Most ideas in the professional world never make it to their final stage, although a lucky few enjoy momentary daylight. Why doesn’t a seemingly good idea last? There are many reasons but one of the most crucial (especially in the modern world) is the decision whether or not to merge.

Three things to consider are short term mergers, permanent mergers, and not to merge at all.

Short term mergers help take ideas quickly to new levels by utilizing existing brands to fill in gaps the former idea is lacking. It seems today anyone can start a blog, but few people can be successful at it. Why not blog for a brand that is already popular in your niche? You may even approach a brand that is lacking that niche and offer your service to them. This could build your following while you build your own brand to eventually step into your own venture. Many huge corporations have done such for a short term until the right time to rebrand themselves as a stand-alone corporation.

Keeping with the same example, a permanent merger would allow the blogger to have a permanent home with the parent company, allowing both to continue focusing on what they do best, possibly ensuring the highest quality result for each as one entity. Some major corporations have fixed contracts that ensure a particular individual contractor remains their supplier, thereby relieving the supplier of finding more contracts, and relieving the larger corporation from a potentially powerful competitor or resource for a competitor.

Lastly, some ideas are simply larger than the house in which they are stored. Such ideas are destined to become their own franchise and any attempt of merger will only taint or slow down the idea. Every now and again a blogger is destined to become an Internet sensation and a small company’s fate is to become a household name. The success tends to have a life different from most brands and has a natural following, which makes merging unnecessary.

Alternatively some brands have no desire to extend beyond a certain level of operation for their own reasons. There are a number of operations that are content where they are, even though they could enlarge if they wanted to. These brands usually do not perform their service with the idea as money or territory as the main goal.

Each scenario calls for its own factors to determine which path (or combinations thereof) to select. The first thing to determine is your desire out of which your brand is produced. The creator’s Desire to a brand is similar to the soil from which a plant grows. Next, it must be determined how potentially valuable your idea is with your niche audience and the population at large. If it helps, you may look at this as your potential market share. The final factor is to examine the team working with you. The created, shared mind of the team can make or break the first two factors aforementioned. Of course this list is not conclusive, but is intended as additional tools to help you make decisions on your brand.

The final thing we will discuss is pride. The book of Proverbs [16:18] says “Pride goeth before destruction, and an haughty spirit before a fall.” Beyond the business savvy, a big reason many mergers and stand-alone ideas fail is pride. Pride in one’s idea and operation is fine, and necessary. The kind of pride herein referred to is the unwarranted, arrogance that disallows for effective cooperation for ventures to flourish. When this pride supersedes the nature of the [aforementioned] Desire, the business venture is in automatic decline. We must develop and keep an attitude of gratitude! Then choose your merger wisely. :)

-Dawun, YBP

~ Comments welcome ~