The Fortune 500 makes up the biggest companies in the U.S. The smallest of the 500 companies, Legg Mason, brings in a bit more than 4.6 billion dollars a year and the largest company, Exxon Mobile, brings in around 442 billion dollars a year.
The Fortune 5,000,000 on the other hand is composed of small companies. Most of them don’t even generate a billion in revenue and surprisingly enough, a lot of them may not even revenue a million dollars a year.
I know this doesn’t make the Fortune 5,000,000 seem attractive, but in actuality it is. Before I go into why you should target the Fortune 5,000,000, lets break down why you shouldn’t go after the Fortune 500:
- Slow and steady doesn’t win the race – if you want to lock in a deal with a large company, it is going to take a lot of time. These companies move slowly due to their chain of command. You never know if you are dealing with the decision maker and even if you are, it doesn’t mean things are going to move quickly.
- Time is money – in addition to the time you’ll spend trying to lock in a deal, you’ll spend a lot of money. From wining and dining to making multiple presentations to an executive team, it will all add up. And if you happen to get lucky enough to get to terms, just imagine the legal fees.
- The money isn’t always great – there is a big misconception that you’ll make a ton of money if you lock in a Fortune 500 company. What you probably don’t realize is that the big bucks usually go to other Fortune 500 companies. Your company will usually get a small contract and even if you happen to provide a great service or product, you’ll be lucky if you get the opportunity for a large contract.
- You’ll be a bitch – whether you end up getting paid a lot or a little from a big company, you’ll be their bitch. They’ll expect a lot from you, and in most cases you’ll end up doing more work than what was listed out in your contract.
- You may not get paid – the bigger the company, the slower they tend to pay their bills. Just think of this way, if they hold their money for an extra 30 or 60 days to all of the companies they owe money to, they’ll end up earning a lot of interest. Although 2% interest from your bank may not seem like a lot to you, it adds up if you have over a billion dollars.
Targeting the Fortune 500 may have seemed like a great idea at first, but hopefully the points I mentioned above shows you why you shouldn’t target them.
So now, lets look into the Fortune 5,000,000:
- They move quickly – small companies move much faster than larger companies. Yes, they might not have the big budgets, but it is easier to get money from them.
- You can easily reach them – through normal means of advertising, you can reach the Fortune 5,000,000. You don’t have to build out a sales force and spend thousands of dollars like you may have to if you are targeting the Fortune 500.
- Your income will be recession proof – most of the Internet companies that didn’t get affected by the recession are those that targeted the Fortune 5,000,000. It is much better to have 100,000 customers paying you $10 a year compared to having 4 customers paying you $250,000 a year. If you end up with a client who is paying you $250,000, they own your ass.
- They can pay more – if you are going after big contracts, there are big enough companies in the Fortune 5,000,000. If you want someone to cut you a million dollar check, they don’t have to be making billions of dollars a year, they just have to be making millions.
- You’ll have more evangelists – as long as you treat your customers’ right, it is better to have more than less. The more customers you have, the more people that will be telling their friends about your company, which will indirectly grow your revenue.
- Smaller valuation periods – larger companies typically want to try things out for at least a few months before they make a decision. Smaller companies are fine with short evaluation periods, if any at all. This will help you with cash flow.
- Less competition – because the Fortune 500 looks more lucrative, more companies are targeting them. If you target smaller businesses you’ll end up with less competition, which will lead to better market penetration.
Conclusion
Targeting the Fortune 5,000,000 doesn’t mean you can’t go after the Fortune 500. If you target smaller companies, sooner or later the Fortune 500 will flock towards you.
But instead of concentrating your efforts on the larger companies, concentrate on the smaller ones. This will cause your company to grow faster and your revenue will be more stable.
And as a final thought, every time one of my companies targeted the Fortune 5,000,000 the juice has always been worth the squeeze. 
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Agreed Neil! I’ve worked SEO gigs for some of the biggest media companies out there. They operate by committee at a slow and uninformed pace. Now that I’m flying solo, I can actually utilize the techniques and practices to get better results without having to ask permission first, or without having to stop three times a week to attend a bullshit meeting from some sub-group about their difficulties and challenges of getting things done right the first time. Big corporate jobs suck. Work for yourself and enjoy a better schedule, no hassles, and three times the income.
You do get a lot of freedom, but don’t take advantage of that freedom for it can cause complacency and several other challenges in your business.
I’ve had great experiences with both Fortune 500 clients and much much smaller ones too. Looking back to this point so far, it’s been the journey that’s been amazing. But this is a great post. You had me laughing with the comparison – memories. Loved it.
Glad to know that Michael. It’s always good to have a refresher.
I’d say you’re spot on for the most part but I’ve had the experience of working with a few “big companies” and it’s not always as bad as you describe. The key is setting yourself up for success on the approach by making sure the client knows what they need to do for your engagement to be a success. If you can do it right big companies can become good cornerstone accounts.
When credit card companies make the Fortune 500 it is time for some serious evaluation of what is important and what isn’t. Their profits did not come from sales or even legitimate services for that matter, they came from fees and interest charges. They made their entire profit on the backs of Americans. Americans must stop this cut up the credit cards and pay them off or if need be file bankruptcy. The credit bubble has burst leaving Americans feeling the sting while the people who put them there are making a fortune. Amazing but this isn’t the first time this has happened, and yet the lesson is always forgotten.
Seriously, why do you have to make this whole thing political? I don’t know about you, but I like being able to use a credit card. In fact, using credit cards saves businesses money because they don’t have to track or handle nearly as much cash and they’re not as liable for tax-reporting related fraud because everything is already well documented by the credit card companies. The credit card companies also serve the people by ensuring that if their card is stolen, their money is still protected and safe. In Vietnam, we have to use cash all the time. It sucks because it’s extremely hard to track where my money goes, and if someone steals my wallet, too bad. Credit cards also allow us quick money in times of emergency, even if they don’t have the best rates. I’d rather put a $100,000 charge on my credit card and pay the fees associated with it so my daughter doesn’t die from a car accident than to not pay and lose my daughter. (Of course, I’d have health insurance, but for those people who aren’t smart enough to get health insurance, it’s a better option than death. Of course this wouldn’t be my main selling point though. haha)
There are times when you want all cash
For the most part though, I agree with you Nathan, having credit cards is a must as it makes everything so much easier.
Sorry, but this is one of my peeves.
1. “The Credit Card Companies” (the Big V & MC) don’t make money from the interest charges that are being charged to consumers who don’t pay their balance. The banks that issue those cards with those brands make that money. Those two companies do not carry the balances of credit cards, offer the credit, or set most of the terms – all of that is the issuing bank.
2. No legitimate services? I am sorry but being able to purchase gas, groceries, and anything else by just swiping the card and having it all accumulate into one account where I can pay it in one lump is a pretty nice service. And all it took was a huge infrastructure of networking, software, and data management systems to make sure all the swipe boxes are connected. The fact that I can get gas at midnight in the middle of Wyoming when the station is closed and the owner/manager is sleeping is awesome. (on some stretches the gas stations are 100 miles apart – so hope you have a full tank if it gets snowy & windy) Imagine how many sales that owner makes a year just by not having to be behind the counter 24/7.
3. A 3% fee for the priviledge of using a card for each transaction is well worth it from both a business and a consumer perspective. It isn’t the banks fault either – just because you are slicing onions with a knife doesn’t mean you have to cut your fingers off. A little responsibility goes a long way. I would rather be allowed to make my own decisions than have huge regulation that says “sorry you can’t handle these things, you would only get yourself into trouble”.
(Sorry for ranting Neil, but that drives me nuts).
Very well put, Mark
To add to your Wyoming example: being able to buy things online! It still blows my mind when I see a business online that’s trying to get people to pay by check. I doubt they last long. How amazing is it that we can buy something by just typing in a few numbers? — and it’s secure and keeps our money safe.
It’s quite an easy process, I’m happy with it
Yeah, I was in tunnel vision when I wrote the comment and totally forgot about the online stuff until I was re-reading – ha.
It is just amazing to have sold T-Shirts to people in Australia & the UK, etc. and other items all over the world w/o ever having to leave my office.
Or send flowers to my wife just by picking up the phone / or going online. etc, etc.
Rant away my friend, that’s exactly what the comments are for
Learn the art of persuasive communication since it’ll help you go a long way.
You have it figured out Neil. Every time I have gone after a large customer in the different lines of work that I do, it has become a headache. The only thing I have left on the bottom line is a good lesson, which does not pay the bills. Your diagram of the cycle of money with Wal-Mart is brilliant. Walton had it figured out. They don’t have Armani suits, but they are the largest retailer in the world. Who do you think sells more cars, Toyota or Ferrari? Great post Neil.
There are difference, no doubt, but it all comes down to what can make you a buck.
Great article, one fact missing is how much revenue the Fortune 5,000,000 pulls in.
I don’t know how big it is but I bet it’s really big.
Yea, I couldn’t find that number online. If you find it, let me know. I will update the blog post.
Well,
I gross 350k times 5 million equals
1.7 trillion.
Seat of the pants.
That would a fantastic number
Neil,
I’m very disappointed today. I subscribe to and share your feed through FriendFeed which routes my updates to Twitter, which in turn routes my updates to Facebook. I just woke up (it’s 7am here) to find that “Fuck the Fortune 500…” was posted everywhere. Needless to say, I’ve had to remove your feed from FriendFeed and send out apologies on each of my accounts. This also means, I probably won’t be visiting here often anymore since I used FriendFeed to update myself too. As a professional, I cannot have this kind of language appearing on my profiles. I got many messages from my colleges asking me why I posted that and what was going on. I thought that you would have known your audience better than to have that in the title. Wouldn’t it have sufficed to say “Forget the Fortune 500…”? Both mean the same thing, but is much less offensive in the professional world.
Best of luck.
Best of luck to you to. And once again, I am sorry for any troubles that I have put you in.
I should have known better.
Nathan, you make a very valid point. I am sorry for all the trouble I put you in. I changed the title of the blog post to “Forget the…” instead of “Fuck”.
Hopefully I will see you here at Quick Sprout again. If not, I understand.
Thanks Neil, I was hoping you’d do that
I believe you’re a very intelligent person and I honor your humility in cases like these. I’m glad that you understand and are taking action to correct yourself. I’m also glad that I can add you back to FriendFeed, because I like reading and sharing your wisdom
Blessings!
No problem. Thank you for coming back to Quick Sprout.
I hate to say this but you left me no choice, buddy stick a fucking sock in it and live a little! Dear lord, like you have never used profanity before. Also, the professional bulshit that you claim to be can be shoved right up your ass!!! And as far as you not visiting this site anymore GOOD! because your already on my damn nerves.
“…no choice”?
Buddy, you had a choice. And you chose to be rude when everyone else chose to handle it very professionally. You’ll understand someday if you’re ever professionally responsible for what you post. Blessings
I appreciate it Nathan.
Toni, there is no need for any of that here, please refrain from doing so in the future.
Very well written! Now it’s time to land few of those 5,000,000…
Create an action plan and share with us how it works
Neil, a good example of Fortune 500 companies jumping on the bandwagon is BaseCamp by 37 signals. Gain some critical mass and the big fish will come swimmin’.
Exactly, good example. They were able to prove it with amazing success.
I don’t necessarily disagree with what 37 signals is saying, but realize they had a consulting business paying the bills before they launched Basecamp. It would have been harder to launch Basecamp with $0 unless they were living at home with their parents and had no expenses.
It was still equally challenging, but in a different way.
But the URL for the article is still http://www.quicksprout.com/2009/08/24/fuck-the-fortune-500-its-all-about-the-fortune-5000000/ might think of changing THAT, too.
I would, but it is a bit too late for that. The story is already circulating the web… it already hit the Hacker News home page (y-combinator).
Mr Neil Patel,
Another great post! I have now read every single of your post and it never stops amusing me. You always have an interesting perspective.
I had always wanted to go work for a huge corporation, but now, the more I work for myself, the better the rewards seem.
Have a good one!
Yasir
It’s time we stopped looking at the past. Bush and the Republican Lie doesn’t work and now we, along with the President we elected to do it, change the economic course of this nation. When the top 10% control the vast majority of the Wealth, that means our system is going to grind to a halt. THEY are not the ones who drive the economy and they are not the ones creating the jobs. I remember what my Dad, who came through the great depression, said before he died. “You give a Working Stiff a buck”, He said, “and some greedy person will find something to sell him in order to get it”. It’s called Demand Side Economics and THAT’S the Girl we all brought to the dance! For our Grand Kids we must NOT leave all these problems for them to deal with AND jobs at Wal Mart to survive on!
Spoken like a true brainwashed liberal
Fact is these big corporations also give more money back (% wise) to the community than any others. When you go to WalMart, you see tons of smaller businesses around it. These businesses thrive in locations near WalMart because WalMart drives traffic for them. Now apply that same idea to all the other major corps. Major corps also help fund small businesses, student scholarships, schools, etc. Without major corps you end up with an economy like Vietnam’s (which I can talk about because I live here now) which has a ton of small businesses and very very few large corps. You never know for sure where to go to get safe food or to not get ripped off from people price gouging. Since there are no major corps, everyone does their own thing and there’s no standard of business ethics to hold themselves up to (and absolutely no customer service). Americans really need to get out of the country and see the world — especially third-worlds — to really understand what makes a country great or not so great. Most Americans make statements like these based on their own ideas and “logic”.
Nathan you stated your argument very well. I am sad to see where the US is heading right now. Especially California, which is where I live. We need to go back to running California and the US like a business. I agree with you when you said that Americans need to get out and travel. We have become too comfortable.
I completely agree – government should be run like a business in most places. It should be the leading example to all of the business within the government of how to run an ethical business. We have a long way to go.
I agree that travel broadens one’s perspective, wherever one is on the political spectrum. I grew up in small-town southern Virginia and had the opportunity to travel outside the country from the time I was 9 months old – not something that many of my neighbors did. I have lived in both liberal and conservative environments. So I say, whether it is a topic like corporate governance or OSHA standards, open your eyes to the world and understand what you can learn from others to incorporate here (keeping CEO separate from Chairman), but try to appreciate what is here on the ground for you at home (agreed that we feel pretty comfortable eating most anywhere, though there is the occasional food poisoning). (By the way, Chris, I also live in California.) -Manisha
Wow, that’s an amazing “upper-hand” you had as a child. Read Outliers and you’ll get what I mean by that.
That’s probably one of the most debatable topics on the planet
We have a prosperous future ahead, now that the housing market is finally heading in the right direction.
I would say that 1% of the population control 99$ of the wealth – Secret
I said something similar below but stated 10% of the wealth out there is mostly inherited. Perhaps its JUST the 1% like Neil.
hmmm that’s interesting.
It’s great to know you were able to see that. It’s always a much better feeling to have, isn’t it?
Personally, I don’t give a rat’s a$$ if our rich aren’t wealthy beyond their widlest dreams. Their wealth is a burden on the rest of us. They didn’t make billions last year? Tough. They should quit their incessant whining and try living like the rest of us.
That’s one of the most arrogant comments I’ve ever seen. The wealthy are usually wealthy because they’ve worked their butts off to become wealthy. Most successful people were not just given their wealth and leadership. They had to earn it. Most have lived just “like the rest of us” but instead of whining and complaining about the rich of their time, they did something about it. They stepped up, created something and supported it with every ounce of their time making huge sacrifices to get where they are today. You’re here on a business/marketing tips blog feeding information off a very wealthy and successful person. You’re living vicariously through him, who by the way, lived just like us at one point. He got big fast, but he used his skills and his intelligence to get where he is today. He didn’t cheat his way to the top. …have you even read his About page?
Nathan,
When Canada Imigration refers to the top 10% of wealth in control, he is right. Also, the top 10% is inherited money. Take a look at the list.
How you define wealthy? Someone in Westchester, NY making $300,000 is not wealthy unless, they took that same salary to Idaho where the cost of living…well you get my point. Wealth is relative. When someone talks about the top 10%, that’s something specific.
Interesting example. Where you live does make a huge difference has how your perceived. There is a chart that states an actual range:
Something like 100k-200k is well off, 200-500k is rich etc.
Not all of the rich and powerful are bonus-hungry company killers. Do you know how much Steve Jobs gave himself last year? A dollar. His bonus was a dollar. Greed is not always a bad thing. You get people like Neil who want to make something of themselves and they just do it. Neil wouldn’t work so hard and share his knowledge if he was stuck taking pictures at the DMV.
I just pictured Neil taking pictures at the DMV. haha Best moment of the hour
yah, let’s not go there lmao
I wouldn’t put myself in that position
I’d give more credit to em.
Wow you literally have no idea what you are talking about……….Did you even go to university to study Business?
Who is this directed to?
Why don’t you elaborate?
“Patel Sir”
Do you want to be general or more specific so others know what you are taking about?
Curious to know why a “university degree in business” is perceived to be of use in addressing the as yet unspecified topic…
It depends on your area, but mostly you should go for a position in Commercial Underwriting. That will get your foot in the door for other oppurtunities and you should make good money. Most major insurance companies have training programs, again depending on your area
Going to school for Risk Management isn’t easy, aside from classes you’d have to take the several bar exams to become fully qualified in the Insurance industry. But if you pass, you won’t be good money, you’ll make great money.
Many paths you wish you to follow will seem like a pain and struggle, but those are the paths that are usually worth it.
It’s always great to start off in that type of direction because like you said, you’ll get your foot in the door.
It’s simply because you have a lot of versatility. You can create a business or manage any type of business by understanding the basics of running a business in general.
Be general in some areas while your specific in some. Just learn versatility… It just depends on your situation.
Neil,
The juice has always been worth the squeeze indeed!
Attempting the same on a fortune 500 company or any large, top heavy, bureaucratic organization is like trying to squeeze juice from a rock.
There is no doubt that small and agile is much more approachable and pleasant to work with than big and slow is!
Not sure about the government giving some money to the people in the cartoon, but that people flock to Walmart in droves to consume crap they don’t need is something anyone would have difficulty arguing against. On the flip side of that, try to sell Walmart something as a supplier and it’s their way (and price) or the highway.
So yeah Fortune 5,000,000 are definitely much cooler and more sustainable, not to mention more lucrative for most businesses to do business with.
Another post right on the money!
It’s just an amazing concept to take to mind, isn’t it. People should just shift their focus.
David Heinemeier Hansson at Startup School 08 – something similar – in terms of attacking the Fortune 5,000,000 instead of trying to create the next wave.
Check out his presentation here:
http://www.omnisio.com/startupschool08/david-heinemeier-hansson-at-startup-school-08
Yah, I’ve heard of this before, I’ll check it out.
Most fortune 5,000,000 companies will also be a lot quicker to help you should you need it. I have always found there to be a greater sense on community present in smaller companies.
It’s much easier to get to the decision maker, so it is by all means the best solution.
Bang on, attitude determines altitude and the way I see it the smaller the company the more humble they are.
Small companies can be a lot more humbler, not always, but more often
I do agree with the ideas. Small companies can easiy be reached. Their owners are more active than big companies. Also, small businesses have not yet reach their peak, hence, the potentials are still present.
The decision makers actually have a lot of say, compared to having a board etc.
I forwarded this today to someone who wants to go for the big fish. She’s feels exhausted going after “small money” Good things to consider. She may not know how exhausting a big company might be. Although I’ve worked in big corporate and it can depend on the internal group. Some are easier than others. I know I was easy on our vendors and not a lot of approvals. But they did have a hard time getting paid. People were slow with sign off – not for lack of funds but lack of time and priority. Thanks for the post.
Many people like to hunt for the big elephant and for some people it works, but before you can, you need to understand core skills.
Now this post relates very well to a world in which I operate — and it makes sense why so many companies have popped up to offer their services to independent artists (the equivalent of “mom & pop’s” and the Fortune 5,000,000 so to speak) … Someone I spoke with recently said that “the problem with being an independent artist is that everyone gets paid, except the independent artist…” Well, that’s not entirely true, but in the early stages, it is often the case and some people will say that it is pretty lame to profit by selling something that is a lottery ticket in disguise (i.e. companies who shop you around for a price instead of a percentage.)
But then there are folks offering legitimate services that the independent artist needs. Of course, I’m not sure how profitable CD Baby is, but I don’t see founder Derek Sivers anywhere on the street. So that’s a good business. You won’t find the big names on the CD Baby roster, but that’s not the point anyway. CD Baby does not screen for talent or production quality – it just provides a service.
And the independent artist can go after the labels (the “fortune 500″) or they can go after the school of tiny fish swimming around looking for music. And they can sell music to that entire school and then maybe some other tiny little fish will hear about it and buy into it, too. (and the profits travel “upstream” in that CD Baby gets a chunk of that too).
As Neil said in this post: Find 100,000 customers to pay $10 a year…now that would take care of back-end costs paid to the people who are trying to make a buck off the independent artists, and then the independent artist would still have some left over. Not rich and famous, but you are doing what you love.
Here’s a related article in the NY Times that I’d like to share here as it may interest some of you. It echoes Neil’s sentiment above: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/22/technology/internet/22music.html?em
Good job Manisha. Another good thing about hitting the fortune 5m is that we will all be helping each other directly, or indirectly. There is always answer to your problem, you just need to know where to look. I bet with the minds gathered here on Quicksprout, we could create some fantastic solutions for the world.
Right, you have a community of people who have probably had the same problem you had and probably have already found the solution to it.
You are not a giant, multi-national corporation or a tiny one-person shop. You and 5,000,000 others like you own a business with 25 employees or less and are the heart and soul of today’s economy.
Which makes them the perfect target
It’s a great way to build the momentum. Remember, one of the best ways to make it by creating a “Snowball Effect”
ALL small companies one day or other would eventually become a BIG company. So they should always keep their motto and organization distributed and simple so that they can have the best of both worlds,
Developers and Programmers
That’s why it’s a great idea to build that relationship with them while they aren’t so big. That way when they are…cha-ching!
A very interesting thread developing here Neil! Arguments, profanity, political comment…I’m coming back for more! Seriously, I really like the fact that your blog isn’t just shameless self promotion and as for the article itself, the idea that you can generate more profitable and long standing relationships from small to medium sized companies isn’t new but it’s something that a lot of us probably need reminding of from time to time when we are chasing the ‘big one’.
Yeah, it kind of went out of hand, but what can you do
I like to make sure that my readers get VALUE each and every time they visit my site.
As usual Neil, you’ve given me a new perspective on topic entreprenuers all come to terms with. Well done.
Thanks Fred!
Hope your having a good time in Italy.
I thought David from 37Signals’s talk on this back in April was pretty good, too. Is this where you got your idea from?
http://37signals.com/svn/posts/981-the-secret-to-making-money-online
No I didn’t but yeah it’s pretty awesome. Thanks for posting the link
I think small companies are more versatile than large companies. They are able to adapt to change in market conditions quickly effectively. And they don’t have to answer to stockholders.
It’s true that small companies generally don’t have to answer to stockholders… But they also don’t have the stockholders’ bank accounts to play around with either!
That’s a good observation there. It’s true, they won’t have as much to play with. Which is why it’s both harder and easier…
It is always better to work for yourself so there is no one you need to answer to. But if you can’t it isn’t always such a bad option, if you find the right people to work with and whom share in the same goal and achievements they would like to attain.
It helps along with the process and put’s less resistance in your life. Hec, that’s the most important piece, isn’t it.
I guess it is the most important thing, to work with people you like and who share in the same goal. But there are times when you need to work with less “wanted” people in order to get something done, or achieve something you may not be able to by yourself. Certain circumstances call for measures that are not so pleasant!
In most cases this is true, but a lot of small companies have investors. And if you don’t have investors you have customers.
No matter what, you have to answer to someone.
Your right about that one. No matter what you have someone to answer to. I have made it a habit to always do my best no matter who i am working for or what i am working on. Work hard Play Harder!
I love it! If you work your butt off, you can have a crazy good time to reward yourself.
And when you do get to reward yourself, it feels that much better cause you actually worked for it.
I agree, working for it is a much better feeling!
Right, that’s exactly why you should target them ASAP. Take advantage of this strategy before everyone else does
Neil, you hit the nail on the head with your assessment of Fortune 500 companies. Having worked a number of years for a top 100 Fortune 500 business, I can tell you that they do move at a snail’s pace. Hell, we had meetings to decide when we were going to schedule meetings. Entirely too many lines of management that does nothing but slow progress down. I’ll take a smaller, more effective company any day of the week.
lmao, Yah I know exactly what you mean. Glad you concur with my message. Shed some light on any advice you may have with your strategies of doing this.
The multitude of meetings is a problem. Meeting to schedule meetings is often ineffective and a waste of time. Furthermore requiring everyone in a company/division to attend makes things worse.
Seth Godin wrote a post with some ideas on how to deal with too many meetings:
http://sethgodin.typepad.com/seths_blog/2009/03/getting-serious-about-your-meeting-problem.html
lol, thanks for sharing that. Too many meetings do waste a lot of time.
I am definitely a fan of the Fortune 5,000,000 rather than the 500. They are nicer, have much better customer service and are not as full of themselves. I have also noticed they they underbid and over deliver!
You simply have the opportunity to do and be more than what you would normally can with a bigger group.
A lot of times the bigger companies want to tell you what they think you want, and not what you are asking for. they always go for the up-sell even if there is no use for it. Fluff!
Well it’s up to you to be and stay alert at all times. Everyone out there is just looking to make a buck like you are
So I find this debate interesting. after reading the links there is nothing in there at all that mentions their support of stopping Fortune 500 firms from receiving small business contracts. In fact, I noticed that on the US Women’s Chamber website they have national members like the US Army and HQ, which is part of a multi-national conglomerate. Having those kinds of sponsors does not exactly speak to small businesses; in fact, it seems to help support Mr. Chapman’s case that they are not representing small businesses.
It’s not that you shoud necessarily STOP it, just put your focus on “The Rest”
Small companies move much faster than larger companies, problem is small companies move both ways, down and up. But big companies go steady but slow. If you target smaller companies, sooner or later the Fortune 500 will flock towards you, good idea. Thank you for taking time to write this informative article.
Right exactly. It’s best to take advantage of them while you can.
@ neil , have business relation with fortune 500 is about prestige, if we get business deal with them we can use our relationship with them as a leverage. We can publish the project in our blog to attract another clients easily , right ?
yes, ofcourse. having that type of testimonial power can do wonders.
Hey Neil,
I loved this post the difference between the Fortune 500 and 5000,000 is clearly visible from the above mentioned points. The big companies can surely tap all your potential and you will definitely feel like their bitch which you really don’t wanna do.
I think this might had opened the eyes of the people who are striving for a deal with the big companies and underestimating the potential of the small ones.
The big companies can be that “big white elephant”, but unfortunately it doesn’t often enough for it to be worth it. You are definitely better off going after the several small companies. It’s great to see that you’re more consciously aware of this now.
Also, it is better to not be dictated by one large network. If they were to someday get cocky and act greedy in terms of paying out to their publishers, what are you to do? By joining 9 smaller networks, you get the will power to have control of your revenue without making a loss if your pride gets in the way.
Ego does play a huge role with the bigger companies. Even though the ego is well deserved, it’s not really in your best benefit.
I think that this is a great idea and more importantly, the best way to earn a lot of business. Too many people end up focusing on the “big elephants” and forget about all the little deals they could be getting.
While everybody trys to get their so called “big break” you can just focus on getting a bunch of little breaks.
Small is big; for most of us, who understand the significance of having them just enough in numbers to achieve your goals.
Neil, you are right.
I especially appreciate the point wise comparison & differential value you brought to your readers with simplicity & in-depth analysis at a same time.
You said it perfect Chris, small companies are in fact pretty big for most people.
Couldn’t agree more.. Just been working with a F500. They wrench you of blood at times.
The do, that’s why you can still make an effective impact with the 5,000,00 others out there. Focus on that as they can give you the momentum you need.
Recently talked to some of the Chinese in China, their living standard is catching up, really up to international standard, e.g. Shanghai, you can see a lot of Feralli and Porche on roads…
Wow, that’s interesting. China does have a living standard that is drastically increasing…. which is great!
Can you share tips on how to reach the Fortune 500 business in one of your next editions?
Not only publicity wise, but also public relations. It will greatly help me!
The point is to not focus on the fortune 500 and start focusing on everyone else. You’ll have better chances of making it and becoming successful.
Can you share tips on how to reach the Fortune 500 business in one of your next editions?
Not only publicity wise, but also public relations. It will greatly help me!
Thanks a lot Neil!!
Great post,
The list tactic, works best for my blog. i also implement the infograpics and comic tactics. You’ve also given me new solutions, like the – how to and review tactics. You are an inspiration.
Thanks, glad to hear that it’s very useful for you.
Good diagram I would say. Great Efforts to make understand with a single diagram.
They have Wal-Marts in China now (or have been for a few years). I can just imagine how cheap the stuff there is.
One thing about targeting 10 small companies rather than one big fish is that if one company goes down under, you have 9 left. Moral of the story, it’s not always the best thing to put all your eggs in one basket.
Yes, thanks for this link to that video! LOVE the part where David talks about “What will you tell your friends? That you are helping out some mom & pop business?”
That, along with Neil’s reasoning here, reminds me of something the late Prof John Shank once said in a class (ok, yes, I went to b-school, but I still think that hands-on experience greatly augments, if not beats, anything you will learn in any institution generally speaking) So there we are discussing some case about some garbage hauling or treating or waste something or other company. He asks, “Why aren’t more people in this business? Good profitable business. Why?” And it dawns on all of us that it is not nearly as sexy to tell your buddies that you are the CEO of a garbage disposal company…or housecleaning service or you fill in the blank.
So getting back to this post, I’ll bet those mom & pop businesses don’t care what kind of car you are driving. Drive a good used car and reinvest money saved in your business, I figure, if you don’t have to impress the “big fish”, right? (Remember Neil’s post that generated a lot of dialogue about what kind of car one drives and image, etc.?)
Exactly, they don’t necessarily care about that stuff. The only difference is that you’ll have to go after more….not just that “big elephant”
It’s funny because the stuff they have in their stores is probably made accross the street.
Good point.
It’s also frequently easier to get a foot in with smaller companies. They don’t have nearly as many people banging down their door.