The key to running a successful business is filling a need effectively. A resourceful entrepreneur sees a need and meets it — or sees a potential need and builds an opportunity around it.
- Sometimes a business is successful because it’s products or services are cheaper than the competition. Sometimes a successful business can charge more than the competition because the product or service is superior — or people believe it is. In this case, creative marketing can be extremely persuasive, provided the customer is satisfied.
- A business can be successful because it is more convenient, like a company that takes orders online and delivers promptly. Or it may simply be in a better location, one that’s convenient for both people on foot and those in cars or trucks.
- A business can also be successful because the entrepreneur has a magnetic personality, a huge drive to succeed, or the imagination to make a business out of something nobody else had thought of.
There’s no exact formula for success, and no sure way to predict the winners and the losers. But with a good idea, a good plan and the right management, success can be yours.
Match these needs with the entrepreneur who met them.
| Description |
Entrepreneur |
| Easy-to-follow home-cooking recipes and techniques |
Rachael Ray |
| User-friendly computers |
Steve Jobs |
| Inexpensive, one-stop source for consumer products and groceries |
Sam Walton |
| Business opportunities for women |
Mary Kay Ash |
Match these successful brands with a need their founders created with smart marketing.
| Brand |
Need |
| Fast home-style food |
KFC |
| Disposable diapers |
Pampers |
| Inviting coffeehouse |
Starbucks |
| Competitor athletic shoes |
Nike |
