Marketing Expert or Business Pro...which is better?

Recently I was thumbing through an Inc. Magazine and I came across a Norm Brodsky article about ‘Roll-ups”. A roll-up is where an entrepreneur or entrepreneurs combine various related businesses under one set of management. The idea is that the combined (or rolled-up) businesses can be more profitable and thus more valuable.

This post though isn’t about roll-ups it’s about business or more precisely thinking like a business person. You see as I read the Brodsky’ article, I felt a little funny. It was like the whole concept of roll-ups was new to me. But the truth is that about five years ago I thought quite often about roll-ups and other business growth techniques. I subscribed to Forbes and other business mags which I read cover to cover. For a while I had my own business brokerage office where I helped put together buyers and sellers.

I could read and figure out cash flows, income statements and balance sheets even though I’m not an accountant. I could tell a good deal from a bad one. But then I started spending all my time on ‘marketing’…from copywriting to ad design to list selection. It wasn’t that I hadn’t spent any previous time on marketing issues because I had. But about five years ago I started spending all my time on marketing. And as I sat there reading the article I realized I’ve lost some of my business skills. They’ve sat there unused for the better part of five years and they’ve become stale.

By forgetting about my business skills I’ve probably cost myself some good opportunities. I love marketing but marketing without good business sense limits your opportunities. I certainly can’t knock someone that enjoys the marketing but not the business. Heck we all have our likes and dislikes but I think for most of us to reach a very-high level of success you need to have a good sense of business. Now don’t get me wrong, marketing can and does wind its way through business thoughts, ideas and concepts but a lot of business people become successful without a good grasp of marketing. I come across many good marketers that aren’t good business people. There is one marketing guru that continually talks about creating a product and then selling $300,000 over the course of a few months. Is that good? Yes. Was good marketing involved? Yes. But what did that guru turn that $300,000 into. Does he run a business that’s doing millions per year now? No. I think that is the difference between a good marketer and a good business person. A good marketer will succeed in spurts but doesn’t (for one reason or another) combine the success of one product with the success of another.

Ted Nicholas is both a good marketer and a good business person.
Gary Halbert is a good marketer.
I think Ben Suarez was a good business person first and then became a good marketer.
Wayne Heizinga is a terrific business person who admits he knows nothing about marketing.

I won’t diss someone that wants to create thousand dollar opportunities that most marketers crave rather than the million dollar opportunities that business people crave. To each his or her own.

But I think it is the lack of business basics that keeps many would be marketers of info products or what not from succeeding. I see both on the net and in off-line businesses that I consult with.

Michael Dell was a good marketer but a much better business person. If you look at Dell’s old ads or even their new ones you’ll see that Michael Dell succeeded with ads that most of us would deem as not being the best. Even Denny Hatch of Target Magazine spoke about how poor Dell’s ads were but acknowledged that Michael Dell was far more successful than he…and Denny Hatch is a terrific student of direct marketing. Why was Dell more successful? Terrific business skills were the answer. He combined average ads with low prices and the ability to turn inventory at an unheard of rate. You see his ability to manage inventory allowed him to keep prices low which drove sales…even with ads that wouldn’t impress a Gary Halbert for instance.

Please don’t say ‘marketing skills’ are the same as ‘business skills’. Both are important. Copywriting skills are important. But so is the ability to figure return on investment.

I think it’s the lack of business skills that keeps many would be entrepreneurs from succeeding…maybe even more so than the lack of marketing skills.

Take care,

Mike Winicki

Once again Mike, a thought provoking post.
I suspect a lot of this comes down to a matter of size.
Depending on where you see your business in a few years is going to affect your strategy from day one. If you are looking to employ lots of people and make a bit off the top of each worker, its quite different to a pure marketer with a lean and mean operation making a bit on the top of each product.
Personally I hate employing staff and the management burden that comes with it, so I prefer to limit the size of my business to what I can cope with. I know its dumb, but it makes me happy.

> Once again Mike, a thought provoking post.
> I suspect a lot of this comes down to a
> matter of size.
> Depending on where you see your business in
> a few years is going to affect your strategy
> from day one. If you are looking to employ
> lots of people and make a bit off the top of
> each worker, its quite different to a pure
> marketer with a lean and mean operation
> making a bit on the top of each product.
> Personally I hate employing staff and the
> management burden that comes with it, so I
> prefer to limit the size of my business to
> what I can cope with. I know its dumb, but
> it makes me happy.

(ha-ha)

No really it isn't about size even though size is the result of good business skills. I've forgotten who said it but the quote was "The difference between a business doing a $100,000 per year and $1,000,000 per year and $100,000,000 per year are the 3 P's...Policies, Plans and Procedures." I agree 100% with that...I've seen it myself first hand. Someone with marketing skills but poor business skills just won't hit high sales figures (I'm sure exceptions exist but overall feel pretty confident in that statement).

You don't need to have multitudes of employees any more either. With so many opportunities to farm out operations and fulfillment you can have a business that is doing $1,000,000 per year or more without any employees at all. But of course you have to be business savvy enough to figure out what prices to pay for these services and how to keep those folks in line.

Large businesses are usually the result of a small businesses that have done things right over a period of time. How are they doing things right? Usually they are combining good marketing and good business skills. And personally I think it is much easier to become a good marketer.

Take care,

Mike W.

That is an excellent point.

Here's my question: where's a good place to go to learn real business skills? So far, the best resources I've seen have been Ted Nicholas's Small Business Course and most anything by Jim Straw.

(I admit I haven't read the Art of Leverage yet, but I was quite impressed with the Success Report.)

Other ideas?

-Phil

> That is an excellent point.

> Here's my question: where's a good place to
> go to learn real business skills? So far,
> the best resources I've seen have been Ted
> Nicholas's Small Business Course and most
> anything by Jim Straw.

> (I admit I haven't read the Art of Leverage
> yet, but I was quite impressed with the
> Success Report .)

> Other ideas?

> -Phil

Phil,

Good question...as I've said previously it seems to be easier acquiring marketing knowledge than it is business knowledge. But here is a good place to start:

1. The book, "The Making of a Blockbuster: How Wayne Huizenga Built a Sports and Entertainment Empire".
2. "Beyond the Golden Arches" which is the story of how McDonalds came about.
3. "The Trumps: Three Generations That Built an Empire".
4. Anything on Ted Turner or Richard Branson.
5. Read Inc. magazine.
6. Learn how to read an income statement, cash flow sheet and balance sheet.
7. Talk to successful entrepreneurs.

Take care,

Mike Winicki

Hi Mike,

I meant to reply to this earlier, but I've just had a real hectic week....

I've read and re-read your post several times.... There's no doubt that this one's a "keeper"!

Thanks a lot for that distinction between a good "business person" and a good "marketer".... Especially this part....

I think that is the difference between a good marketer and a good business person. A good marketer will succeed in spurts but doesn’t (for one reason or another) combine the success of one product with the success of another.

Mike, like you, I've spent a lot of my time recently on developing my "marketing" skills.... Perhaps it's time to focus on developing my "business" skills a bit more.... Thanks for this illuminating post!

- Dien Rice