Former Shark Tank competitor and Nexercise, Inc. co-founder and COO Gregory Coleman spoke about important lessons to entrepreneurs and business start-ups during an event held by the Entrepreneurs Club on Nov. 1.

Starting up a business is daunting, but in order to be successful, Gregory Coleman explained the need to be better than the competition surrounding the business.  Though businesses are defined as a profit-seeking activity, Coleman stressed the importance of focus on the targeted customers as a way to becoming successful against all the other businesses.

“You need to know what your point of differentiation from your competitors,” Coleman said.  “What do you do better than they do?  When you look at your customers, ask ‘how am I going to better serve these customers than my competitors?’  Focus on the needs of your customer.”

A Q&A panel allowed the audience to receive more personalized guidance to creating and successfully running their businesses, and several members shared their hesitation to release their ideas to the public.  Though the audience had a wide age range, each entrepreneur had the common fear of failure.

“Ideas cannot evolve if you don’t get in contact with customers, you get one shot with mass market,” Coleman said to fearful entrepreneurs of the risk-taking involved in business start-ups.  “We’re not defined by our failures.”

Gregory Coleman met his future business partner Benjamin Young while in business school and would go on to create their business after graduating.  They created the first edition of Sworkit, a popular fitness app that the duo pitched and struck an initial deal with investors on popular TV show Shark Tank that provides customers with personalized workouts.

“I keep my eye on the end goal.  I try not to get overly caught up in the moment,” Gregory Coleman said of staying motivated even against obstacles.  “Somehow, some way, sometime—I don’t know when—but I believe I’m going to get there, so I’m going to keep trying.”