You are not what you “do” or the service you provide. It’s natural that most entrepreneurs believe they are the service they provide. A dentist feels like they are in the business of doing dental procedures. A roofing contractor feels like they are in the business of roofing. An accountant feels like they are in the business of providing accounting services, and so on and so forth. While it may be true that a large percentage of your time is spent “doing” the service you provide, that is not the real business you are in.
If you are an entrepreneur and own your business, then you are a marketer of your service. A dentist is actually a marketer of dental services, an accountant is a marketer of accounting services, etc. This paradigm shift is extremely important as it fundamentally changes the way you look at your business. It moves you from a “doer” who is constantly working in your business, to a marketer who is working on your business.
Think about this, the plastic surgeon who considers himself a “doer” of plastic surgery procedures will always see that as his primary business. The marketing will always be viewed as a necessary evil that must be done to acquire new patients. In contrast, the plastic surgeon who understands she is a marketer of plastic surgery services will see the relationship between service fulfillment and new patient acquisition very differently. She will see the marketing and sales to acquire patients as her primary business and will see the fulfillment of these plastic surgery services as the necessary evil.
This simple yet profound shift in thinking can make a tremendous difference in the amount of income you earn from your business. It is not 100% necessary to view your business this way, but I can say from personal experience working with dozens of service business entrepreneurs that the ones to really get this distinction make more than those who do not. I’m not suggesting that you have to personally create and execute all the sales and marketing for your company (there’s no way anyone can be an expert at everything), but shifting your thinking will likely transform your business in a surprisingly short time-frame.
The faster you see that your business really is a marketing company that sells and fulfills your particular service, the faster you can begin generating more leads and acquiring more clients!