A good rivalry between two equally strong competitors
adds excitement and interest
to a category.
One great example is Coke and Pepsi.
The Cola Wars provide fodder for business media
and free marketing for the companies.
NBA player Chris Bosh
said on The Hour
“You have to have a rival
in sports
to make it healthy.”
That applies to business also.
Don’t have a rival?
Look again.
Your customers always have choice.
Are you a lone wolf?
Then you are a business exception.
According to BusinessWeek
(April 28, 2008),
82% of white collar workers partner
with co-workers.
The ideal group for 54% of respondents
is 3 people.
Why do they work with others
rather than go it alone?
46% say to learn from others.
30% to accomplish a specific task.
I, of course, prefer both.
If I can build a team,
accomplish a goal,
and expand my knowledge base,
I’m happy.
Many companies talk about
how supportive they are of
their local community.
Few companies actually are.
Especially when disaster strikes.
Commander’s Palace in New Orleans
is the rare exception.
They spent time and money
feeding firemen and other emergency personnel
gourmet meals prepared on barbeques.
Not cheapie hot dogs and hamburgers,
gourmet meals.
They didn’t need the media coverage
they received as a result.
This 128 year old landmark restaurant
is full every time I visit.
They do it because they truly believe
in the community.
How can your company better show community support?
I received an email
after yesterday’s failure post.
The reader thought
if I was an experienced product developer,
I would have met my goals,
especially with something as simple
as a book launch.
I had to smile.
First, there’s nothing simple about a book launch.
The market is satuated,
the customer base shrinking.
Second, if a product developer
claims to have never failed once
with any of her hundreds of launches,
he or she is a liar.
A thousand different things can go wrong with a launch.
Failure is part of the job.
I received my royalty statement
for my first novel, Breach Of Trust,
and sales aren’t where I want
them to be.
First I allowed myself to move
through the grieving process
denial, anger, bargaining, depression, acceptance,
then I picked my strategy apart.
Did I still want this?
Yes, writing gives me pleasure
and my novels add value.
Were my original goals realistic?
Yes, other authors with similar novels achieved them.
Was the product good?
Yes, feedback from my few readers have been terrific.
They are surprised at how good the novel is.
Were my promotions working?
Yes, website traffic growth has been healthy.
So my issue is conversion.
My copy can be better
(removing the surprise about how good Breach Of Trust is)
and I could provide more sampling.
I’m not one to succeed immediately.
I have failures first.
The key is to bounce back.
Every once in a while,
I’ll run a Third Time The Charm contest
on my writing site.
Any reader entering 3 contests in the past
is eligible to win.
As entrants don’t have to do anything,
the winners are always surprised.
Of all the readers I’ve dealt with
this group is the happiest.
Suprise is powerful.
It is even more powerful
when there is no additional work required.
Drew’s Marketing Minute
has a great post
on how Disney uses the power of surprise.
Sam Horn, in POP!,
shares her most important presentation lesson.
“Without a first-person story,
it’s all rhetoric.”
First-person stories add emotion,
interest, individuality
to a presentation.
How to make your story zing?
Have it be your story
(or one of your customers).
Collect them.
Write them down
(keep some details to add color).
The right story for the right occasion
is easy to find
when you have a binder full of them
and
because the story belongs to you,
it will ensure no one else is telling it.
I walked into a bookstore last week.
There was a beautiful,
eye-catching arrangement of
bestselling novels.
It was beautiful
but not functional.
A very popular romance novel
was placed at the top.
I wanted this novel.
I didn’t buy it.
Why?
Because I couldn’t reach it.
Judging by the number of copies,
I wasn’t the only one.
Romance readers tend to be women
(78% are women).
Women are, on average, shorter than men
(5′ 3.8″ vs 5′ 9.3″).
Put the romance novels lower on the shelf.
Are your female targeted products
lower on the shelf
(but not too low
as women are less likely to bend over)?
Do your bottles
fit in smaller hands?
Can the packaging
be lifted by shorter arms?
Product design for women
isn’t simply about the color.
As Breach Of Trust is my first novel,
I’ve made a special effort
to care for Breach Of Trust readers
(if you are one,
contact me).
Why?
Because early adopters have
a special place in the innovation universe.
Most people will buy what everyone else is buying.
The rare few go first.
It is human nature.
We’re fundraising for a loved one’s medical procedure.
Our goal was $22,000.
At first, we were struggling.
People saying no.
Until we secured a big donation
(sourced from ourselves).
Then suddenly everyone wanted to contribute.
Take care of your early adopters
and
they’ll take care of you.
Jeff Widman has a great post
on expanding your customer base
by adding channels.
I agree
but with a caution.
Channels added should synch up
with the products.
I was told
I should add podcasts and book trailers.
Why?
I’m selling the written word
and there are plenty of
written word friendly channels
I have yet to explore.
I am more likely to find readers there.