Bob La Loggia Founder Of Appointment-Plus Reveals 5 Things That Set Real Entrepreneurs Apart

FreeLunchFriday,Appointment Plus, Bob La Loggia,startup tipsLast month Free Lunch Fridays kicked off their monthly seminar series with Bob La Loggia the founder and CEO of Appointment-Plus. His startup is exactly what you would think it is by the name, an appointment scheduling software, however during his keynote he didn’t talk about appointment scheduling as much as what makes entrepreneurs different, what sets them apart.

Free Lunch Friday is also exactly what it says, an organization that supports startups by providing great content and education and of course nourishment (the lunch part). We first met the Free Lunch Friday team at SXSW where of course they fed us lunch on a Friday.

Free Lunch Friday is holding monthly seminars with experienced founders and entrepreneurs on a variety of topics.

Here are the 5 things that set entrepreneurs apart:

1. Marketing. It’s essential to define and narrow your target market, correctly position the product or service in front of the customer, and differentiate your business from the competition.

2. Sales. Characteristics of a successful sales focus include: influence factors, which build credibility; authority, such as blogging about a select industry or speaking at a conference; and social proof, such as customer testimonials and referrals. Having a basic sales flow in place is also essential.

3. Support. While the main objective of support departments is to assist customers, support reps also play a role in retention, up-selling/cross-selling and gaining referrals.

4. Finance. Entrepreneurs must have an understanding of financial statements, balance sheets, accounting basics, taxes and cash flow for their businesses to operate profitably.

5. Technology. Given the role technology plays in all businesses, entrepreneurs should have a knowledge of basic database concepts, system language and development lifestyles.

To ensure that none of the above components are ignored, La Loggia suggested his “Geek In A Week” program. This involves dedicating one week to each component and four hours each day during that week focused on that aspect of your business.

Check out the video of Loggia’s talk below:

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Check out Appointment-Plus here.

Check out some more startup tips here.