Boyd Stough

Futureproofing Small Business

Boyd Stough. Portrait by Paolo Ciccone. Copyright 2021, all rights reserved. Charleston SC

Boyd Stough is one of a kind. Talk to him and you will be treated to a depth of knowledge that you rarely find. While others might start talking about strategies and business jargon, Boyd has a more philosophical view and he is strong on meaning. He will find the meaning in your business and he will tell you if you have steered off the right path. As we sat down for a "5-minute interview" we ended up exploring a series of topics in business and spent about an hour talking about different topics around business.

Here is the very condensed version of it.

Q: Boyd, how do you help the world professionally?

A: My business is revenue modeling. It usually entails me coming in for about a month or two with a client. It's typically the only time I get paid upfront. That is just to understand my client's business. Once I've developed an adequate understanding of my client's business and the industry within which they're working, and of course, their wants needs, and expectations or goals, then I set about trying to create an idealized relationship between that business and the marketplace.I only get paid one time unless I make my client's money. I will tie the rest of my money made from that relationship to the money that I make my client.

Q: It's my experience that a lot of business people start a company because they are good at that "something" but the rude awakening is that being good at something is not enough to have a successful business. 

A:  That is generally what happens. One of the worst things that can happen is that you start a business and you get a little bit of the wrong kind of traction, right? Because maybe it's not an ideal relationship with the marketplace that you're pursuing but it's enough to survive. But the problem with that is that it's a very reactive relationship with the business. It's not a proactive business relationship. Therefore it developed momentum in the wrong kind of direction. So, having a business that's not moving too terribly fast, or having a business that's brand new, can actually be a blessing sometimes. My discipline really works backward and says, okay, well, where's the point at which value is exchanged, right?

Q: It's interesting that you're talking about value and not money.

A:  In my perspective, it comes down to a value nexus. There's a point at which the person providing the service and the person getting the service are going to converge. They're going to hopefully enjoy one another. Right? And, what you really ultimately want, is for the customer to walk away with having an experience that so greatly and positively departs from what they expected, that they feel compelled to share with other people. People only share what they're proud of.

Q: Anything else that you feel like sharing?

A: If you just focus on that moment, where the customer, the client, the donor, the investor converges with you, and you amplify that experience as much as possible, build as much emotional density in it, then you're done. Once you've done that a number of times, you will have a prosperous business.

And that's why Boyd is a Lowcountry Influential.