Why Did Tom Start His Own Business?
“Mostly because of risk and reward.” –Tom Jacobs      

Tom was once an undercover cop prowling the crud-covered streets of Schenectady, NY. A city built atop the bones of a thousand Mohawk, butchered by Dutch invaders in their search for freedom down the barrel of a loaded musket. Tom’s a talker, and a good one at that. Able to switch between cop and criminal at a moments notice, he associated himself with the worst kind of scum Schenectady had to offer. Scoundrels, frauds, dope pushers and fiends alike were brought down without mercy. The surge of scum was unrelenting, but the money was not.   

“I didn't think I was very successful in my career and didn't feel I was being rewarded enough financially.” –Jacobs   

After his departure from undercover police work, Tom did a short stint selling yellow page ads. There he learned fundamental business principles. This gave him the understanding and more importantly the confidence to risk starting his own business.    

“So I was competent enough to go out and do my own thing and risk everything, but the rewards, I knew, were very good… and they were.” –Jacobs  

The Biggest Challenge
Funding was and still is Tom’s biggest challenge and without a financial benefactor or business partner, one big mistake could cost him his business.

“You’ve got to make a lot of little mistakes or you’re not going to learn, but it's the big mistakes that really hurt you and unless you have a funding person or a partner that has a lot of money basically.” –Jacobs     

A big mistake for Tom would be spending money on his business plan without getting a return. The money loss would result in his inability to fund the rest of the business plan, like paying salaries, paying for equipment, paying for facilities and it hurts your growth  

“A lot of companies go out of business because they don’t anticipate a lot of the downs. We’ve been very lucky to have a lot of ups.” –Jacobs   

Rewards
Financial gain is less of a reward and more of a measurement of your success. Tom found that while money is good, the real reward comes from being his own boss and the joys that come from professional success. 

“Seeing it come to life, the financial side was rewarding obviously, but the big thing is putting a plan together, that's your plan, you’re driving it, you’re being successful at it. There’s little ups and downs but ultimately you have the freedom of risk and reward.” –Jacobs   

Pricing Your Product
“If you want to be the least-cost provider then you’ve got to lower your cost but then you’re not able to hire as high a level of person that you want. Or if you raise the price you can hire really high-end type people. It’s really the philosophy of your company.” –Jacobs 

A lot goes into pricing a product and being cheaper than the competitor isn’t always a good thing, as it usually requires sacrificing quality for cost. BNCVoice’s strategy offers consumers incentives without implementing a cheap price tag.                  

Target a Market
BNCVoice targets small to medium sized businesses that stress efficiently and cost above all else. Tom recognized this through his past experiences in selling advertisements for the Yellow Pages; “Small to medium size businesses need a product that saves them money and increases their productivity. Our product does just that and impacts this market the most, that’s why we target them.”              

Be Better Than the Competition
Competition sometimes dictates price. BNCVoice is able to compete with Verizon and Optimum prices by providing consumers with better service and response time while still charging the same amount as competitors.      

I was worried my interview with Tom was going to be nothing more than a regurgitation of material from my textbook, and it was, but I didn't mind it. He’s a lean, mean, money-making machine and his sales abilities and entrepreneurial know-how were evident before the end of his first sentence. The man had nothing to sell me but I would have bought anything from him.

By the end of the phone call, Tom had given me unnecessary reinforcements on business practices and concepts I already knew worked, but his insight emphasized more the importance of focus, planning and one’s individual ability to generate their own success.     

Importance of the Business Plan
Writing is just as important as talking. A business plan needs to be as good if not better than the entrepreneur who wrote it. Really narrowing a core competency that truly helps a specific market is crucial to an entrepreneur’s success. An effective business plan provides direction by identifying your intended market, product description and competition analysis.      

“Plan the work and then work the plan. Write down exactly how you want to approach the business and specifically what your core competency is and how you’re going to see it to the market.”  –Jacobs

Importance of Being Personable
Armed with his voice, Tom carved Risk and Reward into my cerebellum. By the end of the conversation I felt like a Dutch Pilgrim with a tomahawk firmly embedded in my skull, emblazon on its hilt was “Risk and Reward.”      

For days, thoughts rushed for my hypothetical flesh wound until it dawned on me that I knew what risk was, but I never understood the importance of it and its application to nearly every business decision you make when starting your own company.  

I’ve yet to seek medical or psychological treatment for this metaphorical flesh wound, and I don't think I will. It will serve as a reminder of Tom’s mesmerizing method of communicating, underling the importance of charisma in the business world.   

“Ideas are a dime a dozen. People who implement them are priceless.” –Mary Kay Ash