Is Your Business Model Sustainable?

I'm just asking.

Think about it.  How do you make money?  Why do people really (emphasis on really) buy from you?  Are you indispensable?

These are all big questions, and they're difficult to answer.  Every time I think about them, I get a headache.  While these questions are important to ponder, it’s easier to ignore them.  And for years you could probably get away with it – but not today.

Today, discretionary budgets have all but disappeared.  Today, corporate executives are cutting initiatives that they never considered cutting before.  Today, every company that wants to survive, let alone thrive tomorrow, has come to understand that they must reduce their cost structure and the cost of growth.

While these issues occupy CEO’s minds from an operational perspective, I’ve learned that they’re not getting adequate attention from a go-to-market perspective.  If companies are cutting costs and are focused on reducing their cost structures, will your offerings stand up to the must-keep, must not cut test?

Going forward the only sustainable strategy that I can see is one that focuses on being indispensable.  If you are indispensable today, then your strategic job is to continue to find ways to stay that way.  If you’re not indispensable, your job is to figure out how to get there.