Estimated reading time: 3 minutes

It's Only Common Sense: Start Selling Now

Editor's Note: To listen to Dan's weekly column, as you've always done in the past, click here. For the written transcript, keep reading...Business author Tom Peters says most companies spend too much time aiming and not enough time firing--it's more like “ready, aim, aim, aim, aim…” Does this sound familiar? I bet if you’re honest it does to most of you.

Management consultant and author Peter Drucker once said, “The main purpose of business is to create customers.” We must create customers any way we can, using sales and marketing, branding and advertising; and social media--any avenue we can use--because, in the end, without customers we do not have a business. Without customers a business is no louder than one hand clapping and we know how loud that is. Why do we keep doing what Peters says and keep aiming, aiming, and aiming? Why don’t we fire? I have thought quite a lot about this as I watch companies struggle because they don't have enough sales or customers. They are doing nothing to create customers; struggling to the point of going out of business.

These companies, no matter how bad things get, stick to their guns and keep doing what they’re comfortable with instead of finally doing something that is going to create customers. Don’t believe me? You think this doesn’t make any sense? You’ve never heard of such a thing? Let me know if you've ever heard or, worse yet, said any of the following:

• Things are pretty tough right now. I’m going to have to suspend any sales and marketing effort until things get better.
• I don’t think the time is right. I want to make sure that everything is perfect and then I’ll start marketing.
• What if I launch that website and the orders start coming in at such a rate that we won’t be able to handle them all?
• What if I introduce that new product and the volume of orders is so great I won’t be able to keep up?
• What if I start advertising and so much business comes in that I won’t be able to keep up?
• What if I do all this stuff and nothing happens?
• I’ll start doing marketing when I need to. Right now I have enough business this month.
• I think my product is s good. I don’t really need to market it.
• Salespeople are just too expensive. I think I need a couple more engineers before I get around to hiring more salespeople.
• I am working on my website and when that is up and running I’ll think about marketing
• I’m going to buy a couple more pieces of equipment and then I’ll be ready to begin marketing.
• People know who I am already. I don’t need to advertise.

Now I’m starting to gag, but I have a few more:

• I think once we get that capability I can get out there and market it.
• I want to wait and see what my competitors are going to do.
• I’ll start marketing when I catch up on the business I have right now.

I have to stop here before I throw up. I can’t take anymore.

What do you think? Did you see yourself in there somewhere? Let’s get back to the beginning: The purpose of business is to create customers. Did you hear anything in the list above that sounded like a good way to create customers? No. Nothing in those statements in any way, shape, or form will lead to creating customers. Each was a different way of aiming and avoiding firing.

Marketing takes a long time. Creating customers is a process--a well-defined and planned out process. Things do not happen overnight. The marketing you do today will yield results in a few months at best. The last thing you want to do is wait to begin marketing and selling when you are about to run out of business or, worse, when you are out of business.

You need to be marketing all the time. Marketing can never stop because you never want to stop creating customers. If you are not marketing yet, you need to start right now or you will die. It’s only common sense.