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Making it through the Jungle: How Bezos Took Amazon to the Top

Article Overview: Bezos was hit with the hard reality of life when he came to the realization in university that he would never become one of the world’s great physicists. Little did he know that what the future had in store for him would be equally as impressive; from the garage in his two-bedroom home to the company’s global headquarters in Seattle that oversees its $8.5 billion in revenues, Amazon has become one of the largest e-commerce sites in the world. How did Bezos do it?

Making it through the Jungle: How Bezos Took Amazon to the Top

Bezos was hit with the hard reality of life when he came to the realization in university that he would never become one of the world’s great physicists. Little did he know that what the future had in store for him would be equally as impressive; from the garage in his two-bedroom home to the company’s global headquarters in Seattle that oversees its $8.5 billion in revenues, Amazon has become one of the largest e-commerce sites in the world. How did Bezos do it?

Customer Satisfaction: “If you make a customer unhappy they won’t tell five friends,” says Bezos, “they’ll tell 5,000 friends.” Nothing was more important to Bezos than pleasing his customers. It was by word of mouth advertising and keeping his customers coming back that Amazon was able to grow so fast, and he knew that was the only way it would continue to grow in the future.

Confidence: Today, there is scarcely a company that doesn’t have a .com next to its name. But, when Bezos first started up Amazon, there was scarcely a person who even knew what .com meant. In borrowing his parents’ life savings and quitting his comfortable New York City job, Bezos was taking a major risk. It was only in believing in himself and his vision that he was able to take that leap.

Innovation: According to Bezos, Amazon’s secret weapon is the company’s willingness to make mistakes until it comes across “a huge, broad avenue.” From permanent free-shipping offers to its Search Inside the Book feature, Amazon has created a reputation based on innovation, fearlessness, and creativity. “It makes all the blind alleys worthwhile,” he says.

Corporate Culture: “Some people love a rapid rate of change,” says Bezos. “They love going down alleys, many of which turn out to be dead ends. They like inventing.” These are the people Bezos has sought out to join the ranks of Amazon. The other people, who he claims “like a more stable environment where you know more what tomorrow’s going to be like,” are the people who tend to “flee Amazon in hordes.” By making hiring a top priority, Bezos stacked his company with innovate risk-takers who have helped Amazon become the success it is today.

Perspective: “If you think about the long term then you can really make good life decisions that you won’t regret later,” Bezos says. It has been by taking a long term viewpoint that Bezos has been able to withstand much of the criticism and volatility his company has suffered through.

“The Internet in general, and Amazon.com in particular, is still in Chapter One,” Bezos says today. “We haven’t built a lasting company yet.” Whether you want to buy a book, or baby clothes, or a kitchen pot, Amazon is there ready to take your order. But, despite becoming one of the world’s largest everything stores, Bezos isn’t going to retire any time soon. “I’m not near the end of the story,” he says.

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Article Tags: amazon, amazons, blind alleys, book feature, broad avenue, city job, corporate culture, customer satisfaction, fearlessness, five friends, global headquarters, great physicists, leap, rapid rate, realization, secret weapon, stable environment, willingness, word of mouth, word of mouth advertising



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