On Tuesday I heard it again: The annoying routine where somebody quotes some huge billion-dollar market and then suggests getting a small piece of that big market is somehow valid. Quote:

That’s a $3 billion market. If we can get just one tenth of one percent of that, we have a $3 million business.

That is so bogus. It convinces nobody. It never really happens like that. The only way you get to millions in sales is focus, making a new market, doing something nobody else is doing, putting a new spin on it, so you get to operate alone. Nobody starts up getting little pieces of huge markets.

The best validation of sales potential is sales. It’s a lot like a bird in the hand vs. one in the bush. An actual buyer, even just one, says a lot more than percentage tricks you can do in your head.

Tim BerryTim Berry

Tim Berry is the founder and chairman of Palo Alto Software and Bplans.com. Follow him on Twitter @Timberry.