Opportunities are all around – be alert, aware and poised for action.

May – June, 2021 Volume 17 – Issue 101

Everyone remembers that saying: ‘If Life throws lemons at you, make lemonade.’ For those in the small business world, perhaps we might add: “Create a business and sell some lemon based products.”

During difficult times, disruptions to life occur and new needs facing consumers bubble to the top. But, opportunities are all around us, all the time. Those who are alert, aware and poised for action can turn those needs into very successful businesses. Opportunities are all around – if you are paying attention.

Opportunities all around during the 2008-09 Recession

Think back to the Recession began in 2008 – 2009. Those years were the leading edge of economic failure affecting not just the United States, but much of the world. The big money crush was on in an extremely impactful way. Some consumers went into panic mode over job losses, wondering where money was going to come from. Everyone still faced how to support families, pay rent or mortgages and myriad other financial issues.

On the other hand, a number of new businesses cropped up to meet new consumer needs due to a major financial disruption. Over the past ten years, some of them have grown into mega-successful companies we are all familiar with.

During that time of economic disruption, funding was difficult to get, while consumers and businesses had a significant level of distrust of banks and other lending outlets. During the pandemic, there were attempts by governments to provide some financial assistance to individuals and businesses. Needless to say, some programs and handouts worked better than others.

Opportunities were there for some alert entrepreneurs

Ken Lin decided to embrace those problems and started Credit Karma, a free credit and financial management platform. Focusing on the lack of trust for standard lenders, he built this firm based on the need for every successful small business to build trust with consumers and customers.

In 2009, Jan Koum and Brian Acton created WhatsApp, an encrypted messaging app to help people around the world stay in touch with each other. Services include sending text and voice messages, voice and video calls along with other features. Instead of operating on cell phone systems like messaging apps in the US, WhatsApp became popular in countries without access to cell networks in the U.S. because it operates on Wi-Fi.

Another company started in 2010 by a couple of alert and aware businessmen. Uber began when those businessmen were in Paris, on a rainy day and couldn’t catch a cab. That simple need and some ingenuity resulted in a new industry – rideshares.

City dwelling Millennials are less tied to the concept of having to own a car. People living in cities use other types of transportation for day to day travel. That lifestyle leaves cars parked somewhere (quite expensively) most of the time.

During the COVID pandemic, UberEats pivoted to become a way for people to get restaurant meals delivered to their homes. Unemployed workers could become Uber drivers, an opportunity to make money to support themselves and their families.

Opportunities are all around – even during a pandemic

Don’t you wish you had stock in one of the companies making barriers and selling Plexiglas? Seemingly overnight, small businesses, especially restaurants, were trying to create barriers to enforce social distancing regulations being set by government agencies. But, on the more positive side of things, remember that opportunities are all around us, all the time.

Sanitizing products were flying off the shelves. Here in Akron, Ohio where I live and Purell hand sanitizer is made by GoJo Industries. There has not been a bottle of the stuff on shelves for nearly a year and a half. The company made sure it was available to hospitals and other ‘essential’ companies. Typical consumers wanting to protect their families were forced to find alternative options.

Companies with access to the necessary ingredients for hand and other types of sanitizers went into producing sanitizer to help meet demand. Craft breweries became suppliers of sanitizers overnight. The same thing happened for face masks and gloves. Supply and demand were ruling the world for a while.

How small businesses can take advantage of opportunities

Necessity truly is the Mother of Invention – and possibly the Mother of Innovation as well. Printing firms began providing millions of sticker-style messages for table tops, counters, floors and anywhere else that social distancing was important. VistaPrint ran some creative video advertising showing how small businesses leveraged unexpected opportunity, made minor changes and found new areas of survival and profitability.

The law of Supply and Demand has never been more prevalent than since COVID lockdowns began. Some businesses saw demand for their services skyrocket. Those same companies also saw supplies of materials needed for those services became scarce and extremely expensive. Good news doesn’t always just arrive on the ‘good’ side of things. There usually comes some level of ‘not-so-good’ issues mixed in.

Opportunities come in many shapes and sizes

Rules and regulations forced people into new, unexpected living and working styles overnight that most were not prepared for. People were forced into their homes, pretty much 24/7. Homes became classrooms and offices, among other things. New tasks like teaching multiple levels of schooling, in addition to continuing jobs remotely from home bombarded parents.

Some businesses identify new revenue streams to capitalize on. Leveraging their materials and supply chains, some were able to add new products and services they had never used before. When a small business needs to find new ways to handle unusual business situations, look around for new opportunities you didn’t see before.

What new opportunities are all around you?

What small tweaks can you make in your business model to take advantage of new product or service opportunities? If a door slams shut in your face, look for another door to open. Just because you did things one way last week does not mean you can’t do something differently now.

Challenges and opportunities can provide some excellent advantages. They can be found when you least expect a bad situation to deal you great advantages. Embrace opportunities. They may be the one little thing you have been waiting for to drive your small business forward. So long as you are aware and alert at all times, opportunity can be your friend in times of disruption.