Starting a business is easy but managing your business and getting it done is difficult. Recently, at a Seminar on Key Management in Multi-business Management, Mr. Som Sambath, Executive Director of CamPaint Company shared his five practical tips to start a business and drive the business to success.
1. Partners Mobilization and Networking
The first tip is to mobilize partners to create an enterprise or company. You can’t establish a company alone; you need partners who have capacity and experience in your business area to work together.
2. Think and Do Like Marketing Expert
Every single enterprise or a company survives depends on revenue. Therefore, the general manager or CEO needs to be a good marketing person. Doing business does not think that we are the Chief Executive Officer (CEO), but we have to think that we are the Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) who drives business to make as much revenue as possible. We are not good at marketing, meaning that it does not work.
For example, 100 good ideas can be processed only 1, because one of those who is good at marketing will use it while 99 ideas are dead. It’s because they have only good ideas but not good at marketing.
Surrounding this marketing, Mr. Som Sambath described some backgrounds that in 1910 people started marketing (Marketing 1.0) means that people began to think about how to produce it, because many people did not know how to produce the products, yet they knew only how to use; therefore, marketing was not as important as producing products.
When the Industrial Revolution came to the overwhelming supply of excessive market demand, it encouraged marketers to start thinking of the second phase (Marketing 2.0). People needed to understand the human mind. Therefore, they needed to think psychologically.
Entrepreneur Skills in Cambodia
The first stage of marketing was about selling products. Products can be sold where the crowded people were living, but second-generation vendors could not sell them. They could not comprehend the minds of people who demanded that the merchant excels in the hearts of people. For third-generation marketers (Marketing 3.0), start thinking about business responsible for society.
A new strategy for modern-day marketers is to be creative, to produce new ones to kill old ones. For example, the iPhone has been releasing a new series every year when it comes to a new version, and it makes a lot of sales because it has killed the old iPhone series. If the iPhone does not have a new phone release and still be selling the old iPhone, it would soon become the second Nokia. Another marketing strategy in this new era begins to think of how to make products that people want to use. For example, when one has free time, she accesses Facebook, Facebook serves relevant ads to her see it. The ads show something that she wants to use. Another good example is that while some cafes are nicely decorated to attract people to get it and drink cafe they service. People are likely to drink café at their shop because they think that they are trendy.
So now and in the future, we have to think about creating a business that can solve people’s problems, making it easier for people to use. This way, we can drive a business successfully.
3. Human Resources Management
The third key is the management of human resources. Two main assets are human resources and capital. If you want to be successful in business, you cannot just go to the fundraiser. In fact, it is advisable to gather good people first. The way to collect good people is to build a good and strong self because no-good people serve bad people. There is no strong person to serve the weak. I have been working for 25 years, the thing that I’m trying to do is to build knowledge to myself to attract more capable people. Therefore, we have to invest more in people because Singapore’s most investments are investing in building people. Ultimately, Singaporeans are building the country for growth.
4. Financial Management
The fourth tip, financial management, though it’s not my expertise, I have to be able to read financial reports to understand. Because if we do not understand, we cannot manage the business.
5. Management and Leadership
Finally, the fifth key is management and leadership. It is the key to long-term business trips. The leader who full of a clear vision. The leader must be confident and confident about others. If we have strong confidence in leading that business, then It’s easy for him to make money for the business, but if we do not have faith, we will find it hard to make money. For example, Uber has a lot of companies losing millions of dollars, but they still collect the fund because they believe the company will move forward. The best confidence is hope.