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No Country for Old Business: 3 Proven Ways to Stay Relevant

Stay ahead of the curve and remain relevant by using these 3 proven tips.

Old thinking and stale ideas can quickly … or slowly sink any empire. Failure to adapt and change in an evolving business climate can easily put your company 6-feet under.

Not convinced? Let’s take a moment of silence for beloved business titans that learned this lesson the hard way – Eastman Kodak who failed to embrace the digital era, The Borders Group for being at a loss for words when it came to the rise of ebooks and Blockbuster who sold itself to Dish Network last year after losing ground to online competitors like Netflix.

However, staying relevant is achievable. Start by daring to do what you may have never done before. Annually test a few wildly bold ideas and take a cue from those who stay ahead of the curve using these 3 proven tips:

1. Consult with people who know nothing about your industry.

Sometimes it takes an outsider to unveil new opportunities that you may have missed. As entrepreneurs we are often so close to the trees that we can’t see the forest.

And often when someone “outside of your industry” takes stock of your venture it’s easy to say “What do you know?” But instead, consider it … even unremarkable ideas. What seems obvious to you may be groundbreaking for your customers.

2. Build partnerships with rising stars and share the spotlight.

You’re in business to serve your customers. Indirectly you create value in many other ways. One way to start is to take what is conceivably “old” and make it new.

Take a tip from entertainment industry mainstays like Madonna, who has sold more than 300 million records worldwide and is recognized as the world’s top-selling female recording artist of all time. Her collaborations with other artists (i.e. guest vocals, concert special guests, etc.) serve as social proof to new audiences and force clarity and reinvention.

This is clear evidence of the notion, that truly “great people (brands) are those who can make others feel that they, too, can become great (Mark Twain).

 

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