Profit From Complexity
- Apr 6, 2021
- 4 min read
Written by: Chuck Bean, Executive Contributor
Executive Contributors at Brainz Magazine are handpicked and invited to contribute because of their knowledge and valuable insight within their area of expertise.
For decades now, some highly successful people have voiced their opinion on success and often suggest that wealth is not the end goal and that it makes sense to make it simple and keep it simple. Suggestions include simplifying our lives, finding ways to simplify things for our clients, and self-actualization should be the goal.
My take on this is threefold:
1) It is always the people that have already obtained success that say you don’t need it. So after they have had the chance to drive the Ferrari, fly executive class around the world, and do those things that most people will never get a chance to do, they suggest, "Don’t do it, it isn’t as great as you think it is."
My suggestion...don't fall for this advice. It is great and if you can enjoy this sort of lifestyle do it!
2) I agree that self-actualization is a great goal and an amazing end state. However, unless we plan to toss Maslow’s hierarchy of needs to the wind, pretty much every step on the road to self-actualization in this day and age requires money. Yep, good ol’ greenbacks are required for just about everything. One of my favorite sayings is, "Every job sucks at times. It sucks to be the President; it sucks to be a janitor at times. So, do something that pays well." Cash is king, and we need it.
3) We live in a 1/99 percent world. 1% of the population controls and stores 50% of the wealth, while 99% spend the other 50% and create economic circulation. If you ever want to get up into the 1% bracket, you will have to work hard for it, marry it or inherit it. For most of us, that means work hard.
Relating this concept of simplicity to business, the need for simplicity is a double edge sword. Swing it one way and using simplicity to cut through problems makes sense. Determining how to get from point A to point B with the least amount of burden is a strong guiding principle for every businessperson.
However, swing it the other way and make your products and services simple to operate or simple to understand, and it creates undue customer and competitor advantage. Simplified offerings = less competitive advantage = lower value = less profit.
I learned many years ago that there is profit in complexity. I had a boss that used the term "mystery in the can." That mystery in the can created a complexity in the products we sold, which allowed them to be sold for higher profit margins. That same complexity can be applied to everything we peddle. The dispenser was what we called it. It was the dispenser that added the value and the mystery.
Complexity also creates loyalty. Contrary to the belief that customers will always choose the simpler of two solutions, complexity will create a learning experience that results in engagement. It takes work to help people navigate the complexity, but once they learn how to do this, it creates the customer stickiness that we all strive for.
But don’t go too far. Complexity resides on a continuum that is closer to simplicity than chaos. Erring and making your offering too complicated or overly difficult to understand or apply is an innovation killer. Stage it. If you have a chaotic product or service you need to introduce, introduce the complexity on a staged basis. Ease your clients into it.
Tom Peters says, "Put a 5-foot 10-inch person into 6 foot 3 inches of water, and odds are they’ll learn to swim. They may sputter and spit a bit, but they can always hop off the bottom and get air. Put the same person in 7 foot 4 inches of water, and you may have a dead body on your hands."
So like Tom says... ease them in.
There is profit in complexity, and every businessperson should remember that. And success… well, that is your own interpretation, and don’t lose sight of your goals.
Chuck Bean, Executive Contributor Brainz Magazine
Chuck (Charlie) Bean started his business career at age 6, collecting golf balls at the local driving range for pennies. “I would spend every Saturday and Sunday making enough money to buy a bottle of pop or a candy bar in the concession,” tells Chuck soon after he was selling golf balls to players on the local course and even beer!
Fast forward, and Chuck was an award-winning sales professional. Management followed. Moving into the paper industry, Chuck carried on with regional and then national turnarounds, eventually named VP Sales and Service, overseeing a team of 180 inside and outside salespeople, managers, and directors.
Following his dream, he opened a consulting and training advisory. Chuck will tell you he has had a great ride. Besides having worked with over 400 companies and over 18,000 individuals, Chuck has consulted and guided some of Canada's biggest stars, including working as COO for one of the world's largest specialty energy service companies.
Today Chuck specializes in developing strategies and delivering training and coaching in leadership, sales, communication, business value building, and teamwork. He is no-nonsense and pragmatic and has helped people and corporations succeed for over 40 years. He will call a spade a spade and work quickly to understand, address, and help fix problems, identify opportunities and identify challenges.
He has developed business strategies for almost every geo-market. He has worked extensively in oil and gas, general industry, IT, electronics, dental, paper, chemical, wood products, and consumer packaged goods. He specializes in B2B and channel-type organizations.
He has authored/contributed to books with Dr. Stephen Covey, Dr. Deepak Chopra, and Dr. Ken Blanchard. Chuck also owns 6 tech start-ups currently in different levels of commercialization.
