There are many small businesses that have a very similar history. It goes something like this. The original business owner had an idea that solved a problem in a particular industry. He began to talk to people about it. He gathered a few customers and started a business. He worked very hard, long hours, and met with lots of people to tell them about the new business. Work started coming in the doors. He hired his first employees. Work continued to come to them. First time customers became repeat customers. Those customers told other customers. Word spread that they did good work. After a while, it was if there were train tracks that led from customers to the front doors of the business. The work rolled in on the tracks laid by the relationships and reputation of the owner of the business.

After a few years of this, the owner decides there needs to be a change. It could be that he sees that one day he will no longer be at the helm of the business and needs to set up the next generation of leaders in the company. It may also be that he would prefer to spend less time in the office and more time doing something else. But alas! The new generation of leadership doesn’t have the same history with the company as the owner. They might not have the same relationship with the customers. They might not have his entrepreneurial drive to risk everything on this company’s success. They might just have a different personality. Whatever the reason, there is a crucial point in the life of every small business when the founder and the next gen leaders rub up against each other. It is critical because the continued success of the business is at stake.

At this juncture, marketing is of utmost importance. How so? For one thing, broadening your customer base is extremely important. When the customer relationship is built upon one personality, and you are removing that person, you are vulnerable. The relationship between the customer and the next gen leader is never what it was with the founder. If you have depended upon the train tracks approach to gaining work from your customers, you need something that goes beyond the tracks. In other words, you have to get beyond the personality of the founder and drive business to yourself in a new way. Marketing does this. It helps you open new doors, gain the trust of a new customers and gives you a chance based on the quality of your work, the timeliness of your delivery, the price, and the follow up customer service.

Am I saying that relationships with your customers don’t matter? No, quite the opposite. But when it is time to grow the company beyond the original owner, the relationships have to be much broader based than with one person. This is where building a corporate brand makes a difference. Gaining customer loyalty to a brand and not just to a person is key to making the transition from one leader to the next. It also helps the business grow up. Basing a company on one personality has its limitations. There are only so many people one person can keep up with. In many cases, it is used as a control mechanism for the owner. However, it stifles growth. Marketing helps you grow beyond the single personality company.

If you are finding your company is in the middle of the struggle for what comes next, you are not alone. All small businesses eventually have to cross this road or close their doors. At the center of the change from the founding owner to the next gen leader is marketing. It is crucial for the transition. Without it, most small businesses collapse on themselves shortly after the founder exits the company.