Execute a Mediocre Plan in 2012. It Works

Last week, I got a call from a printing company owner down in Atlanta who many would say has a mediocre business plan. By the end of our conversation, I was laughing so hard because I was so wrong about the state of his business. The office could hear me laughing as I was looking at his Website.

At first, all indications pointed toward a failing business, but the more I learned, the more my admiration grew. The lesson learned is that you are better off executing well on a mediocre plan vs. over planning or executing poorly against a great plan. This guy knows how to succeed and make money. I will call him Tim, for reasons that will become clear shortly.

As I was speaking with Tim on the phone, I went to his company website. It looked like your typical low-budget, out-of-the-box website for a printer with $300K/yr. in revenue. Pretty uninspiring, but Tim doesn’t care because his current plan is focused on other things.

The “About Us” page had the standard wording you see on the ready-made website for printers that is supposed to be changed on day one. For a split second, I judged a book by its cover and said this company is one of the many on their way out of business. Then, Tim said the shop was a $2.5 million printer that is growing and expanding. He then went into his strategy in a little detail.

Maybe he is the Tim Tebow of printers. Even if you are not a Tebow fan or he crashes and burns soon, you must admit he has been beating the odds—executing in an unorthodox manner, but getting the job done. It ain’t pretty, but Broncos win.

I had to learn how Tim the Printer did it with such a run-of-the-mill website. We hear so often how much weight a website contributes to a company’s perception, efficiencies and marketing prowess in this day and age.