“We often miss opportunity because it’s dressed in overalls and looks like work” ~ Thomas Edison
An ice cream shop in my neighborhood is open from 9 a.m. until 6 p.m. That’s great, if you happen to be home during the day. Baltimore summers are hot, and nothing beats a cold, delicious treat after dinner. I get home around 8:30 and walk down to find out the ice cream place is closed. When you’re a seasonal business, how can you survive on hours like that? Fortunately for my craving, there’s a frozen yogurt place a couple of blocks away, and they extend their hours during the summer, staying open until 11 p.m.
In today’s 140 character world, there is an acronym I see often: FOMO. It stands for “fear of missing out” – as in, if you miss the party, you’re going to miss something awesome.
We’ve all been there. You walk back into the room and your friends are hysterically laughing at a joke you missed. You go to the bathroom during a baseball game and miss a grand slam. In these examples, the opportunity cost is relatively low. As a business, however, what’s the opportunity cost of missing out?
The point is, I see a lot of businesses who don’t have enough FOMO. Companies should have a healthy fear of missing out. A missed opportunity is more than just missing a laugh or a home run – it’s a lost lead or sale.
In the brick-and-mortar example, the ice cream shop is losing business because their hours are inconvenient to many potential customers. It could be any reason – maybe the credit card machine is down, or the power goes out. Or perhaps you don’t have the staff to cover certain shifts.
Online businesses don’t close at 6, but that doesn’t mean they are immune to missing out on opportunities. Think of the ways a potential customer can convert on your website: live chat, contact forms, a phone number, an e-commerce shop, downloading a whitepaper. Is your website fulfilling the needs of your customers? Or are you missing opportunities?
How do your customers find you in the first place? Organic search results, paid search engine marketing, email campaigns, social media all drive traffic to your website. If customers can’t find you, how can they do business with you?
Don’t Wait, Act Now!
We’ve all heard this in commercials before. Infomercials put time limits or show quantity remaining. They want to make the customer feel like they’re missing out if they don’t buy that product right now. If you take one thing away from reading this, act with a sense of urgency. Every minute you don’t take action, you’re missing out!