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Casual Articles - How Unique Is Your Business? A Competitor's Dilemma
Do you feel lost in a sea of marketing options? You are not alone. Many small business owners are confused and paralyzed by the thousands of options available to them. Unfortunately this means that many potentially profitable marketing tactics are abandoned before they bear fruit.Here is a 7 Step Formula to help you focus on your profitable options and prevent you from wasting time and money on ineffective techniques. This simple formula has been borrowed from the marketing habits of billionaire entrepreneurs who have used this simple system to build vast fortunes. Let's get started -1) Focus on One Advertising Technique:Select an advertising tactic that meets your budget. If you are an online marketer with a small budget focus on
2. The Price point.
Do not get hung-up on pricing. Know your product and what you want to achieve. If you are positioning yourself as the best, with the top-of-the-line product or service, then your pri
When we lead and manage a team, whether we are business owners, run a department or just supervise a group of people in our business, we are on show.Part of our make up ensures that we 'lead from the front' and take all that the world throws at us - after all, that's what we are paid for - isn't it?This is where many managers struggle, with the pride factor. And pride can cause many pitfalls because we might feel obliged to battle on fending off every issue that comes our way, day after day.Or, we could ask for help sometimes.You see asking for help makes a difference to your people in a number of wonderful ways, makes your life a whole lot easier and sets the scene for a lot less fire-fighting to go on.Asking for help l
As an example, take your local Yellow Pages Directory and turn to any section populated with advertisers within the same industry. It can be automobile dealerships, attorneys, or doctors.
Now, study a few pages. You will immediately start to see a common theme, a similar pattern – a pattern of boring uniformity. The great majority suffers from the “me too” syndrome. The prospect looking for services can’t tell why she should but from advertiser A or B. It seems like the only one that benefits here is mostly the sales rep that sold the ad and the editors of the book.
This can also be seen in the way different industries market their products and services. Have you noticed that each industry has a very particular way to market? Look at your industry. Do you and your competitors market in just about the same way? Have you also noticed that when some brave soul wants to innovate and market in a way “different” from the industry’s norm, he is considered a heretic. . . condemned to burn at the stake of the boss’ editing pen?
I call this phenomenon “marketing paralysis.” It’s the inability to make the necessary changes in order to improve marketing results; the inability to break loose from the “business as usual” and the “it’s always been done that way” mindset.
There is a hidden danger when you analyze your competitors in your industry. The hidden danger is overanalyzing and in the process, becoming just like them – accentuating the marketing paralysis.
So, why should you study your competitors? There are six key element to consider when analyzing your competition; and none has anything to do with the emulation of your competitors’ marketing methods. Au contraire! Read on, mi amigo. . .
1. The Reference Point
Establish which is your position within the “brand ladder” in comparison to your competitors. According to Al Ries and Jack Trout’s book, The 22 Immutable Laws of Marketing, the law of the ladder is at play. For each rung of the ladder, there is a brand name. Although you want to be first in the prospect’s mind, the battle is not lost if you fail here. This is why you need to know what is your reference point; that is, your position on the ladder. This will help you select the correct marketing strategies.
2. The Price point.
Do not get hung-up on pricing. Know your product and what you want to achieve. If you are positioning yourself as the best, with the top-of-the-line product or service, then your pric
As a general rule, you can incorporate your business with no tax cost as long as you contribute all of your business’s assets and liabilities to a corporation you control.A sole proprietor who incorporates his or her business, therefore, should be able to incorporate tax-free. So should a partnership. And a limited liability company that makes an election to be treated as a C corporation or as an S corporation should also be able to make these “incorporation” elections tax-free.But all rules, including general rules, can be broken. And when it comes to incorporating your business, three big tax traps await unwary business owners, managers and entrepreneurs.Incorporation Tax Trap #1: Goofy LiabilitiesIf a shareholder tran
Now, study a few pages. You will immediately start to see a common theme, a similar pattern – a pattern of boring uniformity. The great majority suffers from the “me too” syndrome. The prospect looking for services can’t tell why she should but from advertiser A or B. It seems like the only one that benefits here is mostly the sales rep that sold the ad and the editors of the book.
This can also be seen in the way different industries market their products and services. Have you noticed that each industry has a very particular way to market? Look at your industry. Do you and your competitors market in just about the same way? Have you also noticed that when some brave soul wants to innovate and market in a way “different” from the industry’s norm, he is considered a heretic. . . condemned to burn at the stake of the boss’ editing pen?
I call this phenomenon “marketing paralysis.” It’s the inability to make the necessary changes in order to improve marketing results; the inability to break loose from the “business as usual” and the “it’s always been done that way” mindset.
There is a hidden danger when you analyze your competitors in your industry. The hidden danger is overanalyzing and in the process, becoming just like them – accentuating the marketing paralysis.
So, why should you study your competitors? There are six key element to consider when analyzing your competition; and none has anything to do with the emulation of your competitors’ marketing methods. Au contraire! Read on, mi amigo. . .
1. The Reference Point
Establish which is your position within the “brand ladder” in comparison to your competitors. According to Al Ries and Jack Trout’s book, The 22 Immutable Laws of Marketing, the law of the ladder is at play. For each rung of the ladder, there is a brand name. Although you want to be first in the prospect’s mind, the battle is not lost if you fail here. This is why you need to know what is your reference point; that is, your position on the ladder. This will help you select the correct marketing strategies.
2. The Price point.
Do not get hung-up on pricing. Know your product and what you want to achieve. If you are positioning yourself as the best, with the top-of-the-line product or service, then your pri
Companies have a tradition of luring away top executive talent from the competition. In sports free agency has changed the entire landscape of professional athletics as teams constantly fight for talent. The talent wars are now reaching the trenches and companies are taking off the gloves and aggressively going after top talent at all levels regardless of who they are currently employed by.Because employees now know they are potential free agents, they are looking for the best package, not just more money. Who are the people you would hate to lose? It's time to use these five best practices for retaining your top talent so they aren't as eager to see if the money is greener on the other side of the fence.1. Give them a quality teamTop
I call this phenomenon “marketing paralysis.” It’s the inability to make the necessary changes in order to improve marketing results; the inability to break loose from the “business as usual” and the “it’s always been done that way” mindset.
There is a hidden danger when you analyze your competitors in your industry. The hidden danger is overanalyzing and in the process, becoming just like them – accentuating the marketing paralysis.
So, why should you study your competitors? There are six key element to consider when analyzing your competition; and none has anything to do with the emulation of your competitors’ marketing methods. Au contraire! Read on, mi amigo. . .
1. The Reference Point
Establish which is your position within the “brand ladder” in comparison to your competitors. According to Al Ries and Jack Trout’s book, The 22 Immutable Laws of Marketing, the law of the ladder is at play. For each rung of the ladder, there is a brand name. Although you want to be first in the prospect’s mind, the battle is not lost if you fail here. This is why you need to know what is your reference point; that is, your position on the ladder. This will help you select the correct marketing strategies.
2. The Price point.
Do not get hung-up on pricing. Know your product and what you want to achieve. If you are positioning yourself as the best, with the top-of-the-line product or service, then your pri
It is a common business axiom – change or die. As a small or mid-sized business owner or a manager, there will be times you will need to make changes in your organization but may not be sure how to go about it.Change is hard to implement and even harder to sustain. Think about all of the people who have trouble sticking to a diet or quitting smoking or keeping up with an exercise program, let alone just starting. If changing yourself is hard, how can you change an entire business, organization, process or department?As a Certified Business Coach, one of the biggest challenges my clients face is this issue of change. Did you know there are eight reasons why organizations fail to change from a lack of urgency to underestimating the power of vi
So, why should you study your competitors? There are six key element to consider when analyzing your competition; and none has anything to do with the emulation of your competitors’ marketing methods. Au contraire! Read on, mi amigo. . .
1. The Reference Point
Establish which is your position within the “brand ladder” in comparison to your competitors. According to Al Ries and Jack Trout’s book, The 22 Immutable Laws of Marketing, the law of the ladder is at play. For each rung of the ladder, there is a brand name. Although you want to be first in the prospect’s mind, the battle is not lost if you fail here. This is why you need to know what is your reference point; that is, your position on the ladder. This will help you select the correct marketing strategies.
2. The Price point.
Do not get hung-up on pricing. Know your product and what you want to achieve. If you are positioning yourself as the best, with the top-of-the-line product or service, then your pri
Ezine Articles - they're everywhere!And little wonder. They're one of the fastest ways of building traffic to your website.But what many people overlook is the Resource Box. It's almost as important as your Article. After all, your traffic comes to you through your Resource Box.Writing your Resource Box is an art in itself. You have very little space (5 or 6 lines) and you want to make the most of it. Here are four key elements your Resource Box should contain.1) Your NameRemember, one of the reasons Ezine Articles are such a powerful promotion tool is that brand your name, they establish your reputation as a an expert.So the first line of your Resource Box should be a short sentence that gives your name and tells
2. The Price point.
Do not get hung-up on pricing. Know your product and what you want to achieve. If you are positioning yourself as the best, with the top-of-the-line product or service, then your price must reflect it. Knowing price levels from your competitor’s simply helps reinforce your position. If your competitor is offering just as much value as you do, but for less; then, it’s time to reanalyze your offer.
3. The Message
Is your message clear and distinct from your competitors? Remember our little yellow pages exercise? Did you see how the advertisers’ messages blended? Uniqueness was hard to find, wasn’t it?
When you compare your message to that of your competitors, you are not doing it to put yourself at your competitor’s level. Your task is to identify the boring monotone of your competitors, and stay as far away from it as you can. Your job is to always have the most powerful and unique message – one that is transmitted to your target market in a consistent basis.
4. The Technology
Are you keeping up with the latest technology, research, customer service applications, marketing techniques, and everything else that keeps your business ahead of your competition?
Once again, your goal is to stay a step ahead of the competition, not to emulate it. Knowing the capabilities of your competition helps you keep your feet on the ground, and running the good race.
5. The Good And The Bad
Here is information that will help you propel your business forward in huge leaps; but only if you are honest with yourself.
What’s your competition doing well? How does it compare to what you are doing?
Put your ego aside and strive to truly learn from your competitors. By the same token, take a close look at their errors. It will give you a clear picture of their weaknesses; and therefore, a powerful tool to help you fill those gaps with your enhanced services.
6. The Perceptions
The short definition of marketing is “managing perceptions.” As you know, perception is often more powerful and real than reality itself. It’s my belief that to a great extent, the winners are those that manage perceptions better.
How are your competitors perceived in the marketplace? How are you perceived? This type of analysis helps you differentiate your business from your competitors. Managing perceptions must be your goal as you develop and apply your marketing efforts.
As you study your competitors, remem
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