Success doesn’t just happen; it is brought about when certain things are done rightly. Here are keys and strategies that DHL employed to achieve great success, which you can of course implement in your business.
Creating Business From The Desire To Solve Problems
If your desire is to own a business, then it means you have to look for a problem to solve. You have to think out ideas of how you can go about solving the problem at a cost and convenience that will be acceptable to the people in need of the solution.
If you continue to provide the solution, then you have a business – that’s what makes a business.
And the larger the population of those you are providing the solution for, or the greater the problem is, the greater and more rewarding the business will be.
The founding of DHL in 1969 was based on Adrian Dalsey, Larry Hillblom and Robert Lynn’s quest to help shippers reduce port costs caused by late arrival of shipping documents. They reasoned that by flying in documents to be processed before the ships arrived, documentation process would speed up and port costs would be greatly reduced for shippers.
Know Your Major Customers And Where They Are
Your ability to clearly define your core customers will not only allow you to be focused on creating products and services that directly and effectively solve their problems, it will also prevent you from dissipating your resources in trying to satisfy everybody – no single business can meet everyone’s needs.
Equally important is to know exactly where you can find the people who need your solution. This will enable you to employ the best and cost effective strategies to reach them with your offer.
At its inception, DHL’s main customer was the Bank of America, which it concentrated most of its resources on, helping to deliver the Bank’s letter of credit and other documents between California and Hawaii.
And in the early 1970s, DHL became focused on developing and satisfying the international market rather than the domestic market.
Expansion Is Key To Business Success
After establishing a firm foundation, your next move should be to quickly replicate your business in other locations, locally and internationally. You must not remain in one place because your products or services may be needed strongly elsewhere – even more than the demand is at the place of origin.
Certainly, operating from several locations, providing multiple sources of income to your business, is a key to business success than just one.
Realizing that expansion is key to business success, the three DHL founders in 1972 solicited the help of Po Chung to help them establish a global network, with Po Chung starting DHL International Ltd, which expanded to other parts of the world in the 1970s.
Make Win-Win Your Stand With Stakeholders
Stakeholders of your business are people or organizations, such as your customers, investors, employees, suppliers, etc. These are people who have the capacity to affect your business in no small way. And that means you very much need their support to achieve success.
The best way to gain these people’s support and loyalty is to show concern and care for their interests and needs in your relationship with them – let your dealings with them be win-win.
DHL’s win-win agreement with Hilton International Co. in 1980 contributed hugely to the firm making about $100million sales the following year.
Give Equal Chance To Your Employees To Progress
A big motivation to any employee is to know that they could climb to the highest position in the organization through excellent contributions to the organization. They will give the best of their creativity, talents and dedication to the business.
In 1984, a former DHL courier driver named Joseph Waechter became President of DHL Airways.
Find Innovative Ways To Beat Competition
You will always have competition as long as your industry exists, and when there is much money to be made, it becomes even stiffer. To stay ahead of the competition therefore requires high degree of innovation from your business.
You must continually come up with new and better ways of satisfying your customers.
As the competition grew tougher with the entrance of both Federal Express and UPS into the international express delivery market in 1985, DHL embraced a strategy where it partnered with certain businesses.
For instance, it collaborated with Western Union to deliver the company’s documents created from its EasyLink electronic mails, thereby making it possible for people to send documents through courier without needing to hand-deliver them at the courier’s office.
Diversifying Into Related Businesses Makes You More Competitive
In addition to the fact that moving into related business areas increases your revenue, it also enables you to compete effectively in your industry as you offer your customers a wider range of products or services.
Failure to extend into closely related business areas could be dangerous because it may give room to your competitors to gradually eat into your market share.
After 20 years of carrying small packages, DHL in 1990 started carrying heavier cargo when it entered the freight services industry – this enabled it to remain on top of the competition.
Read DHL’s Business Success Story here
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