It's safe to say that most know the name Goliath. He represents the large, insurmountable force standing in way of a goal. In a Biblical case, Goliath was a warrior of great size. Those who fought against him quickly learned the power of "big."
Too many small businesses see themselves at the losing end of this battle against Goliath. It's better to have run and lived than to have fought and died. Self preservation aside, this is possibly the biggest business mistake the little guy can make.
Nothing in the world is infinite (okay, nothing in the business world is infinite). And unless you're lucky enough to cater to a clientele full of disposable income, we're all dipping from the same pot. While education and demand can create clients, business is won and lost in the trenches of the repeat faithful client.
Who doesn't love coffee? Let's chat about that dark glorious liquid of choice. Tea lovers...while I don't understand you, you should just substitute words here and there. You'll get the idea.
In downtown Bethlehem, Pa stands a small coffee shop; you're traditional "mom and pop" business. THE WISE BEAN. They're coffee is good. Their prices are fair. The location is okay. The interior space lacks size and layout.I love it, all of it.
The Wise Bean is not creating coffee drinkers. I've never seen them throwing samples at a passerby hoping to get him hooked. No, this small business is after the same customer base as Goliath. Today, Goliath will be played by the part of Starbucks. Fitting? Hmmm
The customer base is a finite pot. As new drinkers are born others fade off. But, that finite pool of drinkers is the target. If you don't (or can't) take a share of the pot, you don't make it! Why.would any company like Wise Bean not try to take on Goliath?
Follow me here. The local bean shop isn't killing Starbucks any time soon. But, no one says they can't kick it in the knees and steal some lunch money. If you're not willing to go toe to toe with the big guys, you're not going to grow. And with so much going on in the world today, the opposite of growth is DEATH.
Realistically, there are two key components to a profitable company; a good product and great wording (aka effective marketing). If you have the product you need to show that you can stand with the big guys on quality and value because you can't stand with them on marketing side, at least not when it comes to the money sunk into killing off the competition. Right now, and for the foreseable future, digital marketing is the prime choice to start this battle. Utilizing organizing and paid reach is the easiest way to toss that stone.
There will be others to share that pot with. (note: if those "others" aren't working to market their product like you SHOULD be, they will not be around too long anyway) The key is to extract, and keep, the amount of clientele necessary to reach your goal. And to do that, you must be willing to battle Goliath.
Now, let's look at the bigger picture. There are holes in the analogy. Clearly, coffee shops, including Starbucks and Dunkin' Donuts, use various items to attract non-coffee drinkers. And the big guys don't have much concern when it comes to the mom and pop shops. This is the first win for the little guy. Typically, when larger companies "attack" home grown businesses in order to gain market share, it can have a negative effect. People want to spread money across multiple markets. We want to love the place up the street, and want to utilize the big box stores when necessary. So follow what the big guys do without losing yourself. Their goal is to capture as much of the market share as possible, and continually adapt offerings to increase the customer base.
BUT WAIT; the little guy can do that same. Maybe finances will limit the extent of this, but if you're not trying to diversify your offerings, screw Goliath; you're taking on yourself first. Be willing to fight in the trenches to grab your appropriate share.
Now, let's look back and see what all of this babbling adds up to. It's simple math, the one who has the most customers (greatest clientele) with reasonable margins is winning. You can win, even if you're only beating the old model of yourself. It could be that Goliath isn't the mega-store down the street, but a road block in your mind. This happens more often than it should. You need to be willing to change and adapt in order to grow.
It's nearly 2016. What do you want from business in the coming year? If growth isn't in your future, then you might as well shut your doors now. Your competition is out there seeking new ventures and greater horizons. Don't let yourself be stuck behind them. Take on Goliath. Throw that stone. And most importantly, once the stone is tossed, don't expect miracles. One stone won't make Goliath take a dive, nor do you need to have your competition go down. Competition can be good for YOUR business model.
The world is a changing place. If you don't change with it, you'll never be able to throw the stone. You'll never have a stone to throw. And analogies aside, without adaptation to tomorrow's trends, you'll be stuck here, today, reading something like this blog and wondering where you went wrong. Embrace technology. Accept the fact that SOCIAL marketing is the now, and it's not going anywhere soon. If you're still paying to be listed in the yellow pages, stop. Take that money and throw it out a window. OR, invest it in your tomorrow. Buy a rock to toss and a sling to carry the load.
The keys to business, and taking on the giants, is simple; have a good offering and the right wording. YOU make the difference in you. Provide what people want, and utilize the tools to show you have just that.
No comments:
Post a Comment