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Be the Red Leaf

Written by: John Jantsch

Article Overview: So I come back from my chilly morning run and am greeted by the site of one lone red leaf popping out of a sea of green ivy and decaying brown leaves - and I can’t help but take notice.

Be the Red Leaf

So I come back from my chilly morning run and am greeted by the site of one lone red leaf popping out of a sea of green ivy and decaying brown leaves - and I can’t help but take notice.

Stand out - can’t help but take notice - of course, I immediately think marketing strategy.

Small businesses must be the red leaf. The market needs a way to differentiate all the green and brown leaves from one another so it uses price. Smart small business marketers, ones that can become the red leaf and place themselves squarely among the rest, stand out and compete on value.

Now, having said that, standing out is not simply about making more noise of being different for difference sake, standing out is understanding an innovation that a market needs and values and creating a brand that represents that message of innovation in every possible way.

Their are three kinds of research you should do right now if you aim to discover the best way for you to be the red leaf.

1) Study your competition - likely this will verify that everyone is saying the same thing and the opportunity exists for you to say something different.
2) Study difference makers in other industries - what do small business brands that you may already admire do that you don’t? Hire a coach who works with a different industry.
3) Talk to your customers - ask you ideal customers what you do that they value. Chances are it’s not what you think and greater chances are it’s what you need to tap as your essential difference.

Let me see if I can say this in dramatic enough fashion - you absolutely must tap or create a valuable point of differentiation and then build your marketing strategy around communicating that difference or your business will struggle to rise above the competitive noise.

Differences are everywhere waiting for you to claim them. They exist in the way you market, your products and services, in packaging of those products and services, in the delivery of those products and services, in narrow market niches, in your processes, and in your people.

When you find your red leaf and can honestly say you have no direct competition to speak of, you’re probably on your way.

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Article Tags: brown leaves, business brands, business marketers, chilly morning, coach, difference makers, differentiation, fashion, innovation, marketing strategy, red leaf, sake, sea of green, small business, small businesses



Related Forum Posts
Re: How can you fix your damaged image? - Well since Maple Leaf Foods already took full accountability, I don't see how paying out massive amounts of money to the families of "potential" victims would improve their brand image. Besides, earning a multi-million dollar settlement isn't going to bring back a deceased person anyway. And when you have an incident of contaminated food, it's not like Maple Leaf Foods can offer discounts on their products or freebies as incentives either. Perhaps their image can only be fixed over time.
Re: How can you fix your damaged image? - I think the strangest thing about the Maple Leaf foods recall is how victimes experience the bacteria's effects 40 something days after eating the contaminated food. In addition, some of the people who died were also old... so did they even really die from the bacteria?? I mean, most of us can't even remember what we ate yesterday, let alone 40+ days ago. And could some of the complaints simply be the result of a placebo effect or attempts to win lawsuits? For instance, if you drank some milk and then later heard on the news that it "might" be contaminated, your mind may lead you to believe that you're sick and then you'll vomit, etc. I've seen people type on their office computers, open restaurant or washroom doors and then go on to eat with their bare hands... and I'd think that's more dangerous than eating Maple Leaf foods in the future.
Re: Do Your Prospects / Customers Trust You? - Thanks Ryann, that does make a lot of sense. I guess it's the "how to" behind the companies' vision and mission statement. Maple Leaf Foods come into my mind, on the way they handled their Listeria outbreak incident. The swiftness and diligence in their investigation and subsequent recall demonstrated a high standard of corporate social responsibility, even when it means admitting some fault on their part. I think in the end it comes down to operating in a way that customers believe you're not just after economic benefits, and that builds trust!
Re: Offline Marketing V/S Online Marketing - [quote="samin":1dlwh4yc]I have heard that there are multinational companies which are spending several thousand DOLLARs each month on their online promotion. Take for example companies like expedia are spending around > $50,000/month on their Pay per click Google/Yahoo ( I just read this somewhere, although not sure). However, I would like to know whether a travel related business can benefit more from online marketing, offline marketing, or equally from both.[/quote:1dlwh4yc] Hi Samin, When I was working at Direct Energy, I think a co-worker of mine told me that the company spent approx. $300,000 to have a banner on the side of the ice rink in the Air Canada Centre for a Toronto Maple Leaf playoff game a few years back. That makes $50,000/month for online marketing seem like nothing, haha. In regards to your question, I think a travel related business will benefit most from online marketing with SEO tactics since people primarily look for cheap flights on the web. Furthermore, having good word of mouth is important as well. Speaking from personal experience, I'll tend to ask my friends and family where they've recently booked a cheap flight rather than go to the local shopping mall's flight booking centers.
Possibilities abound! - Hey All, Ok, I am now in a position to see something profound. I've been involved in the automotive field as a hobbyist for years. My first car as a 1974 Dodge Charger SE. 318, dual exchause, 340 cam, black with black leather interior (yes, it was 10 deg hotter INSIDE that outside during the summer...). Moved onto a 1972 Dodge Dart. 4 door, slant six motor (upgraded to a Super Six), manual drum brake, manual steering, V8 Leaf springs, Rallye Rims. Then onto a 1987 Plymouth Caravelle. 2.2 Turbo, 14psi (approx 180HP), painted like a Viper GTS (Blue with two white stripes), in fact, I called it a Caravelle GTS. The car was fun and taught me lots about 'modern' engines and turbos. I've recently met someone who make a performance intake valve (the part that lets the gas/air mixture into the engine) and I am seriously impressed with the product. I am working a deal to get a set installed on a vehicle to have some hard data for results. He wants me to be a distributor for him after we spoke on the phone for an hour about cars and life. Seriously considering it. I also then spoke with another company that makes performance parts for turbo cars (allowed my Caravelle to go from 145HP to 180HP) to talk about being a channel for his valves. He is interested and also having some problems. These are 'good' problems for an entrepreneur to have though. See, his company started as a hobby and is now taking up a lot of his casual time (he has a day job). He doesn't want to take it to a full-time job as he simply wants to enjoy the sport. He is considering selling it. Now, to add into this mix a 3rd company that both of the above ones do business with and compliment each other very nicely. This 3rd company is 'bigger' than both as they are more of a retailer with more products (main stream with all three is turbo-related with a heavy slant towards Dodge vehicles). When I sat there looking at all 3 sites in Firefox (loved tabbed browsing!) I got this giddy and excited feeling that there is a Severe opportunity to make one large combined company all marketed under one brand. I can see it, I can feel it, I can freaking smell it. I have no way to execute it. So, my question to the community is where to start? I have always been a car enthusiast, in fact, much longer than I've played with computers. To me, this is an awesome chance to bring another passion of mine to life and help everyone in the hobby field at the same time! I am at the mercy of my peers for direction.


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