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As the adage goes, "Experience is something you gain just after you need it." But as a young entrepreneur, big moments and major deals can't always wait for the lesson to follow — it could lose you customers, or even worse, everything.
I've gained 30 years of experience as the CEO and founder of the multi-million dollar entertainment booking agency, and we are often trusted with million-dollar deals from our new and recurring customers that we work hard to keep. Here are some of the lessons I have learned about the most common mistakes business owners can anticipate and avoid — the kind of missteps that not only cost your clients in the short term but can also stop you from building the strong, word-of-mouth connections that are so valuable to growing a business.
Related: Common Mistakes First-Time Entrepreneurs Make and How to Stop Them
Provide what you promise
This is critical at every level. Take the infamous Fyre Festival for example, an entrepreneurial small business that promised over-the-top accommodations, gourmet food, and a glamorous experience — but couldn't follow through on their promise. Without delivering, customers will not only walk away, but you could be harming your reputation — and future as a company.
In a less extreme example, we often see small businesses in our industry "nickel and diming" after deals are signed. This is a simple one to avoid. When my company quotes a job for our clients, we factor in all the costs associated with the booking including artist's fees, flights, hotel accommodations, staging, lights, the miscellaneous rider requirements and more. Once all parties have agreed to the terms of the booking, we are locked into a "turn-key" price at that point to provide every line item so that our clients know exactly how much the entertainment is going to cost.
Certainly, we could maximize net profits by doing everything as cheaply as possible or cut corners wherever we can, but is this really the best way to impress and keep a client for the long term?
Of course not.
One of the most important rules to follow is to make sure that everything promised is provided in the initial quote and executed at the highest level possible to exceed expectations. This may cost a bit more and affect your bottom line, but building a happy and repeat client who trusts you for years to come is far more valuable in the long run.
Move quickly when challenges arise
Intuition and the ability to anticipate a roadblock can play a vital role in your company's success — but moving quickly to problem-solve with out-of-the-box solutions when they do arise will put you ahead of the beginner's curve and prove your expertise and value.
When BookingEntertainment.com was hired to book and produce Stevie Nicks of Fleetwood Mac for a big hospital fundraiser at The Waldorf Astoria in New York City, what should have been an easy booking, turned into a planning puzzle when the room needed for the event would not be available in time. We strategized that the only way through this was to offer Nicks's production equipment to the company that had the room before us for free, so the gear needed would already be set up when we got the room.
Acting quickly instantly built trust with the client that we could handle any challenge that came our way, which led to years of producing big events for the fundraiser.
Related: I Made These 3 Big Mistakes When Starting a Business — Here's What I Learned From Them
Challenge the status quo
Be brave. In an era of immense innovation, all businesses small and large should avoid the status quo and never stay too comfortable in a current model, even when it may feel safe or in the moment, successful. There will always be a new opportunity ahead.
Blockbuster, an industry leader, had a huge advantage in the video rental space, yet remained stuck in brick-and-mortar stores.
Similarly, as a service-based organization, it would have been comfortable to keep the business running simply on my rolodex. However, in 1995, I saw the potential of the entertainment industry shifting online, and while I had naysayers, my instincts kicked in and I knew the internet would allow people to find us vs. us finding them.
When you're brave enough to look beyond the status quo, you're opening your business up to the possibilities — and revenue — that haven't existed yet. Whether you are starting on your entrepreneurial path or a seasoned CEO, I hope to shine a light on a few big avoidable mistakes that, if prepped for and aware of, can lead you to the path to success and growth. When starting a business, it is the journey that determines your legacy. If you can anticipate trends, deliver a top-notch product or service and avoid the bumps in the road, you will have a smoother ride to the top.
