Appreciation Marketing – Who Built It?

There has been a lot of talk lately about who built your business. Business owners like to take all the credit for building their business themselves without any assistance from anyone else. Who really built any business, and who should get the credit for your business success?

Different businesses should be examined from different viewpoints. Is your business a brick and mortar storefront, or is it internet based? Do you have a product or service; do you have any employees, or are you a solo operator? What do any of these questions mean regarding what you mean when discussing who built your business?

There may not be a business if you did not decide to be a part of it. If you developed the concept of your business, maybe it would not exist. However, can you take all the credit for its success? Are you a part of a franchise for a larger enterprise? The business itself may have been quite successful even if you were never a part of it. If you are a solo operator, you are more important than if you have employees. Could your business be successful without them if you do have employees?

Does your storefront reside on a public street that someone else built, or is your home based business in a house that someone else built on a street that the city or county maintains. Is the internet your avenue to your customers or a mainstay of your marketing, and did you built that? What about the public entities that support your phone, electricity, water, and gas? What does the availability of your product for resale mean to your business’s success, or can you really exist without anything to offer your clients? If you provide a service, did you really invent the concept, or did you learn it from someone else?

Bottom line, none of us can honestly say that we alone, without anyone else, built our business. Facilities, support services, and suppliers all have a contribution to our success, and they should be appreciated for that contribution. Our family plays a large part in our success, either through their support, assistance, and otherwise. There are many others whom I have not mentioned that probably provide help in making our businesses successful.

We have not mentioned the two most important contributors, your employees, and your clients. If you have employees, you would not be able to accomplish anything without them. Most importantly, without clients you would not have a business, successful or not. Maybe it is time that you started showing some Appreciation Marketing towards these two groups. After all, your clients put money into your pocket, and your employees help your company to provide something for your clients’ purchase.

Anyone who helps improve your bottom line should be a target of Appreciation Marketing, your gratitude for their efforts to assist you. Clients, employees, and your networking partners who refer prospects to you are all people who assist your business in its success. You need to thank them for their efforts and for their contribution to your success. You cannot exist, much less be successful without them.

So stop claiming that you built it all without any assistance from anyone else. You just aren’t that great or powerful. Once again, whether you agree or disagree with me, please leave me your comments, or call me at 360-314-8691, or email me at Jim@SOC4Now.com. Appreciation Marketing applies to everyone that helps us. We cannot do this, whatever it is, by ourselves. We need everyone else.