7 Core Principles for Business Growth

Have you ever seen the movie "The Karate Kid?"

In the movie, a teenager named Daniel moves to a new town and is severely bullied by a group of guys that study martial arts at a local dojo.

One day while getting wailed on by this group of guys, Daniel is saved by an acquaintance who knows karate.

Daniel begs the man to teach him, and eventually persuades the man to help him learn karate.

Daniel is super excited, but for some reason when he shows up for his first lesson...

...his new instructor gives him a bunch of chores to do instead of teaching him karate.

These chores last for days on end, until one day Daniel is fed up and complains.

But what Daniel didn't realize is that all the repetition of the chores actually helped him learn various defensive blocks, through building up muscle memory.

While Daniel thought he was just doing random tasks, it turns out that he was learning the basic principles of karate through repetition.

There's an interesting correlation between Daniel's experience learning karate, and founders that want to grow their businesses into high 7-figures or beyond.

Many founders and entrepreneurs get caught up in wanting the "flashy moves" of hacks and shortcuts for success.

But true (and lasting) success is built on tried-and-true principles.

These principles hold true no matter what the business is, and despite feeling 'slow' at times, are actually the fastest way to create true growth.

In today’s newsletter, I’m going to share with you 7 core principles for business growth.

I used them to generate over $9M in revenue with my business Herb.

And if you apply them to your business, I'm confident they'll help you grow your business to 7 (or even 8) figures.

Before I get to the principles, I have two quick things:

#1 - Black Friday is coming up.

And yes, I'll be running a special sale on my flagship program Founder OS.

In fact, it'll be the biggest sale I've ever run. And since it's highly likely I'll be raising the price of the program next year, I encourage you to take advantage of the special.

More details to follow this coming Friday.

#2 - I have an awesome free resource to give you.

I've put together a comprehensive Notion doc with the 56 Best Tools for Founders as a resource for those in my Founder OS Program, and I wanted to share it with you.

Access the 56 Best Tools for Founders resources (completely free) here.

You'll find all the tools and connections I use to grow and operate my businesses smoothly.

Hope you find it helpful.

Now that I've shared the resource with you, let’s dive into the 7 principles 🪂

Principle #1 - Set the Tone

Research shows that we form a first impression of others in less than one-tenth of a second.

People are making snap judgments about your brand or business from the first second they come across you.

That's why it's important for you to be in control of the tone and interaction as much as possible.

This means making sure your branding and messaging are on point.

It also means that you want to have what you can do for customers front and center.

Show them how you can help as soon as possible.

At Herb we have a 4-part process we use to help grow cannabis brands called the ACER framework.

Attract. Convert. Engage. Report.

We keep it front and center so cannabis brands know exactly how we can help them.

Showcasing this framework builds confidence and trust, and helps position us as experts.

Which ties in nicely with the next principle...

Principle #2 - Have a Proven Process

Researcher Shawn Burke and her research team at the University of Florida discovered that all models of trustworthiness consisted of three common pillars: ability, integrity and benevolence.

For a customer to decide to work with or buy from your brand, they have to have a certain level of trust in you.

They must trust your ability to deliver.

When you showcase your proven process for success, it lends a ton of credibility to your business's ability to deliver results.

Show a visualization of how you'll help them in 3-7 steps.

They'll walk away believing that if they work with you, they win.

Principle #3 - Own a Category

Too many businesses have a "Field of Dreams" methodology of doing business.

They think that as long as they "build it, people will come."

Unfortunately it's not quite that simple...

In today's digital age people's attention is scarcer than ever, and the only way businesses are going to make it is if they stand out.

But with so many things competing for customers' eyeballs, how are you going to stand out?

Easy, you become the king of a category.

With you at the top, people can't help but see you.

What 3 things can help make you the category king?

• Set your business apart from the competition

• Show, don't tell

• Show them why they should care

Here's how we own the cannabis marketing category at Herb:

Principle #4 - Messaging > Marketing

Nothing is more important than your messaging.

80% of copywriting is your hook.

80% of sales is your traction.

Perfect your messaging and create a remarkable product that markets itself.

Principle #5 - Have an Obvious Unfair Advantage

The customer is always looking for a reason not to buy.

Having an obvious unfair advantage is one of the easiest ways to quell any concerns.

Not only does it instantly set you apart from the competition, it also adds a level of exclusivity to your brand.

Now, instead of you trying to convince someone to buy from you...

They'll be afraid of missing out if they DON'T buy from you, because they can't get it anywhere else.

Principle #6 - Clear Next Steps

Confusion is your worst enemy.

A confused customer is a lot less likely to buy from you.

And if they do, they're more likely to be unsatisfied with their purchase.

Confusion → Anxiety → Untrustworthy

An easy way to get more sales?

Have clear and concise next steps.

Not only is this important because it makes the buying process simpler, the clarity can also help build trust.

Principle # 7 - Leverage Social Proof

Word of mouth is the most powerful form of persuasion out there.

The dominant force that drives human action is the unconscious need for social validation.

You can't always have people promote your brand directly to their network, but you can get the next best thing...

Testimonials

Work hard and deliver incredible results.

Then get your social proof and leverage it.

There you have it, 7 core principles that I've used to grow my business and generate over $9M in revenue with Herb.

I hope you found them helpful.

Take some time this upcoming week to apply these principles to your business, and hit me up on Twitter in a few weeks with how you're going.

Let's win together 🥇

Matt

P.S. Whenever you're ready, there are 4 ways I can help you:

#1: I just launched a new YouTube Channel. I'm putting a ton of energy into creating heaps of valuable content that I think you'll like. Come check out my latest stuff, and give me a like and follow.

#2: Build your clarity, systems, and growth with 1:1 coaching here.

#3: Promote your brand to over 28,725 subscribers by sponsoring this newsletter (Booking into March 2023)

#4: Follow me on Twitter and LinkedIn for more operating systems, marketing tips, and community-building systems.

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