Why Most Entrepreneurs Fail
There are only two reasons your business doesn’t grow:
You’re not good at what you do.
Nobody knows about you
Meaning, you need to be good at both if you want to win consistently.
The problem that I have noticed is that most people spend all their time focusing on the first one and ignoring the second one, probably assuming that word of mouth alone will carry them to a pot of gold.
This is the quiet entrepreneur problem. You’re good, but you’re kinda invisible.
While this is not your fault, it is most definitely your problem.
Why It Happens
Most entrepreneurs like building more than talking.
They love solving problems and making things better. Heck, that’s why they go into entrepreneurship in the first place. Talking about what they’re building feels awkward, so they stay quiet. And grind it out.
They tell themselves, “If my work is good enough, people will find it.”
Unfortunately, that is not true because the world is extremely noisy and every no-talent-ass-clown is trying to sell your prospects with some new-fangled marketing or funnel gimmick.
The truth is that people can’t buy something they don’t know about.
Meaning, in a noisy world:
The quiet yet skilled entrepreneur gets buried.
The louder (but often less skilled) dude gets the customers.
How Familiarity Works
While it is hard to accept it, people are busy and distracted. Not to mention, thinking is a chore.
Which is why people rarely buy the best option. And instead, they buy the one they recognize… because the familiarity gives them a psychological feeling of safety.
For example:
Splenda: The yellow packet became so familiar that “yellow packet” now means “Splenda.” Most people can’t even name another brand. Now we have generic sweeteners that are not even Splenda but have the same yellow packet.
Kleenex: The name became the category. It’s not “tissue” anymore… it’s “a Kleenex.”
Coke (in the South): The brand is so strong that people say, “What kind of Coke do you want? Sprite?”
That’s how familiarity works.
When something shows up everywhere, your brain decides it’s safe. And when something feels safe, you choose it automatically.
If people never see you or your business, you never become familiar.
What You Can Do
So, how do we solve this problem?
First, stop trying to do more marketing. Mainly because when most people think about marketing, they think about what they should promote. And then they fall into the marketing gimmick trap.
Instead, become an in-house reporter for your business and just start showing what you’re building.
Think of your business like it’s a hobby you love sharing.
If you were:
Taking flying lessons, you’d post photos from the cockpit.
Restoring an old Mustang, you’d share progress every weekend.
Learning guitar, you’d show what song you practiced or what chord finally made sense.
Do that with your business.
Show the work in progress.
Share the small wins and mistakes.
Explain what you’re learning and how you figured it out.
Ask your audience if they’ve run into the same thing.
You’re not selling anything… you’re inviting people to come along for the ride. Over time, they’ll start to feel like they know you. When they know you, they’ll trust you. And when they trust you, they’ll buy from you.
Stick this in your mind
In the content world, there is this concept popularized by Gary Vee called “document don’t create”.
For you as a business owner, I recommend thinking about “Reporting instead of Marketing.” Assume your business was your hobby, how would you report on your progress and your lessons learned?
Just do that.
That maybe the fastest way to fix the quiet entrepreneur problem.
If you liked this post, you’ll like this one:
“What kind of coke do you want? Sprite?”
That was really funny :)
It shows how far familiarity with a brand can go. This was really good one Sharran!