LEADER - Why Bold Beats Beige

Australia’s best-selling small business author, Andrew Griffiths, tells The Adviser’s Jessica Darnbrough why mistakes maketh the business owner

FROM ENCYCLOPAEDIA SALESMAN TO INTERNATIONALLY ACCLAIMED AUTHOR OF MORE THAN 11 TITLES, YOU’VE BEEN INCREDIBLY SUCCESSFUL. WHAT’S BEHIND THAT?

I make a lot of mistakes.

Mistakes are great – they show that you are giving things a go. I have learned through my mistakes. I see a lot of people sitting on the sidelines; they don’t take risks and consequently, they don’t make any mistakes. But if you don’t make mistakes, you can’t learn.

It’s like social media – if you are not confused, you are not trying hard enough. There are a lot of brokers out there that are dismissing social media, but they are effectively stunting their own growth. If you don’t understand it, that’s fine – at least you are giving it a go.

People think social media is just for people that want to catch up on the latest celebrity news, but that’s not its sole purpose. Social media is so much more: it encapsulates everything about today’s brand new world. Consumers are evolving; their needs are evolving; their knowledge is evolving; and brokers need to evolve with the times in order to stay ahead of the game.

In the professional services industry, you have your old dogs and your new dogs. It is hard for the old dogs to reinvent the way they are doing things; they also don’t have the energy.

When you are at the top of your game, you don’t want to learn a whole set of new skills because it all seems too hard and too much effort. But if you don’t make the effort, you will be left behind.

IS FAILURE TO ADAPT TO CHANGE A COMMON MISTAKE AMONG SMALL BUSINESS OWNERS?

Absolutely. The world’s best businessmen and women are flexible and open minded. They know they have to evolve in order to stay ahead of their competitors. They have to be ready and willing to change at any moment.

But that is not the only mistake small business owners make. Many also fall victim to what I like to call ‘stop-start marketing’.

They market for six months, then stop for a year. There is no consistency. Marketing needs to happen on a daily basis. Brokers often see marketing as a necessary evil, they see it as a money waster, but in fact the reverse is true.

Big businesses market all the time even though their brand is so well established that they don’t have to.

Apple, for example, advertised all through the GFC, which was a very clever and strategic move. They increased their spend when everybody else was cutting back.

Another mistake is falling victim to ‘small business syndrome’.

Small businesses often feel they can’t make any changes because they are too small. In reality, they are more flexible than big companies.

The trick is to look at what huge international companies do well and then implement that on a micro level.

Finally, I think a lot of business owners tend to spend their time chasing new business and neglecting their existing customer base. They let their existing database become a piece of the furniture. If you want to ensure you are always receiving repeat and referral business, you have to provide exceptional customer service all the time.

WHAT DO BROKERS HAVE TO DO TO ‘PROVIDE EXCEPTIONAL CUSTOMER SERVICE’?

They have to be attentive.

Brokers need to make every client feel as though they are the most important person in the world.

It doesn’t matter whether you are chatting over the phone, via email or conducting a face-to-face interview; make the customer feel as though they are the only significant person.

A lot of the time when we are dealing with people, our ‘stuff’ can often seem more important than our customers – we are distracted by what is happening at home – and while that is fine and very natural, you can’t let it interfere with work.

I hear people say that it sounds like common sense, but the funny thing about common sense is that it is not so common.

WHAT OTHER TRAITS MAKE A SUCCESSFUL BUSINESS OWNER?

I believe there are five key traits a successful business owner needs to have:

• Belief – you have to back yourself even when others don’t
• Perseverance – success comes when you think it is not going to
• Flexibility – you have to be open to new ideas
• Integrity – be a great corporate citizen
• Empathy – you need to be able to put yourself in others’ shoes and have respect for those around you

These traits aside, it is also important for successful business owners to take responsibility for their business. A lot of people have the propensity to blame everything around them.

What many business owners don’t understand is that the biggest companies in the world have developed in tough times. There are a lot of opportunities in tough times.

Brokers, in addition, need to understand their company – you have to know your numbers. You would be amazed at how many small businesses don’t know how much it costs them to open their doors every day.

WHAT IS THE BEST PIECE OF ADVICE YOU HAVE BEEN GIVEN?

When I was running a scuba store, a friend of mine said to me: “Somebody has to be the most expensive – it might as well be you. But if you are going to be the most expensive, you have to be the best”.

I have really taken that philosophy to heart. It encompasses so many things, including self-respect. It takes self-respect to put a dollar figure on what you are worth. As more and more brokers move into a fee for service environment, you have to charge what you are worth but you also have to over-deliver on what you say you will.

WHAT IS THE BEST PIECE OF BUSINESS ADVICE YOU WOULD GIVE TO BROKERS?

Don’t be a ‘beige business’. Beige is bad. Don’t blend into the background.

The world has changed dramatically since Google. Word of mouth is now more important than ever because there are just so many options out there. People will not choose a holiday destination or a hairdresser unless they have been highly recommended.

If you are a beige business and you don’t stand out from the crowd in terms of service, business name or promotions, no one will talk about you online or offline and that is the greatest risk to any small business.

Of course, while it is easy for me to say don’t be beige, I bet a lot of brokers would be wondering ‘How do I do that?’

Many small business owners will concentrate on being able to stand out in one area of their business, but this won’t stop you from being beige. The key to being fabulous is to excel in a lot of areas.

Provide exceptional service, communicate effectively and constantly with clients, and always look at where you can take the business tomorrow. If you are great in many areas, you will succeed in business.

My top trick is to find a business you respect and see as ‘the perfect company’. It can be from any industry, not just financial services. Next, understand what it is that makes that business perfect and then replicate those traits in your own company.

Once you have reinvigorated your business and are happy with it, get out there and tell people. If you want to be successful in business, you have to be good at telling people how good you are.

Australians really struggle to blow their own trumpet – they think that only wankers would talk about how good they are. This is not the case. The biggest companies in the world are not afraid to talk about their successes.

You may not believe the hype 100 per cent of the time, but you can bet it is having a positive impact on someone somewhere.