Running one’s own business is a stress test very few can cope with. During the first year of work, 50% of companies go bust and after five years this number hits 95%! Only one out of one hundred startups succeeds. Eventually, neither a creative idea the business is based on nor financial contributions prove to be critical for survival. It is the equal distribution of efforts among production and sales that leads to success.
Business expert Elvira Gavrilova* urges the entrepreneurs of all levels to realize that the sales are as significant as production. Or even more significant. In her interviews, she has many times highlighted that the shifted balance towards production and neglected sales were responsible for the business collapse.
And, on top of that, Elvira Gavrilova does not only warn business people against this fatal mistake but also suggests a comprehensive approach to the business management, which will enable an entrepreneur to sell any product they produce — from a toy to a jet.
Elvira Gavrilova: production and sales — balance the scales
What is a business? It is based on the production of goods or services plus sales of good or services. And we do not speak here about the link “buyer-supplier” alone but rather about the sales in more global terms – about the system. Elvira Gavrilova is sure that by putting too much effort and finances into production and not paying as much attention to sales, the business people violate the essence of the business itself. And this mercilessly pushes them toward the bankruptcy. The marketing expert emphasizes that the business goal is profit-making. And it can be achieved through sales only.
I sell – I’m successful
Elvira Gavrilova gives examples of the importance of sales. If answering the question about her entrepreneurial activities, a business person says, “I produce organic juices”, then most likely after just one year she will respond with so must regret in her voice: “I had to close down. The sales were poor…” Meanwhile, every detail was well-tuned in her production process and the product was better than that of the competitors’. Yet, the chain of processes and components leading to the sales wasn’t established that well since the business person believed the sales were secondary. It ended up with a failure.
The industry doesn’t matter. For instance, the construction business, too, can bust for the very same reasons. Modern technologies and materials, best architects, and professional construction workers – with these things being equal, one company will boom and be getting rich, while the other will have to freeze all its construction sites. And the reason behind its bankruptcy will be obscured sales. Meanwhile, the competitors both raise great buildings and exercise a consistent approach to sales as they realized that an exclusive new-built wouldn’t sell itself.
Same works in the service sector. A high-calibre beauty salon can boast with a favourable location and stylish interior design as well as the stylists and technicians with the international certificates. But all these things don’t bring a big number of customer and won’t retain them either. If the salon owners are unable to organize the system of sales at the proper level, their customers will leave for their rivals — to those who may not have all those advantages mentioned above but are great at selling their services.
Elvira Gavrilova says that even a marketing and sales departments at the company don’t guarantee the profit-making and financial security if the owner doesn’t prioritize the sales and doesn’t control the entire system of sales as carefully as all production-related processes. One can produce a high-quality demanded product but it will turn into a shelf-warmer at a warehouse – it will be getting dusted there until someone who produces nothing but can sell well, come up and get it. He or she will buy it all at bargain prices to market the product successfully and make a fat profit. What prevents the producer himself from selling his product? It only takes re-considering their approach to running the business and improve the system of sales. The main message Elvira Gavrilova would like to deliver to all the entrepreneurs is that they have to realize the result of production is a good or service, but these are sales that generate your money — the profit. This leads us to the conclusion: one can succeed in doing business only through equal distribution of efforts among production and sales.
A representative example of such an efficient approach is Apple Inc. By treating production rationally, an iPhone maker buys a significant proportion of spare parts from its direct rival — Samsung. Samsung production system is perfectly tuned and, according to the experts, they produce even more details for Apple than for their own needs. The companies’ products are equal by many parameters. However, thanks to the properly organized system of sales, Apple markets its gadgets at a 30% higher price and has been the market leader for many years now.
The components of the systematic approach
The place, equipment, spare parts or raw materials and, of course, talents – these are the chief components of production, each deserving attention for generating a qualitative product in the end. A tiny non-ventilated room can’t become a workshop for cleaning products even if you have excellent raw materials and experienced manufacturing staff. A huge production facility equipped with the cutting-edge machinery gives no guarantee that a perfect product will roll off the production line if incompetent workers manipulate the processing units.
Elvira Gavrilova explains that the same principle can be applied to sales, too. The list of the key elements in this process includes a selling brand, line of products, ways to engage customers, points of sales, and professional sales-staff. Their equal and parallel development is the secret behind any business success. A great product and a sales department staffed with professionals won’t boost the demand if the wide audience is unaware of your brand or, what is worse, there is negative information about it around. A well-reputed brand, offering consumers a qualitative product and paying adequate attention to promotion, may also end up without any profit if the sales department has inexperienced employees.
The advertising company Amillidius, co-owned by Elvira Gavrilova, knows how to fix this situation and bring each of the strategic directions of the sales process to a proper level. Such a systematic approach to business management has already led to success quite a few companies.
Elvira Gavrilova: Amillidius — consistency in organizing business processes
Amillidius mission
In Amillidius activities, a prominent place is occupied by the company’s social mission – to help the ultimate number of businesspeople succeed. It means to cut the number of bankrupt entities in every country where the company operates thus improving the economic situation there. To achieve such a global goal, the Amillidius branches around the world carry out free seminars, where the entrepreneurs from different industries and those who are only thinking of starting their own business learn the fundamentals of the systematic approach to business building and development. The marketing experts give the students their tips based on the proprietary system Amilleader, developed by the leading company’s experts. It has a proven record of efficiency. By following these tips, the business people will avoid mistakes and financial losses, and promote their businesses to a new level.
Elvira Gavrilova’s investment activities
In Elvira Gavrilova’s life, marketing plays a leading role. However, the business expert does not limit herself to just one activity. Elvira is sure that building one’s own business needs to be combined with investment activities to diversify the risks. Regular travelling to different countries around the world, numerous meetings with the representatives of the medium-sized and large businesses open up new horizons for her investment activities. Being among first people finding out about worthy investment projects, Elvira Gavrilova does not only contribute her money into them but also involves her friends’ and partners’ funds. Before placing the money or recommending a start-up, she carefully collects the information and assesses the risks; some projects are under her personal control. The correctness of her projections is proven by the profit gained.
Elvira Gavrilova sees the success of the customers, partners, and that of her own as an impetus for further development. It largely applies to Amillidius company, which is progressing rapidly under her management. By accomplishing the company’s mission, Amillidius helps the entrepreneurs break new ground in various industries — from aircraft engineering to window production, from fashion boutiques to food manufacturing, from book publishing to tourism. Being armed with its know-how, the company and its leadership make their numerous customers advance steadily to their new highs.
*Elvira Gavrilova — a business expert, marketing expert, and PR strategist. A co-owner and CEO EU of the international advertising company Amillidius.
