Older Worker Archives – Theodore Henderson

Business Innovation by Nick Youngson CC BY-SA 3.0 ImageCreator How To Innovate Your Business By Theodore Henderson The Wisdom Man === How to push forward your entrepreneurial ventures and innovate your business at any age. === Two things that go a long way toward guaranteeing the success of an entrepreneurial venture are good leadership and innovation. Incidentally, it is entrepreneurs in their 40s, 50's, and beyond who, in large part, change the game. Innovation isn't restricted to only millennials. Innovation, Baby Boomers, and Generation X still go a long way together, and the fact of the matter is that there are many "Gen X" and Baby Boomer entrepreneurs who tried to innovate – and succeeded. Fortune magazine published an article highlighting some surprising late bloomers called "10 Entrepreneurs Who Started a Wildly Successful Business After 40" that share the stories of some you may know. Still, older entrepreneurs need not panic over choosing among the types of business innovation models that could work for their company. Like any venture, innovation requires care, prudence, and a system. Innovation Comes From Innovation ideas don't naturally fall from the heavens. Frequently, they are ideas from other people that you just changed to make them your own. No this isn't stealing; instead, it is building when done ethically. In other cases, innovation in business stems from a process that ceased to bring positive results, a product that is no longer marketable, or a business model that does not meet your company's objectives. The world of blogging is a great example of building on someone else's creativity but making it your own and not just copying. Mindset Expanding your mindset is one of the personal benefits of innovation in business. Failures and setbacks force you to think of alternatives, lest your company suffers. Have you always been too self-reliant as an entrepreneur? Maybe it's high time for innovation and consulting a panel of technology and business experts. To make innovation work, refuse the you-know-everything mentality. Chances are you don't, and learning how successful entrepreneurs run their business wouldn't hurt. Innovate For Your Clients Your clients are one of the reasons why the business needs to innovate. You can't keep offering a product they don't like. Why else would cellphone manufacturers keep changing and upgrading the features of their gadgets? If Apple sets the standard and these Android phone companies fail to keep up, you know the latter will fall behind, or worse go out of business. Clients will naturally drop their old, low-memory phones in exchange for something savvier. Don't believe me? Wikipedia has a nice list of cell phone and handheld device makers that are now defunct. Think of all of the companies that went out business over the last 30 to 40 years and you will see how failed innovation and leadership were root causes. The importance of innovation in entrepreneurship is directly proportional to how significant this change is for clients. If the innovation doesn't make much of a difference in the customers' lives, i.e., make tasks more manageable, then there is no need to implement that new idea. Click The Gold Button For Free Entrepreneur Case Study - Monetize Your Skills "The Successful Independent Consultant" Click Here For FREE Case Study Innovation And Marketing Examples of business innovation abound in marketing. Automated services may seem intimidating for the technology-challenged, but they increased the productivity of most companies. Some companies even made use of unique algorithms to make their clients' experiences more personalized. Case in point: a BnB locator that filters options based on the user's preferences (i.e., tourist destinations, transportation routes, and the number of companions) are more useful than a website database that requires him to sift through a myriad of hotel names. BnB Finder is an example of this type of application. It is crucial to watch the competition, too. Check what you may be missing. Observe the innovative practices of your business rival, and top it. Don't copy – step up the game and go beyond what they have done. Because you get to see your company's weaknesses as you compare it with your competitor, you may be bound to realize the importance of innovation in business. How many ways can you beat your competition? There are many, only if you remain open to change. So sit down with your team, review your business model, and get ready to do REAL work. Click The Gold Button For Free Entrepreneur Case Study - Monetize Your Skills "The Successful Independent Consultant" Click Here For FREE Case Study About The Author Theodore Henderson works with business owners, entrepreneurs, and corporate professionals. He is an Amazon best-selling author, a Certified Career Coach, a Certified Leadership Coach, and a Certified Social Media Security Professional Powered by CompTIA. In addition he is the author of the business program “Launching Your Great Business Idea,” as well as the author of the following books; “The Wisdom Compass: Your 31-Day Journey to Wisdom-Filled Living”, “9 Simple Strategies to Becoming a Strong Leader” and the Security eBook “30 Smart Ways to Protect Yourself from Cyber Criminals" aimed at owners of Smartphones, Mobile Devices, and also those who have significant online activities including Social Media, financial services, etc. He is available for keynotes, seminars, and workshops. He may be reached through www.TheodoreHenderson.com.