In today’s money driven economy, there is plenty of room for many businesses to make a buck, but very few distinguish themselves by creating value for those around them. The real missing ingredient in most of today’s new ventures and businesses is the one that gives fundamental opportunity for a business to become an empire, and it is called “innovation.”
What is it that differentiates Apple from Microsoft?
Nothing actually differentiates the companies and they are all poised to face the same fate, but what has allowed one to overtake the other? The word as you may have guessed is “innovation”, and it is the reason Apple pushed Microsoft aside in very little time, therefore doomed to face the same outcome. Innovation is what enables businesses to grow substantially and differentiate themselves from the competition. Apple didn’t actually innovate the cell phone product with unbelievable technologies, yet it rather innovated how the cell phone industry as a whole worked and as a result gained not only brand loyalty but also became the leader in cell phone sales.
When you think about most of today’s businesses, they are opened as a means for an Entrepreneur to just make money which in turn ends up being sold off, merged with another business, or simply an average money maker. Those businesses that rethink an industry or re-establish the way we do business or what we can or cannot do are those that systematically position themselves to grow to making a much more significant impact on society and being remembered for their innovations.
How can you be innovative?
There are multiple ways for a business to be recognized as innovative in today’s business world.
1. Change the way an industry works.
Apple is a great example of this with its iPhone product, as the phone itself was by no means innovative but rather how the industry worked entirely. The phone service provider dictated to phone manufacturers what features and services it was allowed to pre-build in to its phones, yet Apple changed the industry by reversing that. Even though AT&T was the only one that agreed, the hype behind the phone made everyone else comply to their demands and the iPhone became a household name.
2. Change the user experience.
Burger joints are a dime a dozen and certainly have been around forever, although despite the over segmentation, Five Guys still became an industry known name. Their burgers were charbroiled and not original but their delivery of the product was different. Allowing an a la carte alternative to the pre-made burger joint and a new way to consume a healthier burger simply was a tweak to an existing and well functioning model, making Five Guys into an accepted food competitor.
3. Offer a new and fresh idea to users.
ADV1 Wheels didn’t invent wheels nor did they invent what concave wheels were but they certainly took a long lost idea and implemented it beautifully. Taking the concept to a whole new level of custom. Their engineering is what was fresh and new, and even though the concept wasn’t, the execution was fresh and new and targeted a new segment of automobiles who had yet to be offered this type of solution.
These are just three ways you can innovate your market and actually be recognized as a true entrepreneur because ultimately entrepreneurship is about innovation and facilitation rather than just making money, which ultimately helps you make your mark on the world.
