This week I met an entrepreneur who’s been active in his industry for longer than I’ve walked this planet. So I thought it good to ask him what he would say makes a business successful; and he obliged with such clear answers, that I have to report on it here…
Emanuel Isserow is Managing Director of Ideal Fastener. Most of his contemporaries are retired — playing with the grand kids and going for mid-morning walks — but not this self-made entrepreneur. He’s spent the past 40 years “building a great company”, which he says is based on Ideal Fastener’s “lifetime customer philosophy” setting them apart from their competitors.
The advice I received is based on working for over half a century in the fastner industry — practical experience, not slick business school theories!
Here are Emanuel Isserow’s five tips for business success:
1. Know your industry inside-out so that you can ride the wave of new trends, rather than getting dumped by an unexpected swell.
2. Distinguish yourself by doing the opposite your competitors are doing or offering possibilities your competitors are unable or unwilling to provide.
3. Don’t compete on price, however discount to overcome initial buying hurdles or make special introductory offers to help the first transaction along.
4. Offer exceptional service, which have never been heard of, or which your customers thought would just be impossible.
5. Create a happy and relaxed work environment where your people are paid significantly above the industry average and where they have challenges that will ask of them to develop themselves.
Visit their website at http://www.idealfastener.co.za