Fail Small, Fail Fast & Reiterate Your Real Estate Business.

mindset small business tips for success Aug 23, 2021
Fail Small, Fail Fast & Reiterate from real estate business

One of the first companies I built was a real estate Rent-2-Own business. We specialized in buying properties that we could clean up and find qualified people that would initially rent the property from us with the goal of eventually being in a position to buy it from us over a period of time. The business had a lot of moving parts; especially on the tenant/buyer side.

After turning over a few properties, we decided to buy some software to get some of these variables under control. What was supposed to be a quick (few month) and reasonable (couple thousand dollars) turnaround to implement turned into 6 months of hell and ten thousand dollars plus in unexpected charges.

I eventually found myself sucked into a seemingly never ending black hole of “improvements”. Each more technical and theoretical then the next.

At the end of it all the software failed to do any of the things we initially planned for it. The “solution” was bulky, complicated and anything but intuitive. Staff refused to use it and even I (after all that work) wasn’t entirely sure how it worked.

Often times the best solutions are the simplest ones; solutions that you can put to the test almost immediately and get real actionable feedback. The longer you “work” on a solution in a bubble, the less anchored to reality you become. In hindsight I lost the plot because I lost focus on why we actually needed it in the first place and allowed myself to get distracted with what it could do regardless of our need. Sound familiar? We’ve all done it.

Today whenever I start something new or look to implement a solution (anywhere in the business or my personal life) I start small, immediately test out my assumptions and adjust as required.

For example if you run a real estate business and want to promote yourself:

  • Don’t immediately hire a big name firm to build it out because in all honesty you probably don’t even know what you actually need.
    • Eventually you’ll have enough there that you can (if you want to) ask a professional to sharpen it up for you.
    • Do start with a basic website, take the time to add content that fits what you’re trying to say and reiterate.
  • Don’t immediately spend money on advertising or marketing.
    • Overtime you’ll realize what they actually are vs what you thought they would be.
    • Do start with picking up the phone and talking to your customers and investors that you’re trying to reach & probe for hot buttons.

There are dozens more examples that I could give you but I think you’re beginning to get the point.

Look, nowadays you can buy access to almost anything (talent, software, marketing services) for a fraction of what it cost just a few years earlier.

It’s easier than ever to take small risks, get immediate feedback and reiterate. Use this format and you’ll know very quickly whether that “visionary solution” that you’re willing to invest your money and time into really does directly drive value to your business.

What is your next small experiment going to look like?

 

Marcin Drozdz

 

 

The information contained herein is for general guidance on matters of interest only. This information contained herein are not intended to provide you with any advice on financial planning, investment, insurance, legal, accounting, tax or similar matters and should not be relied upon for such purposes. www.marcindrozdz.com is not a financial or tax adviser. You should assess whether you require such advisers and additional information and, where appropriate, seek independent professional advice. www.marcindrozdz.com, its subsidiaries and affiliates, are not responsible in any manner for direct, indirect, special or consequential damages however caused arising from your use of the information contained herein.

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