Most people will likely mention Mark Zuckerberg or Steve Jobs when they’re asked about famous, wealthy Internet/tech heroes. But equally deserving of the recognition is Jeff Bezos – the analytical, brainiac founder and CEO of Amazon. Since the company started in 1994, it has transformed from being a simple online bookstore to being the world’s largest e-commerce company.
Jeff Bezos has revolutionized the way we do business on the Internet and now, he is one of the wealthiest men alive! If you’re an aspiring or existing online entrepreneur, he is someone you can definitely look up to. You can learn a lot of practical business lessons from him that can make you more successful. Here are five of them!
1.Be Customer-Obsessed, Not Competitor-Obsessed
According to Jeff Bezos, “Focusing on the customer makes the company more resilient.” He believes that what’s best for the customer turns out to be what’s best for the business. For him, it’s more important for a company to focus on their customers, not their competitors.
So, instead of obsessing about what product or service your rivals introduce and matching it, listen to your customers’ needs and problems first about your product and service. You can invite customer reviews and help customers avoid duplicate orders. You can also use new technology that will benefit your customers, similar to AWS or Amazon Web Services business.
Bezos also realized that it’s best for customers to have a choice, so he allowed competitors to advertise on Amazon. You can also apply this to your business to show that you are focused on your customers.
2. Never Stop Experimenting and Innovating
Amazon is known for being an always-evolving company, thanks to Jeff Bezos’ willingness to invent and desire to experiment and innovate. For him, it is dangerous not to evolve. This is mainly the reason why Amazon has evolved from simply selling books to selling tons of different products and services today. Bezos likes people who want to invent and experiment and look for ways to make products and services better.
One of Amazon’s successful experiments is its Super Saver Shipping program. The company currently offers free shipping for orders over $25. This experiment can help increase customer loyalty with a higher frequency of orders. You can also apply this to your business.
3. Be Stubborn and Flexible
Stubbornness and flexibility are valuable traits that good entrepreneurs must have. For Jeff Bezos, Amazon is “stubborn on vision and flexible on details.” Relating to your business, if you’re a stubborn business owner, you always want to take charge and you won’t give up on experiments too soon. At the same time, if you’re also flexible, you’re able to see different solutions to a problem that you’re trying to solve. Take it from Bezos and be a better leader/owner of your business.
4. Minimize Regret
When Jeff Bezos was still planning to build Amazon, he has to decide if he should quit his day job. Making a very important life decision such as this made him come up with a Regret Minimization Framework. “I knew that if I failed I wouldn’t regret that, but I knew the one thing I might regret is not trying,” he says.
Obviously for Bezos, no regrets for leaving his job and starting Amazon. You can give his Regret Minimization Framework a shot and see how it can positively affect your life and business.
5. Think Long-Term
Jeff Bezos believes that “If we think long term, we can accomplish that we couldn’t otherwise accomplish.” For him, it’s better if you think about the great amount of time ahead of you and make sure that you’re ultimately satisfied with the plans that you make during that period.
Amazon is more up for seeing bigger profits years from now than scoring guaranteed profits today. It usually takes several years for experiments and innovative ideas to bear fruit. Like Bezos and Amazon, if you focus on the long term for your business, you’ll see better results.
As an online business owner, it’s good to learn from and look up to successful entrepreneurs like Amazon founder and CEO Jeff Bezos. Be obsessed over your customers, not your competitors. Continue to invent, experiment, and innovate. Being stubborn and flexible, minimizing regret, and thinking long term are also important. Bezos has carried Amazon to where it is now because of these beliefs and principles. Now isn’t that worth emulating?
Take our free five-hour trial to learn how our virtual assistants can help your business!
Check out these blogs from our business lessons series:
- Inspiring Business Lessons from Google Co-founder Larry Page
- Infographic: Practical and Inspiring Business Lessons from Jeff Bezos and Larry Page
Pepper Virtual Assistants is a business solutions firm that specializes in virtual administrative and personal assistance, online marketing, customer support, and copywriting. We are known for reliability through our managed services, responsive client handling backed by extensive training, and rockstar virtual assistants hired for their skills and expertise.
Trackbacks/Pingbacks