What Every Entrepreneur Must Understand About Their First 10 CustomersFind out how to turn your early adopters into lifelong brand evangelists.
ByMatt Villano•
This story appears in theJune 2016issue ofStart Up.
Let's face it, your business's first 10 customers are the most influential ones you'll ever serve. Failure, at least in those early customers' eyes, can unravel your life-changing product or buttoned-up business plan. Conversely, success can turn those 10 into lifelong evangelists for your brand. Here are three ways entrepreneurs turned their experiences into innovation, growth -- and profits -- as a result.
Sell Fast
It took John Rushworth three months to create BottlesTonight, a San Francisco-based mobile marketplace for booking bottle service and concierge reservations, and just one night to sell it. In January 2014, once the product was ready, he knocked on nightclub doors. Rushworth found that when he was able to get in front of managers, he could emphasize how his service would help the clubs improve efficiencies as well as control pricing and inventory. Employing this method, he scored two of BottlesTonight's largest customers.
Continue reading this article — and all of our other premium content with Entrepreneur+
加入互联网领先的企业家群体狗万官方! With your subscription you’ll get:
- Unlimited access, including premium content
- No ads
- Subscription to狗万官方magazine
- Four free e-books a year
- Subscriber-only events with our experts