Avoid This Common Entrepreneur Mistake

I went to an entrepreneurship event where business leaders gave advice on successful pitching. One contribution which stood out was that many entrepreneurs are not clear about what they are asking for and knowing whether the person can provide it. This insight was spot on, entrepreneurs focus heavily on their idea but not many consider whether the person can give assistance. For an idea to be attractive, an entrepreneur should know how it works with an honest reflection on where to access the assistance needed. There is no ‘one size fits all’ plan however being prepared on what to ask for and knowing where to find it is a very good start.

What should you ask for?

Contrary to popular media funding is not the first thing to ask for, rather entrepreneurs should seek to improve their working knowledge of the idea and build credibility. The link between your working knowledge and credibility is the ability to form strategic relationships that can positively influence your success.

• Working Knowledge of the Idea

This is a real-world and continuous understanding of what makes the idea works and how it makes money. Every entrepreneurs has to constantly improve their understanding of the idea and best ways to share it. Asking practical questions can improve your strategy and provide access to tips and techniques for business success not found in textbooks. A good area to explore is regulation and networking challenges in your industry and how to address them.

•  Building credibility

A recent World Bank report noted that trust is a major barrier to investments in the Caribbean. Investors perceive an inability amongst Caribbean entrepreneurs to create value from their ideas. Building credibility can take two approaches, first to have reputable support behind the product/service and second, whether customers experience the added value. Partnering with suitable mentors/coaches enhances the competencies working with the idea. Likewise, customer feedback validates the idea by showing its impact and direct entrepreneurs on where to improve customer experience. The end result is reaching closer to a customer experience where the product speaks for itself.

• Strategic Relationship Building

Improving your working knowledge and building credibility are driven by having strategic relationships. Entrepreneurs should be willing to exchange rather than simply receive to get accustom to the give and take nature of the business world. A common example is in funding, poor chemistry with an investor can damage a business by making the associated binding obligations more difficult to satisfy. Similar dynamics exist with issues like divesting control, strategy and product development. Relations influence which strategy is right for your business and can be between peers (horizontal) or mentors/coaches (vertical). The ultimate goal is that each relationship should bring value and push an entrepreneur towards their objective.

Can they provide it?

For Caribbean entrepreneurs it is not only who knows you but how do you know them. It is a bad to assume that investors know what you want and can provide it. Furthermore entrepreneurs have to recognise when someone can offer something that was not previously known to be important. Successful entrepreneurs avoid assumption making and instead focus on getting into the social circles of influential people. There is no universal advice on knowing who can provide resources however a high emotional intelligence with training in social graces can help navigate various social circles. The objective for entrepreneurs is to use their strategic relationships to build a network of resources. Making the most of this network is largely affect by an ability to create value that others can buy into.

In conclusion, a pitch can lose its impact by making assumptions about what investors know or can provide. The current business environment demands being prepared with practicable knowledge, credibility and recognising that society is an ecosystem. Collaboration becomes easier when entrepreneurs use that preparation to build strategic relationships.

Thank you for reading this post, to join the collaboration movement (1) Like this post and share your comments below, (2) hit the “follow” button at the top of the page, (3) share this post with your friends and (4)check out other interesting articles

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Joshua Hamlet is an evangelist for the importance of collaboration. His company Inspire Consulting focuses on education and mentoring for Caribbean entrepreneurs and start-ups. He has a BSc in Psychology and MSc in International Relations.