Will You Survive the NEW Competition Four Ways to Win Customers Every Time
Will You Survive the NEW Competition Four Ways to Win Customers Every Time
The dictionary defines competition as:
• the activity of doing something with the goal of outperforming others
• an activity in which people try to do something better than others or win
Someone great once said, “competition breeds excellence” — yelled by athletic coaches everywhere across the world. I’m sure Darwin would agree, saying it’s the building bock of his “survival of the fittest”. So where does this consumer contest really fit into your world as an entrepreneur or small business owner? The answer is —everywhere. And it’s also nowhere — depending on how you play it. In fact “the game” just got even better!
We’ve just transitioned into a new paradigm of business and the global society is still getting its footing.
In the past two decades, we have been moving from the “industrial age” (driven by productivity and machines), through the “post-industrial age”, and we are now firmly in the “information age” (driven by information and individuals). Again, the “information age” is driven by individuals.
This means YOU.
Please don’t disconnect when you read “global society” just because you work for yourself and your market may be your zip code. You ARE a part of the global society, especially in this information age. Thanks to the global connection of the Internet you have just as much “reach” power as any company, corporation, or even government out there. You just haven’t been shown how to speak as loud… yet.
The “information age” has leveled the playing field so that any business (or any person in business) can be as powerful as another. Never in history has the field been so open — possibilities so endless. The catch is: it’s equally great for you as the “you” anywhere else in the world. You are competing with every other business, large or small. In the minds of consumers it’s the same.
A recent study of Advertising and Consumption revealed that “on average, customers receive 230 marketing images every day.” That’s every SINGLE DAY!
That’s a lot of choice thrown at consumers every single day. It’s also a lot of noise. Your customers do what you do. They filter it all out. And only the products or services that really connect to them, through their mind and their heart, ever get to their wallet.
To make sure you grasp in the power of this, please say the next line out loud so that you truly take it to heart - “MY COMPETITION IS EVERY ONE.”
It also means that everyone is a potential customer as well.
Incorporating the theory of Unified Conscious Development, the foundational philosophy of BrandU®, there are 4 things you can do to win customers every time.
1. Know why you do your business and fly it up the flag pole. As a result of marketing overwhelm, consumers crave a deeper reason to buy something. Your “why” should be so charged with power that it breaks through the noise and gives them a deeper reason.
2. Put knowledge on a throne. We’re in the information age. Knowledge is king — it’s more important than any product or service you can ever offer! When you adjust your mindset to this understanding, there is no end to how you can differentiate yourself from the rest. Just remember, your competition can do this too.
3. Give your business a place to live. Not an actual address — a structure. You absolutely must create systems for every aspect of your business or it will explode, or more likely, implode. You need solid processes that you can rely on to give you solid information so that you can chose instead of react. You live in a home for a reason. It gives you shelter, security and a sense of order. Your business needs this structure as well to function, communicate and thrive.
4. Surround yourself in a like community and serve it. Nothing is ever won alone. Although cyclist Lance Armstrong won the Tour de France seven times, he did so with the aid of the other twelve riders on his team, as well as dozens of specialists who prepared him for excellence. Think of both your staff/vendors and your customers as your team. One reason why QVC (the #1 TV shopping Network) says their “sales increased 14% every year since 1996” is that they are building a relationship with customers, not just selling to them. You can ensure that customers buy what you sell if you make sure your business constantly impacts their lives.
By making these fours shifts in the way you approach your business, you can be a vital and successful part of the changing currents of business.
So will you survive the new competition? Only YOU can answer that.
It really comes down to you — every time. Rather than “winning over” someone else, realize that competition is only about raising the bar on your self. And, if you bring more of your self to your business AND to your customers every time you (and they) will always win. Make sure there is no competition.
© Castle Montone, Limited
Will You Survive the NEW Competition Four Ways to Win Customers Every Time - To learn more about this author, visit Kim Castle's Website.
Like this article? Share it with your friends
There I said it — the dreaded “C” word. Most people fall into one of three reactions when they think about facing competition: 10% of them go weak in the knees and would rather pretend it didn’t exist, 10% relish competition like it was an ice cream sundae, take a spoon and run with it, and the remaining 80% well… they’re in the middle unsure which way to go. They wait for something to happen —something outside of themselves to cause them to stand up and win or lie down and let the prize pass them by. Where do you fall when it comes to competition?
The dictionary defines competition as:
• the activity of doing something with the goal of outperforming others
• an activity in which people try to do something better than others or win
Someone great once said, “competition breeds excellence” — yelled by athletic coaches everywhere across the world. I’m sure Darwin would agree, saying it’s the building bock of his “survival of the fittest”. So where does this consumer contest really fit into your world as an entrepreneur or small business owner? The answer is —everywhere. And it’s also nowhere — depending on how you play it. In fact “the game” just got even better!
We’ve just transitioned into a new paradigm of business and the global society is still getting its footing.
In the past two decades, we have been moving from the “industrial age” (driven by productivity and machines), through the “post-industrial age”, and we are now firmly in the “information age” (driven by information and individuals). Again, the “information age” is driven by individuals.
This means YOU.
Please don’t disconnect when you read “global society” just because you work for yourself and your market may be your zip code. You ARE a part of the global society, especially in this information age. Thanks to the global connection of the Internet you have just as much “reach” power as any company, corporation, or even government out there. You just haven’t been shown how to speak as loud… yet.
The “information age” has leveled the playing field so that any business (or any person in business) can be as powerful as another. Never in history has the field been so open — possibilities so endless. The catch is: it’s equally great for you as the “you” anywhere else in the world. You are competing with every other business, large or small. In the minds of consumers it’s the same.
A recent study of Advertising and Consumption revealed that “on average, customers receive 230 marketing images every day.” That’s every SINGLE DAY!
That’s a lot of choice thrown at consumers every single day. It’s also a lot of noise. Your customers do what you do. They filter it all out. And only the products or services that really connect to them, through their mind and their heart, ever get to their wallet.
To make sure you grasp in the power of this, please say the next line out loud so that you truly take it to heart - “MY COMPETITION IS EVERY ONE.”
It also means that everyone is a potential customer as well.
Incorporating the theory of Unified Conscious Development, the foundational philosophy of BrandU®, there are 4 things you can do to win customers every time.
1. Know why you do your business and fly it up the flag pole. As a result of marketing overwhelm, consumers crave a deeper reason to buy something. Your “why” should be so charged with power that it breaks through the noise and gives them a deeper reason.
2. Put knowledge on a throne. We’re in the information age. Knowledge is king — it’s more important than any product or service you can ever offer! When you adjust your mindset to this understanding, there is no end to how you can differentiate yourself from the rest. Just remember, your competition can do this too.
3. Give your business a place to live. Not an actual address — a structure. You absolutely must create systems for every aspect of your business or it will explode, or more likely, implode. You need solid processes that you can rely on to give you solid information so that you can chose instead of react. You live in a home for a reason. It gives you shelter, security and a sense of order. Your business needs this structure as well to function, communicate and thrive.
4. Surround yourself in a like community and serve it. Nothing is ever won alone. Although cyclist Lance Armstrong won the Tour de France seven times, he did so with the aid of the other twelve riders on his team, as well as dozens of specialists who prepared him for excellence. Think of both your staff/vendors and your customers as your team. One reason why QVC (the #1 TV shopping Network) says their “sales increased 14% every year since 1996” is that they are building a relationship with customers, not just selling to them. You can ensure that customers buy what you sell if you make sure your business constantly impacts their lives.
By making these fours shifts in the way you approach your business, you can be a vital and successful part of the changing currents of business.
So will you survive the new competition? Only YOU can answer that.
It really comes down to you — every time. Rather than “winning over” someone else, realize that competition is only about raising the bar on your self. And, if you bring more of your self to your business AND to your customers every time you (and they) will always win. Make sure there is no competition.
© Castle Montone, Limited
Will You Survive the NEW Competition Four Ways to Win Customers Every Time - To learn more about this author, visit Kim Castle's Website.
Like this article? Share it with your friends
 | |
 |
I just came across this site and am quite astounded at how much valuable content by a VAST variety of contributors there is here.
Other than the "busy" appearance (and Google ads), it's awesome!
Commented on Will You Survive the NEW Competition Four Ways to Win Customers Every Time. |
| |
Leave Your Feedback |
 | |
| |||
Dave KurlanDave Kurlan is the founder and CEO of Objective Management Group, Inc., the industry leader in sales assessments and sales force evaluations, and the CEO of David Kurlan & Associates, Inc., a consulting firm specializing in sales force development. Dave has been a top rated speaker at Inc. Magazine's Conference on Growing the Company, the Sales & Marketing Management Conference and the Gazelles Sales & Marketing Summit. He has been featured on radio and TV, including World Business Review with General Norman Schwarzkopf, in Inc. Magazine, Selling Power Magazine, Sales & Marketing Management Magazine and Incentive Magazine. He is the author of Mindless Selling and Baseline Selling – How to Become a Sales Superstar by Using What You Already Know about the Game of Baseball. He created and wrote STAR, a proprietary recruiting process for hiring great salespeople, and he writes Understanding the Sales Force, a popular business Blog and is a contributing author to The Death of 20th Century Selling and 101 Great Ways to Improve Your Life, Volume 2. - Visit Dave Kurlan's Website |
|||
John PowerJohn Power, founder of Biltmore Franchise Consulting, has extensive experience developing and marketing franchises and business opportunities. He has been in and around franchising for over twenty years. From 1980 through 1990 he conceptualized, organized, and developed the American Video Association. He grew AVA to 2,000 national members, before selling the company it 1990. It was later merged into another home video marketing company. From 2000 to 2005 he worked as a contract marketing and human resources consultant to several local and national companies. In 2005 Mr. Power began working as a franchise development consultant on a full-time basis. Since that time he has helped more than three dozen companies initiate and develop their franchising program. He notes that there are many companies interested in developing a franchise program, and who need his specialized assistance. Mr. Power is a “hands-on” franchise consultant. He said, “I am the ‘nuts and bolts’ person who tends to the details for my clients.” Mr. Power holds a B.S. degree with a major in Marketing. See: www.biltmorefranchise.com You may contact Mr. Power at: jpower@biltmorefranchise.co - Visit John Power's Website |
|||
Jay Kubassek(Jay's Full Bio: EvanCarmichael.com/jaykubassek) In five years, Canadian-born entrepreneur Jay Kubassek went from selling mufflers at a Midas franchise to revolutionizing Internet marketing with the 2004 launch of CarbonCopyPRO, a online marketing education company, now worth over $20 million with customers in over 160 countries.
As an independent film producer, his upstart film fund Aliquot Films is currently producing a films with Spike Lee and Abel Fererra (starring Ethan Hawke and Dennis Hopper.)
Jay's entrepreneurial spirit is irrepressible. He’s the owner of five companies, a professional speaker and trainer, international real estate developer/investor, extreme sport enthusiast and emerging philanthropist. Jay resides in NYC with his wife Jamie, son Milo and dog Cooper. Visit Jay's official website: www.JayKubassek.com - Visit Jay Kubassek's Website |
|||
|
To learn more about the Evan Elite Author Program please contact us. | |||
 | |
|  |
Subscribe to Kim's articles
 | |
|
|  |
 | |
|
| |
 | ||
 |
||
 |
||
 |
||
|
| ||
 |
| Have you written articles that would be of value to entrepreneurs? Become an expert on our site by publishing them! Expose yourself to a wide audience, drive more traffic to your website and get more sales! Click Here for details. |
|
|
 |
| Modeling the Masters: Learn the true secrets behind Walt Disney's business success factors & grow your company! Video produced by Phanta Media |
|
|
 |
"Learn straight from Evan how you can Make a Full Time Income (And More) from a Website"
Click Here To Learn More |
|
|
|
|
Get advice & tips from famous business owners, new articles by entrepreneur experts, my latest website updates, & special sneak peaks at what's to come!
|
|
 |
 Future Networking Networking Road Warrior Fortune Small Business Press Advertising Emotional Intelligence |
|
 | ||
 |
The Top 10 ProBlogger Posts
Best Posts for Bloggers | |
 |
Top 50 Political Blogs
Top Political Blogs of 2009 | |
| ||
 | ||||
| ||||
|
| ||||
| ||||
|
|
|
|
|
||||||||||||
|
Email us your ideas on how to make our website more valuable! Thank you Sharon from Toronto Salsa Lessons / Classes for your suggestions to make the newsletter look like the website and profile younger entrepreneurs like Jennifer Lopez and Sean Combs!
|
|
|
| ||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||
|
|
||||||||||||