's Not Always Scale

I always think about business in terms of scale. Every business idea or client concept gets put through that filter. How will this scale? What will it look like in year 3, 5 and 10? What will this look like with a thousand customers or a million customers? What are the team requirements and the product requirements to make all of that happen? Even if you don’t want a million customers, the thought exercise is important. This kind of thinking is definitely valuable, but it’s not the only thing. Hang with me a sec.

Nearly all business owners and entrepreneurs are actually only thinking about their minimum revenue needs. They might dream about big numbers, but when they’re really honest with themselves about their daily inner monologue, they are thinking ‘I just need X dollars’ or ‘I just need 2 new sales’ or whatever. This comes from a scarcity mindset most likely. Even if you’re thinking big about scale, you’ve almost certainly greatly underestimated the margins that are required to really make a solid profit and deliver massive value to your customers — especially at scale. The good news about that is you can just adjust the plan! (certainly easier at the beginning or before launch)

With all of this, you’ve got to find your sweet spot. How many customers at what price point (and margin) creates exactly the business and lifestyle that you want? What does the business look like WHEN everything goes as planned?

This is THE number one issue for all startups and small businesses even though most business owners never quite see it that way. This fundamental assessment is the very first thing you should stop and evaluate regardless of where you are in your business.

Want help thinking through this? Drop me a voice message here