Remind Me (Early Morning Video)

There is a real opportunity in the marketplace for a systems oriented person in ‘regular’ businesses. I think in the property management realm (my previous business) , especially the captive or in house realm of apartment or corporate level management of complexes for an owner or for a firm, it is a no brainer. Each day, week, month, quarter, and year have definable processes that could be quantified. For third party client driven companies, where clients (cash flow) and properties (processes) come and go, it is a little tougher, but still, not impossible.

For any business owner, though, the key is to separate the personality from the service, and to ingrain the quality of service expected into the staff so anyone can deliver the reports, produce the results, and know the properties.

I spent today’s drive home thinking about systems and existing businesses, looking for a ‘dumb’ business (as you called Centratel) in my own region that might be a fit. I’m also thinking in terms of the sorts of businesses that do not have a lot of processes that are ‘outside the norm’ – businesses whose service, process, or product is replicable and systematizable, yet durable. Internet marketing, whether you have your own product or sell other peoples products, is inherently transient- few products stick around more than a few years, and thus, the multiples that internet businesses trade at is much lower than more tangible entities. That makes it unstable for the lifestyle you are so clearly living. For your readers who are trying to replicate what you have, ( and I am one of them) I’d caution that unless you truly control, own, or sell some product or service that is unique and durable, don’t look to affiliate or general ‘online’ marketing as a cure-all.

Our conversation is causing me to rethink my path. Your point in the book of the leader of the business engaging only in creative work is very well taken- it is extremely hard to see how, in internet marketing, to affordably outsource the unique, engaging, and creative work that goes into pre-sale copy writing and email writing, when I don’t own, control, or exclusively represent the products in question..

In my experience as a creator, entrepreneur, and new business analyst, the truly systematizable business is hard to find. It would be a great service to me, and I suspect to your other readers, to start a forum or open up a post with open comments, where the kinds of businesses that are suitable to systematization could be discussed. Your readership is rarified enough that no one needs to feel protective of niches or ideas, and together we can all give each other ideas on what to look for. Perhaps a criteria list of the sort of business that could be molded into a smoothly humming, systems driven machine, would be a great thing to open up or publish??

A first look would include Entrepreneur or Forbes magazine’s franchise sections- Franchises are generally nothing more than a collection of replicable systems- these are businesses that are quantified, systematized, and replicable. They have much higher success rates that the average new businesses, for good reason- they come with a good plan, paid for by the franchise fee.

I’d open that list with these types of businesses:

Water/flood/mold remediation
Carpet installation
Tile Installation
Painting
Home/Apartment/Retail security patrol service
Vending/Laundry/Gumball routes
Car Wash
Local classified/trade/niche marketing publishing businesses
Answering services (obviously)
Property management (low margin….)
Water/Coffee/office supplies services
Business to business services

I’d avoid:
Restaurants
Professional Services (CPA/Tax Prep/Dr/Law/Chiropractor/Anything that trades hours for dollars)
Businesses with significant depreciable CAPEX (would therefore preclude my security patrol businesses, and perhaps the installation businesses also.

Ideal:
Higher barrier to entry
Moderate complexity, yet replicable process
Recurring revenues
Higher cost or risk for clients to transfer/leave
Indispensible needs
Non-recurring marketing/sales/new client acquisition costs
Low to moderate creativity/evolution/change- IE, not terribly dynamic
One time sale for recurring revenues- not 1 time sale for 1 time revenue

Thanks, again, for your time last week
Nathaniel

My favorite quote from this video:
“This is the closest you will get to a psychedelic experience without actually taking LSD. ”
I laughed out loud on that!

Good stuff. Thanks Sam.
-bryan
ps. like the new look of the site

Thanks Bryan. We’re getting ready to further refine the site. I’ve never been comfortable with my image front and center at the top, and there are some design incongruencies.