Vilfredo Federico Damaso Pareto is the mind behind the popular 80/20 rule in life. It suggests that 80 percent of the outcomes come from 20 percent of your inputs. The concept is so popular that it became the subject of many discussions in motivations and lifestyle strategy, especially in personal finance. The 80/20 rule filtered down to various aspects of human life including business. And as an entrepreneur this rule holds much value in setting your app business on the right track.
The 80/20 Rule in Business
Across the business sector, the 80/20 rule is considered by many as a golden concept, although there are some who dismiss its importance. The rule is applied in strategies, planning, quality control, production, and other operational aspects to determine efficiency and optimize productivity. Some samples of studies conducted in various businesses have the 80/20 rule painted all over various situations, including:
- 20% of sales, staff gained 80% of the profits.
- 20% of workers finished 80% of the production.
- 20% of customers account for 80% of the company’s revenue
There are a plethora of situations where the Pareto concept is proven legit.
Applying 80/20 in Running an App Business
The app business is no different from other business in terms of planning, administrative, and promotional needs. This goes without saying that the 80/20 rule can also be applied to your app entrepreneurship. Mastering the rule will give you not only competitive advantage in the overwhelming app market, but will also help you cope with trying times by keeping your enterprise in firm ground.
Here are the various ways where 80/20 can do wonders for your app business:
Budgeting
Budget management is one of the most important aspects of business. However, this is where many startups fail—they spent investors’ money without careful considerations and end up selling if not just shutting down. By using the 80/20 rule in your business finances, you will have the power to control the flow of money in your enterprise. To apply this principle means determining where you are making most money and isolating it from where you are losing most. Warren Buffet is a master at this that it helped him amass the wealth he has from his investments today.
Budgeting for development means finding the most cost-beneficial means to build your product: 20% of financial input to develop 80% of the outcome. This means being wise with the people you hire and the equipment you purchase. The same goes with building your business and hiring people.
Marketing
Successful marketing accounts for the majority of your business revenues. Digital marketing can also benefit from the 80/20 rule. Dave Chaffey lays out the pattern in digital marketing as follows:
- 80% of online sales are from 20% of products
- 80% of search visits are from 20% of the keywords (often from brand-terms rather than generic)
- 80% of leads in content marketing are from 20% of the content assets
- 80% of user tasks are performed on 20% of links offered
- 80% of social shares are from 20% of the social updates
By this, the strategy is to identify what the 20% of these factors are and focus on it to yield the most outcome. If your current marketing strategy is not getting you anywhere close to these figures, you have to start rethinking it.
Time Management
Time-management is the most common aspect of business where the Pareto rule is applied in. In app management, this means being wise in the use of your time. In an article at the Entrepreneur, Perry Marshall provides a list of the things you can do to save time in your business. Some of the items on this list are relevant to your app business and which you should consider going forward with your business.
Finding Your Target Market
Having a target demographic is essential in an app business. However, there are times when determining your target can be quiet hard, especially when the app you develop cuts across all ages in the population. You need to determine the 20% that patronizes your apps and concentrate your marketing efforts on them. This will also lead you to developing other apps that interests this 20 percent and get the most out of your development investments.
Conclusion
By using these useful principles in running your app business, you can make the most out of it and reach success. There are still lots of areas in your app business where the 80/20 principle can be applied, find it out and enjoy optimum efficiency and maximum benefits.