​Fishing and Startup Sales

I was in Montana last week on vacation and was lucky to be able to fly fish for a few days. Of course, while out fishing on the Gallatin river, I had my son take pictures of me so I could post them on Facebook and Instagram and let my friends know what I was up to.
​
As you can see from the picture, the photo shows me standing in tall grass, smiling, and holding my fly rod. Of course, later in the day, when I posted this image and wrote, “Lucas and I, caught zero fish,” I got some snide comments back from friends. They said, “water is required” and “find water.” Implying that my inability to catch any fish stemmed from the fact that I was not near the river.

And later that evening, while reviewing these comments, I got thinking about what a good analogy fishing is to startup sales and especially early efforts. The point being, you cannot generate sales or learn what customers want until you engage. Or, in this case, find the water and toss your line into it.

---

Read More