Want to Succeed? Be Relevant in Business.

Last week, Ashton Kutcher reached 1 million followers on Twitter. 

I’m sure you’re wondering why this is a big deal. The beauty of Twitter is that it allows users to find out what’s going on in the world right now. People follow Ashton Kutcher because he updates his posts constantly. His followers know what he’s up to at any given moment. He’s relevant.

These days, I hear a lot of complaining: business is slow, the economy sucks, I don’t have customers, etc. While I realize we’re not in the best of financial times, I have a hard time swallowing the notion that my success is determined by the inner-workings of the stock market or on who gets an enormous government bail-out. 

We’re entrepreneurs, for crying out loud! We got into this business because ultimately, our success (or failure) rests on our shoulders. But, too often we underestimate ourselves. We forget our number one secret weapon:

Agility.

As entrepreneurs, our smallness works in our favor. We have the ability to immediately respond to our customers’ needs at little or no-cost. We can change directions and adjust to the climate of the times with ease if we’re aware enough to know what our customers want. Our agility allows us to be relevant.

If you want to succeed in business, you need to be relevant and give customers what they’re asking for. Here’s how:

Listen:

My Mom always said that I have two ears and one mouth for a reason: I should be doing twice the amount of listening as talking. If you want to find out what’s going on with your customers, you have to listen. What are your customers talking about? What are they writing about? 

When you listen, you’re in touch with your client base and you have information to improve your product or service.

To get your customers talking, ask them questions.

Do you need my product or service?

Do you want this service or product? 

Would you use it after you purchased it?

Would you tell your friends about it?

Does our communication show the clear benefit of using the service/product? 

How does our service/product solve your problem?

Once you start asking questions, listen to the answers. The answers carry power: they show you exactly how to reach your customers, what services they need, and how you can be relevant by solving their problems. 

Keep up on the current trends/ popular sentiment:

If you don’t keep a pulse on what’s happening in the world, you’ll fall behind in business. Your marketing won’t work. People won’t want what you’re selling.

One of the major problems with the American auto industry is that they weren’t keeping up with the times: they were offering big cars when people wanted to be eco-friendly. They didn’t stay in touch with their customers and lost market share. 

Now, I’m not recommending that you change your product or service offerings to adjust to every “in thing” or season. However, it is important to keep tabs on large trends and see how your business measures up. Are you offering what consumers want? Are you keeping up with the times?

To keep relevant, I like watching a few websites to see what’s going on in the world. Check these out, you may find them useful, too:

1. smallbiztrends.com: Business website with blog format. Great for small businesses

(thus, the domain name).

2. google.com/trends: A Google program that allows you to type in keywords to see 

how they’ve been performing in conducted searches. 

3. twitter.com: If you want to see what’s on the mind of millions of people, goto 

Twitter and see what people are talking about right now. It’s always enlightening.

Keeping up with what’s going on in the world helps you measure yourself. In addition, it allows you to see potential upcoming opportunities and areas where you can grow. By studying trends, you can stay on top of your clients’ needs.

Get out in the world.

As entrepreneurs, it’s easy to become wrapped up in our own little world, with our computer, in our own industry. If you want to remain relevant, step out of your shell and get out of your office.

When I’m stuck writing, I often go to a local coffee shop and chat it up with the regulars. It’s surprising how much insight you can get by having a good conversation. Plus, I usually run into one or two people I don’t exactly agree with, so it’s good to stretch my brain and try to understand other points of view.

In addition to just getting out, speak with people in industries not directly related to you. See how large trends or political decisions are effecting people in their line of work. This allows you to see similar problems from different points of view. 

Armed with fresh, new perspectives, re-visit your product or service. How does it address the concerns of the different people you’ve talked to? Analyze your marketing materials: are you communicating effectively?

When you step out of your comfort zone, you can view your product or service from the outside, like your customers do. 

In the end, it’s essential to offer a product or service that people want. Your offering needs to be relevant. When you listen, ask questions, keep up with trends, and leave your shell, you’ll gather the powerful information you need to provide solutions for your customers.