Do you want to be a Unicorn?

The Techcrunch Unicorn Leaderboard of companies theoretically valued at over a BILLION dollars is habit-forming. It's pretty irresistible to spend a few minutes perusing the list, thinking about what our kids would do if their start-up companies made a BILLION dollars--right around when we were asking our folks for help planning a wedding, or borrowing a down payment on our first house.

No, seriously. Some Proxima Sales company salespeople are right in the twenty-something to thirty-something (bonus points if that brings up a theme song) sweet-spot of today's PR-prepped unicorn leaders.

But let's put down the rose-colored sun-glasses and look a little deeper. The Unicorn Leaderboard lists lead investors, but doesn't mention lead CUSTOMERS. Sure Amazon has done great never breaking even, but what are the chances that today's unicorns are going to be tomorrow's WorldCom or Industry Standard or eToys?

Uber is leading the list providing rides in someone's Toyota on the "sharing" economy. My last stay at an AirBnB property was really great. But are these Unicorns going to become as rare as the mythical creatures they're named after?

I can't guess. But what I know for sure is this: Proxima Sales builds sales revenue for companies that understand that eventually, like last Thursday, any firm that is sustainable is going to need to deposit revenue in the bank. We know that Uber, Snapchat, Airbnb, and the Unicorn Leaderboard bunch are making money and getting great brand recognition. It is awesome to be featured in TechCrunch and if you're really lucky, Adweek. But when you're a maturing company, one that has to deposit revenue not reviews or fresh investor rounds into the bank, Adweek may not help your sales as much as you hoped.

Today's customers--especially the B2B businesses that we serve and rub elbows with at industry conferences and trade-shows, airport lounges, and Southwest lines--have read Adweek, glanced at the leaderboard and want to know what your product or professional service is going to do to make their businesses run better, faster, more efficiently, or more cost effectively. They will not buy your solution based on your branding consultant's scheme, press releases, and the glowing write-ups on the online press.

Your potential clients, the ones who create revenue, need someone to help them sort the facts and fiction they've learned while doing their own shopping and research. They need expert assistance sifting the way down to a specific solution or service. They will buy from your company when someone helps them figure out that it is time to stop shopping and that what they figured out they want is a need your service or solution will fill well.

I hope Airbnb and Uber keep making my life on the road cheaper and far more interesting than Marriott and Enterprise rental car did before them. I hope the people making bank by driving and leaving the light on keep doing well enough to want to do their part. But, and this is a big but, when I absolutely have to be at the meeting in Provo on time, I'm going with a reservation at Townplace Suites and an Enterprise car from the airport. Just in case the Uber driver becomes a lucky unicorn between when I called and when I arrive. Just in case the Airbnb property is inhabited by an all new crew of bandmates when I arrive. Your prospective customers don't want to risk their business on whether they've done ALL the homework. There is too much information for anyone to learn; we help them make informed choices and investments, which used to be called 'selling'.